Alaskan Cruise 2024

On May 17th we left for a trip on the Holland Cruise Line for Alaska ports of Juneau, Skagway, Glacier Bay and Ketchikan. It was everything that we heard from friends that it was amazing and it was! We left on the 18th out of Vancouver (which itself is an amazing city). I am going to make a scrapbook for my husband's sister and brother on this great trip. Mark's brother, Sandy, did an wonderful job arranging the cruise. He got us the best cabins with a balconey located on the back of the ship which is called the "Aft"! So a BIG THANK YOU SANDY! Enjoy the pictures of the ports and shenanigans.

Boarding the Holland America! We are ready!

Juneau was a little misty but not too bad. We did hear that Alaska can be rainy this time of year but we were prepared.

Skagway was a beautiful port and the weather cooperated too! Gorgeous day to walk around and we even took a train up the mountain to the summit! It was about 2 hours long and we saw some wonderful sites!

Glacier Bay and dressy night on the ship!

Ketchikan was very rainy but we were able to walk around and do some shopping and try their Alaskan King Crab! We had some fun with orange night in the Dining Room too!

Back to Vancouver and then Mark and I headed to San Francisco/Crockett California to visit our son and his wife for a few days. The weather in Crockett was beautiful and their view is spectacular is terrific!

Lastly, a barbecue at their friend's house in San Francisco to celebrate Memorial day! It was a true barbecue with ribs, chicken wings and shrimp! Brian, you are an amazing griller! Thank you!

San Francisco Fun

This is the first picture I took on our visit to San Francisco.  We picked up our son, Eric, and then went to lunch in Marin County.  It was great to see him!  The weather was never an issue because it was beautiful the whole time, not a raindrop was felt.  We were busy the whole time checking out Eric's place of work, sightseeing, and wine tasting!  So much to do and so little time to do it all.  I loved that San Francisco has some of the best places to eat!!  We had Vietnamese, Chinese, Mexican, Italian, Cajun and burgers!!  Of course, we had sourdough sandwiches which were terrific.   I can see why Eric misses lobsters - didn't find much seafood other than Bubba Gump Shrimp! Haha!

Fisherman's Wharf

We stayed right in the city so we were able to do some walking but mostly took the car because we wanted to be able to go to Marin County, Sonoma, the Muir Woods and Sausalito.  We were able to walk to Fisherman's Wharf and Ghiradelli Square.  We were in San Francisco in the Summer of 2011 but we stayed in San Jose which was fun but staying right in the city was a treat to be so close to where Eric lives and being near everything.  Check out beautiful pictures of the Golden Gate Bridge with and without fog, Alcatraz, Sausalito, Tiburon, and Lombard Street.  We were not able to get to the Muir Woods this time because the Park was so packed!  We tried twice but didn't want to do the road again.  It was like a scary ride in an amusement park, very winding and the drop off was unbelievable!!  I took a lot of pictures so I just picked a few pictures to highlight the fun we had.  The best was seeing our son! Hoping some day he misses Maine and will at least come back to the East Coast but I definitely see why he loves it on the West Coast.  Enjoy the pics!

Without fog, Beautiful

With fog, Still Beautiful

Cable Cars

Heading to Alcatraz!

Where the Hippee Movement Started!

With my son, Eric in Sonoma at Benzinger's Family
Winery.

The Crooked Street, Lombard

Sausalito

Tiburon

Family Vacation in San Francisco

Hayes Mansion

Golden Gate

I have been away from blogging and cardmaking for about 10 days and I have missed it.  My family and I took a trip to California last week during the east coast heat wave to visit my son.  My son, Eric, lives in Berkeley which is just outside San Francisco.  My husband, Mark and our daughter Lindsey and I stayed at the Hayes Mansion in San Jose.  Beautiful place and the grounds were exquisite! We were about 1 hour from Berkeley and 45 mins from San Fran.  We rented a car and saw the sights of San Francisco!  I love playing tourist but I found out we weren't the only ones vacationing.  San Francisco is definitely a tourist city in the summer!!  Lots and lots of people!!!  The weather in San Fran was around 68-72 degrees each day so a jacket was sometimes necessary.  The fog would roll in during the morning hours and would lift by noon. In fact, our flight into San Francisco was delayed 2 hours because of the fog in the city.  Eric took us to Mirren Highlands to get a good view of the Golden Gate Bridge and then over to Muir Woods.  We took a ride on the cable cars in San Fran.  It wouldn't be a trip to San Fran without a ride on the cable cars!  The wait was about 1 hour so be prepared if you go!! 

Cable cars

We took the cable car to Fisherman's Wharf to Hyde Street Pier which was a lot of fun.  We saw street performers there and sidewalk cafes.  There were plenty of stores to shop.  We headed toward Pier 39 which is a popular destination for shopping and eating also which we did!  I loved that there was a Merry-go-round right in the middle of all the action.  We were able to see Alcatraz from where we had lunch but were not able to take the Ferry over because they were booked 2 months out!  Next time we will remember that you need to book Alcatraz first then your trip!  Very popular place!

Pier 39

Alcatraz

An alley in the Mission District

 Eric took us to the Muir Woods which was amazing! You couldn't see the top of the trees.  Lots of trails.  We walked 2 miles and we still could have kept going!  Just a beautiful place!  These are just some of the pictures that I took that were the highlights.  We also went to Sausalito, (another busy but beautiful spot) the Mission area of San Francisco, (great places there to eat) Painted Ladies and we also went to an amusement park called Great America.  Love those roller coaster rides!  Can't wait to go back if my son stays there.  I have already planned what to do like the wine country, either Napa or Sonoma.  So much to do there and such beautiful weather!!

Muir Woods

The Petersens

Painted Ladies