MILLENNIUM 07.04.07 - 7 night Alaska Southbound with Landtour

MILLENNIUM 07.04.07 - 7 night Alaska Southbound cruise from Seward to Vancouver; proceeded by a 4 night Land tour #6, Southbound from Fairbanks. We opted for an additional pre-day in Fairbanks. We were in familiar aft elevator cabin 7177, category 2B for our29th cruise.
The Master: Captain Michael Karatzas
Madre'D: Ante
Waiter: Arslan, The "Turkish Delight"
Asst: Donny, India
Steward: Caetano
Capt Club Host: Anna Duwel
Chief Housekeeper: Taylan Tanadalan
Tour Guide: Cecelia
Bus Driver: Mike
Group: Originally all the cousins were going but it ended up being Gary, Joanie & Jerry and Myrna Hert and Randi and myself. Jerry was thoughtful enough to get us all canary yellow jackets so we couldn't get lost. Written on it was "Alaska Family Cruise 2008" with all of our names on the back. Everywhere we went, people stopped us to say what a great idea, and it was!


This is the first time I flew 1st class, thanks to points. It was very comfortable. We had a direct flight home, but going out we had on an 8am flight with a 9 hour layover in Seattle.

SEATLE
A 9 hour layover, you say. We made the best of that time by meeting our friends Shahab and Denise Sharifi, who went of their way to show us around town. They also took us on a ferry ride to the market area, and the 1st Starbucks. We had a fabulous brunch in Salty's On Alki on the water, with the Seattle skyline as the backdrop.

After catching up on sightseeing and the missing chapters in our lives, they dropped us back at the airport for the 2nd leg of our flight on Alaska Air to Fairbanks. Fortunately, since we were back early, and since we were international travelers, we were able to take advantage of Continental's President's Club. We had a snack, a drink and a nap.

FAIRBANKS, pre tour
The Fairbanks flight was uneventful and we wound up napping most of the time because it was the middle of night for us. When we arrived at midnight, (4am, NY time) we were simply amazed. The sky was light, in the middle of the night! Midnight there was as light as just after sunset at home! Cars did not need headlights!

We hopped in the Hotel's shuttle van to Sophie Station and surprisingly found a 3 room apartment waiting for us; with a full kitchen, living room, and bedroom. We were able to get out of our clothes and collapse in bed.


FAIRBANKS, Chena Hot Springs
Later that morning a 7:30am, we were picked up for our rental SUV; got a decent, quick, local breakfast and drove about 50 miles, on a not so scenic road, to Chena recreation area to visit the hot springs. I guess the air temp was in the low 50s early that morning but the water was warmer then a hot tub. It was a man made lake, fed by the springs. You couldn't stay in to long and you still felt warm when you got out, so we were able to dry off on a lounge in the sun. The experience was very nice.

As we headed home, we stopped in Walmart. Randi developed a blister from walking around Seattle and I wanted to get her comfortable shoes. We found shoes and souvenirs at a very reasonable price as well as a subway sandwich lunch.

We decided to drop the car early and relax a bit at the hotel. Before we knew it, cousin Gary & Joanie arrived. We met them and our Cruise Tour Guide, Cecilia in the lobby. After getting our documents, the cousins headed to the bar for wine, appetizers and to play catch-up. Dinner was at Zack's, the house restaurant, which was nice but not exceptional. We couldn't stay awake to see Jerry and Myrna arrive, so we decided to call it a night until morning.

FAIRBANKS, paddlewheel
Tuesday opened up with our 1st full day in Fairbanks. We bussed over to the pier and boarded the Paddlewheel Riverboat, "Discovery" and cruised along the Chena River. We saw floatplanes landing and taking off, just for our benefit. We also saw reindeer, mush dogs and a tent smokehouse used for all the salmon they were catching in the salmon trap. The boat ride lasted most of the morning during a overcast day with sprinkles.

The bus dropped us off next in town where we saw some of the most vibrant colorful flowers we have ever seen. In fact all of the flowers in Fairbanks were so colorful, perhaps because of the amount of daylight. We stopped in a nice Italian restaurant, Gamberdella's and had a wonderful lunch. Our server was a local who travels to Brooklyn, NY about 6 times a year for Karate lessons. Good tips, I guess.


