Party Time

We got up early this morning to make sure we could say Good Bye to Wendy. Ken made us a wonderful breakfast and then he delivered us to the ship. There were lots of passengers there already even though it was only 10:30. We checked in and got our room keys and then we were ushered to the Elite lounge to wait till it was time to board. Of course the VIP’s were boarded first.

We had to laugh when they announced that the Elite passengers would be boarded first. This ship holds 680 passengers and we heard that more than 400 are elite. The lounge had the usual array of juice and tea and coffee and goodies to keep the Elite happy until they were allowed to board. It was almost an hour before we were ushered onto the ship. No one seemed to be complaining and it all went very smoothly.

When we boarded I remembered how wonderful these ships are. Our cabin is beautiful!!!

 I took lots of pictures and then we went to lunch. The dining room was closed because all of the celebrities were occupying the dining room. We made our way to the buffet, using the stairs and had lunch there. We shared a table with a very pleasant couple from Australia. Ken had scallops for lunch which pleased him greatly.

After lunch we explored a little more and then I returned to the room hoping the luggage had arrived. It had not.

So that gave me time to BLOG

This is what greeted us on the front page of the Patter

Welcome aboard Pacific Princess

Welcome aboard this landmark sailing as we mark a historic milestone, the 50^th Anniversary of Princess Cruises!!

It was exactly 50 years ago today that the Princess Patricia set sail on Princess’ very first cruise in 1965 and now Princess has grown into the third largest cruise line in the world. Pacific Princess is recreating that very same inaugural cruise of course with some new touches and new ports.

In 1965 with a single ship cruising to Mexico, Princess quietly launched a revolution in travel. Over the next few years we added new ships as we expanded itineraries to the Panama Canal, Alaska and the Caribbean. Soon we were crossing the Atlantic!

The 1977 premier of The Love Boat helped to make Princess the most recognizable name in cruising. Today we take our guests to the world’s greatest destinations and introduce them to marvelous and unforgettable experiences.

We’ve planned an anniversary cruise filled with special events and surprises—from a Love Boat cast Q&A and deck parties, golden balloon drops, cultural festivities and musical tribute bands to commemorative menus featuring signature dishes from the past 50 years, exclusive Seawitch craft beer, anniversary pizzas, chocolate Journeys experience from renowned master chocolatier Norman Love!

All of us at Princess are delighted to have you as our guests for this historic sailing and look forward to toasting our 50^th anniversary with you.

Soon it was time to go to Muster and then we brought our PFD’s back to our cabin and then we headed for the sail away party. They had a champagne waterfall and a special performance by the Princess Dancers. Then Sammy Baker, the cruise director introduced The Love Boat cast. It was great , each one spoke for a few minutes.

 Then Jack Jones sang the theme from The Love Boat. All the while the champagne was flowing like water. They were passing and refilling and pouring. They were also passing out the Norman Love chocolate pops. I had one. They are chocolate truffles and they are soooooooooo wonderful.

 I resisted and had only one but I did have 3 glasses of champagne. Because I ate so very little for lunch I was feeling it for sure. During the music and the dancing and the drinking we were visiting with Michael and Jan and Craig and Barb. In the midst of all of this partying we looked and there was “Gopher “ from Love Boat. Shaking hands and posing for pictures. I was feeling no pain so I went over and had my picture taken with him.

This was the best sail-away party ever.

Next came dinner. We are at a table for eight which is disappointing. You can’t get to know people when there are so many at the table. They seem to be nice people. Stan and Karen; Phil and Lena; John and Ursula. We will learn more about them as the cruise progresses.

Dinner was very good as usual. We headed to the lounge as soon as dinner was over so we could take in the welcome show.

Then it was back here to unpack. When we arrived at the door there were wonderful Christmas stockings hung on the door with magnets. Our names were proudly embroidered on them. Barb made them for us. How thoughtful was that??

Romano, our room steward had brought us a vase so I could put my flowers in it.

Ken and I both had to complete our unpacking and it had been an early morning so it wasn’t long before we were all tucked in for the night.

