Live from NCL Spirit 06/21/23-07/05/23 - Alaska B2B Vancouver to Seward to Vancouver

[Tyskie]

5 hours ago, Seas2mountains said:

They also have a challenge coin, patch for each ship and a pin which are in each cabin on embarkation day for those who have registered on NCL.com and ID.me with their military service information which also is how the 10% military discount is applied. 
 

My DH has attended many of the get togethers - is it just for active duty & retired or for all veterans?  First time I'm seeing the patches and coin.

[Seas2mountains]

7 hours ago, YVRteacher said:

@Seas2mountains what is the name of the botanical garden in Skagway, please? I haven’t been there yet.

It’s Jewell Gardens. Here is the website FAQs but it makes me wonder if they are open. We last visited in August 2019 and I do recommend it. We took the city shuttle there and walked back. 
 

https://jewellgardens.com/faqs-skagway/

Edited June 27, 2023 by Seas2mountains

[YVRteacher]

7 hours ago, GINNY L said:

https://www.glaciergardens.com/  we are going there along with the glacier tour excursion.  We are using the $50 shore credit.  The cost just to get into the gardens is $30.40

Glacier Gardens is in Juneau. I was asking about the garden in Skagway. 

[Seas2mountains]

5 hours ago, Tyskie said:

My DH has attended many of the get togethers - is it just for active duty & retired or for all veterans?  First time I'm seeing the patches and coin.

This is a reception and not one of the informal social gatherings. Has he gone to NCL.com to link his account to his military service verification with ID.me? Once his account is linked, you will get 10% off future cruises and you will find a cute “vacation orders” packet with the challenge coin, patch and pin. 

 

It’s for all veterans and active duty or reservists. 
 

[Seas2mountains]

11 hours ago, quack2 said:

Things are going well.  For me, the quality of a cruise depends on my wildlife photo opportunities.  Sitka wasn't bad.  Otters, raptors and bear excursion.  Saw some otters and some uncooperative whales.  Raptor Center and Fortress of the Bears was nice, but a little rushed, IMO.  Sitka weather was fantastic.  The kind of day you hope for but never expect in Alaska.

 

I decided not to do whale watching in Juneau, instead going to Mendenhall and the Glacier Gardens.  Glacier Gardens was disappointing.  A few upside down flower trees and a steep, fully loaded tram ride up to a viewpoint.  Guide wouldn't stop talking or stopping the tram to let us photograph something.  Mendenhall was nice.  Been there several times before but it's been a few years.  Returned to Juneau and had lunch at Deckhand Dave's.  Excellent fish tacos.

 

In Skagway I rented a car from Avis and drove north to Carcross hoping to see bears on the side of the road. l've done this before and have always had great success with photographs.  Yesterday I didn't see a single bear.  Landscape were nice though.  Went back to Skagway via Dyea.  Got a couple of nice bald eagle in a tree shots.  Very expensive rental car ($350ish).

 

Going out today in Icy Strait to shoot whales with Glacier Wind.  This is my favorite whale photo port.  Wish the light was better but will do the best I can.  Shawn, Teresa and Casey at Glacier Wind are great people and run great whale watching outings.  Now, if only the whales will show themselves . . .

 

P.S.  enemy ship approaching on starboard side.  Could be the Millenium.

Thank you for your update. I always like to hear about different excursion recommendations. How was your whale watching excursion today?  We had a great time and enjoyed our whale watching excursion through NCL despite the rainy day. 

[YVRteacher]

15 minutes ago, Seas2mountains said:

It’s Jewell Gardens. Here is the website FAQs but it makes me wonder if they are open. We last visited in August 2019 and I do recommend it. We took the city shuttle there and walked back. 
 

https://jewellgardens.com/faqs-skagway/

Thank you! It seems to be closed. The glassblowing would have been something I would have loved.

 

Looking forward to hearing about your glacier viewing and your day in Seward. Fingers crossed for lovely weather for both.

 

[Seas2mountains]

Day 6 daily. 

[Seas2mountains]

Day 6 daily in PDF. 

