Life is a Journey not a Destination
Day 1 – Alaskan railroad to Seward & onboard Radiance of the Seas
Day 2 -Hubbard Glacier
Day 3 – Juneau
Day 4 – Skagway – White pass railway
Day 5 – Icy Point Strait – Humpback whales
Day 6 – Ketchican
Day 7 – At Sea
Day 8 – Vanvouver
Our last cruise day and a day at sea. We had a VERY lazy day as you will see, starting with room service.
We had planned to eat on our balcony but it was a bit wet 
.
At 10am we went to the movie theatre to see You Again which we really enjoyed.
Then back our room for some more reading – I’m reading the latest Janet Evanovich – Smokin’ Seventeen. Later we headed out for a spa in the Solarium and then got some lunch from the Park Cafe – any guesses what I had? Yep, another veggie quesadilla. When then went the thermal suites for some more relaxing on the heat bed.
We’ve been disappointed here for the second time as the steam rooms haven’t been warm enough to bother using, except for the one that drips boiling hot water from the ceiling – and that’s just rather painful. Back to the room again for more reading. I finished my book (that I only started yesterday) and started packing our suitcases. We then headed out for our last dinner. We decided to go back to Rita’s as we enjoyed our meal there and the atmosphere is very nice. We ordered the same as last time.
Kevin really wanted dessert but we were both full so we got them to go. And he really wanted to try both of them. Banana enchiladas (Kevin is a real sucker for any desert with banana) and churros. He said they were both great. I ate some of the ice cream 
.
So sad that it’s almost over.
Tomorrow : Seeing the sights in Vancouver.
12 night cruise onboard Royal Carribeans Jewel of the Seas.
I woke up around 4am when the ship started pulling into Harwich harbour. I tried to dose a bit more but eventually gave up when we docked. Kevin woke up not long after and got the internet working for us. I was able to check e-mail again which was great.
Finally everyone was awake and dressed around 6am (glad we gained an extra hour of sleep last night) and went to our last breakfast in the dining room. I didn’t take my camera (for the first time all cruise) but had a very yummy cheese omelette and my last delicious dark chocolate donut.
We then back to our cabin to finalize packing our last bits and pieces, then it was time to to meet in the Coral Theatre and depart the ship. Kevin was reminded upon leaving to collect his leatherman, which he did and were finally off and collecting our luggage.
It took us a little while to work out where we were supposed to meet Barry with our motorhome but eventually we did. We had to haul everything over the railway line – but we manage to find two trolleys along the way which made things easier. And just as we exited the lift we saw the motorhome drive into the car park – talk about perfect timing!
We spent the next hour going over how everything worked in the van and then we set off the next part of our adventure. First up was a 40min drive to Jimmy’s Farm. Kevin quickly got the hang of driving the big MANUAL van and I loved driving the country lanes with cute little towns.
The Sat Nav Kevin bought is really good and gives very clear instructions about where to go. We arrived at Jimmy’s Farm at 10am and weren’t sure where to go or what to do.
Kevin went and paid for whatever we had to pay for and we went in to the see the animals.
Turkies…
Ferrets….
Guinea Pigs….
A whole lot of guinea pigs had been dumped off over the weekend and the lady treating them was very good about telling us what she was doing.
We then went to have some morning tea as we were getting hungry. I had the most delicious lemon drizzle cake. WOW – so good! We bought another 2 pieces so we could all share .
Kevin and Amy shared a burger (made from the rare breed pigs breed on the farm). They both said it was delicious.
We could see the extensive vegetable gardens, and were very envious of the large strawberry patch.
Then it time to do the woodland walk. This was lovely. So peaceful and quiet (thankfully we didn’t take this at the same time as the 2 group of school kids that were also visiting the farm). Christy was especially excited to spot these little doors in the trees.
After the walk we visited the butterfly house – which was just full of gorgeous flowers and butterflys.
Next we saw the rest of the rare breed pigs. They are smelly and noisy but very cute. All the animals here certainly have a wonderful a life while it lasts.
We then went to the chicken area – wow, talk about chicken heaven.
We let Christy have a play at the play area while we sat and relaxed for a bit.
Last stop was the farm shop where we bought some strawberries and raspberries and a few other items.
Jimmy was apparently here today but we never saw him – much to our disappointment. We really did enjoy our visit here and are glad we made the effort to come.
