Wednesday, September 30

Since leaving Dutch Harbor two days ago, the weather has been mostly sunny with a crisp, cool breeze, temps in the upper 40’s to lower 50’s, & fairly calm seas. We adjusted our course initially to avoid a storm south of the Aleution Islands, but today we were advised of another approaching system, apparently the remnants of a tropical storm off eastern Japan, heading our direction. The Captain advised us to prepare for a rugged couple of days.  We’ll see.

If you ever want to know the exact, up-to-the-minute location of the ship, just click on “Ship’s Current Position” – it’s a menu option at the top of this page, upper right-hand side. The web site will show you a map, and then go on to list our last port, when we left, where we’re going, distance remaining, & ETA. I stumbled across the web page about a year ago and find the technology fascinating. You might enjoy it as well.

Speaking of technology, we’re still attending our 9:00 am class on Windows 8.1 & Desktop – I believe I’ve mentioned elsewhere that we have an outstanding instructor (Craig) and learning a lot. We attended a Japanese language course yesterday afternoon on understanding basic greeting protocol (bowing) and the some of the most common words/phrases a tourist might want to know, such as please (douzo) thank you (arigatou) excuse me (sumimsen) good day (konnichi wa) good morning (ohayo) excuse me, do you speak English? (sumimasen, Eigo ga hanase masu ka?) call the police (keisatsu wo yonde) toilet (toi-re)

The bowing protocol is interesting. If you greet a superior such as a parent or teacher, your back & face must be parallel with the ground, so quite a broad, full-size bow. If greeting a peer or someone of equal stature or prominence, a half-bow is the most appropriate…so midway between an upright position and my first example. If just passing someone in the supermarket, a slight nod of the head is acceptable. When using a finger or hand to motion a person to come to you, always have your hand turned over with fingers pointing ‘down’, not ‘up’ as we typically do in our western world – apparently this is considered quite rude & distasteful. I’ll need to be particularly alert on this one, because quite often I use a ‘thumbs-up’ gesture to express approval.

This will be our first visit to Japan, and we’re very much looking forward to the education & cultural experience. We have extensive tours booked in each of the three ports, so we’re excited to see, learn, & make some memories.

We’ve crossed the International Dateline, jumping from Sunday to Tuesday. The time changes have been a real challenge. Since the entire state of Alaska utilizes one time zone, we couldn’t begin adjusting our clocks until after we left Dutch Harbor. The challenge now, however, is we’ve had to adjust in two-hour increments…so we went back 2 hours Saturday night, 2 hours Sunday night, another 2 hours tonight and then 1 hour on Wednesday night…PLUS…we’ve temporarily lost a day. A 1-hour change is manageable, but many folks are struggling with the two-hour adjustments. I was up in the Lido at 2:30am getting coffee (and updating our blog) and what is normally void of people was quite active with folks who couldn’t sleep.

We’ve found the mix of travelers on this voyage to be nothing short of great. While we miss many of our friends from cruises past, this is turning out to be pretty special as well. My only words of caution, and I've written it elsewhere in this blog…people are normally on their ‘best behavior’ the first week or two – then some of the dark-sides begin emerging. Those can be funny and believe me, we’ve seen our share of shouting & pushing, to include a fist-fight on a tour bus! But…so far, so good! Awesome folks.

While I’m thinking of it…for Larry & Sue Metz…there were no fridge magnets in Dutch Harbor. We checked Safeway, the local hotel, and the museum. Everyone was out – so sorry, but please know we tried!

As I write, the wind has shifted as the Captain predicted, and the ship is starting to experience some slight commotion. If you’ve followed us for any length of time, you know we enjoy rolling seas, so we say, bring it on!

Time to shower & dress for Happy Hour & dinner – will update tomorrow.

UPDATE:  It’s now 3:00 am on Wednesday. Dinner was excellent last evening. Cheryl and I decided to skip the scheduled entertainment – a flute player, or said correctly as we were told, a ‘flautist’. We’d heard her before – an excellent musician, but neither of us particularly care for the instrument itself. We watched a couple episodes of ‘Big Bang’ from the DVD’s we brought with us and called it a night.

We’ve since encountered the predicted storm, but so far, nothing of significance. The strong winds, however, enticed a few large birds to seek refuge on our ship. I typically transmit our blog from the back of the ship in the Lido on deck #8, as close to the satellite dish as I can get. I’m typically alone this time of day but as I entered to get coffee and grab my normal seat, there was another passenger chasing a bird – quite honestly, I thought for a moment I was dreaming because you just don’t expect to see something like that. As it turned out, there were three large birds! I notified the front desk, and within a couple minutes there were two crew members, myself, and ‘Jim’ chasing these birds with beach towels! It took about 10 minutes, but all were retrieved and escorted off the back of the ship. None were harmed. When the wind conditions are just right, the back doors on deck #8 will sometimes blow open. These birds just decided to seize the opportunity – a little too early for breakfast though!

Our first port in Japan is still two days away. 

Rummy games: Cheryl 2, Bob 3 - my lead probably won't last long!        

