Juneau, Alaska - August 10, 2009

So, continuing my journey in Alaska: on friday August 8, 2009, we got on the Rhapsody of the Seas and departed Seattle. The boat departed around 4:30 friday afternoon and we wouldn't arrive in Juneau until Sunday morning. So, we were out on the open seas all night friday and all day Saturday. Saturday night was our first formal night so we got all dressed up for dinner. However, the seas had been a little rough all day and I was getting a little queasy. I went up to Deck 4 to take pics of all of us, then I went back to my stateroom and didn't make dinner that night. The boat was rocking and rolling, man, but after a little while I was okay.

When you board the ship you go to your stateroom or you can go up to Deck 9 for the buffet. Guess what we did? We found our stateroom and then booked it to Deck 9 for buffet! We were ready to get started on our foodfest.... We actually got on the boat around 12:00 so we had plenty of time before dinner at 6:00. At dinner, since our party was of 7 people, we were sitting with 3 people we didn't know. But, that was okay, because we got to know them. Three ladies that were very nice. Two teachers and one lady that works at a juvenile detention center. We met Rhonda, a teacher from Tennessee, Karen, the juvenile detention worker from Virginia, and Crystal, a teacher. They were all friends travelling together. Very nice people. It was fun to get to know them. Karen and Rhonda were going back to their homes in Virginia and Tennessee but Crystal was going to a remote village in Alaska to teach after the cruise. This cruise, we met a lot of people from all over the world. We even sat with a family at breakfast one day from South Africa. When I heard their accents I thought they were going to be from England but surprisingly they were from South Africa. Cruises are so much fun..you get to meet a lot of people.

After dinner we attended the Broadway Melodies theatre and saw the show. The first night was a comedian. Sorry, I forgot his name. He was really funny. These shows are usually along the lines of a Broadway (hence the name Broadway Melodies) show and they are entertaining. One night we were extremely surprised when they had the original Drifters on board. What a show that was! They were very entertaining. If you don't know who the Drifters are they are a Du-wop group from the 50's. I loved it!

On Sunday we arrived in Juneau, Alaska. Things I didn't know about Juneau: It is the capital city of Alaska. for some reason, I thought Anchorage was the capital city. So, guess what, the governor's mansion is in this city. I was hoping to see Sarah Palin but alas, she wasn't there. Also, you cannot get to Juneau by road. You have to get there by boat or plane.

What a pretty town Juneau is. Me, Tim, Nate and Stephanie took a bus to the summit in Juneau and saw the Mendenhall Glacier. What a beautiful place! Amazing! On the trail to the glacier we saw a bear in a tree. I took a picture but you can't really tell what it is so I won't post that one. The glacier was magnificent. When a piece of the ice falls off you can tell because the ice will be a little more blue where it fell off. Something about Alaska I noticed is all the waterfalls. These are waterfalls that come off the glaciers. Absolutely beautiful! My pics and my words can never express how beautiful this place is. And, just think, God created all this...

This past Sunday the Adult Ensemble group sang a song called, "How Great You Are". It really made me think about all the beautiful things I saw in Alaska. God is awesome that He created such a beautiful place.

How Great You Are
How Small I am
How awesome is your mighty hand
And I am captured by the wonder of it all
And I will offer all my praise
With all my heart for all my days
How Great You are, How Great You are, How Great You are

So, until next time, more about the trip....Next stop, Skagway, Alaska.

Kimmie