Leaf Peeping Canada/New England Cruise September 2014

 Me and my traveling monkey, Elliott

You know me!  I can't let grass grow under my feet, especially when there's traveling to be done!  And what better way to travel than to cruise?  You unpack once, visit lots of interesting & fun places, let the Captain do the driving and enjoy scrumptious meals and delightful entertainment! 

We've been to the Caribbean numerous times; we've been to Europe numerous times & will be back there on a river cruise in summer 2014, we just completed a trip to the Pacific Northwest so an autumn trip to New England and Canada seems to fit the bill perfectly.  
We just booked this fourteen day Canada/New England cruise that departs September 21, 2014 on Celebrity Summit.  My motto is the more, the merrier... so why don't you join us for this North American trip of a lifetime?  We'll do some leaf peeping, lobster eating, fishing, whale watching, otter spotting, maple syrup tasting and more!  The only time that Canada and New England cruises are offered is in the fall when leaf peeping season is at its peak so I jumped right on this one. I've got some great group pricing, so give me a holler.

Cruise Itinerary

Sun. Sept 21	Cape Liberty, NJ – depart 4 pm
Mon. Sept 22	At Sea
Tue. Sept 23	Bar Harbor, Maine 7 am – 4 pm
Wed. Sept 24	Halifax, Nova Scotia  8:30 am – 6 pm
Thur. Sept 25	Sydney, Nova Scotia  9:30 am – 5:30 pm
Fri. Sept 26	Charlottetown, P.E.I.  9 am – 6 pm
Sat. Sept 27	At Sea
Sun. Sept 28	Quebec City, Quebec  arrive 8 am
Mon. Sept 29	Quebec City, Quebec,  depart 6 pm
Tue. Sept 30	At Sea
Wed. Oct 1	Corner Brook, Newfoundland 9 am – 6 pm
Thur. Oct 2	At Sea
Fri. Oct 3	Portland, Maine  10 am – 8 pm
Sat. Oct 4	At Sea
Sun. Oct 5	Cape Liberty, NJ  Arrive 7 am

San Francisco with Flowers in My Hair!

I just can't get that song out of my head!  "If  you're going to San Francisco, be sure to wear some flowers in your hair"... I am singing it now!  Ah, San Francisco!  All I can say is that we most definitely needed much more time in this beautiful city by the bay!  

Seeing THE Golden Gate Bridge is something to behold!  We cruised under it at sunrise and cruised under it again as we departed at sunset.  Beautiful!  Awesome!  Am I really here?  Pinch myself!

We were so fortunate to have our own personal tour guides, Steve and Mary, who met us pierside and had a really fun itinerary set up for us!  As they say in the South, "Bless their hearts".. they got up at 5 am to meet us at the pier at 8!   We disembarked shortly after 8 and found them right where they said they'd be!  Oh my... it was chicken soup for the soul to see those two!  It's been much too long since we've seen our dear friends (& traveling companions)!  Anyway, the weather was a bit lackluster if you know what I mean.  The good news is that it went from lackluster to perfect in the scope of a few hours!

  My tour guide, Esteban, and me!

We followed Steve for our breakfast and Irish coffee stop at the Buena Vista Cafe.  Yes, Irish coffee for breakfast can't be beat!  And Irish coffee at the Buena Vista is to die for!

Along with my yummy breakfast that included corned beef hash (yes!), I think I enjoyed two Irish coffees!  LOL!

Here's the group (sans me who was the photographer!) by the bay!

As we departed Buena Vista Cafe it was "pouring down rain"!  I was so happy to have my newly purchased Helly Hansen jacket!  Steve had arranged a Bay boat tour for us and it was delightful!  We saw lots from the water, learning some of San Francisco's history and grabbing lots of opportunities for some great photos.  Alcatraz, the Golden Gate Bridge, and more... wow!

 Alcatraz - all I can say is that you wouldn't want to be locked up in solitary confinement there!

The rain altered our plans a bit... as we disembarked our tour boat, we wandered around Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39 where I loved the sea lions!  I never saw so many sea lions in one place in my entire life!  They sort of bark like dogs and jump in and out of the water.  There were big ones and even babies!  Photo op!!!

