Back at the hotel Bob and Kent played a little ping pong. Bob didn't want to get his shirt sweaty so he just took it off...classy.
Around 10:30 am we hauled our luggage downstairs and loaded it into the hotel shuttle for our ride to Canada Place where we would board the Coral Princess. Our 8th cruise, but it would be the first time that we had booked a balcony cabin. (We did have a balcony once before, but it was a complimentary upgrade from a lower priced cabin,) For an Alaskan cruise I insisted on having a balcony...regardless of the cost. The price was nearly triple of what an inside cabin fare would have been, but this trip to Alaska would probably be a once in a lifetime experience. So we paid the price.
We had a bit of a wait before we were allowed to board the ship. The guys passed the time playing some sort of a dice game.
Once boarding started we went directly to our cabin…our home for the next week. I was so excited to have a view AND the balcony!
Once boarding started we went directly to our cabin…our home for the next week. I was so excited to have a view AND the balcony!
Kent & Laurel were in cabin B232 and we were right next door in B234. The room steward was able to open the partition between our balconies so that we were able to enjoy being together and go back and forth between cabins via the balcony. The cabins were on deck 11, just two floors below the buffet. Of course regardless of where you are on a cruise ship, you are never far away from food!
And after having some lunch at the buffet, we explored the ship until it was time for the muster drill. Then it was time to sail!
Our reflection in the windows of the ship! I love the feeling of knowing that the whole trip is just beginning!
Leaving Canada Place and the city of Vancouver.
As we sailed away, we saw the torch from the 2010 Olympics that were held in Vancouver.
From our balcony, we could see a little of what was going on in the bridge. It appeared that the Captain had everything under control.
The Zuiderdam (a Holland America ship) was docked next to us at Canada Place and followed us out of the port.
The ship sailed past Stanley Park and under the Lion's Gate Bridge. Lots of bikers were on the trail where we had just ridden the previous day.
The naturalist gave a commentary from the bridge explaining what we were passing by. With the balcony door open, we could hear this being broadcast through the TV. I had looked forward to sailing past Point Atkinson Lighthouse which I had seen in so many photos. I wasn't sure which side of the ship it would be on but heard the announcement that we had JUST passed by...and it was on the other side of the ship. Rats.
Laurel and I ran like crazy to the viewing area at the back of our deck 11...and I realized just what a LONG ship the Coral was! From the rear deck, I could see the lighthouse fading in the distance. Using the zoom on my camera I was able to get this somewhat fuzzy shot.
As the ship reached more open waters, we went to dinner in the main dining room. For evening dining, we had a choice of "assigned" dining where we would eat at the same time and at the same table with the same wait staff each night or "anytime" dining. We chose the latter for the flexibility.
After dinner there were various forms of entertainment scheduled for the evening such as movies. "Saving Mr. Banks" was on the outdoor screen and "Gravity" was showing in one of the lounges. Other entertainment listed in the daily newsletter, the "Princess Patter," included a comedian, a string quartet, dancing, piano music, trivia contests and karaoke. On any other cruise, we would have been attending the evening entertainment…but this cruise was different. Instead, we went back to our cabin for some "balcony time." Having the divider open between the two balconies made it easy to carry on a conversation between the four of us.
As the sun started to set, we went out onto the public deck at the front of the ship. The sky was a brilliant orange and we were following another ship. It resembled the shape of a cruise ship, but it looked old and rusty so not sure what type of ship it was.
Sunset was at 9:08 p.m...the earliest that it would come during our trip. As we made our way north in the coming week, the days just kept getting longer...and longer...and longer.
The ship sailed past Stanley Park and under the Lion's Gate Bridge. Lots of bikers were on the trail where we had just ridden the previous day.
The naturalist gave a commentary from the bridge explaining what we were passing by. With the balcony door open, we could hear this being broadcast through the TV. I had looked forward to sailing past Point Atkinson Lighthouse which I had seen in so many photos. I wasn't sure which side of the ship it would be on but heard the announcement that we had JUST passed by...and it was on the other side of the ship. Rats.
Laurel and I ran like crazy to the viewing area at the back of our deck 11...and I realized just what a LONG ship the Coral was! From the rear deck, I could see the lighthouse fading in the distance. Using the zoom on my camera I was able to get this somewhat fuzzy shot.
As the ship reached more open waters, we went to dinner in the main dining room. For evening dining, we had a choice of "assigned" dining where we would eat at the same time and at the same table with the same wait staff each night or "anytime" dining. We chose the latter for the flexibility.
After dinner there were various forms of entertainment scheduled for the evening such as movies. "Saving Mr. Banks" was on the outdoor screen and "Gravity" was showing in one of the lounges. Other entertainment listed in the daily newsletter, the "Princess Patter," included a comedian, a string quartet, dancing, piano music, trivia contests and karaoke. On any other cruise, we would have been attending the evening entertainment…but this cruise was different. Instead, we went back to our cabin for some "balcony time." Having the divider open between the two balconies made it easy to carry on a conversation between the four of us.
As the sun started to set, we went out onto the public deck at the front of the ship. The sky was a brilliant orange and we were following another ship. It resembled the shape of a cruise ship, but it looked old and rusty so not sure what type of ship it was.
Sunset was at 9:08 p.m...the earliest that it would come during our trip. As we made our way north in the coming week, the days just kept getting longer...and longer...and longer.
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