Time to hit the road for the big drive to Portsmouth. We drove for around an hour before stopping at a Little Chef for some lunch.
I couldn’t believe how many vegetarian options were on the menu – not to mention organic food on the kids menu. I chose the tomato soup and it was delicious.
We then continued on to Portsmouth. It was a long drive. Including another stop it took around 4 hours so we were very glad to see the ocean and know we were close.
We found the caravan park, only to discover our booking was for tomorrow night. Not to worry there were plenty of spots and we were given one right by the beach.
The girls came back very excited by the fact the beach was covered in pebbles, and not sand.
We hadn’t managed to find a supermarket so after getting the van set up we walked to a nearby SPAR to get a few essentials, including dinner for tonight.
Then came the tiring part of unpacking our suitcases and trying to find homes for all of stuff. It’s a cute van and would be fine for two people but it’s very squeezy for the four of us. We were all pretty grumpy by bed-time but hopefully we’ll get into a routine in the next few days and it’ll be fine.
Can’t believe it’s the last day of the cruise. Sad in a one way but we’re looking forward to being in the motorhome and being able to do things on our own time schedule.
Another lazy morning. We woke around 6.30am (except for Christy). Amy and I went up to Windjammers for some tea (and a donut). We sat and read for a bit until it got too cool, then went to the library to read until 8am.
Back to the room to find Christy still asleep. We read for a bit, then got dressed and eventually Christy woke up and went to breakfast in the dining room.
It was 10am by the time the girls headed to kids club. We went to look at our photos (and bought one) and checked out the shops one more time. I had planned to buy a gift for a friend’s husband whose family is from Estonia but I forgot so I tried to get something on board but they had nothing – sorry Jody!
I then started the fun job of packing everything back up ready to put our bags out later tonight. At 11.15am we had a call from Amy reminding of the kids club talent show. Lucky she did since we had totally forgotten about it. As always it was fun watching all the kids – Amy sang and Christy hulla hooped.
It was time for lunch and I wanted another vegetarian sandwich from the Seaview Cafe so we headed there. It was quite cold on deck so we ate inside.
We then came back to the cabin and did some more packing. Christy went back to kids club.
Kevin and I went and used the thermal suite for the last time and the met the girls back in the cabin at 4pm so we could have a swim and spa and enjoy out last mocktails.
Time to get ready for dinner for the last time.
Another lovely meal but I think we’re all looking forward to eating more of our normal food again.
We said our farewells to Melissa and Osbourne and went back to our cabin to do some reading. Amy hasn’t gone to kids club tonight so I waited up for Christy, who came back just after 9pm. We were all asleep shortly afterwards.
Both Kevin and I had a shocking nights sleep – neither of us got to sleep until well past 12.30am and we were awake again around 6.30am. At 7.30am we got up and dressed and had breakfast in the dining room. Today I decided to have pancakes (I only ate one) and some fresh fruit.
The girls went to kids club and Kevin & I headed off on todays tour to the West Coast. We had planned to do the city tour but a few days ago decided we’d seen enough cities and churches and so changed tours. This was a great tour – but rather rushed (and we’ve no idea why). We drove through some beautiful countryside (even with some light drizzle). We had a couple of stops and a fast walk around one of the fishing villages.
And we even saw a Goldie as we walked around the town. The town was so gorgeous but it was weird walking right by peoples windows (and trying not to look in – mind you I look a photo every other minute ). I loved how everyone had either flowers or nautical ornaments on their deep window sills – it was just so cute.
At our last stop (which was 20mins long) we grabbed a cup of tea (coffee for Kevin) and some carrot cake as we were rather hungry and we realized there was no lunch stop until we were back on board around 2.30pm.
We drove back through more lovely countryside.
Once back on board we had lunch at Windjammers.
We then collected our laptops and for the first time since leaving Harwich I got online to check e-mail (where we found out Amy has been accepted into the Selective High School for next year), update facebook and my blog. I haven’t missed it too much but I feel like I’ve bee out of touch for a LONG time.
We went back to the room only to discover Kevin’s room card wasn’t working (and mine was in the cabin) so we went to guest services to get a new one, then up to Windjammers for some tea. I updated todays diary.
Then it was back to the room until it was time to get ready for dinner. Tonight the girls at a Pajama Party at kids club and Christy wanted to wear her PJs to dinner.