Dutch Harbor, Alaska

 

We have a truly amazing story to share with you from Dutch Harbor, and if you’re a fan of the TV series, Deadliest Catch, you’ll really appreciate this blog episode. It happened only through blind luck, but first, a little about our arrival & Dutch Harbor itself.

Dutch Harbor itself is a harbor located off of Amaknak Island in Unalaska, Alaska. It was the location of the Battle of Dutch Harbor in June 1942, and it was one of the few locations in American territory to be bombed by the Japanese during World War II. A mile-long spit extending from the southwest of Amaknak Island makes Dutch Harbor a natural port, protecting ships from the waves and currents of the Bering Sea, although winds off the Bering Sea can be wickedly strong as we’ve experienced ourselves the past few days. The native people here are known as the Aleut. The families or tribes would war with each other. When the Russians arrived they exploited the Aleut by taxing them in fur pelts. In 1867, Russia sold Alaska to the United States. Russia was exhausted by the Crimean War, and they were having a tough time managing the extensive land of Alaska. Fur was the main export in Alaska after the United States took control. World War II brought an entire army and supplies to Dutch Harbor. In 1942, the Imperial Japanese navy bombed Dutch Harbor from two aircraft carriers. During the war, Dutch Harbor was used as a home for refugees evacuated from the Aleutian Islands. U.S. Army troops and civilian workers alike spent time at "Blackies", the only bar in the area. This establishment had cheap beer and 50-cent shots of whiskey, but no stools or chairs because they said they "splintered too easily in event of a fight". Other entertainment was a brothel named "Pleasure Island", but this was closed in 1941 and replaced by part of the submarine base. They had a 500-man mess hall that doubled as a theater - the tickets for military were 15 cents and 35 cents for civilian workers. Pretty good deal back then!

In early 1942, intelligence officers of the U.S. Navy predicted that there would be a Japanese attack in the North Pacific area, and naval codebreakers warned Dutch Harbor of the impending attack. In June of 1942, 20 Japanese planes bombed the radio station and the petroleum storage tanks. In May 1943, a peak of 10,000 sailors and 9,000 soldiers were stationed at the base. In 1947, the last units of the U.S. Navy left Dutch Harbor and the base was decommissioned. In 1952, the year I was born, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers stored over 200 surplus buildings on 400+ acres of land on the Fort Mears Military Reservation. During the mid-1980s, the U.S. Army bulldozed and burned the old World War II barracks on Amaknak Island, & the U.S. Navy scraped the air base.

As you may already know, Dutch Harbor is ranked to be a top fishing port with more than a billion pounds transferred each year. Huge harvests of Pollock and cod in the Bering Sea are cause for these numbers. The Bering Sea has a continental shelf which is one of the world’s largest, and supports a rich ecosystem. In recent years, Dutch Harbor has become a full service port providing all the fishing industry needs. It is "THE" harbor featured in the Discovery Channel reality television series, Deadliest Catch, which portrays the real life events aboard fishing vessels in the Bering Sea during the Alaskan king crab fishing season. The show's title derives from the inherent high risk of injury or death associated with the work. Deadliest Catch first premiered on the Discovery Channel in 2005 and currently airs in over 150 countries. The first season consisted of ten episodes. Subsequent seasons have aired on the same April to June or July schedule every year since the original. Alaskan king crab fishing is carried out during the fall months in the waters off the coast of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, so we've arrived right at the beginning. In fact, as you’ll later read, it actually begins next Wednesday.  Back in 1980, at the peak of the king crab industry, Alaskan fisheries produced up to 200,000,000 lb. of crab. That's two-hundred-million! However, by 1983, the total size of the catch had dropped by up to 90% in some places. We've heard several theories for the precipitous drop in the crab population, such as over-fishing, warmer waters, and increased fish predation. As a result the current season is very short and last season only 24,000,000 lb. of red king crab were "landed".

It was cold. Bitterly cold. We docked at 8:00 right on schedule, but couldn’t see a thing as the sunrise was another hour removed – that’s right...daybreak at 9:00. Not only was it cold, it was spitting rain – a little more chilly & it would have been snowing. Both of us had full-body long underwear, Cheryl with a face-scarf & thick winter coat, and me with two sweatshirts, jacket, & stocking hat. We were among the very first passengers off the ship to catch one of the first shuttle busses into town. Actually, there were only two shuttles in total – both school busses, and woefully short to handle the needs of a cruise ship. This was no one’s fault. Holland America did the best they could in arranging ground transportation, and the city of Dutch Harbor gave us all they could spare. They’re not adapted to accommodating cruise ship passengers and in fact, they told us that we (the Amsterdam) were the largest ship to ever visit. By modern standards, we are quite small with just north of 1,000 folks on board. With that said, everyone understood the situation and exercised good patience & tolerance.

There were NO formal shore excursions offered here. Through prior arrangements, the shuttle bus was to make three stops; (1) the WWII Visitor Center, (2) Museum of the Aleutians, and (3) Russian Orthodox Church. Once loaded on the bus, the driver, who was very friendly, told us the road we were on had been paved recently in anticipation of our visit and that prior, it was a muddy, treacherous stretch riddled with potholes – she went on to say we were very lucky! About a half-mile down the road we came to what appeared to be a railroad crossing, complete with the two white vertical arms that extend horizontally when a train is approaching. No…this wasn’t a train crossing…not at all. This was the active runway of their local airport! They have three flights each day when the weather will allow, and the only road to & from the shipping dock just happens to run through the middle of the airport! It was all good.