The weather took a turn for the better and what an awesome, unique and special treat awaited us!  The America's Cup race was to start at 1 pm and there we were!!!

USA Oracle Team--- WON!!!

Paula & George watching America's Cup race

 Susan and Al watching America's Cup race

What happens after all this race excitement is heaven in a bowl!.. could it be a sourdough bread bowl?  or a real bowl with sour dough bread as accompaniment?  I think I must've had the best clam chowder in the entire world!  (Yes New England, even counting you!)... The chowder was divine, filled with large chunks of clams and potatoes.  That, along with a glass of my requisite pinot grigio, completed my lunch!  Thank you Steve and Mary!!!!!  We dined at Pier Market Seafood Restaurant at Steve's recommendation and were all smiling campers.  Yum! Here are the chowder eaters! (we lost Ken & Paula & George amongst the sea lions!)

After a fantastic day in San Francisco, highlighted by being with great friends, we sailed away, cruising under the iconic Golden Gate Bridge!

  Thanks to George Burn for this photo!

Astoria, Oregon

Whenever I mentioned that our cruise would stop in Astoria, I consistently got a quizzical look and the question, "Why Astoria"?  To be frank, I don't really know why!  I think I would have preferred Seattle as a port call rather than Astoria but we really did enjoy our brief time in Astoria.

The welcoming committee of volunteers provided booths to provide information and roaming volunteers to answer questions and give directions.  Pierside, there were also lots of local venders with everything from art to local produce for sale. 

We had booked a seafood and wine tour and were escorted to a local school bus!  Yes indeed, our bus driver was the school bus driver for a local school!  How sweet is that?  We boarded and drove the shortish distance from the pier to downtown Astoria where our tour group of about 28 was split into two groups.  Half would enjoy the wine tasting first and half would partake in the seafood cooking class first and then we would reverse.  Unfortunately, we weren't with our traveling companions for this as they divided the bus in half and we were in the wrong half! 

I LOVED this tour.  We did the seafood class first and this was one of the highlights of our cruise for me.  We were lucky enough to join Baked Alaska restaurant’s Chef Christopher Holen (aka Chef Daddy) at the Oregon State University Seafood consumer center exhibition kitchen for a seminar, demonstration, and tasting of the foods of the Pacific Northwest. Chef Chris  filleted fresh chinook salmon and told us all about the seafood and foods of the Pacific Northwest.   

He next demonstrated the proper way to cook salmon and made a quick aioli sauce for accompaniment. While the salmon was baking, he made a vegetable souffle that was divine!  It's so easy that I couldn't believe it.  He says that you can make this with almost any veggie that you have on hand.  For our tasting, he used fresh northwest kale and mushrooms.  Once the salmon and souffle were ready, we had a tasting and I was smitten with Chef Holen and his recipes and the cuisine of the Pacific Northwest!

Chef Holen brought along some of his secret ingredients (I confess that I purchased Chef Daddy smoked salt and Chef Daddy fry salt!)   This was much more than just a cooking demonstration as we were entertained, educated and inspired!  This was another highlight of my cruise!

Next up was a wine tasting at Cellar on 10th... which was unbelievably nice.  We sampled a variety of red and white wines of Oregon and got a great education on the vineyards, growing conditions including soil type and climate, and tasted some wonderful wines!  Another hit!

Then back to the ship for sail away and dinner!

Victoria,BC, Canada

I was excited about visiting Victoria again; it's been a long time since we were in this beautiful city. Once again, we opted to "do it ourselves" without a pre-planned excursion.  We walked from the pier along the harbour walkway and headed into town.  It was about a 25 minute leisurely and beautiful walk.  We stopped at Fisherman's Wharf for a few minutes.  I loved the interesting floating houses!

Though the weather started off a little chilly, it warmed up quickly and the coats disappeared!  Here are Paula and George enjoying our harbour walk.

 And here are Susan and Al, whom I positioned in front of that interesting bonsai type tree!

Ken and me on the harbour walk.... still wearing jackets, but it won't be long til they come off!

The harbour and marina are quite interesting, especially the float planes that are landing and taking off almost continuously!

