Day 1 – 5/21 We left for our Alaska cruise. We flew to Seattle, Washington to board the cruise. The flight went well, the crew was very nice to the kids. The pilots allowed Demario and Jade in the cockpit and they answered their questions. We were all very excited to land. We met up with Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Matt, Uncle David, and Jeremy. After we boarded the boat, we ate and the fun started. The weather was cold, but it was great. The kids found activities to keep them busy until dinner. After dinner we saw a show. Although it was an early day, the day seemed to fly by. By the time we were ready to call it a day, we were very tired.
Day 2 – 5/22. This was a sea day. We stayed on the boat. They had activities for everyone. The weather was pretty cold and very windy. The boat did a lot of rocking which made Jade feel ill at times. The swimming pool was splashing around a lot. Demario thought it would be a good time to give swimming a try. He got in to about his shoulders and got out saying it was very cold. At least he tried it. The kids went to their clubs to enjoy the activities. We played games on board. Diego gambled for the first time. Being on international water, the gambling age is 18. He liked it. This was our first formal night. The kids looked very nice in their outfits.
Day 3 – 5/23. The Icy Straight. Our first day in Alaska! Before we docked, we played games. Diego won an award for a ring toss game. We visited Hoonah. This is very small town. Demario stayed on the ship swimming and playing games. Diego, Emilio, Matt, Jeremy, and David went on the zip line. Jade, Grandma, Grandpa, and I walked around the town. The weather was cool, but very nice. We ate some fish and chips. The fish was fresh from the waters of the town and was actually quite good. I’m not a fish person, so for me to say it was good, it must have been good.
Day 4 – 5/24. Skagway. We arrived super early. We did not really have any planned events so today we were able to walk around and enjoy the little town and the scenery. The weather was windy and cool, but it was great. The town was peaceful and all the stores were next to each other. The views were something that you would see in the movies. There was snow on the top of the mountains and lots of trees everywhere. As the day went on, the sun came out and it warmed up a little bit. We took pictures with the train. We all got souvenirs. We boarded the ship shortly in time to have lunch. Because we were in Alaska, we were able to video chat with Jeo. We always miss him so much when we are on the cruises but understand someone needs to be available to take care of things at home. It was good to talk to him and the kids loved to see him and say hi to him and the dogs. We were able to show him the room as well as some parts of the ship. After dinner, we went to a show. The show was called The Battle of the Sexes. This is where it’s boys against the girls. Jade was picked to participate. She did great and had a great time playing. The girls did not win, but she had a great time. Diego played at the casino with his uncles at Blackjack. He came during the game and was able to watch Jade.
Day 5 – 5/25. Glacier Bay, Alaska. We did not get off the ship today. What we did was we sailed around Glacier Bay. The weather was nothing less than awesome. The view was nothing less than jaw dropping, inspiring. The park rangers boarded the boat in the morning and they went on the loudspeaker to share what they could see with the animals as well as the different mountains and valleys. We were not able to see all of the animals as we did not have binoculars, but we were able to see some sealions. The glaciers were beautiful. The entire experience lasted a few hours. The views were the best in the beginning. There was snow on top of the mountains. The water was very calm. When activities started back up, everyone went and did their own thing. Demario and Emilio went to their clubs. Jade and Diego were doing trivia games. After dinner, we watched the evening show. This was the 70s theme. Grandma and Grandpa participated in the show. They were having a great time. It was fun to watch them have a good time. We did not see Emilio too much today. He was mostly at his club. It’s great the kids are able to make friends and have fun.
Day 6 – 5/26. Ketchikan, Alaska. The boat arrived early. After breakfast, we exited the boat and headed to our first event of the day which was a lumberjack show. This show was very fun to watch. This was 4 guys divided in half making two teams competing for the win. This show explained the history of the loggers between the US and Canada. After the show was over, Diego, Emilio, and Demario (as well as their uncles) did an axe throwing. It was more of a competition. Whoever hit the wooden target got to go on to the next round. Uncle Matt won the competition. This was something that they paid for. Although it was an experience, the price of what they did was not very worth it. They had good attitudes throughout the axe throwing. We walked the town for a while. We saw the totem poles and the houses that originally made up the town. The views were pretty. The weather was actually warmer than expected. Everyone said the previous day was very cold and that today was perfect. We were able to walk around without any jackets. The sun was out the entire day. We arrived on the boat and headed to the games after lunch. The kids enjoy the Hasbro game that is played on the ship. Jade was looking forward to this since we arrived on the ship. She, Diego, and I went to the show. Diego and Jade were selected to participate in the game. They played a giant Connect 4 game. They threw a ball into the slots to connect the 4. Their team won. After the two games were over, they picked a Monopoly piece that is in the form of a card and they insert that into a machine. The machine tells them how many points they earned. The winner with the most points wins the grand prize. Diego and Jade did not win the main prize; however, they had a great time and did win a small prize. We proceeded to another game after, Speak Out. A plastic mouth guard is placed into one player’s mouth to prevent them from speaking certain words clearly. The other players in the game try to figure out what is being played. Jade was the one speaking the words. Diego and I were the ones trying to figure out what she was saying. The other teams had two and four correct cards. We ended up with nine correct answers. It was a lot of fun and she did great. It was so funny to see her face and play the game. She was trying to get a ship on a stick and was excited to win one. The rest of the players received a medal. It was a formal night. The kids dressed up again. The nightly show was based around rock. We love the show each night, but this night, I enjoy more. The preshow has someone playing a bass guitar and it’s awesome how well they play. After this show, the kids went to their clubs.
Day 7 – 5/26. Victoria, Canada. Our last stop on this fun cruise vacation. We were at sea until the afternoon where we stopped in Victoria. During the day, we played more games. We woke up and had a brunch with everyone. After breakfast, we played a picture scavenger hunt. It was Diego, Jade, and me. We found a lot of the items on the list. We tied with another team. The tie breaker was a trivia question. Diego was representing our team and he answered the question correctly. We won a ship on a stick. After this game was over, we did a bean bag toss. Diego won the toss for his round and won another ship on a stick. Today was his day for winning games. The show for today was the Lip Sync Battle. That was fun to watch. Jade and Demario’s club, Circle C participated. Demario did not want to dance on stage, but Jade did and she did a great job. We had our last dinner for the cruise. Diego and Jade danced with the servers. It was great to see them having so much fun. After dinner, we prepared for our return home. It finally came time to check out Canada. The weather was perfect. The views were pretty. It was a great experience. We did have to walk about 20 minutes into the city, but it did not feel long. On our way back to the ship, we were able to get our passports stamped with the Canada stamp. We were excited for this. If you are wondering where Emilio was, he was having fun with this club on the ship. He got off the ship for a short period of time and then headed back to the boat for more fun.
5/27 – Home. This week was so much fun. The views and experiences were once in a lifetime. We were fortunate that each day was perfect and everyone was saying we arrived on a perfect day. It was great to spend time with family. We were excited to see Jeo and the dogs, but sad to say good-bye to the fun. Thank you to Grandma and Grandpa for a great time and experience.
-Alisha