We elected to leave the bus at the second stop – the Museum of the Aleutians…which hadn’t opened yet because it was still dark! The rain had stopped, but the wind was howling and again, bitterly cold. We walked to the ONE Safeway grocery store for refuge, plus I needed some razor blades. A package of five Gillette blades was marked $49 – are you kidding me?! Thanks, but I think I’ll pass on that. Prices were outrageous on everything by our standards, but then you have to stop & realize that all goods must be shipped in. Fuel was selling for $5.15 p/gallon. The only item we purchased was a small box of Melba Toast – a low-calorie, low carb snack for me – just something to munch back in our cabin.

We walked back to the Museum of the Aleutians which had since opened. We met a young lady outside (pictured with Cheryl) who was probably in her mid-twenties – she recently transplanted from southern California, following her boyfriend who landed a teaching job at the one high school in Dutch Harbor. She was THE accountant for the entire city. We had a great conversation with her talking about Dutch Harbor itself, the people, the job market, housing costs, and so forth. Speaking of housing, the average cost for a small, cracker-box style home is north of $400K. Ridiculous I know, but there aren’t that many homes available and new home construction is very cost-prohibitive. Population here is just south of 3,000. When the fish processing plants are in full swing, it increases seasonally to about 8,000, and the employees are housed in very modest apartments, typically across the street from their facility of employment. The last thing we talked about was our fascination with TV’s ‘Deadliest Catch’ and our desire to see some of the crabbing boats they feature on the series. She told us to walk a couple miles down the road toward the Orthodox church and off to our right in a secluded marina, we would be able to see the vessels, but from a distance. As we began our walk and rounded the first corner, we could see the stern of a crabbing boat docked next to a canning & processing facility and to our surprise, it was the ‘Arctic Sea’ – one of the showcased vessels on TV.  We snapped a few photos and continued our walk, remarking to each other how fortunate we were to get that close. Cheryl then spotted an alley and motioned for me to follow. I was reluctant, because although there were no signs posted, I knew intuitively it led to the backside of the processing plants and we’d probably get escorted away pretty quick. Just then, a female employee emerged from one of the buildings and recognizing us as tourists, she said we were more than welcome to walk farther down the alley and take closer pictures of the Arctic Sea. Now standing alongside the famous vessel, I started taking photos of Cheryl – a man then emerges from a small truck nearby – I assumed he was a dock-worker and asked if he’d please allow me to take his picture with Cheryl…”why sure” he said – a very friendly guy you could tell from his short gesture. Then he says…”would you like to come aboard”? Cheryl and I look at each other in stunned amazement and almost in unison we both say “Absolutely”!! Let me jump ahead here for a minute. This is actually the Captain of Arctic Sea – his name, Owen Kvinge, featured in many episodes of Deadliest Catch. He’s been crabbing for 32 years – his boat was docked alongside one of the cannery’s because they were loading crab pots to get ready for their first run of the season, leaving Dutch Harbor next Wednesday. We stumbled into this alley and met this guy by mere chance & coincidence. He said he needed a break from the morning activities – so on the boat we go! Cheryl first…and not very easy to navigate between the dock & vessel – she must place & then balance one foot on a thick rope…and for those of you who know Cheryl well, balancing ANYTHING is a challenge for her but with the Captain’s help, she makes it onboard without incident. I’m a little slower and more deliberate – I have several layers of cloths limiting my mobility but after a few attempts, I make it on safely as well. So here we are with the Captain of the Arctic Sea – he tells us about the crab pots (up to 1,400 lbs. each) how many they’re loading (370) – takes us into the kitchen, shows us the sleeping quarters, then points upstairs to the helm and once up there, puts Cheryl in his Captain’s chair and lets me take a picture. I’m feeling guilty by this time – he’s already spent 20 minutes with us and as I start thanking him for his hospitality, he asks if we want to see the engine room…so down we go! He gave us ear protectors because it’s so loud down there and very patiently, spent several minutes explaining the various equipment & machinery. As you've probably guessed, I have a keen interest in sailing vessels, and these are particularly interesting for both of us. He tells us the commercial fishing boats they use are between 39 to 246 ft. in length, are equipped with hydraulic systems to lift the catch, and are able to withstand the freezing weather of the Bering Sea. The Arctic Sea is one of the largest. Each fishing boat sets its own sailing schedule during the crabbing season, often staying out for days or weeks at a time. The Arctic Sea leaves next Wednesday. Fishermen use a box-shaped trap called a "pot" which consists of a steel frame covered with a nylon mesh. Each pot weighs 600–1,400 lb. and a ship may carry 150 to 350 pots. Fish, usually herring or codfish, are placed inside as bait and then the pot is sunk to the sea floor where the king crab resides. The pots are dropped in a straight line (known as a "string") for easier retrieval. Red and blue king crabs can be found anywhere between the intertidal zone and a depth of 600 ft. Golden king crabs live in depths between 600–2400 ft. The location of the pot is marked on the surface by a buoy which is later used for retrieval. After allowing the pots to rest on the sea floor (typically one to two days for red and blue king crabs, longer for golden king crabs), the pots are dragged back to the surface using a hydraulic winch with a pulley on the end called a "block. The pot is then brought on board the boat and the crew sorts the king crab. Any not meeting the regulation requirements are thrown back, though I can’t recall what he told us about minimum requirements. The crabs are then stored live in a holding tank until the boat reaches shore, where they are sold. If the weather becomes too cold the live crabs may freeze and burst. If they are left in the tank for too long they will harm and possibly kill each other as they can be cannibalistic. Even the rocking of the boat can cause damage to the crab, so boards are inserted in the holds to prevent excessive side-to-side movement. If a crab dies in the hold for any reason it releases toxins which can kill other crabs. If the crew fails to remove the dead crabs, they can poison the entire tank and ruin the catch. Deckhands are paid a percentage of the profits after the owner's share is taken into account. This can range from nothing to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on the size of the harvest. The so-called 'greenhorns' (deckhands in their first season of fishing) are paid a fixed sum of money.

