I needn’t have worried. We met up with two wonderful couples from Saskatchewan traveling together before we even got on the ship, and ended up not parting ways until 2pm. By the time I finally got to our cabin, both of our large suitcases had already been delivered, so everything was unpacked at the same time anyway.
But backing up…during his morning outing, G scoped out the Canada Place cruise terminal. There were three ships in port today (the Sapphire, the Volendam and (I think) a Regent Seven Seas ship), so we needed to drop the suitcases one place, get checked in for the cruise in another, and go through immigration (back to the US) in a third place. G had it all figured out, and dropped off our large suitcases while I checked out of the hotel (I wanted to make sure a food and dining credit was properly applied). By 11am we had met our new friends and were walking on the ship. Our first stop was the International Cafe for another cup of coffee, then lunch with the others in the International Dining Room at noon where we talked for two more hours. I didn’t realize how much I had missed the social aspects of cruising!
The first of many decaf soy cappuccinos
Our favorite embarkation day lunch menu.
Avocado and bay shrimp starter
I’m so out of practice. I dug into my salmon before I even took a photo.
Lunch was accompanied by a Pinot Grigio of unknown origin. I like wine, and I love good wines, but, really, I’m not that fussy. The Princess Plus package works fine for us.
Switching devices on MedallionNet WiFi is even easier than when I last cruised.
Just tap the swap button.
It was a gorgeous weather day in Vancouver, but, once in our cabin, I stayed on task and unpacked our luggage. We are in our favorite location on the back of Aloha Deck, and I didn’t realize until today that we are directly across the hall from the cabin my friend Sheila and I shared on our transpacific cruise between Los Angeles and Sydney in the Sapphire’s inaugural season (November 2004). This may be one of Princess’s oldest ships, but there is no doubt in my mind it is now (since The Pacific Princess has been sold) the best. That wide promenade on an Inside Passage itinerary is pure gold.
G wanted to be in line when the Pacific Moon Dining Room opened at 5pm to try to lock in a window side table for two. I had reserved a table for two at 5pm in Pacific Moon…every single time the app moved us to a shared table (at least 5 times). It became part of my morning routine for two months to check that neither our cabin nor our dining reservation had changed. The cabin never did but Dine My Way is still a mess. Luckily, Director of Restaurant Operations (DRO) Mario Propato walked by as we were standing there, and…well, we are all set. Waiter Chandron from Indonesia and Junior Waiter Simba from India took wonderful care of us tonight.
Greek salad
Bering seafood stew accompanied by a merlot
Lychee and raspberry mousse
accompanied by a dessert wine
Sailing under Lions Gate Bridge
As is typical with the tables for two that are pretty close together, we ended up chatting with our “next door” neighbors over dinner, but noted that the man dining alone next to them was being very quiet. If you know G, you won’t be surprised that he made a point of going over to him to chat and find out his name. The man then told us that he was widowed last year and this was his first cruise without his wife. He also said we’d see him in the same clothes until at least Ketchikan because his luggage ended up in Hawaii. Then he dropped the bombshell that his insulin had been in his checked luggage and he was having to go without.
Oh no no no. G immediately held his arm (he is in his 80s) and walked him to Guest Services and asked for someone he knows who works there. He explained the situation and, after the Guest Services rep had called the closed Medical Center and was walking the man down there, G returned to finish his dinner. He confided to me that he had been watching the man and thought something might be wrong because he seemed little out of it. G’s good deed for the day!
It made us a little late getting to the Princess Theater for tonight’s show and we almost skipped it, thinking we’d never get seats, but we walked in just two minutes before show time (7:30pm) and the theater was nearly empty. Comedy impressionist Dave Burleigh was new to us (a rare thing) and was moderately funny, so that was a home run. It was interesting, before and after to show, to see the names of the islands we were sailing by (on my Apple Watch). And look at that weather!
We still had some life left in us (flying in a day early was definitely worth it!), and stopped by Crooners for a Baked Alaska martini (me). The views outside the windows just didn’t end, and the long daylight hours made it even better.
Baked Alaska martini
Our view at 9pm from Crooners
But by 10pm we were tucked in bed, and I continued the increasingly more familiar practice of blogging while half asleep. This is dangerous. Even if I don’t fall sleep mid post and get hit in nose by my falling iPad, I’ll spend scarce little time proofreading before hitting Publish. Some of those typos can be embarrassing!
But a couple more thoughts before I close for the night.
Cruise friends Rick and Diane from Vancouver deserve this shout out. First, they made sure we had both their mobile numbers in case we needed something or wanted to get together last night (the lack of sleep the night before we left forced us to decline, but we were touched they offered). This morning Rick walked me through how to get between Waterfront Station and Canada Place underground, on surfaces much easier to roll suitcases over. Then this afternoon he took his darling dog for a walk when we sailed, just to get this pic of our sail away to send to me. I so much appreciate the kindness we were shown!
The Sapphire Princess sailing out of Vancouver Harbour
This is the first cruise I’ve taken in (I think) 20 years where I didn’t have a phone conversation with Mom between boarding the ship and sail away. She’s a little confused right now, and though she clearly knew last week that we’d be traveling, something set her back, hopefully just temporarily. When I think back to the number of years she sent us off on our seasons of cruising with a poem, it was definitely a sad reflection. But McGuy came through (as he usually does) and texted me before we sailed to wish us a good trip. He is such a sweetheart.
And then his brother (also a sweetheart) texted me right after we sailed while we were at dinner to let me know that he’ll be solo jumping out of a plane tomorrow.
😳
🫣🫣🫣
When he started the third summer session, he thought he would put this off, afraid he might mess up his knees before cross country season. That made perfect sense to me. Apparently he’s changed his mind and tomorrow is THE day. Oh yeah, I’ll sleep well tonight.
Cruise friends from years ago are staying in touch.
Young people I love are pursuing their passions.
Life is moving on, and life is good.
