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Andrew Jerome
Andrew Jerome

Andrew Jerome

I was born in Newcastle, Australia but now live in Adelaide, Australia with my husband Ted.
I currently work as a Flight Attendant for Qantas, and as an ESL teacher.
I have traveled to over 68 countries so far, and am hoping to visit many more. Baca lagi🇦🇺Adelaide
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  • Andrew JeromeThe Asian Christmas cruisePengembara

    At Sea

    25 Disember 2018, Gulf of Thailand ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    Merry Christmas to us! We weren't really sure what was in store for us as this was our first Christmas on a cruise ship, although Ted and I decided to get into the spirit early by wearing Santa hats to breakfast. It seemed like a great idea since so many people were wearing their Christmas attire last night.

    As it turned out, we were the only ones who were! But we didn't care as it was still the day for a Festive spirit. One of the first things I did this morning was call the restaurant reservations extension to try and guarantee a table sitting for our LGBT group. Getting this arranged for 24 people wasn't difficult so now I could finally breathe easy.

    Today was a nice cruisy (no pun intended) day so I went and relaxed in the coffee shop with a ginger tea waiting for the arrival of Santa. Since Ted and I had already purchased the Santa hats, I thought we should similarly get a photo taken with Saint Nick, as well as a Christmas present photo with two of the Princess Cruise hostesses.

    We relaxed in the covered pool area before having a nap and heading to Christmas music trivia with Chris and his mum Karen. We had less luck this time as the MC kept giving clues to the audience. One cool thing though was when the Captain announced we would be passing another Princess cruise ship which was being sailed by his brother, meaning they would send a toot to each other. We then went back to get ready for our Christmas dinner at the Pacific Moon restaurant.

    Even though they had asked us to arrive at 5.00pm to guarantee tables together, they didn't open their doors until 5.30pm. Thankfully it all worked out fine, although I sat at the table with all girls as there wasn't enough places on the table where Ted was. Just like before, the whole group of us then went for drinks at our favourite haunt, the Wheelhouse Bar. Tomorrow we arrive at Bangkok but since the drive there is so far, we're going to explore nearby Pattaya instead.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Asian Christmas cruisePengembara

    Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

    24 Disember 2018, Vietnam ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

    Today we got to experience Vietnam again as we visited the capital, Ho Chi Minh City. After a restless sleep, we woke up early to have a smaller breakfast. Since today we were going on an independent organised tour, we waited in the coffee shop area to meet our fellow travellers.

    The rest of our crew were couples from Hawaii, South Africa and Northern Territory. We were supposed to be joined by another couple who never appeared on time. The eight of us departed the ship together and took the shuttle bus to the gates outside of the cruise terminal. This would've been quicker if someone on board the bus hadn't forgotten their bag.

    Once outside the gates, we met our guide Huy, as well as our driver. We all boarded the mini-bus for the 1.5 hour drive into the city. On the drive in, there were lively discussions about what we would like to see, as one lady wanted to do more shopping, whilst one guy wanted to see the War Remnants Museum. Huy was able to provide individual tours for these two so the rest of us still did the main itinerary.

    Our first stop was the fancy Rex Hotel which has a rooftop bar that was a well-known hangout spot for military officials and war correspondents in the 1960's. This was a good starting point to enjoy a coffee, use the wifi and get a great view of the city. The Vietnamese coffee I had was awesome, and so far was the best coffee I've had this holiday.

    After taking a group photo, we walked to the nearby Opera House for some photos. Ted remarked how little traffic there was so we're assuming it's probably due to Christmas being tomorrow. Our next stop was the Thien Hau Temple which is a Chinese-style temple of the sea goddess Mazu. There were plenty of incense burners inside as well as an altar to Mazu. We saw Luc and Adam there too, who were doing a tour with a private guide.

    We had been told that we would be doing a pedicab ride as part of our tour, and I think a lot of us were hesitant about it. We didn't need to be, as it was really fun. Ted and I both liked it as it took you right into the heart of the city where all the action was. Truthfully, I could've done it for longer! Sure it's a tourist trap but when you're having fun, does it matter?

    We then went for a Pho lunch at Pho 2000, which is famous as a place that Bill Clinton went to during a trip to Saigon. Ted mentioned that he hadn't enjoyed Pho before, but this one was really good. I was the only person in our group having vegetarian and I similarly liked it.

    We then headed to the Ben Tranh markets for some retail therapy. Ted and I were pretty much only interested in T-shirts so we managed to barter for a few, however we didn't get as many as we wanted! When it was time to meet up with our driver again, we couldn't find the Hawaiian lady Leilani who had asked to do extra shopping. Fortunately we didn't have to wait too long as we continued on.

    One problem on this tour was that a lot of people disagreed on where we should go. Some wanted to keep touring, whilst others were worried about being late back to the cruise ship with the Vietnamese traffic. We ended up visiting the Minh Phương Art lacquer factory which was more interesting than it sounds. Ted and I were the only ones who listened to the demonstration but it was a shame the artworks were all so damn expensive!

    The rain then started to pour down which wasn't surprising considering the humidity. As it turned out, the traffic wasn't too bad and we arrived back at the cruise ship in plenty of time. Once back to our room, we both had a much needed shower and I did some laundry, which is perfectly located right near our cabin.

    The evening was nice and relaxing as we went to the buffet for dinner, and watched the crew singing Christmas Carols in the Atrium. We caught up with our group in the Wheelhouse Bar for evening drinks again afterwards. Christmas Day tomorrow!    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Asian Christmas cruisePengembara

    Nha Trang, Vietnam

    23 Disember 2018, Vietnam ⋅ 🌧 25 °C

    Today was my first time to Vietnam! Ted has been here previously for work, but this was a whole new experience for me. The day didn't start well though when the Captain did a PA advising of a tsunami that had occurred nearby, affecting the islands of Indonesia causing a lot of fatalities. This left a very sombre mood as we had only been in Indonesia a few days prior.

    After breakfast, we packed up a backpack for our day out. Since this is a tender port, the lifeboat was removed from the front of our cabin window, meaning we finally have a view! At breakfast though, the captain did a PA advising his uncertainties about whether we could disembark due to the weather but fortunately it improved enough to leave.

    Ted and I went downstairs to get a tender ticket and once we arrived onshore, nearly accidentally boarded the bus for a tour instead. We caught the included shuttle to a hotel downtown where there were plenty of hawkers trying to sell tours and taxi rides. Since we already had an itinerary written out, we headed first to Long Son Pagoda.

