Endicott Arm Fjord
Posted on July 18, 2025 by Ching under Travel.
We were actually supposed to sail through Tracy Arm Fjord but for safety reasons got re-routed to Endicott Arm Fjord. I have read that Tracy Arm is more scenic but is often blocked with huge icebergs early in the cruising season; thus, cruise ships often have to switch to Endicott Arm Fjord, which is much more accessible.
Not having been to Tracy Arm Fjord before, I don’t know that we could really tell the difference. Perhaps we will do this cruise again in a few years but go later in the season to make sure that we get so see Tracy Arm. I have heard that you get to see different sights and animals depending on the time of year so we had planned to go back at a different time, anyway. Now that we have experienced a late-June to July sailing, I think we want to do a September one next time. Maybe we will even get lucky and get to see the aurora borealis.
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Old Stove Brewing Company
Posted on July 16, 2025 by Ching under Food and Drink, Travel.
Here are some pics from our dinner at Old Stove.
We chose this place because of its nice, waterfront location and proximity to our hotel. It was an easy 15-minute walk. It also had pretty good reviews.
When I was in Mexico in November, I met a guy named Jim Tsen. He happens to live in Seattle. When I told him about our cruise, he agreed to meet us. Since Brian sat out of the Mexico trip, they never got to meet until now. Jim is sitting next to Brian in these pics.
We had big group and we weren’t sure what everyone was doing for dinner so logistics was a bit tricky. As luck would have it, the rest of our group managed to get a table next to ours but they were outside on that patio.
I ordered the “create your own beer” flight.
But Brian already knew what he wanted and just went for it.
Here are some food pics. I honestly cannot remember who ordered what but these are the pics of food from Old Stove.
That’s all for now. Stay tuned for more trip recaps!
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The Edgewater Hotel
Posted on July 14, 2025 by Ching under Family, Food and Drink, Travel.
Brian and I had an opportunity to stay at this cute boutique hotel on the water the night before embarkation, the Edgewater. Our room was lovely and we really enjoyed our stay.
I really wanted to take the bear with me but didn’t for a couple of reasons: we didn’t really want to spend the money and we didn’t leave room for much else in our suitcases. That bear was really cute, though!
Everyone in our group pretty much stayed on the same floor of the hotel. Brian’s parents had a room with a balcony facing the pier same as ours. This is the view of our balcony from their room.
This is the view of their balcony from our room. They had a bigger room and better balcony as you can see.
Our hotel is located next to Pier 66 which is the Norwegian Cruise Lines cruise port. There was actually an Oceania ship there on Thursday morning, our embarkation day. I had to take a pic, naturally.
The hotel is home to Six Seven, a very nice restaurant with amazing views of the water.
Brian and I had breakfast with his parents there on embarkation day.
Lorin and Sandy, who are part of our travel group, had breakfast there the same morning at a separate table.
Here are some pictures of our food…
This was hands down the best crab cakes benedict I’d ever eaten. I had one at Another Broken Egg about a week before we left which I thought was pretty good and it didn’t hold a candle to this one.
I could not believe the huge chunks of crab meat that they gave me.
I think everyone else enjoyed their meals also but mine was the best for sure. It was sooo good!
My hot chocolate was also very good.
Their table decor consisted of single flower in a vase which was a nice touch but Brian and I liked that they served homemade preserves in cute little jars.
Even the honey came that way.
All in all we had a lovely stay. We really enjoyed the hotel and would stay there again next time we’re in the area. What about you all? What hotels do you recommend in Seattle?
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Cruising Alaska
Posted on July 11, 2025 by Ching under Family, Travel.
Brian and I went to visit the Orbases in Anchorage back in 2017 so this wasn’t our first trip to Alaska. This was, however, our first Alaska cruise. Neither Brian nor I are not huge cruisers. We have been on a few in the past but they were all to warm, tropical destinations. An Alaska cruise really wasn’t on our radar, that is, until we got older. This type of cruise seems to be a rite of passage as you get older. It’s very popular with the over 50 demographic. LOL.
