Home Again

Monday morning we had a 40-minute window before we had to check out and wait for the shuttle to arrive, so we went to our “regular” coffee shop, the Coffee Bean for a latte. We were also able to buy a gift that we’d been waiting to find: better late than never – I was really pleased that we found it.

Graham found the gate lounge very difficult again, so although I’d been planning to get him to walk down the gangway, I ended up getting him into a wheelchair again.

Once on board we had the lovely service that you get on Hawaiian: amazing food and beverage service whenever you want it. I was very relieved that none of the babies in the gate lounges ever ended up in our cabin – it would have been extremely difficult for Graham to cope with baby screams all flight. The staff are all so friendly and happy: we can thoroughly recommend Hawaiian from all aspects of the flight.

This last, long flight was very difficult. Graham was awake and not in a good place all the way until one hour out of Sydney, when he finally fell asleep. Hence I got no sleep! We were blessed to have a lovely flight attendant whose assistance I asked for on a couple of occasions; I found out towards the end of the flight that she was praying for us most of the time with our difficulties. We had the loveliest conversation: such a blessing!

We arrived home to a very nice selection of wine and cheese which Nani and Robert, our house sitters had waiting for us. I was into my second wind at that stage and we sat and chatted for quite a while. Muffy was, of course, delighted to see us, and even Alaska showed most un-catlike attention to us both. Nani and Robert headed off this morning (Wednesday) very early and we settled into a day of unpacking.

So, here endeth the tale. Thanks for your interest in reading my little blog and for sharing in the trip: I hope you've enjoyed it.

Aloha, Hawaii! Mahalo!

When we arrived last night (Sunday) we found out there's no room service in the hotel, so we went into the little hotel shop and bought some little cereal packets and milk and fruit for breakfast: probably saved lots of money doing that!!

We're at the airport now in the Hawaiian Airlines lounge, Monday morning 10.30am. They do lounges very differently over here: just drinks, no alcohol and not a scrap of food. We're so used to the Air New Zealand lounge with it's huge buffet and beverages service.

I haven't had to carry any bags: the shuttle driver did it at the hotel; a porter took our bags at the airport, checked us in and got the wheelchair assistant for Graham. We were through security fairly quickly, with Graham getting the usual pat down and swab. Then it was straight up to the lounge, where we have about 45 more minutes to wait now.

It was lovely being back in Honolulu for another night, even though it was brief. It was very hot this morning, even at 8.00am and the streets were quieter than when we were here 2 weeks ago.

Well I hope you enjoyed the trip through my eyes, everyone. I'll add one more post to sum up our homecoming (tomorrow night, Tuesday 7.20 we arrive). We expect to be greeted by a dog who will no doubt go ballistic when she sees Graham!

Aloha, everyone.

Homeward Bound

We went to the Neptune Lounge to get a cuppa and some fruit and took the opportunity to get a picture of Rhia with Graham; then we made our way to the gangway and left the ship. Seattle was submerged in a heavy fog and it was quite cool as well. We got a porter to put our bags on a trolley and he took them to the other side of the customs desks while we went through the check; the crowd flowing from two cruise ships meant that they were trying to get people through as quickly as possible, so we were through in no time.

The porter took us right to the end of the passenger pick-up section and I sent Rick a text to let him know where to collect us. He was there within about 15 minutes and we were soon on our way to Matt and Tricia’s where Rick and Barb are staying with Sylvia while her parents are in Australia. After a light lunch, it was time to head for the airport. The wheelchair was not what Graham wanted but I was so grateful we had it: there’s no way he could have coped with the process; the customs process had a very long queue, as did security but with a wheelchair you go through a different section and get straight through. Security screening was again traumatic but we made it and then again I was grateful that someone was taking us by a quiet route to the terminal train and then to the gate lounge.

Graham was agitated through the whole wait time but once we got on the plane, we were given Mai Tai’s; then he settled down a little and we had red wine before and during dinner. The flight attendant kept topping up the glasses, so Graham had quite a bit of wine but I was happy that he did because he gradually settled quietly and is now yawning – a good sign!

I was able to get free wifi for a little while which meant I could send a couple of emails. Once we were 100 miles from continental USA, the connection dropped out.

Aqua Waikiki Wave

We’re back in the hotel now. Good service at the airport with wheelchair assistance and porter assistance with the bags along with the shuttle. We were in the hotel by about 9.50. Graham is asleep now – 11.20, and I’m about to hit the sack. We have to be up at 6.00 to get ready for our shuttle pick-up at 8.30.

Sunday morning 21st July 2013

So here we are, sitting in the Explorers' Lounge with our last coffee; I still have some minutes left, so I'm checking emails. We're docked in Seattle and many people are already ashore. We're waiting for late disembarkation and Rick and Barb should be there to collect us and our luggage. We're spending a few hours at Matt and Tricia's place with them for lunch before they take us to the airport.

We'll be in the hotel in Honolulu overnight so I'll probably get to "check in" briefly. We don't have too much time there because we arrive late tonight and have to leave around 9.00am for the flight home.