    The walk was about 25 minutes, and I loved the vibrancy of the city. Even though the streets were hectic, they weren't difficult to cross as you just need to walk and not hesitate. We found the Pagoda quite easily and really liked it. Best of all was the Buddha up the hill so, even though the humidity was high, we made the climb up for a worthwhile view.

    We then headed to the nearby Dam Market, but first Ted was thrilled to buy a bottle of vodka for only $2 on the way. The Dam Market didn't end up being as interesting as we'd hoped but it still provided an opportunity to see daily Vietnamese life. Unfortunately our time in Nha Trang was limited meaning we couldn't also visit the Po Nagar Cham Towers, so they're definitely on the list for our next visit.

    Since we didn't want to wander too far from our departure point, we explored the nearby beachfront as well as a shopping centre. I bought a dragon fruit smoothie which I really liked, although I'm hoping to try durian on this trip too. For lunch we went to a waterfront restaurant with reasonable food and cold beer.

    We then took the shuttle back and had a shower and nap before dinner. Even though we'd missed the afternoon trivia, there was an LGBT trivia which I invited all our group to. That was a good idea because it was a lot of fun, and we met some additional people who didn't make it to the first meeting, We wondered what the rest of the people in the bar thought about the questions though - kinda racy!

    That night we had dinner with Emma and Carmen from New York and talked about all things political. I also spent the evening trying to secure a reservation for our group for Christmas dinner. Easier said than done since the restaurants are only guaranteeing a reservation made on the day. Hopefully it all works out okay.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Asian Christmas cruisePengembara

    At Sea

    22 Disember 2018, South China Sea ⋅ 🌧 26 °C

    Today was a nice relaxing ship day, which are well spread out on this cruise. We also gained an hour by crossing time zones, meaning the day was even longer! We had breakfast this morning with Mary and Beth from Michigan before I went to try out the coffee bar with a view of the ocean. Unfortunately just like Celebrity, the coffee on this ship is horrible too!

    Ted and I headed up to have some more to eat before going to morning trivia with Chris. The three of us managed to win, and each won a Princess water bottle as a prize (Mary and Beth turned up late and also scored the prize). One bad thing about cruising is that, while the room was being cleaned, we headed back upstairs to eat - even though we weren't hungry!

    We thought we could continue our success by similarly going to afternoon trivia but there were too many players and we weren't successful a second time. When we went for dinner at the buffet that evening, I was able to practice my Spanish with a Mexican waitress who was really helpful.

    Thanks to the on-board messaging system, I was able to organise drinks for our LGBT group back at the Wheelhouse before some of us headed up to the Skywalker Bar afterwards. I didn't enjoy the bar much as the boat was really rocky tonight and the bar was swaying somewhat. I might need an extra day to get my sea legs!    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Asian Christmas cruisePengembara

    Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia

    21 Disember 2018, Malaysia ⋅ ☁️ 32 °C

    This morning I thought we should try the formal breakfast option to see if we would like it. We were seated at a table with couples from Australia, the USA and Switzerland. I liked the breakfast as the setting was relaxed and the food options were varied, but I think Ted preferred the buffet as it is easier for him to find diabetic options.

    We had a later arrival into Kota Kinabalu so I went to morning trivia and lunch before packing a bag to join our day excursion. Our tour was shuffled into the ship's theatre before departing the boat. We boarded a bus before heading first to the Tun Mustapha Tower, and Sabah State Administrative Centre which is a government office complex. They are both examples of modern architecture in the city.

    We then headed to the City Mosque, also known as "The Floating Mosque", as well as the Sabah State Mosque for some impressive outdoor photos. When we were given the option to visit the markets, they didn't look even slightly appealing, so Ted and I decided to hang out at a nearby Starbucks to relax in air conditioning, have a coffee and use the wifi.

    Afterwards we headed to the Sabah Museum which also included an outdoor display of culture and the traditional way of life. We found the outdoor display much more interesting as it included a blow dart display and the types of housing the natives used, and decided to forego the museum altogether.

    To be honest, we didn't find Kota Kinabalu particularly interesting, and we were looking forward to re-boarding the boat for a buffet dinner. That evening we tried Movies under the Stars again with the film Tomb Raider. I thought the film was boring but Ted liked it. I headed to a Hollywood Trivia night instead with a group of new-found friends which was a lot more fun. Another ship day tomorrow!    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Asian Christmas cruisePengembara

    At Sea

    20 Disember 2018, Natuna Sea ⋅ 🌧 26 °C

    Today was a great way to settle into the cruise before we arrive at our first port tomorrow. The beds on the cruise are really comfortable, so we both had an amazing sleep last night. We have two independent tours lined up for this cruise but I haven't had the chance to meet the organisers yet, so I left notes for them at their staterooms.

    Breakfast didn't really stack up either, as both of us found few options to eat. When you're vegetarian or diabetic, your options are always limited! Ted was feeling woozy today from the ship movements, so he needed to lie low today. I went to an acupuncture workshop which didn't provide a free session and then headed to trivia which I almost won!

    The ship seemed to be vibrating quite a bit, so after checking out our boarding photo, headed back to the room to relax. The movie under the stars was Black Panther but it wasn't so easy to watch with all the screaming kids in the pool underneath! I had a vege burger at the pool restaurant where we met a couple from the UK, Mark and Richard.

    We went back to trivia in the evening (almost won again!) before trying out the formal dinner. The meal was really quite good, and it removed the temptation to overindulge like we do in the buffet restaurant. But as it turned out, we ended up going back to the buffet later when we were still hungry!    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Asian Christmas cruisePengembara

    At Sea

    19 Disember 2018, Natuna Sea ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C

    Today begins our cruise! Whilst I had a reasonable sleep, I fell ill during the night which was unfortunate. We went to the Mexican restaurant next door for a cheap breakfast before heading back to our room to pack up and chill out. Our check out was quite easy too, and we then took three different train lines to get to the cruise ship station.

    We got a refund on our train passes (just for handing them back in) before walking about ten minutes to the cruise ship terminal. When we booked this cruise, the agent said there was a chance we could get an upgrade. Sadly that didn't happen, as we were still stuck with our obstructed view cabin! There seemed to be unlimited checkpoints before we finally boarded the cruise, which included having to surrender your passport. It seemed a but strange but I guess it's to ease the visa and immigration process for each port.

