Bon Voyage

Look at this terrible dreary Seattle weather.  When we returned a week later is was even nicer.  What really surprised me about Seattle was how dry and brown it was.  I thought Seattle was so rainy-therefore very green.  But I discovered (thanks Google) that Seattle (average 34") gets about much less average rainfall than Atlanta (50").  The rainforest is a bit north.  And as we learned, they measure rainfall in feet!

I will say that I am very glad we got to go on this cruise.  I knew little to nothing about SE Alaska before the trip.  I didn't realize that the cities in SE Alaska, with the exception of Skagway) can not be reached by land.  You either fly in or come by sea.  And the scenery and glaciers can only -really- be observed from the water (or helicopter or float plane).

Looking out at the city from our ship.

This ship, the Celebrity Solstice, had a lawn on the top deck.

 While I may never be a big fan of cruising like my kids are...I do love the sail away.

 

I think its maritime law or something that you are required to have a fruity beverage for sail away.

 This ship would follow us out and stay with us for a few days.

 We sailed along the very top of Washington.  If you happen to be a fan of the Twilight Book series we sailed right past Port Angeles.

 

Last year we took the kids on one of the Royal Caribbean Mega ships, Allure of the Seas, and my kids are begging to go back.  And I can say I actually enjoyed that ship. This ship in contrast was just meh.  It was lovely and tasteful but terribly dull.  And I'm the type of person who likes to go to bed early and read.  Even my poor husband was bored.

Its pretty important to have a balcony when sailing to Alaska.  There is SO much beautiful scenery and I felt obligated to look outside constantly.  This is much easier to do if you have a balcony.