Wedding Photo's

The wedding photo's are now available at:

http://sc.theimagefile.co.uk/?skin=8412&Action=FL&id=11777290&setpwd=

password is griffiths

You can go direct to the site by clicking on this blogs title. We have ordered a cd of all the photo's if anyone wants us to email any specific shots, I'm not sure when we'll receive it though.

Wed 10th – Cruising Tracey Arm, Alaska

Hotel: Golden Princess

Today was another full day at sea or rather a cruising day up Tracey Arm, the fiord for glacier viewing and scenic photo’s. Unfortunately for us there’s low lying cloud and it’s raining so now glacier views for us. We did have lots of waterfalls though so anyone who’s seen our photo’s of Doubtful sound will know we can take lots of pictures of waterfalls! This time round we weren’t close enough for Chris to get drenched! We also got to hear the boat crunching few a few icebergs which was kinda eerie.





“Iceberg ahead!”


We had this naturalist guy broadcasting our the tannoy while we cruised the arm which was a tad annoying, don’t get me wrong we like to learn new things and if you ever get Chris talking about glaciers you’ll know he has a strong geography background, but this guy didn’t just talk facts he embellished it with pompous crap. Anyway apparently Princess are the only ships to navigate the arm due to its tight bends and curves – which I guess is true because from Juneau we were following/being followed by 3 other boats yet in this place we haven’t seen any.



Yep we went through that gap



Chris taking in the atmosphere, it was getting lighter by this point as we were nearing the end of the open sea.


Once back on open sea we headed up to the Skywalkers lounge to catch the last glimpses of the fiords unfortunately all the good seats were taken so this was the best I could do. Naturally we had a couple of cocktails to pass the time while we were there.




Yeah I guess this didn't resize to well its looks kind of psychedelic now!

Mon 8th - Juneau, Alaska

Hotel: Golden Princess

Today we docked in Juneau, home of the Mendenhall Glacier. Before we headed up to the glacier we took the Mount Roberts Tramway (a gondola) up the hill to catch a glimpse of the view between the clouds. Unfortunately it didn’t clear enough to get a decent view but we did get some atmospheric shots between the cloud cover. We also said hello to the bald eagle that was being cared for up there as it only had one eye.

We were booked on a trip in the afternoon to go to the glacier and the rainforest gardens so we had a bit of time to explore Juneau. We had a look around the jewellery shops and sat in a local café for lunch and to use their wifi. We were told by the tour guides that before the cruise ships came there were only 4 jewellery shops in town and now there are over 20. They are mainly the same shops you find in the Caribbean ports as they seem to follow the cruise ships around trying to get all the American’s money. Chris was lucky as they don’t really do platinum in Alaska and Canada (too expensive apparently) so I couldn’t get what I was looking for!

The rainforest trip involved getting in golf buggies through the forest and steep incline. At the top there was a short boarded walkway areas which led out to a fantastic look out around the port and neighbouring island. The cloud had started to clear by this point and the sun even tried to poke through a couple of times.

Up at the glacier it was slightly chilly we had been warned to look out for bears and a couple of the tracks were closed due to ‘bear activity’ unfortunately we didn’t see any. The glacier was impressive and we had quite a bit of time to glaze and take pictures. There was also a visitors centre that we escaped to when it got too cold.

Back on ship we shared dinner with an Australian couple and had a fab time.

Sun 7th - Cruising to Juneau, Alaska

Hotel: Golden Princess

Today was non stop at sea until we hit Juneau tomorrow. We were quite lazy and didn’t get up til late so consequently missed the breakfast buffet so hit the lunch buffet instead! We had a bit of a walk around the decks but it’s fairly cold and a bit rocky so I left Chris watching tv. To help fill in my time I went along to the port guide’s talk on jewellery and what we can expect to buy at each port. All very aimed at American’s and plugging which ever shops have paid to be mentioned. After that I stayed for the bingo but didn’t win anything.