FAIRBANKS, El Dorado Gold Mine
Our next stop was the El Dorado Gold Mine where we toured the mine and got a lesson on panning for gold. When we tried our hand on panning, Randi and I came up with about $20 worth of gold combined.

FAIRBANKS, Salmon Bake
Next, was our 1st Celebrity optional excursion, a salmon bake dinner at near buy Pioneer Park. The salmon and fixings were plentiful and good. Cousin Joanie got to ride the giant salmon. All in all it was a fun but long day.

When we got back to the hotel, we picked up snacks at Fred Meyers, a local "everything" store. We ended the day having drinks on the bar's outdoor terrace. This lasted till around half past midnight. No problem though, it was still light out! Even though the sun "sets", it basically just dips below the horizon back up again causing dusk like atmosphere. Nice!

FAIRBANKS/DENALI, Wilderness Express Train.
Wednesday morning was an early one. We boarded a bus for a few miles ride down the road to the local train depot for the Wilderness Express train to Denali Park. As the train rolled along, we had some incredible views of the countryside. About an hour into the 4 hour ride, we were called upstairs to have a very yummy, exceptional, 1st class, choice breakfast.

We continued on with views and expanses that would make a National Geographic photographer envious. Shortly after noon, we arrived at Denali Park.


DENALI, Tundra Wilderness Tour
Denali's highlight was a 9 hour, 92 mile, school bus ride into the park, run by the National Park Service called the Tundra Wilderness tour. You reached a relatively close point to the base of Mt. McKinley (Denali to the locals) and back out again. What we were hoping to also see was wildlife and we were not disappointed. We saw bears, Moose, Caribou, Dahl Sheep, Rabbits and Eagles. At one point, for a good 20 minutes, we parked and watched a mother bear and her cubs romping around in their natural habitat. Simply awesome! While on board we received a box lunch consisting of a roll, a piece of cheese and a packet of reindeer sausage. The sausage was good. We whipped out our garbage bag full with snacks and our cooler of icy bottles of water. We seemed to feed half the bus!

But this was another long day. Before you knew it we were back at our nice accommodations, the McKinley Village Lodge and into the bar ordering drinks and the entire appetizer page of the menu.

DENALI/ TALKEENTNA
We decided on taking Thursday morning off to relax- basically our only free time on the trip. After a leisurely relaxing breakfast and sitting on the porch for a while, it got to be noontime. We boarded a bus to Talkeetna where we would have our 1st small plane experience.


TALKEENTNA
We pulled into the Talkeentna Alaskan Lodge in the afternoon and were immediately impressed looking through the giant picture window at Denali and the expanse of the Alaskan Range. It overtook our entire field of vision. We had a look at our room. It had the same Mountain View. We then headed to the lobby to meet our shuttle to plane.

TALKEENTNA, glacier landing.
The plane had 10 seats and a comfortable flight. We booked the flight to try to land on a glacier but with weather approaching, the last flight was not able to land. We took off knowing that landing was only a possibility.

The sights from above were unbelievable even though it was cloudy; snowcapped mountains, trees as green as they possibly could be and some other small planes were visible in the sky.

All of a sudden the snowy floor of the mountain was converging on us. Next, you can hear a constant swishing sound. We had landed! It was one of the smoothest landings ever.

I won't be able to put into words our next feelings as we exited the plane onto the glacier. It was still... quiet... immensely expansive and for that moment you realized how inconsequential you are when all you can see around you is a panorama of tremendous snowy mountains and ice. You feel like a speck of dirt in an ocean of white.

After an unbelievable 10 minutes in "another world," we trudged back onto the plane and took off as smoothly as we had landed.

On the trip home we saw some wildlife. The pilot thought he was doing a good thing when he flew into a tight circle to get a glimpse at a bear. Well, that did a few people in on the plane, including Randi, and almost Gary who couldn’t wait to get off the plane.

Most chose to eat a light dinner that evening. We ate in the Lodge's dining room with that breathtaking view staring at us.

TALKEENTNA/ANCHORAGE/SEWARD
The next morning, Friday, was our big travel day. First, we motor coached to Anchorage, then onward to Seward, where we would pick up Millennium.