Here's a last pic: from our visit to the Empress Hotel in Victoria.

Victoria BC, Canada, 20 July 2013

Dinner was supposed to be at 5.00 but there was a mix-up with the dining room. Because we all wanted to go ashore, we went up to the Lido and were able to get a reasonable meal and a table for six. We had our last meal as a group and said our goodbyes, then went in our different directions.

The ship was docked and cleared about 5.15, so straight after our meal we caught a cab into town to the Empress Hotel. Victoria is very pretty, with lots of flowers everywhere. We went into the Empress and had a look at the Tea Room and the shop. Having had a big meal, we weren’t really needing to have “Afternoon Tea”, so we didn’t even bother to find out what the price was. Graham wasn’t really in a good place for wandering around, so after about 30 minutes, we found a taxi to take us back to the ship.

That’s where we are now, having a cuppa; we’ll shortly get our packing finished and have an early night. Then the final morning of getting ready and waiting to disembark.

At Sea, Saturday 20 July 2013

Cruise food report - this is yesterday’s exhausting menu for Graham:

Breakfast in the Neptune Lounge:

Rice Crispies (Bubbles) with milk and sugar

Fruit plate

Apple Muffin

Morning tea from Ketchican cafe:

20oz latte

Blueberry muffin

Lunch in the Lido:

Roast Lamb dinner

Dessert in the Neptune:

Fruit plate

Chocolate slice

Afternoon tea in the Neptune:

Latte

Chocolate slice

Dinner in the dining room:

Jumbo Shrimp Cocktail

Gourmet Greens and Button Mushrooms

Prime Rib of Pork Loin

Pineapple Crisp (crumble) with ice cream

Needless to say, there won’t be any attempt to emulate this menu when we get home!

Ketchican is very pretty and we enjoyed watching sail away from our balcony late afternoon.

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We went to a brief performance by Jim and Melissa Brady singing love songs, then Michael Booth conducted the Newlyweds Game with four performer couples. It was absolutely hilarious.

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After the concert at 6.00pm which turned into a hymn-singing time of “having church”, we had our final Formal Night dinner last night. We had the Presentation of the Baked Alaska – always fun. We’ve already swapped contact details with our table mates, although we will have early dinner with them this evening before we head onshore in Victoria. God has blessed us richly in connecting us with these new friends. One couple is slightly younger than us and one is slightly older, so it’s been a nice mix. 

We had port and cheese again last night to celebrate our Friday. Then we had to turn our clocks forward one hour to give back the hour we gained earlier in the week.

Today is busy, with a concert/worship service at 8.30 - a wonderful bash with all the singers on stage, singing along with some of the songs. At the final bookstore meet and greet at 10.00 we said goodbye to Ronnie Booth and promised to keep in touch. Shortly we have the suite guests’ farewell reception at 11.30 and then it’s PACKING TIME! 

Ketchican, Friday 19 July 2013

We enjoyed the Freedom Singers when we got to the concert late last night. Their brother was not on the tour and their home had just been flooded, which they told the audience about tonight. Someone lent them a mobile phone this morning so they could check on the family; others helped or prayed – they were really moved by the response. Then Legacy Five were on and we heard about 3 songs before we had to go to the Captain’s reception.

It was a useful exercise because we got free drinks: Graham had three glasses of champagne, turning down the red wine!??! So he didn’t need a glass of wine at the table! It’s the second time we’ve been on a cruise with this particular Captain because he was on the Oosterdam when we did our New Zealand cruise in January. It’s the third cruise where we’ve been with the same Cruise Director who is an Aussie from Perth!

We had an International menu for dinner. I chose an “Australian cold pumpkin soup” but it was not at all like the pumpkin soup I make – I’m sure it had sugar in it and sweet cream on top. Graham had a delicious lamb shank. Our table steward did a couple of “magic” tricks with items on the table and promised some more tomorrow night.

This morning we went ashore in Ketchican and had a wander around the shops on the main streets at the dock. Many jewellers offer great deals and some give out little free charms and pendants, so we picked up a couple of those. 

While we were wandering, the MS Zaandam arrived and parked right behind us in the space left between us and the Norwegian Pearl (very gaudy hull on a lovely white ship). There are now four cruise ships in all parked here in town. We bought a coffee and then headed back on board, where we’re drinking our coffee in the lounge where the wifi is best. It’s only a very short stay here – we arrived 7.00am and will sail at 12.30pm for Victoria, British Columbia (Canada).

Sitka, still Thursday 18 July 2013

It was misty, damp and cold but it’s such a pretty town and many people went ashore. We really enjoyed the quiet today: I was able to get the internet done in peace, while Graham could walk around and about within my vision without any problem.

I’ve added a couple of nice pics of Sitka. The town has a strong Russian Orthodox history, with a cathedral that was burnt out in the early 19^th Century by the Tlingit people and then rebuilt. The congregation saved many of the priceless old icons.

