This morning we woke to blue skies and calm seas.
Before breakfast I stepped out onto the Promenade Deck. There was a following wind which canceled out the apparent wind caused by our speed so I walked a lap just to stretch my legs.
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| Morning on a calm Gulf of Alaska |
A little later I saw passengers enjoying the warm morning sun with zero apparent wind.
Today was "On deck for a cause" day when, in return for a contribution to the HAL cancer charity, participants received a T-shirt and wrist band for doing a 5-km walk (nine laps around the deck).
There were about 100 walkers, most dressed for the Arctic. Since I'd already sampled the morning air, I wore only a T-shirt and light vest. Being such a nice day, it wasn't long before walkers began to shed clothes.
At noon I attended a special lunch for three, four and five-star Mariners (HAL loyalty program). Mariners are repeat cruisers on HAL and stars are awarded for cumulative days and dollars spent on cruises. As with most such programs, the more stars, the more perks.
This afternoon we spent some time packing. On the land portion of this cruise tour, we have the option of sending bags to the hotel where we're spending the night or, in the case of fancy clothes or other things that won't be needed after the cruise, we can send a suitcase(s) straight to Fairbanks, where we spend two nights before flying back to Seattle.
Off to the dining room, we had a farewell dinner to celebrate the end of the cruise portion of our holiday. There were more desserts than usual and the chefs made an appearance so we could thank them for a job well done.
Every night while we are at dinner, our room steward turns down the bed, leaves the schedule of the next day's activities along with some chocolates and does a piece of towel art. Tonight he folded a swinging monkey.
After dinner I stepped out and snapped another photo of the unusually calm Gulf.
Ikuko seems to be catching cold so we retired early hoping some extra rest would nip that in the bud.
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