North To Alaska! Day 7

Day 7 Friday. at sea, Victoria

Both of us notice the boat was really rocking last night. Mike did not throw-up, but he was moaning and groaning. Not exactly conducive to a good night's sleep. Up at 7am, I clean up and head for the Vista Dining Room. Last night in the casino I agreed to meet Reid & Eunice for BF at 8am. My first time in the dining room for BF. I guess I was just lazy and always used the buffet. It is really nice and decide on omelet, toast, tea. We are in no hurry and are the last ones to leave the dining room. I go to my last Digital Workshop with Tony. He is a good teacher and I am now better with Windows 7 and using my camera. Next up is to go into the casino and cash out. They will not open again and I say good bye to Phillipe. I add up the damage and figure I lost about $60 over the 5 days of playing poker. Pretty cheap entertainment compared to playing the slots or table games. Back to the cabin, then up to the gym for my last workout. Lifting weights today, stomach, shower. I stop at the pool and have another veggie burger. I have time to have a nap and head for the room for some reading and rest. The Vista Dining Room set seating is closed because we will arrive in Victoria at 6pm. Depart at midnight. I get some photos as we get close to Victoria, land on each side. Great scenery and perfect weather. Mike and I use the open seating dining room for dinner tonight. I have soup, salad, pasta, dessert. To the cabin to clean-up, get my camera. It is just a perfect night in Victoria: warm, no wind, no clouds. We are off the ship about 7:30pm.

You have several options on getting to the Inner Harbor from where we dock. It is walkable, but with our dodgy knees, that is not an option. We try to share a taxi, but cannot find another couple leaving while we are on the dock. There is an $8 bus and we end up taking that. Immigration is very informal. We show our cruise card and they tell us to be back by midnight. Welcome to Canada. 10 minutes via bus and we are at the Inner Harbor of Victoria. It is starting to get dark, so Mike and I head for the totem poles we saw on the way in. Photos as we walk along the Inner Harbor, boats, buskers, carriages.

Next up is all the totem poles in Thunderbird Park. It is starting to get dark, so we don't waste any more time. We really should have got off the ship shortly after 6pm, but we voted to eat and let most of the passengers get off before we did. The Royal B.C. Museum is right before the totem poles, but it is closed.

We head into the Fairmont Empress Hotel, one of the landmark hotels in Victoria. Opened in 1908, 'The Empress' is the iconic symbol of the Inner Harbor. 477 rooms, indoor pool, spa, 4 restaurants, Conference Center. Famous for its 'high tea' at 4pm, it is a 'must see' while in Victoria. A wedding is going on and we are seriously under-dressed. We walk the public areas, use their bathroom, photos of what is interesting and then head out to take some night shots.

A guy has a tripod and that is what you need for a quality shot at night. I try the best I can w/o a tripod while we head for the bus. We are both out of leg and stop several times to rest. Not much fun when your knee hurts each step to take. The shuttle bus runs continuously and we only wait 5-10 minutes. We get back to the boat around 11pm and head up for the late night buffet. Not really hungry, but have some ice cream and chat about our time in Victoria. Just a beautiful city and I plan on returning. We head back to the room to pack our big bags. They want your luggage outside your door before 1am for pick-up. We get that done, read a bit and lights out at midnight. Day 7 of our Alaska cruise is over.