NCL Spirit day 6.pdf

[YVRteacher]

Oh you have Jackson Rayne!  I loved him on the Bliss two years ago.  In addition to his big theatre shows, he gave his time to do a session in the atrium about his life story, experience during Covid and escapades as a traveling magician. Great guy.

 

Are you going to the Thriller dance class tonight to show them all some moves??

[Seas2mountains]

Good evening from a foggy sail away from Icy Strait Point. It was raining most of the day although it was light. Unfortunately, this has been our foggiest Alaska cruise out of six cruises.  It has meant that it hasn’t been as scenic cruising in the evening. 

 

The highlight for today was an NCL Whale and Marine Mammal Watching excursion.  We did have to stand in the light rain/drizzle for about 20 minutes while we waited to board the two deck boat. It held 149 passengers and was almost full. We were able to get two seats by the window on the top deck. They have all passengers seated in very comfortable seats while the boat moves and all can get up and move around in the sheltered area or walk out on the open deck area.  The rain was lighter at the whale watching area than we experienced in ISP. 
 

One baby whale put on quite a show for about 20 minutes as it was almost jumping continuously.  It was so fun to watch! My husband and I both took videos. I have a few photos which aren’t the greatest quality as it was with my phone through a window. We would do this excursion again. Don’t worry about the weather as it is very comfortable and dry on the boat. The whales will still jump and breach in rainy weather.  
 

The baby whale was estimated by the tour operators to be about 20 feet long and about 20 tons. 

[Seas2mountains]

This was the new-to-me cocktail that I had yesterday. It was good but it was poured from a pre-mixed batch so I’m not sure how it  would taste if freshly made. 
 

I had a matador before dinner last night. I tried getting a second one as a night cap in the Local but it was not good so I didn’t drink it and we went to Henry’s Pub to get a good one made. 

[YVRteacher]

Yes-always get a good matador.

 

The watermelon twist is one of the Sail and Sustain cocktails. It’s too sweet for me.

[quack2]

46 minutes ago, YVRteacher said:

Thank you! It seems to be closed. The glassblowing would have been something I would have loved.

 

Looking forward to hearing about your glacier viewing and your day in Seward. Fingers crossed for lovely weather for both.

 

Drove by there on Sunday.  Appeared to be closed long-term.

[YVRteacher]

That’s probably a good thing. The last time I did glass blowing I burnt my hand, my eyebrow and my boob.

[Seas2mountains]

On 6/23/2023 at 7:48 AM, cruiseny4life said:

Unfortunately, I am very boring so I don't have a lot to say, but I do know I enjoy a vodka, club soda (no carbs), with a splash of cranberry juice (thanks for the rec, @laudergayle). I don't want the entire drink red. Just slightly pink. Some bartenders know what a splash is vs. a giant pour. others...not so much. I drink both versions to prevent the alcohol abuse. Also, I enjoy an Aperol Spritz (not non-sugary, but not terrible). 

 

Same with grenadine....Just a splash and it makes me happy in virtually any drink. 

 

If you come up with any better drinks (I recognize mine aren't great), I'd love to hear them!

Thank you. I do like gin especially the ‘66 Gin by Norwegian with club soda but will have to try the vodka with club soda with a splash of cranberry juice. And I have 8 more days to try new drinks. 😀

[Seas2mountains]

32 minutes ago, YVRteacher said:

Oh you have Jackson Rayne!  I loved him on the Bliss two years ago.  In addition to his big theatre shows, he gave his time to do a session in the atrium about his life story, experience during Covid and escapades as a traveling magician. Great guy.

 

Are you going to the Thriller dance class tonight to show them all some moves??

We are staying in Magnum’s as this is where B12 will be playing two sets. We wish they were in Spinnaker as it is a better venue to watch Alaska scenery even if it is foggy.  We have a scenic spot in Magnum’s which is above the atrium. We are very well taken care of by Jane, Cherryl and Made. 

 

We did not see Jackson. Maybe we will on the second half.  Thank you for the recommendation. I bet you and Dad are getting really excited to cruise in about a week?!?

[quack2]

53 minutes ago, Seas2mountains said:

Thank you for your update. I always like to hear about different excursion recommendations. How was your whale watching excursion today?  We had a great time and enjoyed our whale watching excursion through NCL despite the rainy day. 