Well we made it to "town" and were greeted by the most incredible view of The Empress Hotel! 

The flowers are so beautiful in Victoria and everything is so clean!

After all this walking and sightseeing, it was time for lunch!  Victoria is known for its pubs so we chose the Bard and Banker!  The black cod clam chowder hit the spot! Oh yum!  That and a glass of white wine made me smile.  Needless to say, the beer is quite nice in the pub!

Susan and Al posing in front of Bard & Banker!

We lost Paula and George along the way and discovered that they had hopped one of these adorable water taxis! (thanks for the photo George!)

After lunch, we were on a quest for a bar of soap.. yes you heard me correctly!  The only soap available on the Norwegian Sun was a liquid gel and hubby MUCH prefers a bar of soap, so we were lucky to find 3 bars for $4.00 CAD... Ken bought one for each couple!  Thank you KJ!

What can I say, but Oh What a Beautiful Day!  This is a be-back kinda place!

Sightseeing in Nanaimo, BC, Canada

Though Nanaimo is a hop, skip, and jump away from Vancouver, it took us from 4 pm to 7 am the following day to get there!  From our research, we had expected bands to greet us upon docking but they were nowhere to be found!  Perhaps that was just for the first few cruises ever to stop at Nanaimo...?  We did not book a tour here as we had planned to wander around for some sightseeing, shopping, and perhaps lunch.  We jumped onboard the trolley that takes you around to four stops and got off at the second stop, the historic town center.  It's small, quaint, and a little hilly.  I found some Pacific Northwest art in a local art shop and even found some outdoor furniture that I loved that was made in British Columbia!  (I brought the catalog home).  I almost forgot to mention that we even got to sample the famous Nanaimo bar!

We saw otters and seals in the marina waters... so cute to watch!  Otters floating on their backs and seals diving and playing made a fun sight to see!  Here are Al & Susan doing some otter spotting!

Canadian Mounties are awesome!  I grabbed the best looking one for a photo-op! 

And here we are at the pier with the Norwegian Sun in the background... Ken had to tear me away from my otter spotting activity!

Paula and George took a Cowichan Valley wine tour and thoroughly enjoyed that so all in all everyone enjoyed their brief time in Nanaimo.  Here's a photo of the beauty of the area as we departed at sunset.

Pacific Coastal Cruise from Vancouver to Los Angeles

The day finally arrived to embark our ship... floating hotel and resort for a week!  After a week of planes, trains, and automobiles... and schlepping luggage... getting on the ship was just what we needed!  As we were a group of 6, we hailed a large van to take our luggage and 3 of us to Canada Place where we would board the ship.  Three of us walked and we all met up at the cruise terminal only to discover that our ship was late arriving and boarding would be delayed about an hour and a half.  After waiting in a very long line for an hour or more with no seating, the line finally started to move and we were indeed onboard by 1 pm or so. 

 Playing games on IPhone while waiting in line!

First on the agenda:  lunch!!!  To avoid the chaotic embarkation buffet mass of people, we opted for the main dining room where could sit down and be served.  Our rooms were ready for us after lunch so we dropped off our carry on bags and explored the ship, made specialty dining reservations, got our beverage package validated, and had a glass of wine!  Sailaway from Vancouver was absolutely gorgeous!
 

 Departing Vancouver.. beautiful city, dramatic clouds (photo courtesy of George Burn)

The Norwegian Sun, is one of Norwegian's older ships and I must say that it showed its age.  The service could not have been better and that was a huge plus.  Our stateroom with a verandah was small but well laid out.  The verandah needed to be refurbished a bit, in my opinion.  The bathroom was fine; my only pet peeve with NCL is that the shampoo and soap are not individual, but are in large bottles that are attached to the shower wall.  Ken doesn't "do" liquid soap so top of our list was to purchase a bar of soap in our next port of call!

The specialty dining that we experienced was top notch.  Le Bistro and East Meets West Steakhouse were excellent; in fact we ate at the steakhouse twice. 

My dinner at East Meets West Steakhouse - Yum!