    Before exploring the cruise ship, we went to have lunch in the dining room. We unintentionally compared it to our previous cruise on Celebrity, and found Princess to be lacking in this area. Afterwards we explored more of the ship and we like the design of the common areas. Since we also prefer the design of our cabin, we decided we would stop comparing the two different cruise lines.

    When we went to the pre-departure safety demonstration in the Japanese Sushi Restaurant which took ages. We went up to the deck for the sail away party, but the Singaporean heat was so oppressive, we gave up that idea. One thing that was really nice were a group of carollers in the Atrium, which was a great welcome to the cruise.

    When we went for dinner, the number of vegetarian options are really limited, so I might have to be pescatarian during this cruise. In the evening, we headed to the LGBT meeting which surprisingly attracted 16 of us, from Australia, the United States and Mexico, organised by Richie, a Colombian who works on the cruise. One thing we really like about this cruise is a messenger system you can access on your mobile phone, making communication with your fellow cruisers easy.

    Ted and I explored more of the ship before going to bed, although tomorrow is a ship day, giving us more time to look around.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Asian Christmas cruisePengembara

    Singapore

    18 Disember 2018, Singapura ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    After an awesome sleep-in today, Ted and I headed out to try and find a decent breakfast, as this hotel doesn't include it. It did have the option of paying $20 but since it seemed somewhat steep, we settled for a cafe across the street for rolls and coffee.

    Ted was keen on seeing some of the sights that he hadn't seen previously. I wanted to show Ted the nearby Raffles hotel but clearly I should've done some research first, as the hotel was being renovated until the middle of 2019! We still looked through the gift shop at the expensive souvenirs.

    We then headed towards the Merlion, no doubt the most recognisable sight of Singapore. It seemed like every other tourist in town had the same idea too but it was still worth a visit. Since we didn't do it last night, we took the elevator to the observation deck of the Marina Bay Sands. The price also included a Singapore Sling cocktail at the top.

    The view was really amazing to say the least, and I thought it was worth the money. Ted wasn't keen on his cocktail due to the sugar content and for me, one was enough anyway. I almost bought the tourist photo taken but since we'd already spent enough money, ended up passing it up.

    My inner geek was keen to see the DC Super Heroes Cafe, so since it was nearby, we headed there to check it out. Of course I enjoyed it a lot more than Ted! It was really well set up with a restaurant, gift shop and a lot of merchandise. The effort used to construct it was impressive. I stayed to have a coffee there, and was tempted to steal the menu as well.

    Unfortunately this humidity has meant that I needed to do laundry again so we found a coin laundromat in nearby Chinatown whilst we explored the area. After returning to the hotel, Ted had a nap before we headed out to dinner. We found another cafe next door which offered breakfast before having a salmon salad (me) and Popeye's (Ted) for dinner at the nearby Cathay shopping mall.

    I was interested in seeing the new Aquaman movie so I stayed for the film and caught up with Ted afterwards. Ted wanted to go to a local venue so we caught the metro back into Chinatown to have a look around. The area wasn't as animated as we'd expected at night. and it turned out the venue was having a quiet night anyway! Since Tuesday nights weren't really a happening thing in Singapore, we came back to the hotel to chill instead.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Asian Christmas cruisePengembara

    Singapore

    17 Disember 2018, Singapura ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    We had an earlier start for our flight to Singapore today, but it almost ended up being too early as we woke at 3am due to an alarm Ted had set on his phone. It turned out that his phone was still on Australia time, meaning we woke up three hours early!

    Before heading off, the restaurant staff were kind enough to let us have breakfast before the restaurant opened. We then took a taxi to the airport before heading to our Jetstar Asia flight. I am walking a lot better today, which has really lifted my spirits.

    Our flight time was about three hours before arriving in Changi airport. We bought a transport card for three days before heading towards our hotel. It seemed the directions I got off Google weren't all that accurate - we disembarked at Bugis station and walked for about 15 minutes in the heat, before finding out there was a metro station right outside our hotel!

    The hotel is very nice, albeit expensive which is typical for Singapore. Ted was interested in seeing Little India so we headed in to look around. We both liked the area, and Ted was keen to stay for dinner. We went to the Khan restaurant which definitely fit the bill - cheap and authentically Indian. I loved the paratha!

    We then headed into the Gardens by the Bay, which was also putting on a Christmas show. Even though it was late at night, the area was really humid, but we still took a lot of great photos before heading back.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Asian Christmas cruisePengembara

    Denpasar, Indonesia

    16 Disember 2018, Indonesia ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    We didn't get much of a sleep in today, on our final full day in Bali this holiday. Breakfast was great this morning with a lot of options. Ted was still feeling tired so he had a nap whilst we relaxed in our room.

    I'm still in pain from the massage but it is starting to ease. Ted dropped off some laundry before we headed to nearby De Nyuh for some massage therapy. I had a pedicure and foot reflexology massage whilst Ted had just the foot massage.

    We relaxed in our room before heading to nearby La Plancha for sunset drinks. This was a wonderful experience, as the setting and atmosphere were both incredible. We stayed for dinner too, since the view was unrivaled and the cost was surprisingly reasonable.

    Tomorrow we head to Singapore before our cruise, so we packed up our bags for our departure tomorrow.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Asian Christmas cruisePengembara

    Denpasar, Indonesia

    15 Disember 2018, Indonesia ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

    After waking up and feeling no better, we decided to do something productive! A few friends had recommended going to a healer instead of just getting a massage, so I found one online and made a booking. Finally a step in the right direction!

    We went for a mediocre breakfast before Ted went to the gym. Our hotel is in a very good location close to everything, so we were able to walk to the main area to get a taxi. It seems like there's a real war between legitimate taxis and the rideshare apps so, after some aggression, we finally flagged a taxi.

    The place I visited was called Bali Chy Healing and was certainly different from the usual massage places I've visited. The healer explained about holistic healing, asking if I also needed to talk about any problems I might be having in life. Since I didn't have any pain except physical, he decided to work on the sciatica problem.

    The massage was like a deep tissue therapy on the sciatic nerve which, after an hour, I was good enough to walk again. the massage was really painful but I didn't mind. Even though it was more expensive than a standard massage, at least I was able to walk again. I was asked to do a video recommendation for him since it seems to be how they advertise their business here in Bali!

