Prequel: Apologies, Gentle Reader, for neglecting you the past few days. I had a thumbs-up at my doctor’s appointment (hooray!) but then had to finish the Entirety of Jane Eyre for my class on Thursday. Yes, I’ve read it a hundred times. No, that doesn’t mean I get to slack off and not reread it for teaching. Yesterday, too, was a blur of appointments and routine blood tests, so it’s not until now that I’ve had a moment to think, and blog. So I sit with an iced coffee–despite the cooler temps, it is still swampy in my Midwest Town–and plan to detail another aspect of our trip.
Regatta, morning: We woke up early again, foiled as we were by the early light. Managed to go back to sleep for a little while, but the excitement of finally–finally!–arriving in Alaska made sleep rather difficult. A delicious breakfast later, and we were ready to disembark at the Ketchikan port.
Ketchikan, morning: What an adorable town, Gentle Reader! It looked like every picture you’ve ever seen of a charming port town, with mist-covered mountains in the background, different colored boardwalk buildings, even the ship got to dock right next to the shops. DH and I set off through Ketchikan, as our tour wasn’t until the afternoon, and our first stop was a Pandora-selling jewelry store. I have two Pandora bracelets, and wanted to get a charm to commemorate my trip to Alaska. Lo and behold, we found a cruise ship charm engraved with “Alaska”! I immediately purchased it and added it to my second bracelet. I love it. Then, DH and I set off through the town, exploring Creek Street and the old Red Light District–not so shocking to those of us from New Orleans, perhaps?–several shops along the way, and totem pole parks. We stopped at a place next to the Lumberjack show (its name now escapes me) to get the best smoked salmon chowder in existence. I also got fish and chips with fresh-caught Alaskan fish, and DH got fish tacos. We shopped some more, and then headed to the pier to catch our Duck Tour.
Ketchikan Duck Tour, afternoon: What fun! Unfortunately, it was raining, which was to be our sad song in Alaska every. single. day, so our tour was covered, but we took a nice trip through downtown, some of the more populated suburban areas, and then, as promised, went into the water and toured a bit that way. What a fabulous experience! DH and I were quite pleased we had picked the Duck Tour in Ketchikan to explore the town. We arrived back at pier, called the parents on both sides, and then headed back to the boat for reading and napping before dinner.
Regatta, evening: We were gifted with a second evening at Toscana, and the food there, once again, did not disappoint. I had the lasagna, and our waiter insisted on bringing us the fish of the day, which was divine. The food at Toscana, and the service, really makes Oceania Cruises a step above the rest, in my honest opinion. We were treated exceptionally well, and never made to feel out of place, or anything but At Home.
Postscript: Another epic misadventure from Regular Hotel followed us on the cruise! Come to find out, they charged us for three nights plus incidentals, all set as “pending” on our credit card, which came out to about $1000. We’re still dealing with this issue. Regular Hotel has a lot to answer for, given our terrible first night trying to get a room there and the overcharging.
The Postmodern Bluestocking 