Food in the main dining rooms (there are two:  Four Seasons and Seven Seas) was OK.  Nothing special or even worth mentioning.  I didn't have anything that was excellent but I didn't have anything that was awful.  Service was again excellent. 

We had breakfast most days in the Great Outdoors, which was less busy than the main breakfast buffet. Omelettes made to order were excellent.. I especially loved my combination of spinach, tomato, onion, peppers, and cheese!

A highlight of the ship for me was the special Chef's Dinner.  As we knew this would be a sell-out, we booked this early on embarkation day.  The Chef prepares a nine course dinner with wine pairings for a small group.  We were greeted by ship's officers and introduced to our executive chef.  Oh What a Night!  If you get the opportunity, do this one! 

Having purchased beverage packages on previous cruises on other cruise lines, we opted for Norwegian's Ultimate Beverage Package.  We purchased this in advance and upon embarkation had to run around to get it validated.  It was not automatically associated with our key/charge card.  I would have to say that it is most definitely NOT an ultimate package as it was very restrictive, not including special coffee drinks, water, and fresh squeezed juice.  It was also a bit annoying as we had to sign for every single drink and could not "run a tab".  That being said, however, the bar service was fine and we were served without waiting.

I have cruised seven times prior to this cruise on Norwegian.  I was disappointed in the ship, the food, the shows, the entertainment for the most part, and of course the beverage package.  I am going on the Epic in January and hope that my past NCL experience holds true as I really enjoyed all of those past 7 cruises!

Whistler, Canada Sea to Sky Climb

We were up early and walked the short block from our hotel, Hyatt Regency, to the Fairmont Vancouver to catch our transfer to the Rocky Mountaineer train station.  After obtaining our boarding passes, the six of us boarded the bus for the 20 minute ride through Vancouver to the train station.  Embarkation was easy... we were all seated close together in comfortable seats.  Dome class service was not available for the Sea to Sky Climb itinerary but we were well taken care of and have plenty of photo opportunities.  The scenery was amazing.  We saw everything from the poor salmon who didn't make it all the way up the river and ended up being dinner for the bald eagles and black bears to dramatic river gorges, to mountains capped with snow.  The trip was leisurely and our train car attendant was a tour guide, giving us all sorts of interesting and sometimes humorous information.

What a beautiful, sunny, and unseasonably hot day in Whistler, Canada!  Even Ken, my nonshopper, had to purchase a short sleeve tee shirt.  We wandered around and found the will call booth and collected our beer festival tickets for the first every whistler village beer festival. Tickets were required & I purchased them online in advance for $35 per ticket.  There were about 47 craft beer brewers on hand and 4000 or so attendees.  It was held on Whistler's Olympic Plaza.  I sampled one beer from the Dead Frog Brewery that was my personal favorite as it was "citrusy" and I gave the rest of my beer tickets to Al and Susan.  My favorite, though, was the cute tank top with the logo and motto of the festival:  "beauty lies in the eyes of the beer holder"!!  I made sure to grab lots of coasters and a few labels.  Now I just need to get the Dead Frog tee with a logo that reads "nothing goes down like a cold dead frog"! 

Then back for some pool and steam room time before meeting everyone for dinner.  

After dining on wonderful Alaskan halibut for almost every meal, I was quite ready for some spaghetti! The Old Spaghetti Factory fit the bill perfectly...spaghetti with meat sauce, salad, garlic bread, and even 3 flavors of ice cream for dessert!  Oh yes.. The price was right too.  I know what you're thinking:  with all those great restaurants in Whistler why would you choose the Old Spaghetti Factory?  Well... I guess we were "fine cuisined out" and wanted something homey and simple.  The other reason is that when Ken & I first traveled, the Old Spaghetti Factory was quite a place and we tried to find one everywhere we went!  So there's a bit of sentimentality in the decision as well.  The six of us were exhausted after all of our travels via planes, trains, and automobiles so we decided to make it an early night ... though there were many all night "after festival" parties.

We stayed at the Pan Pacific Mountainside.  The restaurant associated with the hotel is the Dubh Linn Gate Pub and it rocks!!!  Literally and physically.  Pure and simple.  Friday night was our first night so the six of us went about 6:30 as we had noted that the live music began at 8pm.  I ordered steak and Guinness pie and was in food heaven.  Filled with tasty beef, potatoes, carrots, and onions in a rich brown Guinness infused gravy..  My heart be still!  