Lovely Day

We both had a great night of sleep and the day began bright and sunny.
Ken was at work and Wendy made us a great breakfast. After eating we decided to head out to a shopping mall.  On the way Wendy drove us down a street called Strawberry Lane. On that little dead end road there were PEACOCKS. I guess they are wild. Once they were part of the estate of a Mr. Van Der Lip. When he lost his fortune the peacocks went wild and bred successfully. Now there are hundreds of them. They are very beautiful and they they are very tame. We drove right up next to them and they simply came to investigate much like our ducks. They have done a cull recently. Wendy said they are noisy and they defecate on the cars and they have been known to scratch the paint on your cars. There are mixed opinions from the locals as to whether or now they should be allowed in the neighbourhood.
Anyway they were a delight to see and we enjoyed having them come up to the car doors to see if we had treats for them.

Then we drove to the mall and I was impressed by all of the decorations. I can't say I was impressed with the prices. In Nordstroms they had men's neck ties for $205.00 US. Needless to say We did not buy one or two.
They had a poinsettia tree which impressed me.

 I heard about the one they used to have at Trinity. I hope they do that again one day.
Then we came back here and we had lunch and a rest. Ken was at work and Wendy had to go to an office Christmas Party so I had a wonderful nap and Ken got a start on his tan.

When Wendy came home from her party and Ken came home from work we headed out to  Avenue Italy for dinner. It was lovely and after dinner we shopped at Trader Joe's and got wine and flowers for tomorrow. I love to browse around that store. There is always something different to buy. It is a place where you go in for one thing and come away with a cart filled with goodies.
This little mall was all decked out for the season and it looked so very festive.

Then it was back to the house for tea and cookies.
The visit continued with lots of laughs and memory sharing.
We called it a night relatively early. Wendy has to see a patient at eight in the morning.

Tomorrow we sail. YEAH!!!

Too long

It is hard to believe that we have gone from April 7 until now without being on a cruise. That will soon be corrected. We sail tomorrow, December 3rd/2015. Eight months is the longest we have gone between cruises since we started cruising in January of 2009.

All of the cruises have been special and all have been memorable but this one will have its own very special aspect. This is the 50th anniversary cruise for Princess Cruise line. The entire cast of the television show "The Love Boat" is scheduled to be on board and lots of other special surprises have been promised.

We booked this cruise in May of 2014 and it seems as if that was years ago. Well time crawled by and finally the time arrived. Yesterday we left Vancouver to begin this adventure. Marg and Dave Ruben picked us up at the house and delivered us safely to the Vancouver airport. Our flight was due to leave at one and so we needed to be at the airport 3 hours ahead of departure. That meant being there by ten. We left Abbotsford around 7:30 and we were safely deposited at YVR at 9:30. The traffic was heavy because it was rush hour but Dave skillfully maneuvered all of the lane changes and got us to the plane in lots of time.

We expected to have to wait for a while before we could check in but that was not the case. There was not a line up and the agent took us immediately and in less that a half hour we had jumped all of the hurdles and we were at Starbucks enjoying a leisurely coffee and engaging in one of my favorite pass times... People watching.

We found a gift of a granite inukshuk to bring to Ken and Wendy. We considered bringing smoked salmon but we were not sure that they eat fish since they are vegetarians.

We found our gate and shared a sandwich. Soon the plane was called. We were supposed to leave at 1:05 but it was 1:35 before we got away. The plane was full and Ken had his window seat so all was well. I read the novel " Executive Decision" during and before the flight. I finished it just before we landed so that was very good. It was a silly romance novel, just right for relaxing.

I was concerned that with the late departure we might miss our shuttle but in spite of that we arrived in LA at 3:50 and we were not scheduled to arrive until 4:05.
We had no trouble getting our luggage. It was great to see the luggage carousel decorated for Christmas.

 we were outside at the Prime Time shuttle station at 4:20.
The air was so warm and I had to smile to see that the agent was wearing a heavy jacket.
Our ride was scheduled for 5:40. I had left lots of time in case of delays. I could not believe it when we were called to get our ride at 4:30.

 We were driven in a private car and one hour later we were in front of Ken and Wendy's. The traffic was horrific and I certainly was glad to not be driving or have Ken driving either. So we sat back and relaxed and enjoyed what Christmas light displays there were.