ANCHORAGE
Anchorage was a big Alaska town with a small feel if you know what I mean. We purposely waited to have breakfast here and found a nice coffee shop to park in for a while.

Before you knew it the girls were done and in the shops buying stuff. Since we only had a short stay here, I grabbed Jerry and headed over to the closest wine shop which was about 8 blocks way. This would be the better place then Seward to buy a bottle of wine for "verandah use" on the ship. When we got there at 10:50am, we found the store didn't open until 11, and he waited exactly until 11 even though there was a line of cruisers outside. We each got 2 bottles and I picked up 2 more for Gary. We dashed back to the Motor coach and were back with 10 minutes to spare.

On the way to Seward, I have only two small incidents to report. First, we were traveling down the road, quietly enjoying the scenery, and all of a sudden, we hear the engine of a small plane approaching. It appears to be very low and dropping out of the sky, paralleling the bus. Before you know it, the plane is LANDING ON THE HIGHWAY, directly in front of our bus! According to the bus driver, this is not common, but it is always a possibility in Alaska. The roads and overhead wires are specifically "marked" for this purpose. The bush pilot apparently needed supplies, because he pulled into a general store down the road.

Secondly, the bus driver, embarrassingly forgot to fill his bus up with gas in Anchorage so about midway, he realized he was almost empty. Fortunately, when he pulled over to call his superior, we were near a gas station. I don't recall too many other stations, the whole 110 miles or so from Anchorage to Seward.



SEWARD, embarkation
I guess we arrived in Seward about 3 pm for a 9pm sailing, with an easy embarkation thanks to the Captains Club. The gang enjoyed not having to wait in line. All things considered, the land portion was a wonderful option. We were s glad we planned it. Anticipation was high for the next 7 days at sea.



MILLENNIUM, first hours
Randi and I were wearing our red, white and blue neckerchiefs in honor of Independence Day when we boarded the ship. We dropped our carry-ons in our room and made our way to the Lido buffet. Ahh, Celebrity cuisine again!

We originally expected to get off and see the town of Seward, and it's over swelled population for the holiday, but I think everyone was a little bushed and we decided to explore the ship before the muster drill.

One place that was a hit was the Persian Gardens in the spa. It had a Turkish bath, sauna and warm bench. We signed up for a day-pass on the last sea day. After exploring more we ended up in the martini bar and enjoyed martini tasting. Some in the group found some new favorites.

After the muster drill, it was open seating dinner. One thing I was very worried about was the food quality. Our last cruise suffered so much because of a dip in the quality; we felt then, that we had to address the Food and Beverage Manager to our concerns. This time, there were no complaints. Food again reprised to its old high caliber and top quality. In addition, the menus were totally revamped. You can now choose from 4 entrées, rather then 5. NY strip steak and shrimp cocktail was no longer on the everyday menu. That may seem negative, but since quality was back up, that was easily overlooked.

As we retired for the evening, the group laughed when they approached their cabins and saw what has become a tradition for us- the funny door signs.


HUBBARD GLACIER
Saturday, our 1st day at sea, we relaxed poolside and around the ship. It wasn't until around 2pm we finally sighted the glacier; a big chunk of white and blue ice at the end of a field of small icebergs floating in the water. We were out on our balconies, some in coats, some covered in pool blankets, enjoying the gorgeous landscape and the wine that we brought aboard. The captain masterfully wiggled the ship though the blocks of ice to get incredibly close to the face of the glacier.

Enormous thunderous sounds bellowed and boomed each time the glacier calved sheets and sections of ice into the water below. And again, unless you are there to see and hear it, the sight really is indescribable.

Meanwhile, during the officer’s party which Randi and I attended, we found a former waiter of ours, Taylan Tanadalan from Turkey, who was now Chief Housekeeper It was a pleasure to see him again in his elevated position. His girlfriend was Capt Club Host, Anna Duwel, from Germany. At a get together over coffee later in the trip, we found that they planned to be married last year, again this year and now it is on for next year. Third time is the charm. All dates were postponed due to ship life. We wish them luck.

That night we met our wait staff at formal night dinner for the 1st time. They were very pleasant and accommodating. Another first for us- we turned down the Captain's dinner invitation to be with our cousins for dinner, rather then leaving them alone. I am sure he understood.