    Ted and I then went to nearby Mama's German restaurant for lunch and later bumped into one of the passengers from our flight, who suggested going out together that night. Once returning to the hotel, we lay by the pool, although our view was ruined by a woman who decided to go topless.

    After a shower and a nap, we had another dinner in the restaurant. Logically we could go into town to eat, but the setting here is so beautiful. We had drinks and music in our room, before heading down to Mixwell. The crowd was really busy and we stayed until there was no room to move. I'm still feeling sore from the massage but at least I can live my life again.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Asian Christmas cruisePengembara

    Denpasar, Indonesia

    14 Disember 2018, Indonesia ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    I would love to say that the pain miraculously disappeared overnight but it didn't. Today was not a good day, as I am still not able to walk without a lot of agonising pain. Once I managed to get to the breakfast room, it was very warm already but the dining room has a spectacular view of the ocean.

    Whilst Ted went to the gym, I stayed in the room feeling sorry for myself. After having a nap to make up for lost sleep, Ted encouraged me to try pool running, which did increase some movement. Ted later walked to the nearby shops to get some things before we went back to the dining room for lunch.

    We returned to the dining room for a nice dinner and even though we hoped it wasn't necessary, unfortunately I needed the wheelchair again to get around. At this moment, we're worrying we might need to return home instead of continuing the holiday. I was in so much pain I couldn't even shower myself. We'll wait and see what tomorrow holds.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Asian Christmas cruisePengembara

    Sydney, Australia

    13 Disember 2018, Indonesia ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    Today began the first day of our Asian Christmas cruise, We had originally booked this cruise as we both got Annual Leave for the Christmas break, and since we were still on a high from our Alaskan cruise, this seemed like a great way to spend the Festive Season.

    Fortunately our flight to Denpasar wasn't until 5pm, so I had plenty of time to do pre-holiday arrangements, like laundry, packing a bag and getting a haircut. Since we are only visiting warm destinations, packing was easy. Unfortunately waiting for the dishwasher to finish its cycle before leaving wasn't, since we had to turn off the water before leaving.

    Once at the airport, something unfortunate happened when my arch enemy sciatica came back with a vengeance. It had bothered me in the morning, but by the time we got to check in, I was almost paralysed. Even worse was receiving our boarding passes late due to being on standby, meaning we had to make haste to our flight.

    By this stage I could barely walk, and security even sympathetically brought me to the front of the queue. They offered to get me a wheelchair to my flight, but were only able to get a trolley to use for support. Thankfully we were in Star Class, as even walking to my seat was excruciating pain.

    Fortunately the only pain I had to endure during the flight was when I needed to use the bathroom, as sitting didn't make it difficult. The CSM offered to get me a wheelchair upon arrival and by this stage, I knew it wasn't unreasonable to accept it. The passengers in Star Class were really sympathetic, and offered me help such as painkillers, massage therapy in Bali, and even a private driver to our hotel.

    Being wheeled through Denpasar airport was much better than hobbling through it, and my two commissionaires helped with luggage collection and going through immigration. Ted had arranged a taxi to the hotel, where I was then transferred to another wheelchair for the hotel.

    Hopefully this doesn't continue throughout the whole holiday. Today was the worst pain I've ever experienced, and it wasn't a great way to start.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Alaskan CruisePengembara

    Los Angeles, California

    30 Ogos 2018, Amerika Syarikat ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    As predicted, we didn't sleep very well, due to our room being near the restaurant. The breakfast was reasonable although the woman working there seemed bothered! This hotel was one of our most expensive so far but at least the location was ideal.

    Getting to the airport was really easy as there was a train station only a few blocks away. We nearly missed the first train though since the ticket machine decided to take forever to spit out the tickets! We had a lot of time to pass in Portland Airport but it wasn't a problem as it was very decent, complete with lots of shops and a violinist. We only bought waters and a coffee before going to the boarding gate.

    Even though we were supposed to be on Air Canada, it ended up being a Virgin America flight. When we arrived at LAX, we checked our bag in for our next flight at the United counter. We remembered there was a Denny's near the Hilton so we pretended we were hotel guests and jumped on a transfer bus to take us to the hotel.

    Denny's is always a good cheap meal for us, and again we weren't disappointed. We then caught a second shuttle back to the airport and headed to the United gate. Even though there was plenty of seats on the United flight, the agent told us the flight was weight restricted, causing us slight concern!

    Ted decided it would be a good idea to walk through the entire LAX airport. I disagreed since I would've preferred to relax. After walking for over half an hour through every terminal I was P.O'd! When Ted pointed out we'd done no cardio all day, I could see his point. We bought a present for Damien whilst in the Qantas terminal too.

    Whilst waiting for our tickets, we saw one of the flight attendants we had on the previous flight and she also said we should be fine getting on. The wait seemed to take forever but she was right - we were soon on our way home! It was not as empty as our flight over, but we were still lucky to have three seats between us.

    This has certainly been one of our best holidays, as the weather has been near perfect, and the friends we have made have been wonderful. We're looking forward to doing more holidays like this in the future :-)    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Alaskan CruisePengembara

    Portland, Oregon

    29 Ogos 2018, Amerika Syarikat ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    Today was our longest drive this holiday, so we had a moderately early wake up for the day ahead. Unfortunately it was another bad sleep for both of us, so maybe being around all these bugs freaked us out! Our drive was generally uneventful apart from a toilet and petrol stop!

    We left the freeway long enough to drive through Albany for a lunch break. Finding a restaurant to eat was hard enough. Our first stop Dairy Queen, wasn't open. We then went to Carl's Jr which had limited service due to a broken grill. We then went to Wendy's instead since it was the only other decent place nearby!

    When we arrived back in Portland, we went straight to our hotel to drop off our bags first. The location is perfect, although it's somewhat odd having a room on the ground floor right next to the restaurant. We then dropped off the car to Hertz nearby, which took a lot longer than planned since a 5 minute drive turned into a 20 minute drive due to all the roadworks in the city.

    Ted had been keen on finding a mobile shop as he was worried his sim card was broken since adding the American one. Finding a store was bizarre, since it ended up being a tiny office with one person in a multi-story building. We'd been recommended to see Powell's City of Books, which is the largest independent new and used bookstore in the world. I really liked it a lot and could have spent much more time there, but unfortunately Ted wasn't as interested.