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There are always lots of raffles running on the ship. It’s free but you just have to go to a sometimes boring presentation and be there if they pull out your ticket. This afternoon we went to the shopping promotion for Ketchican tomorrow and I won the raffle! A bling keyring from one of the local jewellers.

This evening we’re going to the latter half of the concert but we won’t sit in our second row seats this time because we need to be at the Captain’s cocktail party as close as possible to 7.15. However, we do want to catch Legacy Five again. They’re involved with tribute concerts to the Cathedrals. Their bass singer is so good and he told us that we should try to get to Texas in November for a big Cathedrals reunion (it’s just around the corner from Sydney, right?)!

Today we had to complete documentation for Canadian Border Services; we’ll only be in Victoria, BC for about 5 ½ hours on Saturday but that’s still setting foot in Canada and we could escape!

Sitka, Thursday 18 July 2013

A quiet day in Sitka. We've been here before - very pretty town; the logistics of getting the tender across are not what I want to face, so we're enjoying the quiet here while many are ashore.

PLEASE GO BACK AND CHECK THE LAST COUPLE OF DAYS' POSTS! I've bought some onboard sattelite hours and it's much quicker than the wifi we had yesterday ashore in Juneau. This means I've been able to add some beautiful shots of the whales and the glacier.

Juneau Wednesday 17 July 2013 - THAR SHE BLOWS!

Wow! God is so awesome. Not only does drizzly Juneau have a beautiful, hot day, but we went on a whale watching cruise and saw a display that the guide had not seen before – right up within about 100m of the ship.

Our day started early because we had to get down to the dock by 8.15. We had room service for breakfast, then concentrated hard work to get us down there in time. We had a reasonably comfortable coach ride through Juneau to the little cruiser which would take us to the whale watching area; the bus driver was amazed at the glorious summer day – they get about five dry days a year in Juneau and the locals were commenting that they haven’t seen this type of hot, sunny day in many long years. On the way we stopped at a lookout and took pictures of the famous Mendenhall Glacier – a picture postcard view.

Once we were under way in the cruiser, we soon spotted a small family of about ten sea lions all trying to climb on a large marker buoy (such huge, comical blobs), as well as a little colony of harbour seals bobbing around close by, perhaps 50 or 60. There were a few young bald eagles in the low trees as well. When we got to the whale area, we spotted a water spout, then another, then another. There were six whales in all, three of them juveniles, coming up for air, leaping in the water and diving for food. We watched this spectacular performance for about 45 minutes, with the whales eventually being only about 100m from our boat. The guide said in five years of whale watching this was the best sighting she had ever seen. Apparently they often see a lone whale feeding but this was enthralling. We finally had to leave and on the way back, we did encounter a lone whale, a large adult, who was lazily surfacing and diving for food. Again he came very close and again we finally had to leave.

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<p> Again the scenery was spectacular, picture postcard stuff. The one of the single tail is zoomed a little but the other ones aren’t – yes, they were that close!

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We had lunch back on the ship, then took the laptop down to a coffee shop where we had terrible, slow wifi. We did make a couple of little jewellery purchases for gifts, both of which were offered to us at generous discounts. With four cruise ships all tied up at the dock, the shops were having a bumper day.

Afternoon tea and then yet another inspiring concert, this time Legacy Quartet, Booth Brothers and Ken Davis – not a dry eye in the house: he is so clever at taking what’s happening around the ship and weaving a hilarious tale.

Good food for dinner; as we’re sitting right at the back window of the dining room, we watch the spectacular full-width scenery change with the coming of sunset, snow caps glistening and the Norwegian Princess following us, gleaming white. The steward on duty at the door as we leave the dining room each evening is still on the ship since our NZ cruise in January; tonight he gave me a bouquet of “white roses” made out of paper napkins. He’s going home on Sunday after ten months away from his bride of six weeks: such a difficult life for them!

Back to our room and Graham was quickly in bed and asleep. Tomorrow morning we don’t have a wake-up call: we’ll be staying on board, as Sitka requires tender access and Graham needs a quieter day.

At Sea Tuesday 16 July, Cruising Tracy Arm

We were up at 7.30 with breakfast arriving in our room. Because I missed my usual smoked salmon delights, we got some extras from the Neptune Room and then headed up to the Bookstore again. We wanted to collect our CD’s from the Booth Brothers, give them a few souvenirs for the kids and hopefully get a picture with Michael!! Ronnie Booth was so lovely: the guys had all signed the 7 CD’s that we had to pay for (including the free one Jim gave us) and then Ronnie said they wanted to give them to us because we’d made such an effort to come all this way to see them! How amazing. Michael wasn’t there. We shopped at a couple of the other tables and then went down to a lecture on Yellow Emeralds so we could go in the draw to win one! Very interesting gems ... we didn’t win! L

Lunch was a bit of this and a bit of that; Graham had a burger and chips and I had very disappointing sushi, mainly because the yanks like their sweet stuff and most of it was made with fruit!! Again we picked up a couple of extra savoury bits from the Neptune.