It was the first formal night tonight, there’s another one on Friday. We past quite a few people who made no effort at all but most people were all glammed up and making the most of the free cocktails. The captain also did a speech welcoming everyone on the ship. We had our photo’s taken on the stairs so it’ll be interesting to see what they come out like. We shared a table for dinner with two other English couples and a nice American couple. We got caught out by not ordering all the five courses like the rest at the table and felt a bit like loose parts whilst everyone else was munching away. I have to say it worked to our advantage as everyone else left before the free chocolates were brought round! We managed to also catch one of the shows doing songs from Broadway, it was good but not the musicals we tend to know.

Sat 6th - Seattle

Hotel: Golden Princess

Well today we headed for the ship full of anticipation and excitement. The trip down to the border was only 40 mins but the wait for the coaches to get through customs was about 3 hours. For each coach ahead of you, you should allocate about 30 mins for them to get through. Luckily for us we got away from Vancouver quite speedily and so only had 2 big coaches and a wee coach in front of us. In the immigration office we had 2 lots of fingerprints and our photo taken. My fingertips must be a bit battered from all the creams and moisturisers I use as it took ages to get mine done. Chris on the other hand went through after me to another desk and was though the x-ray before I was done! We weren’t expecting such a long transfer from the border into Seattle but we think it took another 2 and ¾ hours. Owen put a video on but it was definitely one for the oldies - Out to Sea or something like that.

We hit Seattle downtown around 11.30am and got a wee tour of the touristy bits it seemed very similar to Vancouver. We’ll get a chance to have an explore of the city we get back from the cruise as we changed our hotel stays to included a night in Seattle before we head back to Vancouver. We found out a couple of days back that Fly Globespan cancelled our original flight so we are now leaving on Wednesday flighing back via Calgary and Manchester and get into Glasgow around 11am on the Thursday 18th. We were lucky we didn’t book through Zoom as they have ceased operations and cancelled all flights. Any way back to Seattle and the Ship. The embarkation process we easy and quick we got a couple of pics going up the gangway.

We didn’t get any upgrades or anything (boo hiss), in fact we haven’t had any perks yet I’m a bit disappointed. I have to say first impressions are that the ships not as spectacular as I thought it would be the rooms a bit pokey and people next door us are smokers. The smoking things a bit weird as there’s so called designated areas for them but this seems to be widely ignored. You’re not supposed to smoke in your room but can on the balconies. There’s plenty of storage space in the cabins so I got us unpacked and the bags hidden away. You have to pay for all drinks even soft drinks, so paid $30 to get unlimited soft drinks. The price of the cocktails and wine isn’t too bad either. We set sail just after 4pm and got a good view of the Seattle skyline as we sailed out of port.

I have to say for all of you who told me you can’t feel the boat moving and won’t get sea sick, wants to get themselves on this ship. Head spin time! Hopefully it’ll get better, I have my travel pills with me.

We are on anytime dining which means we can pick where and when we eat we decided to get a table for just the two of us tonight as we were both a bit tiered. The foods ok, menu fairly varied and if you so desire you can have about 5 courses! We had a little wander around the ship after eating but gave in to the tiredness and had an early night.

Fri 5th - Kamloops to Vancouver

Hotel: Fairmont Waterfront

Another early start today and I for one was feeling very sleep deprived due to the various noises in the hotel during the night. We didn’t bother with breakfast at the hotel as we knew we’d be getting something on the train. It seemed most other people were grumbling about the service and food last night and like us most people had also filled out the hotel comments card voicing their disgust!

The train was super huge today as our train and the train that came in from Calgary were hooked together. The scenery today was a lot more impressive and the trackside tended to be a lot clearer than yesterday so not so many trees to block the view.

Wildlife of the feathered kind was in abundance today the main things being bald eagles and ospreys although trying to photograph them was a nightmare. Here’s one of the better ones.

Amongst the other things we say were a couple of bears and some elks or something similar. The train ride today seemed to drag a bit towards the end not sure if this was tierdness or just that the journey seemed to get a bit boring after lunch. To lighten the mood the rep played a game with us of craw the moose - most entertaining! The journey time in total today again was about 8 hours. Once off the train we had a quick tour of the city with a drive around Stanley Park. The hotel is on the waterfront as the name suggests and our room over looks the harbour although there’s a huge hotel and cruise terminal to our left so this obsqures a lot of the views. The meal tonight was a farewell meal in one of the conference suites, Owen got up and did a bit of a speech. He also gave us all a copy of the group photo we had took in Banff. We all look kind of super imposed onto the picture but a least most of us look fairly decent, if you get a chance to see it you‘ll notice I‘m the only one in a vest top, this is because we‘d come straight from breakfast for it and didn‘t have a chance to get coats. We finished off the evening in the evening in the bar for a we night cap with another couple. We hadn’t had to pay for any drinks during the meal tonight so an amaretto or 4 was in store for me despite of early start in the morning!