In total, we spent nearly an hour with this gentleman and exchanged contact information with each other before leaving. Seriously…how cool is THAT?! It was just dumb, blind luck that we stumbled into this alley – it could have been anyone from our ship and come to learn later, we were the only two who actually toured any of the vessels. Pure luck…right place at the right time. Wow.

Captain Kvinge has our blog address and said he would check it out – so if you’re reading this, Sir, our heartfelt thanks & appreciation for a thrilling tour of your vessel & education but equally, an opportunity to get to know a wonderful gentlemen like you. May God bless & keep you & your crew safe on your first journey next week…and always. Thank you again, ever so much. We are loyal fans!

Statistically, Alaskan crab fishing remains one of the most dangerous jobs in the United States. In 2013, the Bureau of Labor Statistics ranked commercial fishing as the job occupation with the highest fatality rate with 141 per 100,000, almost 75 percent higher than the rate for pilots, flight engineers and loggers, the next most hazardous occupations. However, Alaskan crab fishing specifically is even more dangerous with over 300 fatalities per 100,000. Over 80% of these deaths are caused by drowning or hypothermia. The fishermen are also susceptible to crippling injuries caused by working with heavy machinery and gear. I asked Captain Kvinge about some of the hazards, and he shared a story about one of his deckhands – last season a crab pot weighing 1,400 lbs. came down on his leg, completely crushing it. He had to be airlifted out but today is in rehab, making progress with his artificial limb.

As I mentioned earlier, the most popular crab-fishing months occur between October and January. Over the years, the allocated time for a season continued to shrink – at one point a red crab season was only four days long. After the 2005 season, the Alaskan crab industry transitioned from a derby-style season to a quota system. This transition is known as rationalization. Under the old derby style, a large number of crews competed with each other to catch crab during a restrictive time window. Under the new Individual Fishing Quota (IFQ) system, established owners have been given quotas which they can fill at a more relaxed pace. In theory, it is intended to be safer, which was the main rationale for the change in the fishing rules. The transition to the quota system was also expected to increase the value of crab, by limiting the market of available crab. An influx of foreign crab negated some of these gains during the 2006 season. The "rationalization process" put many crews out of work as the owners of many small boats found their assigned quotas too small to meet operating expenses; during the first season run under the IFQ system, the fleet shrank from over 250 boats to around 89 - mostly larger boats with high quotas. Captain Kvinge & the Arctic Sea have, and continue to be highly successful.

After that ‘experience of a lifetime’, it was 11:00 by then and our ship was sailing at 1:30. We decided to walk to the Orthodox Church to meet the school bus for a ride back to the pier. The sun was appearing occasionally which took a little chill out of the air, but it was still a long, 4-mile walk. Once there, we waited nearly an hour for the ‘shuttle’ – it was filled to capacity so Cheryl and I stood the entire trip back along with several others. The only stop we made was at the airport – you guessed it – one of their three daily planes was coming in for a landing so had to wait for clearance before crossing the runway! Once back on the ship, we removed a few layers of clothing and attended the ‘Salmon Bake’ – fish purchased locally & cooked on a grill poolside; it was THE best Salmon we’ve ever had. Hat’s off to the crew! The sailaway party was really a non-event – just too cold to be sitting around outside on the open deck. But what an awesome, unforgettable, and very lucky day!!

We’re steaming now toward our first stop in Japan, arriving in 4 days, roughly 2,200 miles to our west. Sea conditions have calmed, at least for now.   

Arriving Dutch Harbor

Louise - in answer to your question...YES, Fred Everson is the Captain this voyage, & Gene is the Cruise Director.

The Kodiak sail-away was spectacular! First, we were blessed with good weather, and even the local people told us it was highly unusual. Second, the party was well-attended and we were able to meet several very nice folks. Last, we saw more whales than we’ve ever seen before. Not one or two, but literally dozens! At one point, there were visible spouts & sprays in every direction. None of the whales completely breached, but several gave us a great show!

