Seattle and Alaska

I finally have all our pictures downloaded and can share the story of our latest vacation. This year we decided to cruise Alaska again. We thought Alaska would be so amazing for my grandparents as well so we asked them if they would like to go with us and they accepted! We decided to go on Norwegian Cruise Line because we had not yet done Alaska with them (we'd already cruised Princess and Royal Caribbean to Alaska) and because we loved their "freestyle" cruising on our honeymoon. We chose the Pearl (the name of our ship) because we wanted to cruise out of Seattle in order to spend time with my friend Katie and her son.


We flew into Seattle on Alaska Air because they had a direct flight. We stayed at the Embassy Suites at the airport for a great rate (thanks Manie!). Katie met us in the morning and we all had coffee and the boys played until it was time for us to head to Dock 66 to board our ship.

Boarding was so easy because my grandparents had booked a penthouse suite and we had the adjoining room. Their suite status had us whisked into a private room where, while we enjoyed complimentary snacks and drinks, they processed all of our documents and handed us our key cards. Then they personally escorted us through the crowds, onto the ship and into the Summer Palace restaurant where we could dine and relax until our rooms were ready.
My mom had given us her old IPhone and this came in extremely handy. Before we left we downloaded all sorts of kid videos on it and every time we went out to eat or had to wait in line or in a theatre, we would pull it out and let the kids watch it.
This really helped keep things peaceful and quiet.




Our rooms were fantastic and beautiful. The color palate on NCL is bold and bright and fun. There were all sorts of restaurants on board. There were the two main dining rooms and then the buffet with a separate kid sized buffet with kid chairs and tables and kid friendly food. There were a couple of light fare restaurants and then there were the speciality restaurants which had an extra charge. We loved the teppanyaki, the sushi and the steak restaurants. They were awesome. We went to the sushi counter twice. I also loved how the ship had electronic boards all around so you could see what the wait was at any time at any of the restaurants. Some nights we made reservations and sometimes we didn't, but there was never too much of a line. Freestyle cruising is really casual and it really worked for our family.

We also enjoyed the piano bar which was conveniently located next to the champagne bar. We attended a ridiculously fun murder mystery dinner party one evening. Michael turned out to be the murderer! The kids ADORED the kid's club. Davis begged to go morning-noon-and-night. Sam sometimes would have preferred to play in the room, and we were happy to keep him with us, but when he saw his brother heading off to play on the indoor jungle gym or get his face painted, he quickly ditched us to follow his brother. I used the gym every day and even tried out a spin class.
We threw out our routines and let the kids nap late in the afternoons and stay up late into the night. The three hour time difference was difficult the first two or three days, but once we adjusted, it worked out pretty well. The kids had their own room and it had no windows and this was great for getting them to sleep in since sunrise was at 4:30AM and sunset was at 9:30PM.
We started with a sea day and the ship rocked and rolled across the pacific. We decided not to try the bowling alley! We played bingo with my grandparents and explored the ship. We read books and napped and played with the kids. It was great.


The next day we arrived in Juneau. My grandparents went on an excursion to the Mendenhall Glacier and Michael and I and the boys took the tram up to Mt. Roberts. We hiked in the snow and saw a bald eagle close up. We drank an Alaskan pint in the restaurant and had a bowl of amazing chowder.



The next day was Skagway. We all walked through the town and had a red velvet cupcake at Sugar Babies. Then we met Theo, my friend from college for a Thai food lunch. Theo was performing on our sister ship and our itineraries met at Skagway. We really enjoyed our mini-reunion. Then my grandparents and Michael and the boys and I all got on the White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad summit train ride. We all enjoyed it and got to see TWO black bears on our way up. We also saw several mountain goats and some bald eagles. It was really special and the boys loved it.


Our next day was my favorite. We got to cruise the Glacier Bay. We got so close to the glacier this time. I love bundling up on my balcony and cruising up to glacier after glacier. We ordered room service and really used our in cabin espresso machine. We spent all morning cruising the glaciers and saw another black bear! We also saw several whales and more bald eagles.



When we woke the next morning, we found ourselves in Ketchikan. We shopped Creek Street. The flowers were amazing at this time of year. I'd never seen Alaskan in May and it is so different. The salmon weren't running, but all the flowers were blooming and it was really beautiful. After I bought a case of smoked salmon and arranged to have it shipped home, we went to the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show. The kids really got into it and we enjoyed it too.
The last day of our cruise was a day at sea ending in a stop at Victoria. We decided not to get off the ship, but instead enjoy having our last evening on our boat. The kids had a pajama party in the kids club and Michael and I went out for sushi and then rocked out with a band in the Bliss Lounge.
The next morning we were whisked off of the ship and took a taxi to the Comfort Suites in downtown Seattle. We dropped off our luggage and walked to the Seattle Center. We checked out the needle and then went to the Science Fiction museum (Michael could have spent five more hours there) and then the Experience Music Project where the kids all enjoyed looking at the guitars and then jamming out upstairs.



We met Katie around lunchtime and she led us to a fantastic pizza place called Zeeks. The pizza was awesome there. After lunch we walked back to Seattle Center and walked through the folk festival that was happening there. By this time we were all pretty tired so after a quick coffee stop we walked back to the hotel and checked into our rooms. My grandparents tucked in for a well deserved rest, but we all headed back out to Pike's Place Market to gather a picnic. After we had several kinds of wonderful cheeses (a goats milk brie!), some pate, cherries, pears, apricots and crackers, we went back to the hotel. Michael stayed with the boys while Katie and I walked to the grocery store and got wine and more dinner for my grandparents and the kids and then we settled in for the night. We talked and laughed and reconnected and had a lovely evening.
And then the next day we came home. Davis had developed a fever in the night and we were a bit worried about him on the way home, but he just slept on the plane and seemed to be recovered by the time we got home.
It was a great trip. Travelling with the kids is so much easier these days. They are such fun ages and it so fun to experience things through their eyes. They also take way less gear. No strollers this time or diapers or sippy cups. It was also really special to share all that time with my grandparents. They are so fun and generous and smart. We grew even closer over our trip and I am so glad to have that special relationship with them both.
Alaska is a magical place and cruising is truly so fun and relaxing. It was a great vacation. I'll add even more photos to our flikr stream so you can see them.