Early afternoon we started the final section heading for Tracey Arm. Words cannot describe this beautiful landmark. As we headed in (huge ship, small channel) it grew more and more beautiful until we reached the breathtaking glacier. We did a 360 right at the glacier; the guide said she had only been this far up the channel and this close to the glacier on about 12 occasions over the past 5 years – it’s rare to be able to come this far! God certainly blessed us here. The pictures can’t do it justice but I’ll put in a couple anyway. Much of the time heading up Tracy Arm we spent on Observation Deck. Then when the ship arrived close up to the glacier and did its slow 360, we waited till we knew the back of the ship would be pointing towards the glacier: this meant that it was time to go down to our stateroom. From then on, all the way back down Tracy Arm, we had the spectacular scenery framed by our windows and door. I had the battery out of the camera to charge but every ten minutes had to put it back in again to take yet another picture.

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We didn’t go to the concert tonight but caught our breath for a couple of hours. Dinner was again delicious; interestingly, the drink waiters don’t come to our section of the dining room – by arrangement with the promoters. They have to pay a levy because the ship is missing out on alcohol bucks! We’re getting to know our table mates quickly – Duane and Jenny from Montana and Carolyn and Boyd from Boise, Idaho: lovely people, just a little older than us. While we were finishing dinner, Jenny spotted some whales spouting (we’re sitting right on the window), so the cameras were out on Lower Promenade Deck.

At Sea Monday 15 July 2013

We were up around 7.30 with some logistic difficulties for Graham. By the time he was showered and dressed and I was ready, we decided to the Neptune for breakfast – nice and simple, just no hot food but plenty of cold breakfast delights including salmon, capers, onion and cheese: what more is there in life? I had wanted to go to Ken Davis’ morning devotions at 8.30 but that wasn’t possible this morning. We went to the Crows Nest at 10.00am for the first Bookstore and were blessed to be almost the first there. We’ve chosen about 7 assorted Booth Brothers CD’s, one of which Jim gave us as a gift. Ronnie’s wife will get them signed for us and we’ll collect them tomorrow. We’re heading down now to a Microsoft session on Windows 8: good timing because I’d like to know more and be more efficient using it.

So it was lunchtime but the Lido was crowded and although we could have found a seat, we didn’t feel like lining up. The Neptune beckoned and so we had finger food again – a light lunch. Graham loves the fruit tarts and has one every time. 2.00pm was the next concert, so we lined up from 1.30 and got our 3^rd row from the front seats again. The Freedom Singers were great and told some of their inspiring story. Legacy Five is an amazing group – so reminiscent of the Cathedrals and their new bass singer from 12 months ago has almost the quality of George Younce’s voice; at only 30 years of age apparently that’s unusual. The Collingsworth Family has an amazing harmony, beautiful voices in the four women and good male singers as well.

Off to Explorations for coffee; down to the Front Office to say hello to Dianna from our last cruise when she was in the Neptune Lounge. We picked up brochures about whale watching excursions because Graham was interested and finished up ringing the Shore Excursions Desk to book for the 4-hour excursion from Juneau on a two level boat. The girl at the other end of the phone was an Aussie and said her husband was on board as well. Drew, The Cruise Director, is the same as last cruise on this ship and is also an Aussie from Perth. There are only two other Aussie passengers on the ship besides Graham and me – Mary and Dianne from Melbourne.

Back to the room to get dressed for our first Formal dinner, discovering that I had left Graham’s belt in the bag we left with Rick and Barb! He managed for this time but we had to buy a new one at the onboard shop. Another concert at 6.00pm. This time, the Beane Family, Liberty Quartet and the Booth  Brothers. What an awesome session of praising God!

Dinner was pretty good but gradually the trimmings are disappearing , compared with what they used to do when we first cruised. That doesn’t matter – things change! And we’re getting enough to eat, so what else matters? I had arranged for some port and cheese to be in our room when we got back from dinner (after buying a belt); not long after we had that, Graham was sound asleep.

I’m going to sleep now: clocks have been turned back one hour for tonight.

Seattle Sunday 14 July

Graham had some digestive difficulties this morning, causing Barb to do two trips to the local Safeway for drugs. After breakfast, John and Amy arrived with Olivia and Beatrice. It was again a lovely visit with them, reintroducing them to the adult children and grandchildren.

Soon it was time to throw in the final items and get down to Pier 91; of course, we saw the Oosterdam from some way off, beside the Golden Princess – pretty huge. We dropped the bags, left Rick and Barb and were warmly greeted by HAL staff. Arriving at the doors to the terminal building, there was a long line, but we were relieved to see that it was the Princess side. We walked straight in, then had to queue for security: very smoothly through. Then another queue for check-in, again very quick after about 15 minutes in the zig-zag maze.

Then we spotted them! We were moved to the Inspiration Cruises side of the boarding pictures queue and there were the Booth Brothers to have their pictures taken with arriving guests. By the time we got to the photographer 10 minutes later, Michael was no longer there, but Ronnie and Jim were. They greeted us warmly and had a picture taken with us – so cool! (I’m a hopeless groupie!).

