FLAVOR of WEEKS 25 and 26 - North-West Exposure

I haven't updated in so long... probably because I was out of town for 2 weeks. Our trip was fun - Vancouver, Alaska, and Washington. Here it is in a nutshell:

Week 25:
Sunday
- Deane's end of the year party with studio friends
- Kristen's high school grad party

Monday
- hung out with Mehu and Nika (Tofu House), packed, ate dinner with Deane's friends








Tuesday
- arrived in Seattle, ate at Rock Bottom
- took a Quick Shuttle to Vancouver
- checked into our guest house "Urban Hideaway"
- walked around Granville and Robson Streets, ate yummy Fritz fries and lamb dinner














Wednesday
- explored Vancouver, Stanley Park - ate fiery sushi, tea with aloe, and chocolate fondue












Thursday
- ate at the Elbow Room Cafe (eat all your food or else donate money to charity)
- tour of northern Vancouver - Salmon Hatchery (yummy smoked salmon), Grouse Mountain (bears, birds of prey, and a lumberjack show), and Capilano Suspension Bridge/Treetop Walk





Friday
- returned to Seattle, boarded Celebrity Infinity, departed for Alaska



Saturday
- day at sea - Inner Passage, First Formal/Broadway Hits Show


Week 26






Sunday
- Ketchikan, Alaska
- Rainforest Sanctuary Walking Tour - signs of bears, eagles and their nests, reindeer, totem carver, owl and bald eagle in captivity
- Explored Ketchikan - sampled salmon products and reindeer salami
- Shopping - Ammolite stone and Northen Lights Pendant



Monday
- Day at Sea - viewing of the Hubbard Glacier (chunks of ice fell off the glacier about once a minute - crazy awesome!)






Tuesday
- Junea, Alaska (3 land excursions)
- Salmon Hatchery, Mendenhall Glacier (this is the closest you can get to a glacier.)
- Salmon Bake at the Gold Coast Mine (amazing food, best salmon and baked beans ever! I had seconds and ended up getting food coma afterwards. People panned for gold, and listened to some old western music)
- Dog Musher's Camp and Ride (We got to meet some of the dogs and got to sit in the golf-cart in which they use to train. They pulled us pretty fast! Learned about the Ididerod and about the sport of dog mushing.



Wednesday
- Day at Sea - Second Formal, Farewell Dinner and World Music Show










Thursday
- Victoria, BC, Canada
- Walked the seawalk to the city, stopped at Madame Toussaud's Wax Museum, got a Brown Cow (root beer float) from Roger's, ate at the Irish Pub with 60 beers on tap (sampled a chocolate beer, settled with cider, munched on fries and raw oysters. Deane tried one too. So proud of him!) While we ate we watched CNN's breaking news of Michael Jackson: Dead at 50. So surreal!
- Walked through the park and back to the boat






Friday
- Disembarked in Seattle, WA
- Took a bus to Vanessa and Andrew's
- Explored Green Lake Park (tried Chocolati and World Wraps)
- Ate dinner in the International District (aka China Town) and a Japanese Market
- Walked to a bar down the street to meet up with friends








Saturday
- rented a car at SEATAC, drove up to take a ferry across to Whidbey Island
- ate fish and chips lunch at Ivar's
- Explored Whidbey Island (Deception Pass Bridge and Beach, and then we picked our own strawberries at a local farm)
- Vietnamese food in China Town
- Karaoke - first few songs were tributes to Michael Jackson











Sunday
- Snoqualmie Falls
- Tacoma, WA - ate at Renaissance Cafe, viewed the bridge and dome, walked through the Museum of Glass' Plaza, photos galore
- Mount Rainier - Longmire, Paradise, and then a long drive to Sunrise.
- Hiked on Sourdough Trail to get a great view of the Emmons Glacier (so wierd to see snow in the summertime.)
- Checked into an Extended Stay America near Seattle (for an early flight Monday morning)