By Kara Aiello
Recently I took the trip of a lifetime through the beautiful
state of Alaska. I would definitely say
this was a bucket list dream as I have always wanted to visit this region of
the country. And what better way to do so than on a Carnival Cruise - a party
ship no less. My adventures began in
Seattle Washington when my good friend Lisa and I landed and stayed overnight
in this great city. I was in Seattle many years before and have family here, so
it was nice to get back and see what was up with this happening place.
Although only in Seattle one night, we made do with the time we had here. We were blessed with rare sunny warm weather that would follow us throughout most of the trip and so took advantage after a very filling breakfast by walking and rolling around town and visiting The Chuhuly Glass Sculpture Museum that was a sight to behold. I have always loved glass sculptures more than any other, and found this place to be my icing on the cake. The sculptures were beautiful, large and every color one could think of. Blues, purples, pinks and blended colors that hypnotized took my breath away. We stayed only an hour, but the photos I took will always be a welcome to revisit when I look at them years to come.
Although only in Seattle one night, we made do with the time we had here. We were blessed with rare sunny warm weather that would follow us throughout most of the trip and so took advantage after a very filling breakfast by walking and rolling around town and visiting The Chuhuly Glass Sculpture Museum that was a sight to behold. I have always loved glass sculptures more than any other, and found this place to be my icing on the cake. The sculptures were beautiful, large and every color one could think of. Blues, purples, pinks and blended colors that hypnotized took my breath away. We stayed only an hour, but the photos I took will always be a welcome to revisit when I look at them years to come.
From there, we went straight to our cruise ship, boarded and settled in to our cabin. Although I have taken many cruises in the past, this was the first time I happily went in on a cabin with a balcony as this was the trip to have one. One reason why I love cruises is that I find it very wheelchair accessible from the cabin itself with its large bathroom, automatic door opener and a very spacious balcony that we had in addition to access with much of the ship. I also love the crew who hail from much of the globe and are warm, kind and very hospitable and helpful. To me, this is a great way to meet people from around the world and get a taste and feel of the many cultures represented on these cruises. If I could, I would take a cruise just to meet the crew and that would be a happy day for me.
After spending our first full day at sea in which we got to explore
the massive beast with its multiple levels, many elevators and bars to buy any
drink you could think of, we prepared to embark that Thursday on our first
great adventure into Juneau Alaska, probably my favorite port we visited. It
was yet another beautiful day with a bright blue sky and shimmering sun
reigning down on us to enhance our enjoyment of the day. Of course, one cannot
visit Alaska without taking a whale watching trip and although I have taken a
few before, this one was one I will never forget. I was pleased to find how accessible Juneau
was and it began with the massive tour bus we took that had a wheelchair lift
on it and comfortable seats inside along with a colorful tour guide that made
our trip to the boat very entertaining.
Once we arrived, a cool young member of the crew came to escort me to
the boat and helped me get on which was very easy for people who used manual
chairs but would not sadly work for those who used power chairs. Something they
do need to work on so all can be a part of this tour.
Once on board, there was a woman who was our guide and an
expert in whales and actually traveled between Alaska and Hawaii where she
followed the whales between the states states.
I remember thinking what an amazing life she had and she definitely
agreed but for the sake of studying these amazing creatures, this was the way
to do so. Once we got to the hot spot of
where the whales would be seen, we saw many beautiful birds including an
abundance of bald eagles. But the whales were the hosts we wanted to see. And once they started to come to life, it was
time to get the cameras and binoculars out to look. At first it was a little
hard for me to see as one could never predict where they would be and although
the captain turned the boat around so everyone could see, it was hard for me to
get to the front and so I had to wheel from one side of the boat to the other
where I could go, and that’s a roller coaster ride all its own on a moving
boat. But the crew were amazing. On
either side of the boat there were doors that could be opened to look out onto
the water and they went back and forth every time a whale was sighted and
opened it for me so I could see a show that amazed me. First the humpback whales showed with a
mother and baby and a few seals that made a showing as well. And then the
Killer Whales appeared and this is the part I will never forget. The crew said
that it was very rare to see Killer Whales and one had a 10% chance of seeing
one. But on that day, one of the spotters and the guy who escorted me onto the
ship, spotted a small pod and let the captain know.
