By Mary-Justine Lanyon

Since Alaska became the 49^th state on Jan. 3, 1959, it has fascinated folks in the lower 48 and has become a popular place for cruises on several different cruise lines.

And so it came about that I took my very first cruise last month, at the invitation of my friend Susan Wilcox. We joined a group of eight, put together by Susan’s friend Keith Ivey; over the course of our seven days together, we all became friends.

The Chihuly Glass & Garden art museum in Seattle is filled with colorful glass sculptures.

But first Susan and I had to get to Seattle. We flew up on Friday, Aug. 18; there we met two other members of the group – Katinka Clementsmith and her daughter, Zerlina. At the suggestion of my friend Elizabeth O’Neil, we visited the Chihuly Garden and Glass art museum, where we were astonished by the scope and beauty of artist Dale Chihuly’s work. I stood mesmerized watching a glass blower at work.

That was just the beginning of our amazing week.

As we prepared to board the Eurodam, we were amazed by its size.

On Saturday, Aug. 19 we made our way to Pier 19 where our ship, Holland-America’s Eurodam, was docked. The embarkation process was speedy and efficient. We had tagged our luggage with the tags provided by the cruise line; those tags included our names as well as our stateroom numbers. The luggage was whisked away and we made our way through the check-in process.

Our stewards Eko and Andi left me this little elephant.

Before long, we were invited to board the ship, which looking up from the dock appeared huge. Once on board, we heard an announcement that our staterooms were ready. We found our room keys (cards encoded with our dining options, beverage package and shore excursions) in our mailbox along with our first Daily Program – the itinerary that lists programs throughout the day and evening.

The first order of business was watching the safety video and getting checked in at our emergency muster station. Then we were free to start exploring the ship. We met the other members of our group for a sail-away drink as we left Seattle at 3 p.m. We were at sea that evening and all the next day, on our way to Juneau, our first port of call.

But first we gathered for our first dinner in the main dining room. We met our server, Kemal, who took excellent care of us the entire week. The food was delicious and plentiful. I was pleased to see the portions were more of a European nature; on a cruise, passengers are welcome to try more than one appetizer or entrée, should they choose to do so.

Susan and I found our stateroom to be cozy and very comfortable. We enjoyed watching the sea and shoreline go by from our balcony.

Throughout the day Sunday, there were a number of presentations about Alaska, what to do on shore excursions and meeting the wildlife Alaska is famous for. On Sunday, as on most days, afternoon tea was served at 3 p.m. There were special gatherings for young adults, for children, for members of the LGBTQ community. And, of course, there was entertainment: a fabulous band in the B.B. King’s Blues Club, the Step One Dance Company (extraordinary!), karaoke at Billboard Onboard and combos playing at the various bars throughout the ship.

Docking in Juneau as a seaplane lands.

As we approached Juneau on Monday, Aug. 21, Emryn, the naturalist on board, helped folks watch for wildlife on one of the decks. Shortly before 1 p.m., we docked in Juneau. Susan and I joined the passengers who were getting off the ship, headed for our excursion that began with a bus trip to the Mendenhall glacier. What fascinated me most were all the icebergs floating in the lake (which had been formed from the melting glacier). We read in the visitors center that the expectation is the glacier will no longer exist by 2050.

The Mendenhall glacier – note the icebergs in the lake, which was formed by the melting glacier.

The bus then took us to a small ship on which we went whale watching. The humpbacks cooperated, with many breaching and at least one waving its tail at us. The naturalist on board knew some of the whales by name. We were due back on the ship by 10 p.m., after which we headed for Glacier Bay.

It is impossible to capture the stunning beauty of Glacier Bay.

As we pulled into Glacier Bay (only two ships a day are allowed in this national park) on Tuesday, it was very foggy. We suddenly heard the eerie sound of the fog horn. But then the fog began to lift and we could see we were surrounded by glaciers. While I was out on one of the upper decks taking in the scenery, crew members came by with cups of Dutch pea soup for us – it was delicious! There are no words to describe what you see in Glacier Bay – stunning best sums it up. To me, it hardly looked real and more like a movie.

Katinka and I went out in a tandem kayak while Susan soloed.

Katinka and I went out in a tandem kayak while Susan soloed.