 

 

 

 

 

Once we hit open sea and around midnight, we hit some weather conditions that have been with us since – cloudy, cold, off & on rain, with moderate swells. The Captain refers to them as ‘moderate’ but the ship has been pitching & yawing for over 24 hours now. Pools & hot tubs were drained early yesterday morning and an outside “Salmon Bake” was postponed until sometime later today after we leave Dutch Harbor. We’re in crabbing waters now, or those where fishermen from “Deadliest Catch” film their show. I will tell you this – they don’t use ‘window dressing’ on the show – these are very rough waters. The picture from our cabin here (yesterday afternoon) doesn’t begin to capture the turbulent conditions, but we’ve been in much worse.

Entertainment in the main theater has been good each night, and well-attended. We’ve had the usual array of singers, dancers, & comedians – not outstanding, but talented & entertaining.

We did very little yesterday aside from our 9:00 technology class and some Wii bowling early afternoon. The technology class is overflowing – excellent instructor (Craig) and interesting topics – Windows 8. Wii is drawing about two dozen folks each session. Cheryl has been up five times now and as you might guess…five consecutive strikes! I’ve been up an equal number of times and as you’ve guessed already…NO strikes yet! It’s OK…she’s on the same team and helps us win! No rummy games – stilled tied at two games each. I took a nap before Happy Hour – just something about rough seas – it’s like being rocked to sleep and we both love it. Our tablemates are all very nice people and we’ve enjoyed their company. Cheryl and I adopted a dear 93 year-old man sailing alone. He’s actually a friend of a couple we met on the 2012 World Cruise (Paul & Judy) and once he found us & introduced himself, we’ve been keeping tabs on him ever since. He was eating alone, so I made arrangements to have our table expanded to accommodate him – we now have seven. His name is Joe, from Valencia, California. God bless him – he gets lost just trying to find his cabin, but talk about a kind, gentle, good-hearted guy – we now meet him for Happy Hour each afternoon and then take him to dinner – he’s a pretty happy camper at this point. Judy & Paul…thanks for hooking him up with us – very much enjoy his company and not to worry, we’ll take good care of him!

We’re scheduled to dock in Dutch Harbor at 8:00 this morning, about 4 hours from now – it’s just after 4am...my favorite time of day. I’ll do my best to post the many pictures we have so far from Kodiak, but may have to wait until we get to Japan. As I’ve mentioned, the ships’ internet is very slow & frustrating.

Kodiak, Alaska

The weather finally cleared at midday on Wednesday – we saw the sun for the first time since leaving Seattle, but still very chilly in the low 50’s. We’ve both been wrapped in jeans & sweatshirts and probably will be for the next several days. Forecast for today is sunny, but nippy.

On the Rummy front & while I’m thinking of it, I FINALLY tied Cheryl – we’re now 2-2, though barely. We went down to the very last hands and by mere luck, I was able to pull ahead. Whew!

Please know that the internet is very slow – more so than our last trip on the Amsterdam. They installed a new system a few months ago and have had nothing but trouble, though they’ve made efforts to resolve. Aside from what appears to be an inferior system itself, they’ve added a couple additional news stations on TV and those chew up valuable bandwidth. Even under ideal conditions with a good system, it’s always a challenge updating our blog because it’s a function of both available bandwidth on the ship and then satellite reception. I typically try to update between 4-6am while other users are still sleeping, but then I have to depend on a decent satellite signal to update & complete the transmission. Posting to Facebook is an additional step in the process and the further out to sea we get, the more problematical. At some point very soon, I will only be updating the blog itself. To receive or view updates, you’ll either have to go directly to: voyagesoftheworld.blogspot.com & manually look for new commentary, OR, sign up to receive updates via auto-email (which you can do over in the right-hand margin here). Again, Facebook is a bonus but will be short-lived.

As I write, we’re about 35 miles from Kodiak, our first port. We’ll be docked by 8:00, and they tell us it’s about a mile from the pier to downtown. Shuttles will be available but we prefer to walk. There are only three guided shore excursions being offered today but we’ve opted to go out on our own – none of them sounded appealing to us but I’m sure folks will have a good time. Unless there’s a specific sight we’d like to see or a potential security/safety issue, we prefer getting out & talking among local residents to get a better feel for the city. It’s a short day however – we’re scheduled to leave at 2:30.

UPDATE: We docked on time, and Cheryl and I were off on foot by 8:15. We dressed in layers as the morning air was so cold we could see our breath. The sun was just peeking above the horizon, and it couldn’t rise fast enough for us. Interestingly, there was a female shopkeeper out sweeping her sidewalk wearing only a light, silk blouse and seemed perfectly comfortable. We stopped and chatted with her for a few minutes as I wanted to ask her about all the fishing boats docked nearby & the processing plants. She was very friendly, and went on to tell us they don’t get much snow up here, maybe 36” per year, and it melts pretty fast. That surprised me – when you think of Alaska, you automatically think snow & subzero temps, or at least I do.