Of course, then Anna and Alyssa had to get to changed into theirs when they saw her.
Dinner… The cauliflower fritters weren’t vey nice but desert made up for it .
We both ended up being awake very late so just before 12am Kevin went up on deck to get some photos of us passing under this bridge.
A rather lazy day at sea. A leisurely breakfast in the dining room, followed by some shopping.
I then took Christy to the pool for a slide and play.
Then it was time for lunch.
We then went to the movie theatre and watched “This Is It” which was enjoyable (but sad in a way).
After that we got some tea and went back to the room to read for an hour before we had our appointment with the future cruise consultant. We booked a cruise to Alaska to celebrate our 40th birthdays next year.
Christy came back from club looking like Harry Potter.
Then it was time to get ready for dinner (again). Some times it feels like all we do is eat. Tonight was formal night. I had a delicious Asparagus soup, followed by a salad and mushroom pastry thing (which I ate about half of). No desert tonight as I was too full.
I had wanted to go to the show tonight but Kevin has a sore throat. I wasn’t too worried though as I’m reading a good book. Can’t believe we’ve only got two day left (of the cruise). It was beautiful and calm today at sea.
*** For the first time Christy was allowed to sign herself out of kids club. When she wasn’t back at the expected we called and found out she’d left 5-8mins earlier. It’s only a 2min walk max. so Kevin went in search of her – only to find out outside kids club in the game arcade trying to put money on her cruise card so she could play games – talk about busted!!!
Kevin woke me up at 6.30am. Reluctantly I got up, showered and dressed. We then woke the girls up to them ready and headed up to breakfast at Windjammers. After we’d eaten and I’d had my daily chocolate donut (I’m not a big donut lover normally but these are delicious).
The girls went to kids club and Kevin & I went to meet our tour group. Our bus trip took us to where the big song festival is held every 5 years. There are 30,000 performer and 300,000 spectators – not sure where they all fit.
We drove around for a bit.
We then headed to the old town – exploring the Upper town and 2 more churches – including the 2nd oldest church in the world.
Then we walked down the hill to the Lower town. This was just gorgeous. Lovely old buildings around a big open square.
We had a bit of time to wander around and do some shopping – I bought some handmade cushion covers and a hippo apron for Christy. Earlier in the day I had bought a Matuska doll for myself so I did well today. We then visited a 3rd church for a short concert of Medieval music. This was much better than we’d expected. The singing had an amazing voice.
Then it was time for lunch, which was wonderful. We ate in a lovely resturaunt which overlooked the square. The table was beautifully set and served and absolutely delicious. We enjoyed people watching while we ate.
Even the bathroom here was unique – it was in a converted fireplace.
After a leisurely lunch we boarded the bus and headed back to the ship. The Disney Magic had arrived since this morning and was docked next to us.
We rang kids club to let the girls know we were back on board and then took them for a swim in the Solarium Pool. We had a swim and spa and then enjoyed a slice of pizza.
Then it was time to go back to our room and get ready for dinner. First up I had a very yummy Mushroom Soup. Then Amy announced she didn’t feel well and wanted to go back to the room. After finishing my soup I went back to check on her. While there are room attendent came to make up the girls bed. Once she was settled I headed back to finish my dinner. Unfortunately the tofu wasn’t that good but I ate my veggies. And desert – Banana Cream Pie – more than made up for it.
We finished up dinner early tonight and went back to our cabin. Amy had vomitted but was now feeling a bit better. I think an early night (plus an extra hours sleep due to time changes) will be good for all of us. And tomorrow is a sea day so now early start to the day.
Yes, I know we didn’t actually leave but we still have to pas through customs and be officially stamped in and out of the country.
Unfortunately I woke at 8am and had to get up and get moving. I so wanted to sleep some this morning. Finally everyone was showered and dressed and we had a very speedy breakfast at Windjammers. We picked up some peanut butter for Oksana who had mentioned she likes it but it’s very expensive and hard to get in Russia.
We had a bit of a tour around St. Petersburg first up – having a scare at on the stops when we couldn’t find Christy (Oksana found her climbing on a brick wall).
Our first main stop was Peter and Paul Fortress, in particular the Cathedral where most of the Tzars are buried. There is also a memorial to the last Romanovs – who were all murdered.
Kevin and I had a funny photo taken – only to realize afterwards we had to pay for it!