The whales were really active today.  I was on a six person catamaran.  I'm guessing you were on one of the red boats.  Several breaches while we were on our way out to the whales.  Could see from a distance and fortunately they stayed at for awhile after we arrived.  Capturing breaches is tough.  First, the whales have to be breaching.  Then, you have to be pointing your camera in their general vicinity.  I think I got one good breach but I'm afraid to look at my photos in case I missed out.  I think on a mirrorless or DLSR, a wider angle is better than a big zoom for whales.  I had a 100-400 on a crop sensor (160ish to 600 ish), and a 24-240 on a full frame.  I was switching back and for a lot

 

Anyway, fun day trying to capture the whales.

[Seas2mountains]

11 minutes ago, YVRteacher said:

That’s probably a good thing. The last time I did glass blowing I burnt my hand, my eyebrow and my boob.

When we were there in August 2019, I think they had demos of glass blowing but I can’t remember if they let anyone try it. 
 

And sorry if I’m being insensitive laughing at your burns but I know I laughed at myself when I burned my eyebrows when attempting to BBQ food when I was a young adult and still laugh about it. 

[YVRteacher]

We are both excited! Your photos and trip report are greatly contributing to that. Thank you-it’s such a joy to be part of this thread and to share in your delight of both Alaska and the NCL Spirit.

[quack2]

1 hour ago, Seas2mountains said:

Good evening from a foggy sail away from Icy Strait Point. It was raining most of the day although it was light. Unfortunately, this has been our foggiest Alaska cruise out of six cruises.  It has meant that it hasn’t been as scenic cruising in the evening. 

 

 

I'm like the guy you don't want to be behind in the check out line.  I don't recall being on an Alaska cruise with more nice days than grey, overcast and usually wet.  An occasional super spectacular day, but rarely, if ever, a string of them together.

 

. . .  but I keep coming back.

Edited June 27, 2023 by quack2

[Seas2mountains]

We had a reservation at Cagney’s at 5:30pm. We tend to eat earlier than we eat at home to spend time and take advantage of all of the entertainment options. There were about 10 people ahead of us in line. They were all being turned away or were encouraged to come back at 8pm. 
 

For some reason, they seated us at.a  5 top table instead of a 2 top. It was near the window so we definitely didn’t complain. .  I ordered the shrimp appetizer and Caesar salad.  My husband also got the shrimp but he didn’t want soup or salad so he ordered a second appetizer with it being the Oysters Rockefeller. For the entrees, I ordered a filet which my husband and I shared and he got the grilled fisherman’s platter and we shared some of that, too. We got onion rings, broccoli, spinach and mushrooms for side dishes.  For dessert, we saved room to get the 7 layer cake for my husband and the hot blueberry oatmeal cobbler with vanilla ice cream for me. 
 

We were happy with all of the food and the service.  
 

This afternoon we made all of our 6 dinner reservations (2 FAS, 2 FAS+, and 2 for Latitudes) for the second half of the cruise. 

[Seas2mountains]

34 minutes ago, YVRteacher said:

We are both excited! Your photos and trip report are greatly contributing to that. Thank you-it’s such a joy to be part of this thread and to share in your delight of both Alaska and the NCL Spirit.

Thank you for all the great suggestions and all you are contributing to this thread. I’m excited to “stay” on the ship with you for your review. 😀

[Seas2mountains]

The new-to-me drink tonight was one suggested by Made in Magnum’s. 
 

Moscow Mule. I would order it again. 

[GINNY L]

7 hours ago, YVRteacher said:

Glacier Gardens is in Juneau. I was asking about the garden in Skagway. 

My bad.  I do apologize

[GINNY L]

7 hours ago, Seas2mountains said:

This was the new-to-me cocktail that I had yesterday. It was good but it was poured from a pre-mixed batch so I’m not sure how it  would taste if freshly made. 
 

I had a matador before dinner last night. I tried getting a second one as a night cap in the Local but it was not good so I didn’t drink it and we went to Henry’s Pub to get a good one made. 

Thank you for taking the time for all your detail information and pictures.  I enjoy Henry's pub.  They do have most of the top shelf liquors.  Do you remember the names of your bartenders?