We were welcomed graciously. They have a way of making you feel like they have been waiting for you and that you are the most special guests ever.
We laughed and visited and had supper. Then we sat and watched the Canucks play hockey and lose in the 3 on 3 as usual. Then we called it a night.
The bed was so comfortable and their home is wonderful. They even had fleece sheets on the bed, just for us.

Home Again

Yesterday went very smoothly.
We had an early alarm and we watched the sunrise over Vancouver harbour.

We had breakfast in the dining room. The service was VERY slow, in fact I am still waiting for my toast.
But it didn't matter at all because our meeting time was not until 9:50.
We went to the Vista after finishing breakfast and waited for pink 5 to be called. They were about 10 minutes early. We speeded through customs. We were asked nothing. We could have had 10 bottles of alcohol with us. Anyway.. we had called Kerri and she was able to find a parking spots about 2 blocks from the place where we came up out of Canada Place so we did not have to pull our suitcases very far.
We had a short visit with the family. Stewart was working but because it was Easter Monday Noah was home and the little ones were not in day care.
Noah played the guitar for us. He certainly is progressing with that skill.
 Leo and Emmie are so full of energy and they are impossibly cute ( grandmas are allowed). Watching them makes both of us understand why people don't become parents in their seventies. We are just too old to be able to keep up with them.
When we left I took some pictures of the cherry blossoms. Vancouver is breathtaking right now!!

Even though we did very little we were beat last evening and we called it a day quite early. But not before we got our hockey fix and watched the Canucks play a game against LA.
Today we have finished our unpacking.
The next cruise is scheduled for December but with us you never know.
We can't resist a good sale.

Bunnies, Pelicans and Birthday Cake!

Easter Sunday, April 05, 2015

This is the last full day of our cruise. L

We began the day with a room service breakfast. Then we made our way to the Princess Theatre. There was an ecumenical Easter Sunday service. It was nice but very simple. We sat with Erik and Rosalie and after the service we had a short visit with Ziutka and Ken who were sitting in front of us.

We stayed in the theatre and listened to George McGuire’s talk on the Northern lights. I did not find it as fascinating as the others. Perhaps that was because I was sleepy in the first place.

Next we headed for the Piazza where the Easter Party for the children was in full swing. There were lots of activities and there was a visit by the Easter Bunny and by Pelican Pete. It was very festive and I took lots of pictures.

Then we came back to our room. Ken has to pack. I am almost finished because I worked on it yesterday. We both hate packing because it means the end of a cruise.

We managed to get packed and before we knew it the clock said 2:50 and the Hula and the Ukulele Group would be performing in the Princess Theatre at three. So away we went. Rosalie is in both groups and we wanted to support her. We got there on time and we had a great location for pictures. We were so impressed. The groups were larger and they seemed to be more accomplished. We just loved it.

The next thing was to go to the Vista so we could hear Eric in the passenger talent show.

We came very close to being late for dinner but we made it. Ken and I gave the chocolates and the tips and notes to Joe and Satheesh before the others arrived. Dinner service was slow but the meal was very tasty.

Today was Rosalie’s birthday and Eric ordered a special cake for the occasion. It was a  strawberry shortcake with lots of fruit and whipped cream. We were all served ample helpings. The waitstaff sang happy birthday and one even played the guitar.

We finished our dinner finally and everyone left to do final closing of suitcases and to put the cases out into the hall

Almost Over

Saturday, April 04, 2015

Sadly this is almost the end of our cruise. This morning we are at Vancouver time, no more time zones to change.

We set the alarm call for 7:30 and asked for breakfast at eight. Well someone messed up and we were still in bed when the knock came on the door at 7:25. Fortunately a robe was handy.

The reason for the early call was the fact that George was having his talk on Longitude at nine instead of the usual ten. He was enlightening, amusing and entertaining all at once.

After the talk we walked a little and then came back to our room. I did a bit of packing. I think tomorrow will be very busy so I wanted to get a head start.

I checked the e-mail. Our Easter card has gone out and we received many thank you notes. We received our time for disembarkation. We are to be in the Vista at 9:50. I e-mailed Kerri and told her what approximate time to expect us. We will phone when we are closer.

My flowers still look pretty good. The carnations are almost as fresh as new. It will be hard to throw them out tomorrow. But you cannot take such things ashore.