Off we went to mount the gangway and head for our stateroom. What a wonderful suite! It’s actually better laid out than the previous one we had and, being on a corner at the back of the ship, there is a balcony wrapping right round, giving us a view to the back and to the side.

We had a quick look around and dropped our hand luggage and headed for the Neptune Lounge for lunch of finger food and coffee/tea. By the time we got back to the stateroom, our bags had  been brought in and so I spent about an hour unpacking: once it’s done, it’s done. 3.00pm soon arrived and we had to get ready for the lifeboat drill; at the conclusion we were told that some late passengers had just come aboard, causing us to then have to wait till the Golden Princess sailed ahead of us. 4.30 saw us up on Observation Deck 10, taking lots of pictures, followed by some more light food in the Lounge. This is the Seattle skyline and a great shot of Mount Rainier - you often can’t see the mountain because of cloud:

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At 6.00pm we had the welcome for the Inspiration Cruises guests, which consisted of 2 items performed by each of the groups taking part in the cruise. It was wonderful! We got seats in the 3^rd row of loose chairs that had been added to the showroom right in front of the stage. Legacy Five was first – they’re very good to listen to; Freedom Singers, Taranda Green, Booth Brothers, Collingsworth Family and some others, as well as the comedian, Ken Davis. This is the Booth Brothers: <p/>

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Dinner followed and we met our table friends for the cruise – Jenny and Duane from Montana and Boyd and Carolyn from Northern Florida (Baptists). Such lovely people! Duane is a pastor in a large church and they both tell it like it is! Carolyn and Boyd are in a church of about 1700 which has lost some numbers over recent years, going from three services to one. We had lovely chats, delicious dinner (salmon of course).  As we sailed, it was so inspiring to watch the mountains along the Sound, with their tall fir trees at ground level and snow caps on top of the mountains.

Pretty late to get back to our stateroom, so no walk apart from stairs; we’ll have to get our exercise during the day!  Both very tired – I’m off to sleep now and Graham is already asleep at 11.30pm here. Tomorrow should be a relaxing  day.

Seattle Saturday 13 July

A late, lazy morning, sitting in the sun reading and knitting. Then we left to go downtown to the Cheesecake Factory for “lunch” = CHEESECAKE! Okay, so it’s not Honolulu Cheesecake Factory but we weren’t willing to wait for 1 or 1½ hours for a table. We only had to wait 10 minutes here.




The pictures speak for themselves: we had 30th Anniversary Chocolate (pic 1), Blueberry (pic2), Mango and Lime, and Vanilla Bean. Yes, those piles are fresh whipped cream! Needless to say, we brought home a doggy bag. The latte’s were very good too.
After that we needed a walk, so we drove down to the locks at Ballard. There wasn’t any room to park for miles, so Rick went and sat in the car a few blocks away. We walked around, had a look at the salmon on their way to their spawning grounds and then watched one side of the locks fill with water and the boats heading off. On the way we passed Pier 91 where we will get on the ship tomorrow; there were two cruise liners in port – very exciting!

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Dinner Saturday night was Barb’s delicious turkey with gravy, rice and salad and some white and red wine (Mad Housewife Merlot!). Then we had a long evening punctuated by coffee, cheesecake doggy bag and an excellent port. Rick had tried to find an Aussie port but failed.

We all but packed and were in bed late.

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Friday Seattle 12 July

Well, here we are at Tulley’s for coffee again. It’s about a 20 minute walk downhill from where we’re staying, taking it slowly at Graham’s pace. It’s good exercise and it gives me time to try to get all the wifi stuff done. Last night was interesting - we had "shrimp" in a cream sauce with spaghetti and I got food poisoning: an interesting couple of hours late at night and especially difficult to get Graham back to sleep. Better this morning but no coffee: just water and crackers. As I write this, the big day has dawned for Carmen and David – their wedding day! We’re praying that it’s a beautiful day full of wonderful memories to treasure for their lifetime together. This afternoon we’ll have visitors - Damien with the girls and Bob and Joanne; we were supposed to go down to the locks with them but that's not advisable after my difficulties last night: just having a quiet day. We had two lots of visitors today. Bob and Joanne King were going to take us to the locks but because it was more sensible to take things quietly today, they came and visited us. Shortly after, Damien and Jennifer, Lily, Sarah and Fiona came for a short while. They’re all lovely girls, growing up and involved in sport, etc. Barb baked a turkey this afternoon which she had bought at Easter to keep for us. It wasn’t cooked until about 8.30pm, so we’ll have turkey for dinner tomorrow night. Probably no more posts until our first port on the cruise next week.