Kodiak is situated on the second largest island in the United States, approximately 250 air miles southwest of Anchorage in the Gulf of Alaska. The city itself was incorporated back in 1940. In 1965, voters adopted what they call a City Charter, or municipal constitution, meaning it's a home- ruled city and operates under the Council-Manager form of government, which combines the abilities of a professionally trained, full-time manager, with the interested and dedicated services of elected citizens to enhance the safety, livability, and prosperity of the community. Kodiak is a hub for the maritime industry of Southwest Alaska and home to a very large fishing fleet as our photos illustrate. The Port operates a container terminal and the two small boat harbors accommodate a fleet of about 1,200 fishing and general purpose recreational vessels annually. Population is just over 7,000, with a median income of $60K. They tell us Kodiak is an important environmental asset which affects the fishing industry, particularly salmon fishing, and the island is coveted by hunters worldwide for its unique Kodiak bear and other game animals, there are strict laws governing fishing and hunting activities as well as hiking near spawning streams. The city has four public elementary schools, one middle school and one high school as well as a branch of the University of Alaska. 

 

The only store open was a True Value Hardware location. All other businesses near the port were industrial, and most were fish canneries as one would expect. We walked about 4 miles – a fairly clean town – very small – the one supermarket they had closed several months ago and a Wal-Mart opened several miles away but it was a $22 cab fare to get there. We opted not to go, as there isn’t much we need at this point, plus they tell us there’s a Safeway in Dutch Harbor where we’ll be in two days. Shortly after 9:00, some of the other small shops started opening – a Subway, a coffee house, and a few others. We managed to find one gift shop, and were able to get our future in-laws a ‘fridge magnet’ but that was the extent of it. One interesting point I wasn’t aware of – back in 1964 they had the most severe earthquake ever recorded in the history of North America – a 9.2 quake lasting over 4 minutes that also produced a 500 MPH tsunami measuring 30’ high. Many residents perished as you might guess, and the small city itself was decimated. We were back on the ship by 11:15 and had a light lunch. For Cheryl, her favorite is the sushi bar and I typically have a cheeseburger (with no bun) & a grilled chicken breast – no fries…at least not yet.

The sail-away party is scheduled to begin at 2:30. I’ll update you from that point there during my next installment.

On now to Dutch Harbor where they film ‘Deadliest Catch’ – very much looking forward to that – it’s located another 650 miles west of here where we’re scheduled to arrive Saturday morning. I’m hopeful they’ll be some fishermen available to talk with!

Please note here that the few photos I've uploaded to this page took nearly 45 minutes - I will upload several dozen more once we have a land-based internet available in Japan.

                              

Tuesday & Wednesday, September 23 & 24

Tuesday – September 23^rd. We are still 650 miles from Kodiak, our first port. Weather remains cloudy & cold (50's) but the seas have leveled somewhat and with the ship deploying stabilizers, sailing is pretty smooth. Tonight is the first of our ‘formal nights’. There are a total of 39 ‘themed’ events on this cruise, including nine ‘formal’ functions – this evening is the Captain’s Welcome Reception so for us, that means we need to be decked-out by 4:30 to attend the function in the main theater followed by dinner at 5:30. As we typically do, we only plan to attend half of the formal functions. As I’ve written before, neither of us particularly enjoy dressing up. It’s a challenge to pack for a handful of ‘merrymakings’ or ‘socials’ let alone 39. On top of that, this is both a cold & hot weather cruise, so packing appropriately is even more of a challenge. As a courtesy, we’ve already informed our tablemates not to expect us for every event – we’ll spend those evenings on our own in the Lido (on deck 8) where casual dress is acceptable. The entertainment scheduled for tonight is an opera singer – very talented I’m sure, but we’ll pass on that as well. I think we’ll be back in our cabin by 7:00 watching some Big Bang Theory CD’s we brought from home – that’s more our preference & style!

We started attending lectures today in preparation for some of our first ports. Our onboard Travel Guide (Barbara) has been around the world over twenty times and is a wealth of knowledge & information. We’ve sailed with her in the past and each sea day she gives a detailed, very informative presentation on our next stop – history of the area, what to do, what NOT to do, where to go, what to avoid, currency exchange rates, potential security issues, transportation, etc. She’s a walking encyclopedia – amazing lady. Much of the information I subsequently share with all of you more often than not originates from her lectures – either from my notes or what I can remember.

Speaking of lectures – today we started attending a morning class on Windows 8.1. Holland America employs a Microsoft-certified expert…known onboard as a “Techspert”. He’ll be holding a 1-hour class each morning we’re at sea, teaching the various functions of this new Windows program. He’s an excellent instructor based on our first class – very passionate about his subject, enthusiastic, and speaks in laymen’s terms – so we now plan to attend each of his sessions.

Our second day into the cruise, I’ve not consumed one grain of sugar. Yesterday morning, the warm, inviting pastry bar opened on time at 6:00 – I walked directly past without so much as a hesitation. This morning, I paused, stared at the array of tempting tartlets, but knew if I had just one it would lead to several more – I mustered the strength to continue walking. We’ll see what happens tomorrow. I’d really like to make it through November without violating my diet, then REALLY celebrate (yet sensibly) the final few days before going home. It’s tough – sweets are a weakness for me, but then it takes weeks to work it off…& the older I get, the weeks turn into months!  