Thurs 4th - Jasper to Kamloops

Hotel: Kamloops Towne Lodge

A slightly disturbing early start the earliest so far. It was still dark when we went for breakfast mainly as although the sun had risen it was still behind the mountains. I attempted to get some atmospheric photos but they didn’t come out very well. Anyway at 7:15 we were on the bus and ferried to the Rocky Mountaineer train station in Jasper and boy was it cold. No kidding here you could see your breath, when the train pulled in it was a mad rush onto the train. Due to the size of our group we had a carriage to ourselves and being the youngest by far we were the first on. But again all seats had been pre allocated so we were stuck with what we were given. The seat area was huge with plenty of leg room, but we had a window divide was just in front of us so we didn’t have the best view. There was a viewing platform at one end of the carriage but it wasn’t very big and could only hold 4 people at a time, this didn’t really matter today as the trackside was obscured by trees a lot of the way. We did manage to see some wildlife fairly early on both bears and elk. I think in total we saw 5 bears which brings the bear count to roughly 9 although I’m kind of losing track so I may have that a bit out. One interesting thing about the journey was that we crossed a time line leaving mountain time and entering pacific time gaining an hour in the process. The train journey in total was about 8 hours so slightly exhausting.

Our hotel stop for the night was not a Fairmont as the rest have been but a Best Western. To say it was slightly lower class was an understatement. The rooms themselves were ok and fairly big. Ours had a balcony but unfortunately overlooked the main state highway so not much opportunity for sitting out.

There was a shopping centre across the road so we had a wander around this before heading for a drink in the bar. Unluckily we got the dippy waiter who got my drink wrong so not a great start, then after charging the bill to the room we got a snotty phone call saying we couldn’t do this as we didn’t register a credit card at check-in. This hadn’t been a problem at any other hotel and given the amount of business the train company were putting through the hotel you would have thought they’d give better service. I think Princess should be the ones arranging the accommodation here instead of leaving it to the train company as the quality and service is so different of that of the rest of the hotels. The restaurant didn’t get any better and despite the reservations put through for everyone no tables were ready and everyone had to queue. I won’t even bother to go in to the food and wine service……..

Wed 3rd - Lake Louise to Jasper

Hotel: Fairmont Jasper park Lodge

Oh my early start, or is it all of last nights alcohol making me feel groggy? Chris managed to get up some pictures of the lake after breakfast before we boarded the coach as we realised we didn’t do this yesterday, nor did we transfer the pictures from the camera or recharge it’s battery!

First port of call for today was the Columbian Icefields for a trip up the Glacier. It gradually got cloudier and wetter as we approached the area. The format of the trip was a shuttle bus ¾ way up the mountain then onto a snow mobile - a beast of a contraption. When we reached the snow mobile station we noticed it started to snow a bit. When we got to the top of the glacier is was a blizzard, for proof of this see …..

We were somewhat cold after this despite the scotch which I nearly threw back up! Once back on the bus and slightly drier it was a drive up to our lunch stop - basically a restaurant and gift shop aimed at the coach tours and boy was it pricey. I did see a gorgeous pair of earrings but at $1500 I decided against them.

The final stop for the day was the Athabasca waterfall. I wasn’t expecting anything great giving some of the stops we’ve had but we were impressed, there was lots of trails to go around and lots of photos to be took.

For the adventurous on the bus there was a rafting trip along the river and to the hotel, we decided against this and just headed on to the hotel. The hotel is a lodge style so everyone has their own cabin. We took advantage of the outdoor pool until it got busy. We’d also booked an early tea in preparation for tommorows early start so we found ourselves in a bit of a rush.