Thursday 11 July

A couple of laid-back, quiet days in Seattle. We’re at Tulley’s again for the usual coffees. Yesterday we went to visit Bob and Joanne King. We first met the Kings when they came to Sydney in 2000. Bob was a member of the Boeing Choir which was on tour and they came to our house for lunch one day during their visit. Then, next time we were in Seattle, Bob took us on the tour through the Boeing Plant. We had a lovely lunch and spent the afternoon talking about many topics of mutual interest. Joanne is a historian and is close to publishing a book on which she has been collaborating with a colleague. We went for a late walk looking at the local gardens and I took lots of “flower pictures” as usual. Barb has been back at work since Tuesday, so she goes off for the day and works hard while we while away the hours doing whatever we feel like doing. Today after lunch we went across town to the Kubota Japanese Garden. Mr Fujitaro Kubota created the original garden in the 1930’s. He died in 1973 at the age of 94 and the council acquired the garden from the family. It’s free to walk around, covers 4 acres and is lovely and peaceful (until you bump into a bunch of kids playing hide and seek, that is!). Even though it’s school holidays, we only ran into a couple of young families.

Graham is a cat magnet!

Tonight Matt and Tricia came for a drink after dinner. They’ll be leaving for Australia Saturday next week, the day before we leave for Honolulu on our long journey home. They’ll be spending a week in Sydney before heading off to different areas, including Adelaide, outback, Uluru, etc on a three-week visit. We’ll get together during that week we get home.

Tomorrow morning I’m going to try to reorganise our bags for the cruise so we can leave one bag here until we leave for Hawaii on 21 July, because Rick will pick us up from the ship and deliver us to the airport. Sleep report: three good nights of sleep – very nice! Perhaps we should stay in Seattle!

Seattle Tuesday 9 July

Had a wonderful sleep! Graham was only up once and I had trouble waking him up at 9.00am! Now we're down at Tulley's, the local coffee shop where, of course, they have wifi. Nice relaxed time here. Barb is at work, so we're just enjoying the day.

Sleepless (until tonight) in Seattle, Monday 8 Juy

It’s nice to be in their home again. Rick and Barbara have given us their bedroom – very generous. We all had a nap of sorts in the morning and then had a quiet day, apart from Barb, who went shopping to replenish their food stocks after their holiday. Rick headed off to see Lily play in the softball play-offs: she’s in the 10-12 yrs State team; unfortunately they lost. Meantime we went for a drive down to the beach and sat for ages in the shade watching the water drift by. Graham is now asleep (at 9.45pm) and I’ll be in bed shortly, hoping for a respectable night’s sleep.

Sunday Aloha Hawaii

Graham was up early but we didn't have a good night so I pulled the covers over my head till 7.30. We got close to being packed and went to the Coffee Bean for coffee. We have to check out by 12.00 and we don't get collected by the transfer service until 5.45pm, so we'll leave our bags in the hotel's free storage until then. We'll have a nice day wandering around. Probably sit around the beach somewhere if we can find shady space. Of course, I have my knitting! Signing off for the day; we may get wifi in the Delta lounge this evening. LATER... With our bags in storage, we went to the Coffee Bean for a last Hawaiian coffee. We went our separate ways, some walking and some sitting in the lobby to fill in the time. Graham and I went for a slow walk but we only got as far as the Cheesecake Factory alleyway before Graham had had enough and wanted to turn back. It was pretty hot in the sun, not as humid as yesterday but still he was finding it difficult. I left Graham in the lobby with Barb and went for a bit of a walk. I had wanted to go into Macy’s but this was the first opportunity I’d had: I was very glad I did because I found a birthday present for Rich. Having retrieved our bags, the shuttle eventually turned up half an hour later than we expected, with Graham getting quite agitated. Off we went to the airport at last, a quick trip. Rick got us a trolley and pushed it to First Class for us, only to be told that we had to go back to the Agriculture screening to get clearance stickers. Check-in was quick; going through security we jumped the queue, of course, but then we encountered the body scan machine. This was a disaster for Graham and I quickly explained that he wouldn’t be able to follow the instructions; they kindly took him out and did a body check manually. He was, however, in an awful state by the time he got back around the machine to me. We headed off to find the Delta lounge. Here we discovered that we weren’t covered for the lounge by our First Class tickets but we should have gone to the Hawaiian Airlines lounge across the other side of the terminal. We could choose to pay $50 per person to stay – I had no choice; Graham was in such a state that we stayed there. I also asked if they could organise a wheelchair to take us to the plane. Meantime, the Delta Lounge in Honolulu is somewhat of a hole: extremely tiny with a very small selection of finger foods and snacks. There was plenty of variety of drinks at least. The wheelchair was such a help and we were soon at the gate lounge waiting to board the plane first. Good flight and as usual lots of food forthcoming. Graham only slept for about 10 mins; I probably got an hour’s sleep but woke up when he climbed over me, somewhat agitated. Thankfully I have my Rescue lollies! We had a chair waiting in Seattle, which took us all the way to a cab which we all squished into, including the bags.

Lazy Saturday

Graham slept late this morning. After shower, etc we left to wander around to get coffee and discovered that there would be a concert around the corner in the International Market. We got our coffees and finished them as we walked around to the stage. Here everyone works on "Hawaiian time" so the 11.00am concert started around 11.15. We stayed for about an hour and then headed for the Red Line trolley, this time heading to the other end of Honolulu.