    We'd heard there was a waterfront area a short walk away so we thought we'd check it out. Bad move. Unbeknownst to us, we had to walk through the old town area to reach it first. After spending about ten minutes walking through streets of homeless people, ramshackle buildings, and people smoking crack pipes, we did a U-turn and headed back. We have seen some pretty run-down areas in cities before, but this was definitely one of the worst. It was a shame because our opinion of Portland had been a lot higher until this moment.

    We went back to our room and ate our leftover food before having a nap. We have changed our flight tomorrow to United instead of Qantas. Vlad was kind enough to check the loads for us, and fortunately there are plenty of seats. We went for a drink at a local venue called Scandals before heading to a decent restaurant on the next block called Cheryl's. I don't know whether it was fatigue or something else, but I fell really ill afterwards with a migraine. When we went out again later, most of the pubs were closing anyway. Tomorrow we head back home after our big adventure.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Alaskan CruisePengembara

    Chiloquin, Oregon

    28 Ogos 2018, Amerika Syarikat ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    After an average sleep, we managed to have a pretty decent breakfast, due to the amount of food we brought, as well as food Beth supplied us with for the morning. Ted thought we should explore a nearby town, so we drove down to Klemeth Falls. There were plenty of bugs again - this time they were the ones hitting the car during the drive! Klemeth Falls was nice enough for a walk around, and exceedingly better than Chiloquin. Ted was keen to visit a nearby Walmart before we headed back north again.

    This time we went to the Crater Lake visitor centre to watch a short movie about the actual crater. Ted was starting to stress about our lack of petrol but fortunately one of the rangers was able to advise of a nearby service station. It was literally two pumps in the middle of the road, but we didn't mind!

    We then drove around the lake in a counter clockwise direction, and visited one of the viewpoints we'd missed yesterday. After walking a short while to the lake's edge, we were greeted with a spectacular view. It was at this moment I realised I'd left my Iphone camera back in the car! Fortunately Ted had his so it wasn't too disappointing.

    Beth had recommended seeing nearby Lake Klamath, which wasn't that easy to find due to poor signage, and a confused GPS. It ended up being a nice lakeside area with natural spring waters. A very nice area with some wonderful photo opportunities.

    She also recommended some waterfalls that were north of the park so, since we had a whole day, we headed there next. The drive seemed to be very long, possibly because the scenery was similar for most of the route. We ended up seeing two different waterfalls - they were nothing spectacular, but it was something different to see too.

    After having a late lunch we headed back to our room to relax and re-pack for our departure tomorrow. We considered returning to Klamath Falls for dinner since they had a good range of restaurants, but considering we already had enough food and had done enough driving, we decided to stay in. Crater Lake has been quite the experience - a mixture of beautiful scenery, and rough and ready townships.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Alaskan CruisePengembara

    Chiloquin, Oregon

    27 Ogos 2018, Amerika Syarikat ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    After a surprisingly good sleep in a dodgy hotel, we continued our way south towards Crater Lake National Park. One thing we've noticed is how the days generally start cloudy, but then burn off to make a beautiful day. Since we'd enjoyed downtown so much yesterday, we wandered back down this morning to find a nice place for breakfast. We settled on a pub that served some decent French toast, as well as a riverside cafe that seemed to be experts in coffee.

    We left around 9.30am and stopped at a few towns on the way for petrol and groceries, particularly since we weren't sure what would be available closer to our accommodation. The place we are staying is from Airbnb. It is a cabin style accommodation rented out by a lady named Beth, and is much more reasonably priced than the other options in the area. Even though the roof is low due to it being a sloped roof, it had everything we needed.

    There also had three Australian Shepherd dogs who were a bit wary of strangers! Beth was able to give us a lot of information regarding the sights to see, so we were definitely prepared for the day. We headed straight to Crater Lake National Park, which was our whole reason for visiting this area. The weather was spectacular, and we were very lucky to be treated to unparalleled views of the lake. The lake is actually a dormant volcano, and has some of the bluest water we've seen.

    We drove the entire way around the lake, stopping at every viewpoint we thought would give a better view than the previous one. As it was getting later in the day, we also went to check out the Crater Lake Lodge which had a beautiful view out back of the lake, complete with deck chairs. The only thing missing was the beers.

    Beth had recommended that we drive to nearby Henzel Park for a view of the sunset over the lake. Not great! Despite the fact there was one car idling strangely nearby, there were also a thousand bugs (we were too scared to open our mouths!). We feigned taking a few photos before leaving to check out nearby Chiloquin. Eye opener! It is literally a run down railroad town, complete with boarded up shops and a lot of bored teenagers standing around. We did surprisingly find a decent supermarket, meaning we didn't need to stop at all those roadside general stores on the way!

    Since one of the town's "attractions" was the casino, we thought we would check it out. Meh. We put $5 into one of the poker machines before losing total interest and leaving. Truly the redneck part of Oregon here!

    The best option was to go back to our cabin and chill. There were a few bugs in the room but they seemed to leave once we turned off the outside lights. Less pleasant though were the bugs in my hair that surfaced when I washed it. A little keepsake from Henzel Park it seemed!

    Tomorrow we have another day here to explore the area. Whilst we'll give Chiloquin a wide berth, there should be more to see near the National Park.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Alaskan CruisePengembara

    Florence, Oregon

    26 Ogos 2018, Amerika Syarikat ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    After a surprisingly good sleep in a mediocre hotel, I went to have some of the supplied breakfast (basically bagels and coffee in the tiny reception area). Newport wasn't quite as good as we thought it would be, so we have higher hopes for the next few destinations. After packing up all the drying laundry we had scattered around the room, we continued on our way!

    Our first stop was a viewpoint to look at the Yaquina Bay Bridge. The misty environment made it an awesome photo stop, and it was well worth it. Our drive today took us along Cape Perpetua to the town of Yachats. I'm not really sure why I listed it as a place worth visiting, as it was a pretty sleepy venue. At least it was good for a bathroom stop.

    The coast scenery we saw today was wonderful, and the weather was too. When we reached our stop at the town of Florence, we weren't that impressed. The Lighthouse Inn where we are staying is modest luxury...from the 1920's. And I don't think it has been renovated or repaired since. You could probably call it quaint, but we preferred to say run-down. Since there only seemed to be the main road with a Dairy Queen next door, we jumped back in the car and headed to nearby Coos Bay.

    Even though the town wasn't overly interesting, it was fortunate that we arrived during the - I kid you not - Blackberry Arts Festival! There were some nice street markets selling plenty of products, some of them involving blackberries. The blackberry pie was totally worth it.