And then the band, Ruckus Deluxe appeared on stage... Awesome duo of Chad Oliver on acoustic guitar (former lead singer for cirque du soleil) and Ian Cameron (Grammy nominated violinist) on fiddle, electric guitar and mandolin.  They played everything from country to rock to their own originals and I could have danced all night.  Incredible. 

Next morning we had breakfast at the pub since our room rate included a nice voucher.. Again, excellent!! The Irish potato cake "took the cake" but the English bacon and fluffy scrambled eggs were perfect.  Sunday brunch is served at the Dubh Linn so we were there at 11 am on Sunday!  My favorite was the whole grain blueberry pancakes  with Canadian maple syrup!! My other favorite was the duo, The Splinters, who provided wonderful music in our outdoor brunch setting!

 We met the train shuttle at 2:45 pm and arrived back in Vancouver at 7:30 pm for an overnight stay at the Hyatt Regency in Vancouver, before boarding our ship, Norwegian Sun, the following morning.

A couple of notes regarding Whistler:  the train ride on the Rocky Mountaineer is 4 hours each way..some do this as a day trip from Vancouver; I don't advise that as you have only have about 3 hours in whistler.  I think one overnight would have been perfect.  We stayed for 2 nights and unless you are a mountain biker or avid hiker, one will do for sightseeing, photography, and hanging out.  It's claim to fame is skiing so visit Whistler in winter for some of the best in North America.

The Pan Pacific Mountainside is nicely located, within a three minute walk from the gondola transit station.  It's located in the pedestrian only Whistler Village.  We had a one bedroom suite on an upper floor.  Pool, spa, fitness center and steam room are nice.  I spent time in the eucalyptus infused steam room to relieve some head congestion .. It helped!

All in all, we had a fun couple of days in Whistler.  The scenery is awesome, the night life rocks, the food is great, and I purchased a red Helly Hansen Vancouver jacket!  It pairs well with my black leggings and Harley boots!

A Couple of Days in Vancouver, Canada

To try something a bit different, we booked the Amtrak Cascades train from Seattle to Vancouver.  Our train departed the Seattle train station at 7:30 am for the almost 4 hour scenic trip to Vancouver.  We grabbed a cab from the hotel to the train station and were the first in line, getting there before the train station even opened!  There were 6 of us hearty souls who arrived around 6:30 am.   Seats are assigned once you get there as you can't get assignments in advance.  We purchased business class seats (the additional charge to upgrade was not much) so we had nice seats.  It was a scenic and leisurely trip & quite relaxing.  We had breakfast onboard.  The menu was limited but it was fun going to the dining car!

Upon arrival in Vancouver, we disembarked the train and went through Immigration.  I didn't think the immigration officials were very welcoming but I guess they were just doing their job!  We hailed a cab to our hotel, Hyatt Regency Vancouver.  Our rooms were not ready, so we checked our luggage and grabbed a soft drink in the club lounge before heading out to find a lunch spot.  The Hyatt Regency is nicely located on Burrard Street and within a couple of blocks of Robson Street where we found a nice place for lunch, with outdoor seating.  We chose Abode.  The chef's pulled chicken sandwich with dried  vine ripened tomatoes, house made dijon aioli, and fresh baby arugula on ciabatta was beautifully presented but needed just a tad more of the dijon aioli or such to give it some pizazz.  Our glasses of wine hit the spot after a day of train travel!

We wandered and explored a bit and then went back to our hotel (our rooms were ready!) for some r&r before meeting for cocktails in the Club Lounge.  Our room was large and beautiful and being located on the 30th floor we had expansive views of Vancouver's skyline and waterfront.  The bathroom was quite lovely too... large with black tile and even a rain shower fixture (and oh yes Aveda toiletries, tres bien)!
Here's a photo of the view from our hotel room

Cocktails & appetizers in the lounge were nice and then we headed off to Coast, where we had made dinner reservations.  Coast got great reviews on tripadvisor and we were not disappointed!  Coast is quite a hip and happening restaurant with a modern, dark and romantic ambiance and superb seafood.  As you may have guessed, I ordered the halibut fish & chips... as I am now in love with halibut and am quite the fish & chips connaisseur!  It was divine! 