Being the “joiner” that I am, when I found out about Jay and Becca’s Alaska cruise last year, I wanted to be part of it (despite not being a huge fan of cruises). Brian was over 50 now after all and, with me being nearly there, we fit the profile. Plus, we wanted to do something special for celebrating his getting through all his cancer treatments and getting a clear final PET scan and also June is his birthday month and I still felt like we didn’t do anything big enough on his 50th last year so I’m still kind of making up for it in my mind. I also wanted him to get to do some traveling since he missed out on the Mexico trip last year.
After I got back from Tres, I put our down payment on the cruise. Brian wasn’t thrilled at first. He had just started his cancer treatments and wasn’t really feeling the best. He wasn’t sure he would be well enough and feel up to traveling. The end of June would have been well over six months since the start of his cancer treatment journey and at least three months post. I figured it was a safe bet and I had complete faith.
As Brian’s treatments were winding down and he began to get his energy back, he started to get more excited about our trip. But the most excited he got was probably the day before our flight to Seattle when he met with his oncologist to review the results of his final PET scan from the previous week – ALL CLEAR! Only CT scans from here on out. His doctors will continue to monitor him for the next five years but all signs point to a very successful treatment. We were thrilled. And, with that cloud no longer looming over our heads, I think Brian was finally able to let go and relax a bit and really allow himself to be excited for our Alaska cruise adventure.
Before I dive in to the trip recap, I have to mention that both of our parents went on the trip also. I suppose this was a bucket list item for all of us. It was a first cruise for my mom and dad and Brian’s parents recently celebrated their 52nd wedding anniversary on June 2 so this was basically an anniversary celebration trip for them. Brian and I were celebrating the conclusion of his cancer treatment journey and also his 51st birthday (a bit belated because it was on June 13) so there was plenty to celebrate all the way around.
Our adventure started in Seattle where Jay and Becca booked our group at the Edgewater Hotel for a pre-cruise stay the day before embarkation. It is a lovely hotel on the pier and we really enjoyed staying there.
Dinner on Wednesday night, the eve of our cruise embarkation day, was at Old Stove Brewing Company. Jim Tsen, a friend I made at Tres Palapas in Mexico back in November met us for dinner. Since Brian didn’t get to go on that trip, this was their first time meeting one another.
The next morning we woke up to a giant Oceania cruise ship next to our balcony.
After a nice, leisurely breakfast with Brian’s parents at Six Seven (on site restaurant at the Edgewater), it was time to board the shuttle and head to our ship. The Edgewater is next to the Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCL) port but it was much further from the Carnival cruise port. If I had to do this again, I would sail with NCL and stay at Edgewater so then I could just walk to the ship the next day for embarkation. By the way, I am going to write separate posts about the restaurant so stay tuned for those.
Embarkation was quick and smooth. We were aboard the ship within minutes. However, staterooms were still being flipped from the previous cruisers so, despite getting on the ship super early, we weren’t able to get into our rooms until 1:30 PM.
Here’s our full cruise itinerary:
- June 26, Thursday – Seattle (Embarkation Day)
- June 27, Friday – Fun Day at Sea
- June 28, Saturday – Endicott Arm Fjord (this was supposed to be Tracy Arm Fjord but we had to reroute for safety reasons)
- June 29, Sunday – Skagway
- June 30, Monday – Juneau
- July 1, Tuesday – Ketchikan
- July 2, Wednesday – Victoria, BC
- July 3, Thursday – Seattle (Debarkation Day)
I am actually contemplating writing a post about each of these stops because there is just way too much to recap in one blog entry.
In the meantime, I will leave you with this montage of pictures and videos taken while we were on the cruise ship. Until next time. Have a fantastic weekend, everyone!
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April Was a Big Month
Posted on June 15, 2025 by Ching under Health, Things to Do.
In addition to all the things that happened in April, the biggest of them all being Brian finally getting his feeding tube removed, we also got to do some fun things like check out the new Glass in Flight 2 exhibit at Botanica.
The Glass in Flight 2 exhibit ends July 30 so be sure to stop by Botanica before it leaves. The exhibit is included with your park admission which is just $12 for adults. Brian and I plan to go back next month after we return from our trip. If you’ve been, let us know what you think in the comments.
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