Alaska Cruise Part 6

Wednesday was another day at sea for us.  And the day I was priviliged to visit the ship's Medical Clinic.  They opened at 9am and I was there shortly there after, by this point feeling really bad.   There again I encounted an international staff.  The doctor was from Norway, one of the nurses from Russia and the other from Sweden.  They were very professional and I felt like I was in good hands.  They did blood work, a "quick" strep (negative thankfully) and when it was all said and done, I was given an antibiotic and a nose spray.  The bill was a little high but included the medicine, too.  I sent it off to my insurance company this last Saturday and am hoping they'll reimburse me for most of it.  

Anyway, in light of the fact that I was sick Wednesday morning, I did miss one event that I was really looking forward to.  A tour of the ship's kitchen for the ladies in our group.  I suppose the men could have gone too but I don't think any of them did.  They said it was very interesting and they were amazed how the kitchen staff can prepare so much good food in such a confined space.   They are not only cooking around the clock for the 2,400 passengers but also for a crew of over 700 people. 

I did go up on deck just before noon to watch the Parade of Flags.  This was very touching, over 38 countries represented in the staff, starting from the blond, blue eyed Captain from Norway.   They marched around the deck with the flags from their respective countries to the song "We Are Family." And then came down and stood around the outdoor pool where  John, the entertainment director (from the US), introduced each country and made the remark that all these people from different countries and cultures can work & play together and get along.  Isn't a shame that the World can not take a lesson from these 700 plus individuals.   I AGREE !!

They also had a towel folding demo (which I wasn't up to watching) but it's a big thing on these cruise ships.  Towels folded and left in your room in the shapes of different animals. Usually with your evening mints left as the creature's eyes.

Of course since we were at sea, the duty free, tax free shops were open all day.  I did get T-shirts, etc on the ship because they were cheaper than in the towns.  And they had a tobacco store, a liquor store, all sorts of fine jewelry, colognes, clothing items....some of the most beautiful fleece jackets & vests I have ever seen.   And there was one store where you could get personal items such as Tylenol, gum, contact lense drops...that sort of stuff.  I was upset however because they didn't have any good old Vicks Vapor Rub.  When I have a cold, that's the first thing I reach for.  Next time I'll remember to take some from home just to be on the safe side.

We traveled thru the beautiful Inside Passage a little after 12 noon.  Very beautiful with the mountains and hills all around. The Captain told us the narrowest part is just over 900 feet wide (about the length of the ship)  This day there were also a few whales out aways from the ship and salmon jumping (probably trying to out run the whales) here and there.   It was a beautiful warm and sunny day and those that weren't sick had a marvelous time swimming, playing shuffle board (I missed out on that too) and just taking in the beautiful sights.  

Wednesday evening I was feeling so poorly, I stayed in....missed the Lobster fest at dinner.  But I did order from room service and got a delightful turkey sandwich, an apple, some chips, milk and a chocolate chip cookie delivered to my room.  It also gave me time to get some packing done and some time to read my book as we floated along.

I'm going to try and post a little short video of the Parade of Flags after this entry.  Just click on the picture and turn up your volume and you should be able to get some idea what it was like. 

Until next time..........Linda