JUEANU, Taku Lodge Float Plane Flight and salmon bake.
Juneau turned out to be a crammed day of tours. After breakfast, we walked a bit off the ship and got some local flavor with the overcast skies. The Mount Roberts tram was out because it was clouded over. But before you knew it, we met our representative for our independently booked "Taku Lodge Float Plane Flight and salmon bake" on wingsairways.com. 907.586.6275 (4H @ $274)

It was great. The flight was smooth and picturesque and the lodge was expectedly rustic. When we got there you could see a small bear up a tree, a large glacier across the lake and salmon fillets cooking on the grill. Lunch was delish although they sure pack the people into this little one room structure. All of a sudden you would hear gasps because someone saw a bear on the grounds, just outside the lodge. Jerry actually was outside and got great shots of the bear about 12 feet away. They will stay if you don't move. Once you do, they spook and run for the forest.

We got back a little earlier then expected so we waited for our next excursion while having a beer in the Red Dog Saloon, where the honky-tonk piano player, plays ragtime and insults the crowd

JUNEAU, Whale watch
Next, we were looking for whales on another independent excursion, harvandmarvs.com. 907-209-7288 (3.75H @ $123)

This was my biggest fear for Randi getting sick. Six of us were on a 20' boat heading out for whales. Seas were about 4-5 foot high with a good chop. Captain was doing his best to keep it smooth. On the way out we saw one whale but he knew where the pack was, so he asked if we wanted to go for the gold and we did.

About 18 miles later, there they were; a bunch, couple, herd. They were spouting and blowing, diving and surfacing. Really neat! But this is what I was dreading. The boat had to stop the engines to see the whales. When it stops, it rolls. It didn't take long for Randi to start feeding the fish in the Pacific. She was a trooper though and everyone told her so. Captain even offered her a free hat but she declined. Cousin Gary got the hat instead.

On the way in, we saw seals sunbathing on a buoy, and bald eagles in the tree tops. All things considered it was another good excursion.

SKAGWAY, White Pass Railway
Monday we docked in Skagway. We booked Celebrity's SK49 White Pass Railway & Historic City Highlights 4.5H @ $139. We began by traveling by bus. It took us through town and then stopped at a theater, to see a movie about town's history. Then we re-boarded the bus and traveled though the interior of Alaska.

We made a few stops to view the scenery while we somewhat paralleled the railroad. Some of the scenery was quite breathtaking. We finally arrived at the US/Canadian boarder in Frasier, British Columbia and went through Canadian customs. As soon as we did, we turned off the road to the railroad depot to board the train, for the return trip home.

On the way home I stood between train cars, to get some nice shots of the train making it's way over the trestle bridges, though gorges and past cascading mountain sides. Some on board, found an opportunity to snooze.

When we got back to town, the girls wanted Starbucks while I got some corn chowder. We explored some stores along the way. Most facades were done up in old frontier style and one building included a replica of an old time saloon, with dressed mannequin characters.

While we strolling through the stores, eagle eye Joanie, spotted Calista Flockheart, with her boy toy Harrison Ford, and kids. People gave them their space but some gawked from afar and some others tried to snap photos of the celebrity couple.

When we got to the end of the street, we decided to take the “easy shuttle” back to the ship for a $1.50. Easy, huh? At least 3 shuttles passed by which were not stopping at Millennium's dock, so we decided to give up. Just then, a shuttle approached and it was going our way.

As we boarded we realized that this was going to be the long scenic ride because someone requested a stop outside of town. Uggggh!

It is always satisfying to finally get back aboard ship. You are finally home and this time was no exception.

Maybe it was this night in the casino where I found out that Celebrity changed its policy about talking cash out via your Celebrity card. In the past, I had taken $1000 or more out for playing or for spending. This time they chose to charge a 3% fee without explaining that beforehand. I could have gone to the ATM and got the cash less expensively.

Well to make a long story short, after disagreeing with 2 managers that this was not right, they voided my transaction and all money was restored after I played roulette for about 45 minutes and broke even. Out of the entire very positive vacation, this was the only time I left feeling very negative about the situation. It was a poor decision on Celebrity’s part.


