Herbal Blessing: NORTH TO ALASKA

“The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it;
for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters.”
Psalm 24:1-2

Our Land & Sea Alaskan adventure with all the time zones and modes of transportation is catching up with us, but here is a glimpse into this amazing 49th state! Nicknamed “Last Frontier” or “Land of the Midnight Sun,” Alaska was purchased from Russia in 1867 and admitted as a state on January 3, 1959. This largest but most sparsely populated U.S. state has diverse culture and terrain, 5 distinct Native groups, abundant wildlife, 17 of the 20 highest peaks in the U.S. plus 5% of the state is covered by glaciers.

Every day offered an unforgettable memory:

Day 1 – Orlando, Florida to Seattle, Washington

Day 2 – Seattle to Anchorage, Alaska

Anchorage is the most populous city with 40% of the total population of Alaska, and is where I experienced my 1st reindeer burger!

Day 3 –Anchorage to Denali, Alaska

The McKinley Explorer was a unique way to experience scenery from a glass topped train and my favorite part of our land adventure!

Day 4 – Denali National Park

6 million acres of interior wilderness and home to wildlife including moose, grizzly bears, Dall sheep, wolves, caribou plus red fox.

It is also home to Denali, “The Great One” (formerly called Mount McKinley), North America’s highest peak at 20,310 feet

Day 5 – Denali to Seward, Alaska

The coach ride provided additional opportunities to view the diverse terrain, see additional wildlife and travel through intense fog as well as a stop for a buffet lunch on our way to this port city and our cruise ship, Zaandam, on Holland America

Day 6 – At Sea on Zaandam

We celebrated our 46th Anniversary at Afternoon Tea and enjoyed the 1st Gala Night with Captain’s welcome onboard

Day 7 – Glacier Bay National Park & Preserve

Comprised of 3.3 million acres of mountains, glaciers, forests and waterways – it is truly amazing and my favorite day at sea! Pictures really don’t do it justice, especially because it's hard to capture just how blue the ice is through the cracks.

Day 8 – Haines, Alaska

This northern part of the panhandle provided a great place to celebrate my birthday onboard with tea time, a Greenhouse Spa Sampler (European Mini-Facial, Scalp, Neck & Shoulder Massage, Conditioning Hair Treatment, Eye Spa Treatment, Moisturizing Hand and Foot Spa Treatment) and dinner at the Pinnacle Grill, one of the specialty restaurants. It concluded with our favorite entertainment of the cruise - Alaska in Concert: live music set against a backdrop of breath-taking footage from the BBC Earth series, Wild Alaska

Day 9 – Juneau, Alaska

The state capital, Juneau is only accessible by boat or seaplane and the Mount Roberts Tramway gave us an amazing view at 1800 feet plus the opportunity to see a totem pole being hand crafted. Then on the way back down we saw a bald eagle resting in a tree after his fresh salmon meal!

We went to a Salmon Bake which not only provided the best salmon I have ever tasted – grilled with a brown sugar & butter glaze, but also a unique opportunity to see salmon, the state fish, run up a nearby stream as they do annually from August through September

Day 10 – Ketchikan, Alaska

The “Rain Capital of Alaska” with annual rainfall of 200 inches, we were told it had rained for 6 weeks before we arrived, however we enjoyed beautiful weather and The Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show – a friendly competition between Canada and the United States

Day 11 – Cruising the Inside Passage

Location of lots of amazing scenery and a gorgeous sunset after we came through a large patch of fog!

Day 12 – Vancouver, B.C. to Seattle

The cruise ship docked at Canada Place, which served as the Canadian Pavilion for the 1886 Expo World’s Fair

SPECIAL EVENTS

Tea Times: Two different presentation of tea included a Classic Afternoon Tea with traditional three tiered stand displaying tea sandwiches, scones and sweets

. . . and what was called a Served Tea with each course delivered to the table on a tray for you to choose your favorites.

My favorite sandwich was an open-faced combination of cream cheese and sun dried tomatoes
topped with additional chopped tomatoes and a dollop of avocado!

America’sTest Kitchen:

One of my favorite onboard activities was watching the creation of 8 dishes by a member of America’s Test Kitchen with recipes and tips over several days

Everything Salmon - basics of cooking salmon, from removing pinbones and trimming belly fat to scoring the skin and cutting individual fillets
               Oven-Roasted Salmon
               Poached Salmon with Herb and Caper Vinaigrette
Getting to Know Chilies - tropical cooking relies on a wide variety of fresh and dried chiles, but it’s not all about the heat
               Shrimp a la Diabla
               Baked Jalapeno Poppers
Meatless Monday Meals – a favorite and unique way to cook brown rice
               Black Bean Burgers
               Brown Rice Bowls with Crispy Tofu and Vegetables
New Italian Favorites - focused on the flavors of Parmigiano-Reggiano and prosciutto
               Pork Saltimbocca
               Tagliatelle with Prosciutto and Peas

Kitchen Tour:

A behind-the-scene look at all the prep areas and chefs that were a part of all the onboard meals in the main dining room and various other locations around the ship