    Apart from an antique shop, there wasn't much more of interest nearby, so we drove further south to nearby Shore Acres State Park. Shore Acres was originally an estate owned by a Coos County timber baron who sold the land to the State of Oregon for use as a park in 1942. Now it is an assortment of gardens with beautiful shore-side scenery. And again, the weather was perfect.

    After finishing here we decided we'd have to eventually return to Florence! Our room was huge but the cleanliness was debatable. We walked to the area behind the hotel where we could see some amazing sand dunes, located across from a now derelict waterfront restaurant. It reminded us of a ghost town. After some more wandering around, we eventually found the road that the hotel clerk said would lead us to the main part of town.

    Clearly us and the town of Florence got off on the wrong foot. To our surprise, the street lead us to another part of town that was loaded with boutique restaurants, shops and cafes. The busy road and our hotel gave us both the wrong first impression, as we were duly impressed with all the venues along the Siuslaw River.

    Considering the fact we thought Dairy Queen was the only place to buy food, we were pleasantly surprised with Florence. We went to the Bridgewater Fish House and Zebra Bar for a great afternoon of dinner and drinks before wandering around town for a bit longer. So Florence has really been the biggest surprise so far of Oregon.

    We were going to walk around at night but it started to mist so we stayed in our hotel. I read an interesting brochure about what to do in a tsunami, which was somewhat unsettling! I'm not sure how we're going to sleep here though as we can hear every footstep in the room above. Tomorrow we continue to Crater Lake!    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Alaskan CruisePengembara

    Newport, Oregon

    25 Ogos 2018, Amerika Syarikat ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    After a good sleep, we collected our belongings to continue on our way again. As nice as this hotel is, one thing we found strange was how they asked us in the compendium to wash the dishes before leaving, even though we didn't have a kitchen sink! Well we did our best to tidy up but couldn't really figure out how we were expected to do that.

    We decided to check out nearby Astoria before continuing down the coast, which was my idea as it's the town setting for the movie "The Goonies". Thanks to the internet, it was easy to find the film locations, and an in-car GPS makes it even easier. Whilst some locations like the Flavel House Museum and the Oregon Film Museum were easy to access, others such as Mikey's house were blocked off from the public. There was a sign at the end of the long driveway advising the police would be called if anyone tried to photograph the house. Therefore, we decided to move on!

    I hadn't read anything about the Astoria Column, but Ted saw it from town and thought we should check it out. Truthfully, it was amazing. Not only was the view from the top worth the admission alone, but the amount of detail on the column was awesome. We also climbed the tower and walked around the small lookout at the top before I remembered I have acrophobia and headed back down.

    After leaving Astoria, we headed back on the coast road south towards Newport, which included taking another picture of Haystack Rock from a different viewpoint. For some unknown reason, the GPS took us off the coast road to drive us through the middle of the countryside instead. Therefore we ended up seeing the underwhelming town of Garibaldi (right in the middle of cow country!) before stopping for lunch at a local Denny's.

    On the way we stopped at the natural blowhole Devil's Punchbowl, before continuing onto Newport. Newport ended up being somewhat plain, as it seemed to be little more than a busy road going through an industrial area. After checking into our hotel, we walked down to nearby Nye Beach which was a bit better.

    We stayed in Nye Beach for dinner at an Irish pub, as finding an inexpensive venue with a water view was an impossibility! One thing we have noticed about this town though is the abundance of blackberries growing everywhere. Since there didn't seem to be any memorable nightlife here, our evening was spent either watching TV (Ted), or doing laundry (me). Tomorrow we continue onto the town of Florence.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Alaskan CruisePengembara

    Seaside, Oregon

    24 Ogos 2018, Amerika Syarikat ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    We woke up at 6.15am today, as we need to transfer from the port back to Seattle King Street station for the next part of our holiday. We had an early breakfast before heading around to Woody and Stephen's cabin to say farewell to them. Stephen must've misheard what time I said we would be there, because they had both barely gotten out of bed! We gave them time to get themselves together before heading back again to say goodbye.

    After disembarking the ship, we walked towards the Uber pick-up area to catch a ride to the train station. The walk was quite a long way from the port, but it was easy once we arrived. Our driver was from Mexico, so I had a lot of fun practicing my Spanish abilities with him. Surprisingly the traffic in Seattle was good, and we ended up arriving in plenty of time to the station.

    I had been looking forward to this part of our trip, as I'd purchased Business Class seats on the Coast Starlight. Clearly I was blinded by the words "Business Class", because it was rubbish! The train was surprisingly old and run-down, and the so-called "business class seats" were up against a wall with no tray table or seat pocket. Thankfully Ted found some better seats towards the back, which I really appreciated because I was so P.O'd!

    The one decent thing though is that we were on the upper deck, giving us a better view. We were also right near the dining room, and the observation room, which had huge overhead windows to enjoy the scenery. Since the weather today wasn't that great, we were more than happy with the view from our seats.

    We booked in for lunch in the dining room, which operated on a somewhat regimented system, where you wouldn't dare enter the dining room unless you were called first! The meal itself was pretty mediocre, however it was nice talking to two people we were seated with - an older lady from Seattle, and a middle aged comic book guy.

    When we arrived at Portland, the train station was located in a pretty grungy area, so we were happy to move through it quickly to reach the Hertz office. The service was very good, and we received our car very quickly. We left Portland straight afterwards for our drive to the coastal city of Seaside.

    The drive through the green countryside was really nice. We arrived at the Seaside Inn, which is like a holiday hotel on the Pacific coast. Seaside is very laid-back, scenic and relaxed. It's also pleasant to have the mountains on one side, and the beach on the other. The only unsettling thing though are all the signs indicating we're in a tsunami hazard zone. Definitely something I haven't seen before outside of Asia.

    Ted and I walked along the boardwalk before arriving into town. The buildings along the water are very art-deco, and I found it really interesting that the local cinema was showing the original "Jaws" movie. We then went to the local supermarket to get some food for dinner before heading back to our hotel.

    Ted was interested in going for a drive so I suggested we head south to see Haystack Rock at sunset. That was a good decision because it was spectacular. We actually drove into a beachside hotel's car park to get the best photo opportunity, but decided not to stay for too long in case our rental car was towed away!

    We stayed for a short while longer walking along the beach before heading back. Ted was interested in going to a local venue, so we headed to nearby Astoria to see what we could find. Ted had read on the internet about the Triangle Tavern, so once we parked, we headed across the busy road to check it out.