Wednesday – September 24^th.  The Captain’s Reception was a very nice affair – free drinks & more appetizers than you could shake a stick at – I had NONE…appetizers, that is.  After about 30 minutes, the Captain was introduced and in turn, he introduced each of his Officers. It was a light-hearted gathering with music, dancing, & rekindling old friendships from cruises past. We had dinner at 5:30 and returned to our cabin for the evening – no opera singing for us! The weather turned for the worse – I was awakened around 1:00am as the ship started slamming some high seas. The wind was whistling around our patio door and in checking the navigation channel on TV, we were experiencing gale-force gusts of 54 MPH. The sea spray was so relentless, all of our exterior furniture was soaked. Put in perspective, our cabin is near the top of the ship! I went back to bed, but had to take a sleeping pill to finish the night. I then overslept – up at 5:30 – improved weather, but very chilly. As I write, outside temp is 52 – I’m dressed for the day in heavy jeans & sweatshirt, with Cheryl much the same.

Nothing special planned as we steam toward Kodiak, roughly 375 miles ahead.  

Embarkation

A very busy day for us.  After a mid-morning breakfast in downtown Seattle, we returned to the hotel, packed, & caught a shuttle for the short ride to the cruise terminal. Arriving at 12:30pm, the embarkation process was a snap despite a few hundred in line – we were processed and on the ship within 30 minutes. Holland America has always been extremely well-organized, and our classification as five-star mariners put us in an express lane saving at least an hour. Once onboard, we immediately ran into several resident Officers we’ve sailed with in the past and to our surprise, they remembered & greeted us with hugs. Throughout the afternoon, we ran into several other employees we’ve come to know in recent years along with many familiar passengers. The highlight for us though, was seeing Marilyn & Harry Ter Mat from San Antonio – a very good friendship that began on the World Cruise in 2012. We’re missing Charlie & Betty Liska from Florida – good friends who were scheduled to sail with us but had to cancel a few months ago because of family health concerns…but since resolved, and we’re looking forward to a future cruise with them. Charlie called the day before we left Phoenix & mentioned they’re looking at a 180-day cruise (January-July) and while the itinerary and their company is appealing, the timing for us just wouldn’t work given my (our) commitment to the non-profit organization we’re involved with – Carolina Crown Drum & Bugle Corps, Fort Mill, S. Carolina.

Luggage started arriving in our stateroom shortly after we settled. We unpacked as much as we could before the lifeboat drill started at 3:30. At 4:00, the ship blew her horn and the sail-away party began. We once again elected early dining at 5:30 so after 90 minutes of ‘partying’ we went to meet our new tablemates for the next several weeks. We’ve always been fortunate in being assigned a great table location but more importantly, great folks to sit with. This cruise appears to be no different but it’s early yet – true colors often begin to surface after a few days. We’ll see. Our last World Cruise was very special as our tablemates remain good friends to this day: Jim & Ginny Plumber from Ft. Myers, Fl., and Gary & Joyce Adams from Portland, OR. We all stay in touch on a fairly regular basis. Conversely, it’s quite common to witness pretty brutal personality clashes and see people changing tables – some do so more than once. We haven’t seen anyone throwing food yet but again, we’re only one meal into the trip! The balance of our evening was spent in the Piano Bar listening to our good friend (& entertainer) Debby Bacon – she and husband Ron are from the Tampa area – we met them back in 2012 and are truly a special couple. Debby’s a very talented musician who sings & plays multiple instruments, piano her primary. If interested in ordering her recent CD’s, go to: debbybacon.com

The weather since leaving sunny Seattle has been anything but. Fog, rain, wind, & cold temps hit us late Sunday night and have been with us ever since. Sea conditions are moderate – not too bad, but using handrails on the stairs is wise at this point. As I write, Kodiak, Alaska (our first stop) is another 1,000 miles northwest of our current position. A nice change from the scorching heat in Phoenix!

And also…as I write, Cheryl has ALREADY taken a 1-0 lead in our sea-day Rummy games. She has defeated me every trip, and quite handily I might add. So…if it’s not catching more fish than me, she consistently beats me in cards as well. I’ve yet to claim victory…but…it’s only day 1 J

Check that…it’s NOW 2-0…she won the second game by even a wider margin.  

Damn...            

Arriving Seattle

               Home away from home - the MS Amsterdam is ready to sail

We were both up quite early this morning to take care of some last-minute household chores. All water was turned off, hot water heater set on low, AC set to 85, & final trash collection throughout the house. The most important was setting out 3 months of canned cat food for Martin. He has his own door and comes and goes as he pleases. More often than not, he's not alone when he comes home. No, he doesn't bring home female companionship. He prefers the company of either the feathered variety or garden lizards - perhaps because we had him neutered? Along with his food supply, we also left the vacuum out as we hired the services of a great neighbor boy, Jackson Paris. He'll be checking on & feeding Martin daily, along with removing any feathers & remaining body parts from the house.