We enjoyed a late dinner and, being quite exhausted from our cross country travels, we retired after a nice walk back to the hotel.  The next morning we were up bright and early to do some sightseeing, shopping, and dining in Vancouver!  Following another lovely light breakfast in the club lounge, we hit the streets in search of the False Creek ferry boats for some hop-on/hop-off fun.  One of our stops was Granville Island, which was one of the TO DOs on my list.  I will say that I was a bit disappointed in what we found there... some touristy shops, a few restaurants, and brew pubs.  We had lunch on the waterfront at Bridges Bistro & Bar and enjoyed a dungeness crab & halibut cake burger (YUM!) and a glass of wine.  The view of False Creek and English Bay was especially beautiful on our warm (hot - 80 degrees F) & sunny day.  This little guy waited beside our table in  hopes of some crumbs!  You can't really tell it from this photo, but he was quite a large sea gull!

We then hopped back on the ferry boat for more scenic views from the water.  We got off at Yale Town and headed back toward our hotel with a couple of shopping stops on the way.  As I mentioned, the temperature was record breaking for mid-September in Vancouver and we had brought mostly long sleeved shirts.  Hubby especially had not planned for the layering technique of dressing so we were in search of some short sleeve golf shirts and tee shirts to get him through the weather!  Success at Pacific Place Mall made for a smile or two.

Dinner reservations had been made for our group of six for Joe Fortes Seafood & Chop House.  Located just a few blocks away we arrived in time for our 7:30 reservation and were promptly seated.  Joe's is not used to the high temperatures we were experiencing and does not have air conditioning!  The restaurant is a popular one and was packed so it was indeed a little "close" and warm for the duration of our dinner.  My steak was divine but I was ready to get out of there and get some fresh air by the time our meal was finished... no dessert for me!

We had a nice walk back to the hotel and went up to the club lounge for an after dinner glass of wine and sat on the verandah and enjoyed the view from the 29th floor of Vancouver.  Lovely way to end an evening with good friends.

From Sea to Shining Sea: Wilmington, NC to Seattle, WA!

Sorry for this delayed blog entry but I've been busy as well as jet lagged!   Anyway, our flights on Delta Airlines were all on time; we purchased economy plus seats so that we could enjoy a little extra leg room (especially Ken!).  So we were off from the east coast to the west coast!

Our friends, George & Paula, picked us up at 4:30 am and we were checked in at the airport by 5:30.  Upon arrival at Seattle's airport, we grabbed a taxi to the hotel; our rooms were ready so we refreshed and hit the streets to do some sightseeing and stretch our legs.   Down the hill to the waterfront we went just to make sure that pike place market was still there as you can see!

Paula and George enjoying Pike Place Market

Busy as ever, it did not disappoint; but we soon headed back to the room for a quick shower before joining our friends for cocktails and dinner at Blueacre Seafood.   We chose Blueacre for a couple of reasons.. Location and reviews on tripadvisor.    I ordered the potato chip encrusted halibut fish and chips and was in foodie heaven!

We got a great night's sleep..well I did wake up at 4 am which was 7 am eastern standard time!  We had a nice breakfast of frittatas and great Seattle coffee and headed down to pike place market for browsing  and lunch prior to our Savor Seattle food and culture tour of the famous market.   We stopped in at Maximilien for a a glass of Washington state wine and awesome view of the puget sound.  We found the infamous tourist attraction, the gum wall and snapped a requisite photo!  (it's quite "yucky" to me!)

and then found the perfect lunch spot.  Keeping with the French theme, we chose Cafe Campagne where I ordered the croque Monsieur... A delicious sandwich made with French bread, French ham, and French cheese.

Next on the agenda was our Savor Seattle tour, which was led by CJ, whom I am sure must be the best tour guide because I don't think a better job could be done. Paula and I high-fived a big fish that Shaun threw!