    Well, the information Ted had read was misleading - if anything, the Triangle Tavern was more like some sort of maritime bikie bar! When we entered and saw a lot of heavy-set bearded guys and thought we were in the right place. Uh no, we weren't!

    After having one drink, we decided to head back. Tomorrow we have a short drive down to Newport, as I've tried to create an itinerary where we aren't spending our whole time inside the car.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Alaskan CruisePengembara

    Victoria, British Columbia

    23 Ogos 2018, Kanada ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    I've continued having these simpler breakfasts every morning now, showing you can sometimes have too much of a good thing! Today is our second last day on the cruise before our arrival back in Seattle tomorrow. We had to start packing up again for the next part of our journey, although we're just going to walk off with our suitcase, rather than wait forever for baggage services to deliver it.

    When we looked out of our cabin window, we thought there was a lot of fog. As it turned out, it was smoke again, meaning we're near Canada. I thought I would try trivia again, so after a snack of waffles, headed off to give it a go. There weren't as many comments from the peanut gallery this time, although I didn't end up winning either! But I like the thrill of competition too.

    We had lunch with the Welsh guys Andy and Craig before our arrival into Victoria. We had already arranged with our party of eight to explore Victoria together, so we first went to (where else?) for drinks before disembarking. We originally had a party of ten, but we haven't been able to locate the Canadian boys lately. We suspect they might have received a better offer!

    Victoria ended up being quite contrasting. When we disembarked, we first walked through a nice seaside neighbourhood, with a lot of fancy houses and gardens. As we arrived into the city, we were similarly pleased with the Downtown area, and got some great pictures of the Legislative Assembly and the Fairmont.

    As we went further into town though, it tended to go downhill somewhat. Maybe we just wandered offtrack, but the harbor area we ended up in wasn't particularly attractive or appealing. By this stage, we were happy enough to head back to the ship.

    After having dinner upstairs, we returned to our room to finish packing. We said goodbye to Chris and Andrew, and Craig and Andy before going to bed. It will be sad to leave our new friends, but it will also be great to continue on the next half of our holiday, as we travel around the state of Oregon.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Alaskan CruisePengembara

    At sea

    22 Ogos 2018, Amerika Syarikat ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    Today was another ship day, so once again we were scouring the daily program trying to find something to do during the day! Apart from the occasional mediocre trivia contest, there wasn't much that interested us, so most of the day was spent chilling and hanging out with our ship mates.

    Our day started pretty early as I was convinced I could hear music and feel vibrations from our room. Through further investigation, I found that it was actually coming from the auditions in the theatre, which were loud enough to be felt in our cabin. Not extremely loud by any means but definitely noticeable.

    We lost an hour today due to time zones, so at least the ship day wasn't excessively long! Breakfast was really crowded since everyone had nowhere else to go, and Ted and I went to check out the photo galleries afterwards. We caught up for lunch with Stephen and Woody and on the way back to our cabin, Ted tried to play a trick on me. When he ran ahead, I suspected he was hiding behind the wall to try and scare me. Sure enough, I waited for a couple to walk by first, only to hear Ted scare them and then have to apologise for his attempt.

    We caught up with the boys again to play cards (no espresso martinis this time!) before having a small snack and heading back to get ready for dinner. In the evening we had planned on having a formal dinner with our party of eight, especially since we hadn't had one previously.

    We all dressed up in our Sunday best, but first went to The Martini Bar before heading to dinner. Ted and I felt slightly overdressed since we were the only couple wearing ties! Fortunately for our group, there was a photographer nearby to capture how handsome we all looked that evening :-)

    Dinner ended up being really good - we had become so accustomed to the buffet, that it was nice to have something fancy for a change. It was a bit harder for Ted though with his diabetic requirements, but we ended up going to the buffet afterwards so he would be okay. After dinner, we all headed off to tonight's show in the theatre. Ten minutes later, we all walked back out again! Sadly, the Rock City show wasn't quite as entertaining as the other show we saw.

    Afterwards, a few of us went to have a few drinks, before having a relatively early night. After all the previous nights we've had, I think it was definitely needed!    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Alaskan CruisePengembara

    Skagway, Alaska

    21 Ogos 2018, Amerika Syarikat ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    The novelty of having all these buffet breakfasts has worn off, as today I was craving only porridge. I didn't think I'd ever get sick of all the sauteed mushrooms and baked potatoes but I guess you can have too much of a good thing! At breakfast I spoke to a gentleman who confirmed that the Northern Lights didn't end up appearing last night, so at least I didn't wait up all night to see nothing.

    Most of our group had plans in Skagway but since most of them were so expensive, Ted and I decided to walk around and see what we could find. The most popular option seemed to be the train tour but it was way too pricey. After a short walk into town, we looked around the area just to check out what was available.

    We signed up for a walking tour with the Tourist Information office which seemed to be the only thing on offer. After some more exploring, we found a tour company that offered bus tours to the same Yukon territory where the train went. It seemed like a great option so we signed up for it.

    As we needed our passports for the tour, I had to return to our cabin to get them. I think I misjudged how long it would take, as I ended up running most of the way. Just as I reached the gangplank, I was then told it was only for disembarking - I needed to use another one further away! (Our ship was coincidentally also the furthest one away too). After saying "excuse me" and "sorry" enough times, I managed to finally make it to the bus pick up area, totally puffed out, but with our passports in hand!

    The tour ended up being better than expected, particularly since Alaska again turned on a beautiful day. Despite all my running, the bus tour left late anyway. The majority of the passengers were Aussies and our driver Beverly was really engaging. Firstly we did a quick tour of the town, where she was happy to point out many houses of, as she put it, "negotiable affection"! We then headed along the Klondike Highway towards the White Pass Summit.

    Some of the highlights included the Tormented Valley, Summit Lake and Lake Tutshi, as well as the Yukon Suspension Bridge. At the latter, we had a comfort stop as well as buying coffee and some dill pickle chips (not likely to find them elsewhere in the world)! The fact we have 20-22 hours of daylight here makes the days seem even better.