We decided to skip lunch and we just had a piece of fruit. Then around 2:30 we left to go and have a special coffee and listen to the pop choir.

On the way out we noticed that most of my Easter magnets are gone. There are 2 missing baskets, several eggs and some flowers are also missing. I hope it was one of the little children who took them and not a simpleton adult.

The pop choir was good. They performed the same numbers as before. Again, they could have used more male voices. Ken will have to go in the choir on one of these cruises.

 There was a make- up seminar and I went to watch. That is something I will never learn to do. It is too fussy and it takes too long to perform all of the steps.

I picked up 2 of the Ultimate Mai Tai since it was happy hour and you get 2 for the price of one. I brought them to the room for Ken and I to enjoy. I then began to write the thank you notes to go with the extra tips. I have to check on the spelling of Sadtheesh’s name. I think that is correct. I will let you know later. He is from India.9I found it ...Satheesh)

This is formal night. I plan to wear my navy outfit. That skirt and jacket is now 12 years old and it still looks great and I still like me in it.

Ken wore black and white with his Tux. Dinner tonight was lobster again and I enjoyed escargot for my appetizer. There was another Norman Love Chocolate journey. So the meal was terrific. I brought Easter Eggs to give to everyone.

After dinner we went straight to the theatre for the production show, British Invasion. We enjoyed it as usual. Then we went to the International Café for a coffee. We had gotten our order when Erik and Rosalie arrived. They shared a table with us and we visited for almost an hour. Then we called it a night. Tomorrow will be a busy day again.

Our last day, we have to pack and get ready to disembark on Monday morning.

Good Friday

We continued our straight line across the Pacific. Today the sea is dead calm, we are experiencing the doldrums. The air is getting cooler, bathing suit and short weather will come to an end for the stalwart ones today. It ended for the rest of us yesterday.

 We lost another hour last night and as a result we woke a bit late, too late for breakfast in the dining room. We got dressed and went to Horizon Court because we wanted to go to hear the lecture by George McGuire. His topic today was Sir Francis Drake in the Pacific Ocean. So we both had a light breakfast, cereal and fruit, and then we headed for the theatre. George was up to his usual high standard and we enjoyed him immensely.

He finished at 10:45 and there was to be a Good Friday service in the theatre at 11:30. That gave me time to check out the ten dollar sale ( there was nothing new so again my card stayed put away).

To my delight there is now a display of Easter decorations in the Piazza. I was able to get several photos and a skinny latte before heading back to the theatre.

 The service was interdenominational and it was being conducted by Chaplain Allen Brooks and Pastor Julianne Barlow. Pastor Barlow did most of the service. It was actually quite nice and Ken and I enjoyed it. The hymns were familiar and we were able to sing along. They announced that there will be a communion service on Sunday. It will also be in the theatre.

Right after the service there was a lecture by Roy Prevost. His topic was Pirates of the high seas. I must admit that he does not impress me. Mainly he has a power point presentation which he reads. He knows only what is on the screen or at least he only presents what is on the screen. I could do better with my eyes closed.

When he was finished boring us we decided to take in the Pub Lunch today. Ken went back to the room to get his beer while I waited for him. I met Ken Connelly (our table mate from dinner) and he and I visited as the line moved slowly. We were at the door and neither Ziutka nor Ken had arrived. I waited outside for them both and Ken went inside and got us a table. Ziutka arrived first but within the next minute Ken came along.

We had a very nice lunch together. They even showed us a couple of card games and we may just get together tomorrow to play.

After lunch I came back to the room to Blog and Ken went topside to get more sun.

After blogging and having a short nap it was time to get ready for dinner. Tonight was American night with a tribute to the assistant waiters and the parade of the Baked Alaskan.

Ziutka skipped dinner because she is fasting because of Good Friday.

On the way to the Vista we checked out some of the pictures that have been taken by Princess. We will not be buying any this voyage.

We went early to the Vista Lounge because we wanted a seat for the show with Scott Harris. He was very funny as we expected.

Then we decided to come back here and call it a night. We lose an hour again tonight. We will finally be back to Pacific Daylight Saving time.

Tomorrow George’s talk is an hour earlier, at 9:00 so we will have breakfast in our room. The order has been placed on the door.