Photo courtesy of George Burn!

The tour we chose was a two hour tour and we enjoyed samples of everything from herbal tea, smoked salmon, cheese, to crab cakes! I highly recommend this tour! 

After this savory time, back to the hotel we went before getting picked up to join Robert and family in Edmonds, Washington!  Oh my!!  Here's a sunset view from their beautiful home... gorgeous home and gorgeous views!

What a feast we enjoyed...potato leek soup, salmon that melted in your mouth, and Eloise's famous pecan pie.  Thank you Eloise and Robert for a most perfect family gala dinner!!!

We loved the new home and so enjoyed seeing family and friends.

Packed and Ready to Go! West Coast Here I Come!

Yippee!  I've just finished packing for our Pacific Northwest trip and have room (or weight) to spare!  Ken is smiling at me now.   My new IT (ultra lightweight) luggage was of valuable assistance!  It weighs only 5.5 pounds empty.  Packing for this trip was a bit of a challenge since we will be as far north as Whistler in Canada and as far south as Los Angeles.  I've packed everything from boots to sequins to a swimsuit so I think I'm all set.  Shoes  you ask?  Being the shoe diva that I am, this was the most difficult part of packing for me!  Let's see... black motorcycle boots,  comfy black/lime green walking shoes (Jambu to be exact), another cutesie walking mule by Diesel, sparkly evening shoes, Spanish 2 1/2 inch heel pumps (comfy for walking AND dancing!), low dressier ankle boots... I think that's it at 6 pairs of shoes & they cover everything from hiking to dancing!

Astoria, Oregon

Since we jumped ship from our cancelled Celebrity Millennium and hopped onboard the Norwegian Sun, we get the special treat of visiting Astoria, Oregon.  Astoria, often noted as being one of the prettiest cities in the U.S., is located in the northwest corner of the state of Oregon.   Situated where the Columbia River merges into the Pacific Ocean, Astoria affords dramatic scenery where you can snap great photos of beautiful vistas.  Astoria welcomes cruise ship passengers with open arms!  There are lots of pier side activities including welcoming bands, pier side "never on a Sunday" festive open air market, bon voyage by the high school band, and much more. 
 

Astoria was named for John Jacob Astor, whose fur company founded Fort Astoria in 1811.  It was also home to more than a dozen seafood canneries, as Astoria was a West Coast hub for the fishing industry.  I discovered in my online research that Astoria is recognized as the place where the tuna fish sandwich originated! 

When speaking of tuna, Bumble Bee comes to mind.  Did you know that Albacore tuna was discovered off the Oregon coast near Astoria?  From Bumble Bee’s website I found a bit of the company’s history:

1899 – A group of 7 canners in Astoria, Oregon formed Columbia River Packers Association, CRPA. Together, they set out to fish and process salmon.

1900 – CRPA purchased several sailing ships and began building a cannery on Alaska’s Bristol Bay.

1910 – The Bumble Bee Brand was born as one of many CRPA marketed labels. Albacore tuna was discovered in seasonal abundance off the Oregon coast.

1920 – CRPA began expanding its cannery in Astoria to capitalize on Albacore

An article in the NY Times reports that “the town, you might say, is to canned tuna what Detroit is to the automobile.” 

What to do for a day in Astoria?  As always when visiting from a cruise ship, I know that a day will not be enough but that I can always return in the future to spend more time.  It sounds to me like Astoria will be one of those places!

I've booked a ship's excursion for a wine & seafood tasting.  We will taste Oregon's wines at the Cellar on the 10th and will also immerse ourselves in the seafood of the Pacific Northwest while enjoying a cooking class... could be hands-on too!  This will only take 3 hours of our day... so what to do with the remainder?

Ride the trolley  

The trolley ride is one of Astoria's most popular tourist attractions.  The conductors are certified and trained local volunteers.   "Old 300"  is a restored 1913 trolley car that runs from the Red Lion hotel to the foot of 39th Street 7 days a week, 12 Noon to 7:00 pm, Memorial Day to Labor Day.  It runs the rest of the year on a reduced schedule, which is posted in the trolley shelters.  

