Goodbye, old friend, until we meet again, June 9, 2011

The Columbia approaches Bellingham, WA. June 9, 2011.  Tough day, this; slept late, had breakfast, napped, had lunch, napped, saw a whale, watched a film, napped, had dinner and got ready for bed.  I wonder if I’ll be able to sleep tonight.  I haven’t had this much sleep since I was a teenager.  

We are now on that part of the passage between British Columbia and Vancouver Island about 250 miles north of Bellingham.  This section is called Queen Charlotte Strait.  The sea is calm and there has been little rolling of the ship.  Earlier, that wasn’t the case. Passengers, like Annie, staggered down the halls like drunken miners.  

We had lunch today in the dining room.  On other occasions, we have eaten in the café.  The café food is what you would expect from a café, cooked quickly, served expeditiously and billed unconscionably.  The dining room, on the other hand was reasonably priced, served fresh and tipping is prohibited.  Would that we had discovered the dining room sooner.  

So, the Great Alaskan Adventure nears its end.  While the ship is still on Alaska time, everyone on shore is on Pacific time, an hour later.  I wonder - when the schedule here says we arrive in Bellingham at 8:00 AM, does that mean Alaskan time or Pacific time?  Maybe I should ask the purser that question.

The Alaska Highway and Alaska has been all I expected it would be.  For the most part, the drive went well, aside from the battery issue in Saskatoon.  There was some “getting used” to Harvey that had to happen.  However, by 1000 miles on the road together, we understood one another acceptably well.  

Annie has weathered the trip like the veteran she is.  She is a trooper when it comes to long road trips.  She has grown accustomed to having “linner” - a combination of lunch and dinner - about 3:00 PM when we’re on the road.  However, she can be a grumpy grinch if I keep her waiting too long for food.  I’ve learned not to do that.  It just makes life easier.

In the morning, we will point Harvey toward the rising sun and let him roll out.  My guess is that we will arrive in Kansas City ahead of schedule.  However, there are some things there that would benefit from our attention.  And, it will give me a chance to catch up on things at the office before anyone knows I am back.  

This isn’t the last post on this blog.  However, don’t expect anything as spectacular as the pictures from the forty-ninth state or the Inside Passage.  From here on in, the pictures will be of things you may have already seen.  Sorry about that.  If Kansas City were closer to Alaska, you wouldn’t have to endure that.  But, from here and for now, thank you for your faithful and loyal attention to these pages over the past month.  Only family or good friends would have tuned in as faithfully as you.  See you back home.