ICY STRAIGHT POINT
Tuesday, we tendered into Icy Straight Point; a locally owned but a partnership with Royal Celebrity. I assume that Royal had some contribution here, particularly with the dockside buildings, since they were so "cruiser friendly." This was the only stop on the trip that Millennium was the only ship in port. It made for some great pictures.

We were also excited because this was the home of Celebrity's, IC21 Brown Bear tour 2.5h $104. Myrna originally wasn't going because she did not want to encounter a bear, but she decided to go anyway. Maybe now we know why she decided to go- there were no bears to be seen. It turned out to be a nice nature walk in the river's valley, to 3 dock-like viewing platforms where you would see bear. As much as we strained, we didn't catch a glimpse. They said the salmon had not come down river yet. In another week or two, there would be a feast for the bears. That didn't do us any good, but we all were good sports about it. I wonder if Randi ever found that salmon I strategically placed in her pockets. I’m only kidding.

The other thing to mention here was the giant zip line ride, where in a seat harness; you would descend from the top of the mountain and out of the clouds, to the coral down below by the water. The current price was $92 for a 90 second ride.

That evening we all met in the Olympic dining room for our specialty dinner. We had done this before and considered it "done," however again, the food and service highly impressed us. The atmosphere was also lovely with the wood paneling from Titanic's sister ship, Olympic. Joanie commented, "What a lovely room." Also we happened to be sitting with great company, the Herts.


KETCHIKAN
On Wednesday, we docked in Ketchikan and tendered into town.

KETCHIKAN, Indian Village
We won't have to tender back since Millennium will be switching berths with Infinity. Some wanted to shop and stay local so I grabbed a $17 taxi and headed to the Saxman Native Indian Cultural Center where they had many totem poles and native crafts. There was a demo of how they make the totem poles in the barn where they actually do the work. The village was a little week and less then I expected.

KETCHIKAN, Creek Street
I found a city bus that for a dollar, got me back to town; a real bargain, I decided to jump off the bus early and walk back to the ship. On my way, I stumbled on Creek Street instead, which is a quirky bunch of stores build on stilts above top of the river. It’s very picturesque.

I passed the Cable car to Cape Fox and continued walking back to the ship and offered to take someone's picture at the eagle carving. They then asked me if I had a family and would I like MY picture taken. I did.

KETCHIKAN, Misty Fords
Finally, I met up with the rest of the gang and we headed over to the KE21 Misty Fords flight see 2h $219, INDP booked at www.taquanair.com 800 770 8800. It proved to be a nice flight; pretty much the same look in the air as the other flights but it was all worth it when we landed on the pristine lake at Misty Fords.

It was as calm, quiet, beautiful and enormous, just as when we landed on the glacier, but this time the landing was on the water. Then, the pilot let Gary and me out on the pontoon of the plane. It was simply beautiful. Those who didn't get out missed a big treat!

The formal dinner that night showed another new menu item. The lobster tail was smaller then in the past but it was served with shrimp and scallops.


INSIDE PASSAGE
The next and last day, Thursday was the inside passage. We packed a lot into our suitcases early so we could enjoy the view and the rest of the day. The passage was different then I expected. It really was like traveling down a river, with green forest on each side. We took advantage of the lounge chairs by the therapy pool and gazed out at the land which was close by, though the head to floor windows. We also took advantage of the Persian Garden room where you can sit on the warm bench or go into the Turkish bath which was all steam, or the sauna which was dry heat. It was a nice way to relax on the last day.


VANCOUVER
After we said our goodbyes in Vancouver, we took a 25 minute cab ride ($42), with a very talkative Canadian cabdriver. He told us that little houses were selling for more then $600K, if they sold at all. He got us to the airport, YVR, or our 1:05pm direct flight home, but the Customs and security lines were long, winding and time consuming. Because of 1st class, at least we were moved to the front of the security line.

The 1st class meal on the plane was great- warm nuts with your choice of beverage; crabmeat and shrimp cocktail for an appetizer salad and a choice of 4 entrees. Both Randi and picked the chicken which was excellent. We might have to go 1st class every time.

All 4 of ours bags of luggage arrived on the carousel quickly, within the first 25 off the plane, obviously a nice final perk for 1st class and the end of our 1st class trip!

Till next time, on Azamara Journey in November.