The fee is $1 per ride, or $2 per person, which will allow you to get on and off all day long if you desire.  There are about eleven stops during the narrated ride which lasts about an hour from end to end. I found this information on the website for Cruise Ship Days: On the days that cruise ships are in Astoria, the trolley and cruise host volunteers make every effort to provide rides on the trolley for as many passengers as possible. Therefore, a transportation sticker is sold for $7 that includes all day use of the shuttle to downtown Astoria, a transfer shuttle in the afternoons to the Astoria Column and the trolley. The trolley volunteers simply do not have time to collect individual fares if they are going to provide this valuable riverfront tour for as many visitors as possible. Passengers with stickers will have priority on the trolley.



Lewis and Clark’s Corp of Discovery spent the winter of 1805–1806 at Fort Clatsop, which they built and then named for the local Clatsop Indians.  You can see a replica of the fort at the FortClatsop National Memorial, administered by the National Park Service.  It is located four and one half miles southwest of Astoria, Oregon.  The current fort is a replica built in 1955 from drawings from William Clark’s journal. The area offers hiking trails, picnic locations, and canoe and kayak launches.

Today, Astoria is an up and coming artist haven and has been featured in a number of movies.  Movies that have been filmed in Astoria are: Kindergarten Cop, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III, The Goonies, Short Circuit, Come See the Paradise, and Free Willy I and II.  One is Stephen Spielberg’s cult favorite, TheGoonies; you can even visit the Goonie's House in Astoria (click for YouTube video).

Some must-see venues include:

The Columbia River Maritime Museum

Visit here and you will learn about the history and importance of the Columbia River, the fishing industry, the Coast Guard, and much more.  

The Astoria Column was an incredible chance to see a 360 degree view of the Columbia River where it enters the Pacific and the surrounding areas. The column itself is spectacular. Built in 1926, it's 125 feet tall and you can climb all the way to the top of the column (164 steps) and step out onto the walkway.  T

Interested in a two, three, or four hour eco tour?  Columbia River Eco Tours takes visitors to locations along the river, including those explored by Lewis and Clark. The tour visits the Columbia Estuary and Lewis & Clark National Wildlife Refuge, offering wonderful photographic opportunities of bald eagles, blue herons, osprey and Canada geese. The tour explores everything from salmon nurseries to ocean-going ships up close. 

Click here for a YouTube video and enjoy!

Well, if you know me, you know I'm a foodie!  I've found some interesting and fun options for dining in Astoria!

Silver Salmon Grille
 How about some smoked salmon crepes or halibut fish & chips along with a glass of the house wine (made exclusively for the Grille by maryhill Winery further up the Columbia) while sitting at the beautiful antique bar with a history of its own. From the Silver Salmon website: The amazing 130 year old antique bar in the lounge is constructed of Scottish Cherrywood.  It was shipped around Cape Horn in the 1880's.  It was first used in Anna Bays Social Club, a house of ill repute here in Astoria in the latter part of the 19th century.  It was then abandoned in the 1920's at the Port of Astoria.  In the late 1940's it was found and refurbished over a three year period and installed in the early 1950's in its present location.  

 The website also tells me that the front label on the Silver Salmon house wine was done by local artist Bill Dodge and depicts many of the historic landmarks of Astoria.  I see a bottle or two in my future!  You see, I am a wine label collector!

Bridgewater Bistro

This 1896 waterfront building, situated at the base of the impressive Astoria-Megler Bridge, was once the offices and repair shop for an adjacent salmon cannery.    Now it shines as one of Astoria's most beautiful restaurants.  You can stop here for small plates or tapas, lunch, or dinner.

Bowpicker Fish & Chips

Before we head back to the cruise ship, I think a visit to Bowpicker Fish & Chips is a must-do for me.  I am a fish & chips connaisseur and Bowpicker's beer battered fish & chips sound ultra yummy!  It's located across from the Columbia River Maritime Museum in the converted gillnet boat!  Yes indeed!  From what I've read once you get on deck,  you will have two choices: a half order with three pieces or a full order with five pieces of the tasty beer battered albacore.  They are served on a bed of thick steak fries that are much more than a side dish.