We then had lunch at a local fast food place – no, not burgers – but Russian pancakes. Lucky we had Oksana with us as the menu was in Russian. I had a pancake with mushrooms and cheese and boy was it delicious.
Next we headed to the Hermitage Museum (at the Winter Palace) – which houses one of the worlds greatest art collections.
It was very busy here and we had a whirlwind tour seeing just the highlights. We were especially excited to see originals by Michelangelo, Leonado Da Vinci, Rembrandt and Picaso.
Not only was the art amazing but so was the building (well, it was a palace). I loved how in EVERY building you needed to look up to really see everything.
We then went on our private cruise – which really was private – we were the only ones on the boat which would have accommodated 100!! It had just started raining while we were onboard so we sat inside but by the time we departed 30mins later the sun was back out again. We enjoyed seeing the town from the water – you can appreciate the architecture that much more when it’s not behind cars and buses.
Then it was time to visit St. Issacs Cathedral. Another busy place and though beautiful, probably our least favourite.
Our last stop was the Church of the Spilt Blood (built on the murder sight of one of the Tzars). This was quite amazing. The locals call it the Disneyland Church. Inside it is lined with mosiacs – most of which were damaged and neglected during WWII and the cold war. Apparently it took 10 years to complete the building and 30 years to repair it.
A brief stop at another souvenier shop then it was back to the ship and time to say goodbye to Oksana and our driver (who’s name I can’t pronouce or spell). We had such a wonderful two days with them and we all fell in love with Russia and would love to stay longer. The tour with Anatasia’s Tour was fantastic and I’m so glad we opted to do a private tour (it actually worked out cheaper and was far better). The girls loved it too – we saw a lot but there was a good variety and Oksana was great at getting the girls involved.
We were back onboard around 5pm so I uploaded some photos and at 6pm we headed to dinner. Just as the rain was coming in.
Nothing much appealed on the menu tonight so I ended up having 2 dinner rolls and some veggies off Amy’s and Christy’s plate. Desert made up for it though – a delicious Kahlua Creme Brulle!
The girls went off to kids club and Kevin & I headed to our room – where I sorted out some washing and typed up both days of our Russian experience. It’s been just amazing and we’re really rather sad to be leaving.
Finally we have made it to Russia. We had an early morning wake up call at 6.15am (after losing yet another hours sleep). We showered, dressed and dragged the kids from bed and off to breakfast (after they got dressed as well). We had a quick breakfast at Windjammers, then headed off the ship. We passed through immigrations with no lines (we just beat one of the cruise tours) and little fuss and Oksana was there to meet us. We then headed off on our tour, where the girls promptly fell asleep!
We drove out to Catherine’s Palace in Pushkin (which was a beautiful town – full of trees, flowers and cute houses). It was beautiful. It had been destroyed by the Nazi’s and painstakingly rebuilt.
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We had to put on little booties over our shoes to protect the parcay floor.
We left here and had lunch on route to Peterhof. We stopped a Russian restaurant.
I had bourst (cold beetroot soup) for lunch – which Oksana had recommended and was much nicer than I expected. Kevin had dumplings and Amy had beef stroganoff. Christy had bread!
Then it was on to Peterhof – the lavish Summer home of the Tzars. It was designed mostly by Peter the Great (who it seems is everywhere in St. Petersburg) and he had fun designing trick fountains – which were turned on much to the surprise of well dressed ladies.
We wondererd around admiring the gardens and fountains, and the Gulf of Finland.
We enjoyed an ice-cream as we strolled and the girls had a photo with Peter The Great and his wife.
Next up was a short ride on the metro. These underground stations are amazing. Such beautiful architechure, complete with real chandellers. Just amazing.
We then had a stop at a shop where the girls picked up matruska dolls.
We then headed back to the ship where we changed and had a quick dinner at Windjammers before meeting our driver again, who took us to into town for the Folkloric show.
There was a lot of traffic and the drivers here are quite mad
but we made it in time to get a seat in the front row.
The show was amazing. Wonderful music and singing and amazing Russian dancing.
We loved it and Christy was sad when it was over. During intermission she had been given a CD-Rom with games on it – which we thought was very thoughtful.
After the show our driver met us and returned us to the ship. It was 9.30pm and we were all hungry again so we headed to the Seaview Cafe for a snack.
Tummies once again full we headed to our room and to bed. Tired but very happy.
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