    Apparently there have been a lot of bushfires here in Alaska too, but it certainly didn't impact our day in any way. It's hard to say whether the bus ride is better than the train since we haven't done both, but we were very happy we did this. I'm pretty sure it was better than our walking tour of Skagway would have been! :-)

    Whilst we were in town, we went to the Skagway Pub for lunch. I had fish tacos, which were pretty small servings. The beer was good though. As the afternoon continued, some clouds rolled in and, for the first time ever on this holiday, we had some wind and rain. It didn't matter though - Ted and I were already walking back to the ship so it didn't ruin our day in any way!

    After having a snooze, we caught up with Stephen and Woody for dinner before heading off to our favourite venue on the ship, the Martini Bar. We even managed to meet some of the travellers from the Pied Piper group there too. After a great day, we all went up to the Sky Lounge for some dancing and drinking before heading off to bed.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Alaskan CruisePengembara

    Juneau, Alaska

    20 Ogos 2018, Amerika Syarikat ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    We were greeted this morning with scenery right outside our window, as the cruise ship passed along the Inside Passage on the way to Juneau. This was just one of the reasons why we'd chosen a balcony room for this cruise. The scenery was worth the cost alone, and we could still enjoy it from the dining room.

    I had been feeling sick during some the night - probably from the espresso martinis! - which continued through some of the morning. The day was actually really warm which made me regret wearing a singlet, under the naive assumption that Alaska would be cold. We disembarked the boat with Woody and Stephen for the short walk into town.

    The town of Juneau was actually quite pleasant, and larger than Ketchikan. I had read previously on the internet that there was a public bus that would take us to the Mendenhall Glacier. As it turned out, the drivers at the bus station were far from helpful providing information about routes or which bus to catch. We even tried using Uber but it didn't seem to exist here.

    I went into a nearby Four Points Sheraton hotel where the concierge was a lot more helpful - he told me about a shuttle bus that cost about $40, went there in half the time and had more frequent schedules. The amount of extra money was worth it, so we took this option instead. We were glad we did - the trip was quick and the driver provided some great commentary.

    The glacier was definitely a worthwhile day trip. We managed to get some great photos without too many tourists getting in the way too. The walk to the glacier was interesting - it was on a raised walkway mainly due to bear activity. And sure enough, we walked past a mother bear and her cubs. Unfortunately they aren't exactly outgoing animals as they stayed behind a group of trees and bushes. Despite best efforts to get a photo of them, we weren't so lucky!

    We then walked to nearby Nugget Falls which, despite the sign saying the walk was over half an hour, we did in 10 minutes. The waterfall was worth seeing, as it also provided a closer viewpoint of the nearby glacier. It was a relief that we found a way to see them both as I was feeling guilty that my original plan didn't work!

    We then caught the shuttle bus back, where the driver offered to drive us all the way back to our cruise ship. Unfortunately for me, I was interested in seeing more of Juneau and maybe going up the funicular, but I didn't want to be the difficult one in the group. The four of us ended up having an early dinner on the back deck of the ship before relaxing in our rooms.

    As I was walking around the ship later that night, there were people talking about the possibility of seeing the Northern Lights. I was really interested in seeing them, as I missed the opportunity to see them when I visited northern Finland 20 years ago. After walking around on the top deck in the cold for a while, we were then told they might not come out until 2am. Realising it could have been a pointless venture, I went back to the room, but kept the curtains open all night just in case!    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Alaskan CruisePengembara

    Ketchikan, Alaska

    19 Ogos 2018, Amerika Syarikat ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Today we visited our first port of call on our cruise - the town of Ketchikan. Our boat arrived at about 7.00am, although we went to the buffet breakfast before disembarking. Ketchikan is not a very big town and we didn't have any specific plans, so we went out to explore on our own.

    The weather was surprisingly fine, and a very pleasant day. Finding wifi was impossible though - everywhere requires a password (obviously to stop tourists from using it for free!), so we decided to finally buy a SIM card.

    We walked along the famous Creek Road with its colourful buildings, but they were generally either a shop, a restaurant, or a former brothel. One amazing sight was a nearby river which seemed to be bursting with salmon. We'd never seen so many fish congregate in one area before.

    We were pretty interested in the local cannabis shop, which is clearly a new thing for us. It was very interesting - we really didn't know anything about it, and seeing a lot of their products and the wide range available was something new. For me personally, learning about the different medicinal reasons too was an eye opener.

    Around the middle of the day, we went back to the cruise ship and had lunch with Stephen and Woody before heading up to the sun deck for our departure from Ketchikan. We ended up enjoying the jacuzzi with beers in the adults pool section before going to dinner.

    One of the highlights was seeing some humpback whales on the side of the boat. We tried to see them from the dining room after dinner, but it made more sense to get the better view from the top deck. As you can imagine, this was very popular with everyone, and we were very lucky to see a whole school of them very close to the boat,

    Later in the evening, we went to the Martini Bar with the friends we have made so far on the cruise. We have been very fortunate to meet some great people, meaning the cruise has really gone very well so far.    Baca lagi

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  • Andrew JeromeThe Alaskan CruisePengembara

    At sea

    18 Ogos 2018, Coastal Waters Of Southeast Alaska And British Columbia ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    Crossing all these time zones seems to be confusing our Iphones - when we checked the time in our darkened cabin this morning, it claimed it was 1pm (even though it was 8am). Today was our first ship day, so we tried to make the most of the resources the ship has. Breakfast this morning was pretty mediocre, so hopefully this isn't a representation of all the food on this cruise!

    We spent most of the morning relaxing by the heated (and kid free) pool. Ted was feeling a bit sick, so he went back to the room to recover. I went to trivia as it's something I usually enjoy. Unfortunately this time I didn't because there seemed to be an abundance of people who decided to shout out the answers. I hate when a good competition is ruined!

    Steve brought some walkie talkies on the cruise so we had a way of communicating whilst on board. Unfortunately they didn't work as planned but we still managed to meet up for cards. Some girls nearby recommended we drink some espresso martinis, so we tried a few. However it ended up being a few too many as they were a lot more potent than they seemed!

    We ended up having dinner at the buffet later in the evening, and then eight of us (sans the Canadians) went to see a Circus De Soleil type show. We haven't seen any shows on the cruise yet and we definitely enjoyed it. As we were leaving the show, the staff at the Quasar Bar roped people inside to the silent disco. We'd never been to one before and it was great. Although I had to remind Ted to take his headphones off so he'd stop yelling at the wait staff!

    Our group later went for drinks at the bar. Since arriving we haven't seen anyone from the "Pied Piper" tour and we're starting to wonder if they're actually on board!    Baca lagi

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