We got off at the Ala Moana Tower Market, which just turned out to be the cruise liner and ferry terminal. Very pretty and there were a couple of big liners in. We wandered through the market (which was very up-market) and then back to wait for the next trolley.

We got back to the hotel with Graham being very tired. Rick and Barb headed off to Mass about 15 minutes' walk (too far for Graham) and I did about 3/4 of the packing.

So off we headed after Rick and Barb came back from Mass, about 6.30pm. We ate in the International Market, sushi and a burger for Graham. We were right on time for the night performance and saw some nice hula dancing.

When we finished our food we headed down to the beach. Lots of people out and about but not noisy or crowded - just happy. As we got to the beach we had to walk through a puddle a couple of inches deep, so Barb and I took our sandals off and I actually walked on the sand in my bare feet! A shock for my family! We walked down to the edge of the water and put our feet in the warm water: yes, I have a video to prove it! Rick ended up taking his shoes off and doing likewise.

The sky was tinted pink and grey with the last light just fading, lanterns around the hotels adding to a lovely sight. As we walked up to the Sheraton we were given an orchid lei and asked for a donation for a school netball team.

A few attempts at photos and then we headed back to where Rick was waiting, standing guard over the shoes. We walked back to the hotel barefoot (and I got a piece of glass in each foot, fortunately only temporarily). Graham is now tucked in bed sound asleep and I'll do so in a while. I've just realised - oh no! - I've packed the book I was going to read tonight and on the plane. I do have another one and I'm hoping to sleep on the plane anyway.

Ala Moana Centre! Shopping Heaven!

We had 2-day tickets for the trolleys that criss-cross Honolulu. After we finally found the starting point, we hopped on our Green Line trolley and headed for Diamond Head. Lots of pretty scenery along the way, then we arrived at the centre of the crater. It's all very barren and dry because of the heat. People got off the trolley to climb to the top, approximately 90 mins or more if you're slow. We were warned that you don't attempt the climb without a good supply of water only - no sugary drinks because the heat will cause you to pass out. They have approximately three ambulance calls per day for this reason and while we were waiting to leave Diamond head, a fire truck and an ambulance arrived, sirens blaring.

Waiting for the trolley

The tunnel into the crater

Ala Moana Centre

Arriving back in town we switched to the Pink Line Trolley which dropped us at the end of the line - Ala Moana Centre. We had lunch in a very crowded food hall, finding a table quickly as another group got up. By the time we got back to the table with the food, a NZ couple from Auckland were seated beside us. Lunch was good and then we headed up to Macy's to find some pants for Graham; a little bit of a tricky exercise but eventually we were successful.

It was hard to walk past all the hundreds of other shops but it wasn't the time for shopping. We spotted an item in the public area - very pretty hula dancers doing a beautiful, graceful dance. Graham was pretty exhausted already, so we headed back to the trolley queue only to find that we were able to jump the queue and get a Red Line trolley (double decker!) back home.

In the end we had a quiet afternoon and then headed with Rick and Barb into the local markets to get a couple of things and then to an Italian restaurant very close by. Dinner was pizza - very good - served by a young man with a very heavy accent we were having trouble figuring out. Rick asked him where he had come from and we found out he was Russian. He was very talkative and excitable. Then we were off home and Graham was soon in bed. All quiet now, except for activity down in the street below.

4th July

We had a quiet afternoon and Rick sat with Graham while I picked up a few supplies at the ABC Store. These convenience stores are all over the place, very expensive and usually next door to hotels. I did find some factor 110 sports sunscreen - waterproof too! Since Graham had slept quite late in the morning, he was still on his feet early in the evening, so we all headed down to the beach to wait for the fireworks. There were lots of people down there but it wasn't uncomfortable or unpleasant. We sat for about half an hour watching the light fade and the lights go on everywhere.

We had been told the fireworks were scheduled for 8.00pm but when the hour came and went, enquiries revealed that it was in fact 8.30. Then there was the first bang - not on our part of the beach at all but around the corner in front of the expensive hotels and private beaches. This caused a stampede in the direction of said fireworks but after we caught a glimpse of a little green twinkle and realised that they didn't appear to warrant squashing through the crowd and walking another half a kilometre, we turned around and headed for home. A fun day!

Waikiki Never Changes!

We went for a walk when we were all organised, quite late in the morning; we headed for the hotel where Graham and I stayed in 2009, which is a time share belonging to Barb's brother and sister-in-law. As we hadn't had a real breakfast, we had a meal at Denny's in the hotel which was big enough to keep us fuelled for the day. Graham had a T-Bone steak, which doesn't often appear on the table at home. Rick went back to the hotel and Barb and Graham and I walked to the beach, when we finally worked out the public route. (Lots of the hotels have their private beach which you can't walk through.) Well, the beach doesn't change but the crowd density does. It's a national holiday and it's summer, so it's not surprising that there are lots of people around. Still, the beach looks as lovely as ever. It's very hot in the sun and all the shady tables on the beach were occupied, so we sat under a couple of friendly palms for about half an hour just watching everyone having fun. Tonight there will be fireworks out on the water; they won't be in view of our hotel though and I doubt whether Graham will still be up at that stage.