At about 6 p.m. Tuesday night we arrived at Icy Strait Point, where Susan, Katinka and I went kayaking. Our guide, Amy, lives there in the community of Hoonah; it was fascinating to hear her talk about the difficulty of getting everyday items like honey and milk – and their cost, as everything has to come in by boat or seaplane. While we were kayaking, suddenly a bald eagle swooped down and took a good look at us all, as if to say, “Welcome!” That was certainly a highlight of the trip.

It was just an overnight trip to Sitka, where the ship was in port all day. We had not booked any organized excursions but chose to wander on our own. First, Susan, Katinka, Zerlina, Keith and I went to the salmon hatchery at the Sitka Sound Science Center. The fact that a signal goes off in the fish’s brain to tell it to return to where it was spawned is just amazing.

This totem in the Sitka National Historical Park dwarves me.

One of the eagles being rehabilitated at the Alaska Raptor Center in Sitka.

From there, we walked to the Sitka National Historical Park, which preserves the site of a battle between Russian traders and the indigenous Tlingit. The path through the forest was peppered with totems. We eventually came to a bridge over the Indian River, where wild salmon were spawning. While we did not see any eagles or bears helping themselves to the fish, others on the trip did. The path over the bridge took us to the Alaska Raptor Center, a rehabilitation center for eagles, hawks and owls. After a long walk, we made our way back to town and got the shuttle back to the ship.

Sitka, by the way, is the oldest city in Alaska and was the capital of Russian North America before becoming the territorial capital of Alaska. It has been home to the Tlingit people for 10,000 years.

Susan listens as David tells the story of one of the totems at Saxman Native Village.

The abandoned cannery is now owned by the Tlingit, who give tours and explain the canning process.

An overnight trip took us to Ketchikan, where we had the morning to explore. Susan and I had booked an excursion that began with a trip to the Saxman Native Village. Our tour guide, David, shared that he is a Tlingit, born and raised in Ketchikan, and is a member of the Raven clan. He offered fascinating insights into indigenous life. At the village, David told us the story of two of the totems and then let us explore on our own. He then drove us to an abandoned cannery, now owned by the Tlingit and used to educate folks on the canning process. The young couple who oversees the cannery took us on a tour and then served us salmon chowder and salmon dip they had made, as well as local beer. At the cannery’s dock we boarded a small ship to go on another whale watch. While we didn’t see any whales on this trip, we did see a harbor seal. Just being out on the water and seeing Alaska from that perspective was a good experience.

Susan and Katinka get ready to enjoy high tea in Victoria, B.C.

We were back on the ship by noon on Aug. 24 and headed for Victoria, B.C., Canada. We were at sea all day on Friday, arriving in Victoria just before 8 p.m. Susan, Katinka and I had booked high tea at the Pendray Inn & Tea House. We were served two types of tea and a variety of finger sandwiches, scones and tiny pastries – all delicious! The servers sent us back to the ship with a box of pastries, which we left for our stewards, Eko and Andi. I hadn’t mentioned them yet – we met them on the first afternoon. After that, whenever I’d see one of them in the hall, they’d call out, “Hello, Miss MJ!” They left two towel animals on my bed over the course of the week: an elephant and a rabbit.

Our last overnight “sail” was from Victoria back to Seattle, where we pulled into port just before 7 a.m. Susan and I had opted to use the Port of Seattle’s Port Valet. We were checked into our flight back to Ontario and presented with our boarding passes and special luggage tags. Our luggage was picked up outside our stateroom in the wee hours of Saturday and checked through for us. That meant our hands were free to explore Seattle a bit on Saturday, Aug. 26.

Back in Seattle, Susan and I enjoyed visiting Pike Place Market.

We spent our time at Pike Place Market, marveling at the gorgeous flowers and the artwork. We, of course, got to experience the fish throwing and enjoyed a delicious lunch in one of the local restaurants.

Southeast Alaska is comprised in large part by the Tongass National Forest, the largest national forest at 16.7 million acres. Most of it is considered temperate rain forest.

And while Alaska is known for getting a lot of rain, we were extraordinarily fortunate with our weather – not a raindrop the whole week!

And so how was my first cruising experience? I’d deem it a great success, from the people I met to the food and beverages I consumed to the sights I saw. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to see Alaska, known as “the last frontier.” Two words sum it up: stunning and spectacular.