The evening meal was the best so far I was adventurous and went for rabbit followed by bison oh and not forgetting the chocolate and amarreto mouse hmmm. In the restaurant there was a pianist and bassist playing which was pleasant although I had to stop myself singing along a couple of the songs. Chris had his sensible hat on and wouldn’t let us go to the bar so we headed back to the room to get the bags ready for the next couple of days and an early night.

Tues 2nd - Banff to Lake louise

Hotel: Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise

It wasn’t too early a start today, the breakfast buffet was really busy though and everyone has been commenting on the time taken during the line up to get a table. Today’s drive took us first off to the Banff gondola. Well I say gondola it turned out to be a ski lift complete with electric fence around the enclosure to keep the bears out! Now it was slightly cold it didn’t help that we had ¾ length trousers on. After getting a acclimatised to the coldness on the gondola we disembarked a fair way up the mountain side and went to the look out point. There were some fantastic views but no wildlife sighting, that was until we came back down. Out the corner of my eye I glimpsed a bear on the mountainside, Chris in his super speediness (we think) managed to get in on camera. Until we get back home and enlarge the image on the pc we’ll not know for sure.

Further along the road the coach screeched to a halt, no not an accident but more bears just playing by the roadside and then darting in front of the cars. We didn’t get the best view from our coach as there was another coach in front of us, but we were rewarding a mile or so later when another bear ran across the road and started eating the berries by the side of the road - we managed to get quite a few pictures of this one.

We had quite a few picture stops today in particular a couple of picturesque lakes with mountain backdrops. The last stop we did was at Lake Moraine - moraine being something to do with the rubble left at the end of the glacier movement (don’t quote me on that :P) The only wildlife we saw here were fat squirrels who weren’t camera shy!

Arriving at Lake Louise it’s the most picturesque hotel so far, it’s just so difficult to describe but basically opposite the hotel is the foot of a glacier and the glacier lake is surrounding on 3 sides by the mountains. We didn’t have much time to follow any of the lakeside walks which was a real shame. Our room itself was extremely small but we all had lake views which I think was then pay off. The service in the restaurant was pretty poor but in true fashion there was far too much food. As oppose to ordering your own starter a selection of small plates (think tapas) was brought to the table. We shared our table tonight with two other couples from our bus and ended up consuming far too much wine especially for the early starts we seem to be having!

Well today we’ve seen quite a bit of wildlife so hopefully this is just the start of things to come.

Mon 1st - Calgary to Banff

Hotel: Fairmont Banff Springs

Labour Day in Canada today we had an early start as last nights alcohol did me no favours. We also still didn’t know the arrangements for leaving today so rang the concierge and was told to be outside for 7.30 so it was just as well we got up early. You can guess what is coming now yes the concierge got it wrong so after rushing down breakie and get our bags packed, Owen the tour guide rang and let us know it was a 10am start and to have bags outside the room for the bellboys to collect. The lobby had 3 or 4 different groups waiting for departures and the average range as expected was about 60. The seats on the bus had already been selected for everyone so no good seats good be nicked by us early starts!

Today’s tour is Calgary to Banff we had a couple of photo stops along the way but we were in Banff for lunch with a couple of hours to ourselves to wander around the shops. For lunch we stopped in a Swiss steak and cheese fondue house. We had a fantastic cheese fondue and chicken hot stone it was out of this world. They even stocked a locally produced range of ciders - Chris as expected had pear while I had black cherry. We liked it so much we went to the liquor store to get some for the hotel.

Before being shuttled to the hotel we had a little sightseeing tour or the river and the view of the hotel from the opposite side - cue lots more photo opps.

The hotel itself is definitely one of the more grander the room we had was huge but didn’t get much of a view. We had another wander into the town before tea. The town itself is quite like a big version of Keswick I think I think this because of the backdrop of the mountains from the main street and the abundance of mountain clothing shops. After trekking round most of these stores we even managed to get Chris his Northface jacket - although not identical to the one he’d seen it was just as good.

Tea was ok Chris tried the bison as this had been recommended by the rep and I had a game platter which had quail, venison and elk. By far the best was the elk and I‘ll be having this again if it‘s on anywhere else. Unfortunately we were too full to sample the pudding buffet but it did look nice.