Our cab picked us up at 8:30 for our 10:30 flight. We landed in sunny Seattle at 1:30 pm. Yes, SUNNY! Seattle experiences near cloudless, sunny days only a few days each year, and today, it was 78 and absolutely beautiful. After a short cab ride to the hotel, we were within walking distance of the pier so we strolled over only to find our ship in port, already loading fuel & food preserves nearly 24 hours before she sets sail. It's been 15 months since we've been on the Amsterdam, and we've missed her. Over the course of the past 3 years, we've lived on this ship for over 8 months, circumnavigating the world twice. She's a beautiful mid-size vessel with a capacity for only 1100 passengers - so it's small enough to be intimate and meet lots of wonderful people, but large enough to safely navigate some of the most potentially dangerous waters on the planet. We still have vivid memories of our rounding the tip of South America two years ago having worked our way up from Antarctica. Known as Cape Horn, we battled a raging storm for nearly 3 days & nights as we headed northwest toward Easter Island.  As we emerged from the Straights of Magellan and as the Captain warned us, there was quite an angry ocean waiting for us. The ship had been prepared for a rough journey but unfortunately, I left a few things unattended in our room. We were awakened at 2:00am by the sound of crashing wine glasses I’d left sitting on the counter after the Super Bowl game. The ship was rocking violently and it was difficult just getting out of bed to clean the mess. Hmmm…was it because of high seas or the wine??!! The Captain (Jonathan Mercer) is a 40-year mariner and we had (and have) utmost confidence in his judgment – he warned all of us it would be rough for the first 32 hours after leaving Chile but that we would be safe as long as we followed appropriate safety measures – like not walking anywhere!! Seriously, incredible sea conditions and we continued to roll 32 hours later. All of the pools & hot tubs were drained – the entertainment shows were canceled – we all did the best we could to stay safe & humor each other. What memories! It will be interesting over the next few days as we sail into Dutch Harbor, home of the reality TV show, Deadliest Catch. Will we experience the same raging sea conditions?

Captain Mercer won't be commanding this particular voyage which is disappointing. As I've written elsewhere in our blog, he's a fine man - a true gentlemen & professional in every respect. We were fortunate to be able to spend some time with him and his wife on a few shore excursions, and during the Captain's Dinner last year (and only by chance) we were seated next to him. It's fascinating to ask him questions about sailing and hear about some of his most memorable trips, particularly the story when one of his cargo vessels (in his early years) sank and he spent 3 days & nights in the Atlantic Ocean off Africa bobbing in a small life boat before he and his crew were rescued!

We spent the balance of the afternoon walking the streets of downtown Seattle and since our hotel was only 6 blocks from the Space Needle, we decided to take an elevator to the top - but easier said than done. With uncharacteristic sunshine, two cruise ships in port, and a Super Bowl re-match here tomorrow between the Seahawks & Broncos, the city was crawling with people. We stood in line for 30 minutes just to buy Space Needle tickets - then - a 2 hour wait before we were allowed to get in the actual elevator line. Once admitted, it was another 45 minutes before we were able to get on one of only two elevators. The ride to the top took only 40 seconds. As you would expect, it was crowded and by then, the sun had set. The view was nice - we stayed about 15 minutes and got in a long line for the ride back down. I lived here for two years back in the early 80's (before we were married) when we (Circle K) purchased a small chain of local stores and during my time here, never once visited the Needle. It's an impressive structure with very nice surroundings (parks, museums, etc) but wouldn't spend the money to do it again. The Needle is roughly 500 feet tall. The foundation spans 120 feet across and 30 feet deep, anchored with 72 bolts - each bolt measures 30 feet...I'd like to see the wrench they used! Again, impressive, but the Needle in downtown Auckland (New Zealand) is nearly twice as high (tallest in the world) and people actually parachute from the top! We didn't jump ourselves (are you kidding) but enjoyed listening to the screams from those who did!
        

 

We skipped dinner tonight as earlier this afternoon, we stumbled upon a restaurant called The Hurricane...a very old, rustic facility - the booth seating material was obviously some of the original from decades ago, visibly held together with large patches of duct tape. The people were very friendly and the food was great - would highly recommend if you have the opportunity!

I begin this journey nearly 30 pounds lighter than our last - our first world cruise saw me gain 21 pounds (which I subsequently lost) and 17 pounds on our second. Great improvement! I'm somewhat determined to try and strike a healthy balance this trip - notice I say SOMEWHAT. It's so difficult to do with excellent food (& snacks) available 'round the clock, not to mention my willpower can be so weak with certain things. Cheryl, on the other hand, is so strong & disciplined - she hasn't changed weight in several years...plus or minus a pound or two. I don't know how she does it - I'm a very bad influence.

So...we get back to our hotel around 9:30 pm and displayed on the reception desk are a few dozen freshly baked chocolate chip cookies...my infinite willpower says, "why thank you, I believe I will"...and so it begins!

The embarkation process is scheduled tomorrow at 1:00. Our luggage was picked up at the house by FedX back on September 15th and shipped to the pier (compliments of Holland America) so beyond a couple small duffel bags, we have very little to contend with until we get to our stateroom and start unpacking. We sail at 4pm.

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