Just window shopping!

Welcome to the Wave!

Well, there we were: Graham was in bed asleep; I had just got out of the shower and was getting my night clothes on when the sirens went off! There was an evacuation order because there was "a fire somewhere in the building"! I quickly finished dressing, grabbed my bag and the camera and then got Graham up. This was very difficult because he was out cold. We got to the stairs with me carrying his PJ top and thongs; Rick and Barb were waiting at the door of the stairs for us to make sure we were okay and helped get Graham down 8 flights of stairs and out of the lobby. Not more than 10 minutes passed before they said it was a false alarm and we could go back up. The lobby was packed with people waiting for the lifts. We sat Graham down on a bench; a nurse who was a guest staying on the 14th Floor stopped by and asked if we needed help - very nice. She helped find someone who got us to a service lift so we could get Graham back upstairs; then back into bed and it was time to settle for the night again. Graham only got up and did a wander once and I was able to get him back into bed pretty quickly. I had a really good night's sleep in spite of that and didn't get up till just after 8.00. Right now Graham is trying to wake up. As soon as I can get him moving, we'll head off for a walk.

Balmy Hawaii

We arrived right on time; we waited till the wheelchair was available and Graham was again transported easily. We had no wait at Customs, collected our bags which were lined up waiting and with the attendant helping. They flashed a smile at the customs official who checked our card which, of course, listed Vegemite and we were waved through and out! As soon as we reached the ramp, our name was called by the shuttle company and we waited with several others, our bags again being looked after. After the shuttle ride we arrived at the hotel and checked in, bags being carried by others and put in our room. Yes, by now there had been quite some tipping and that's why I bought some small denomination notes before we left. The hotel room is quite roomy, with 2 Queen beds and a nice bathroom with bath and shower. No cooking facilities except a microwave and no cutlery, crockery, etc. About 30 mins after we arrived, with me already unpacking much of the stuff needed for this leg of the trip, Rick and Barb rang from their room; we're on Level 4 and they're on Level 10. It was so lovely to see them. We hung around talking for a while and the went for a stroll, finally settling on a place to get a coffee. We walked down towards the beach but ended up at the Dukes end and it was too hot to walk down the other end; we went past the Cheesecake Factory and surprisingly they weren't over-flooded with patrons: that one will keep for another day. Graham was tired by this time, so we went into the ABC Store near the hotel to pick up some basic essential items: bread, butter and fruit and milk. Then back to our room for a while. Rick and Barb enjoyed the photobooks; however, Graham was starting to get ready for bed, so they left and we'll reconnect in the morning.

At the Airport

Rich dropped us at the airport about 6.30. Surprisingly, there was already a crowd waiting. We were checked in quickly and easily and then asked to wait for the wheelchair and attendant. This took about 20 minutes, by which time Graham was getting somewhat agitated. He wasn’t comfortable with the idea of a wheelchair but it turned out to be very helpful with getting us through all the formalities. The staff were lovely and very helpful. We went to the Air New Zealand lounge and had some hot food; then not more than 30 mins later, they came back with the wheelchair and we headed to the gate lounge. It was 5 mins to boarding, so Graham sat at the head of the check-in and as soon as they gave the all clear, we headed down the ramp. Our seats were front row with about 3 feet of leg room – just great. The recline isn’t fantastic but it was enough for me to stretch out and sleep. Graham, however, did little more than doze once or twice, being awake most of the time. He got up a few times but I knew the attendants were keeping an eye on him. So I had some periods of sleep here and there which was great. Feeling a bit bleary eyed this morning, but it’s an hour to landing now and we’re on our decent to Honolulu. 28 degrees when we arrive. In summary, Hawaiian Business Class is very comfortable, the service is excellent and the food is very good.

Leaving on a Jet Plane

Our bags are packed and we're ready to go! We'll be picked up by Rich at 6.00pm. Got my nails done so I won't have to worry about them on the trip and take all that "stuff"! Nail polish bottles always seem to leak in the checked baggage. Believe it or not, that's the first time I've ever had gel nails done!

I've organised assistance through Customs both ends to make it as smooth as possible. We'll have a meal when we get through all the check-in stuff and are settled in the lounge - apparently Hawaiian uses the Air New Zealand lounge, which is very familiar territory: a nice selection of finger foods, wines, fruit and it's nice and quiet while we wait. Our house sitters have arrived and settled in and they've already taken Muffy for a long walk: she's in for doggy boot camp to lose a few of those extra grams!

Finally - Packing!

At last I'm feeling a little more prepared! After I tucked Graham in around 6.30, I dived into serious packing. Two hours later, I have three suitcases almost organised, with the only things to be added being toiletries and the late stuff that I can't pack yet, plus our carry-ons. I was starting to feel just a little stressed about it all, with another full-on busy day tomorrow and then our house sitters, Nani and Robert, arriving for dinner at 6.00pm. So now I can relax somewhat and coast into the final day and a half. 2 BIG SLEEPS!