Well, we were like a bat
out of hell and took off to where they were seen and waited quietly to see if
they would show again. Well they did, and three or four of them jumped in and
out of the water like synchronized swimmers. And they were close to me where I
sat at the open door, mesmerized by the sight. Unfortunately my phone camera
was a bit too ancient to pick any of this up, but so glad my friend Lisa who was
up to date with her technology and was able to catch some photos of these
breathtaking animals so we could share with others. That evening we were
treated to a tasty dinner of fresh salmon, we are in Alaska after all. And other tasty foods looking over a beautiful
landscape of mountains and blue water.
We spent time walking around and shopping at this lodge and got to meet
some people we would remain friends with throughout the cruise. From there we
headed back to our home on the water and rested up for our next exciting day in
Skagway Alaska.
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Killer Whales |
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Skagway |
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Glacier Bay |
On Saturday we stayed on the ship and spent the day
traveling through Glacier Bay. This is where having a balcony made it a
vacation. I spent the morning drinking coffee and sitting outside on my balcony
as we passed one glacier after another. What made this great was how close we
were to the glaciers and if you looked closely, could see goats, perhaps other
animals on the glaciers, whales yet again, and ice crashing into the water. I
unfortunately didn’t see any of this, but still enjoyed the view as we passed
one after the other. And no matter where
you were on the ship, you could see these breathtaking sights, take photos and
relax in the sunshine as the glaciers passed before us.
On Sunday we visited Ketchikan, a sleepy little town that
had a charm all its own. It was overcast on this day but warm which made it
nice. We didn’t have much time at this port as Juneau, Skagway and Glacier Bay
were our big ports to visit. So we decided to go to a Lumberjack Show and see
some men show off their stuff. It was entertaining as these guys broke off in
pairs, one pretending to be from the U.S. and the other from Canada, and
engaging the audience in taking sides with assigned countries competing against
each other. In life, these guys do this regularly and so it is good practice to
do this for show and stay in shape in the process. So we were entertained and
then did more shopping, never stopping with the shopping, before heading back
to our ship to take off for Victoria British Columbia. Our last stop on this Alaskan
tour.
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Lumberjack Show! |
I loved Victoria BC and was sad we didn’t get to spend more
time there. But it’s a good tease to get me to come back to visit one day and
spend more time there. We got there in the evening and walked into Victoria
with a nice couple we met and acted as our guides as we entered into the city.
Fortunately, the rain held off, yes this was the day the rain decided to show
up, and we got a chance to see the city. It was small with quaint buildings, restaurants
and shops everywhere you went. We
decided to eat at Fairmont Empress Hotel and dine on burgers and grilled
cheese, comfort food that was decked up with Victoria flair. After dinner we walked around a bit and then
the rain hit us and it was a sign that it was time to go. We grabbed a
wheelchair accessible cab that took us back to our ship and then ran like the
wind back to the ship as the rain bore down on us harder this time. Once home,
we called it a night as we prepared to head home bright and early the next
morning. The next day we said goodbye to
our friendly crew and friends we made along the way, said hello to Seattle and
the Space Needle and flew across the U.S. back to Philadelphia with memories
stored for a life time.
About the author:
Although Kara has Osteogenesis Imperfecta which simply means brittle bones, Kara has studied dance for over 16 years now and currently dances with American Dance Wheels Foundation. But for the bulk of her dance career she danced with Kardon.. Kara works as a licensed therapist part time at an inpatient mental health facility and as a Free Lance writer for Montgomery County Community College. She also sings with the Academy Chorale as the arts are an important part of her life.
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