Cruising to Alaska (day 7)

Just the day before, the sea turned rougher and we could hear the ship creak everywhere, it move a bit more, but not excessively. We had begun to sail into the wide open Pacific Ocean and we could feel it. That day would be sailing until we reach our destination, Victoria in British Columbia, Canada.  

As we were having breakfast, my wife mused about the kind of people that surrounded us. It makes sense as 74% of Americans are classified as being obese or overweight. As you might have expected, we were wondering what that ratio was on cruise ships, but there was apparently no study conducted on that category of people. 

Suffice simply to say as my wife offered, that a cruise ship gives us a glimpse into what could be the picture of a luxury version of a seniors’ long term care facility! Interestingly enough, we attended a presentation on the theme, and were served stats about 10,000 meals served and 550 baguette baked daily. The afternoon we were treated to yet another “fake” Beatles show under the Beatlemania theme. 

We both thought, they were pretty good, but perhaps were we now getting convinced by repeated exposure to their quality? That evening we had an excellent dinner at La Cucina, another excellent specialty restaurant and around 8pm the ship was anchored in Victoria, Canada until about midnight, that gave us a chance to walk into a part of Trump’s 51st state of the USA  from 8:00 pm to close to midnight.

The city, that’s also the capital of British Columbia is compact, well-lit, and beautifully walkable, especially around the Inner Harbour. We walked from cruise terminal at Ogden Point, walked along the Dallas Road waterfront trail toward the Inner Harbour, enjoyed views of the Olympic Mountains and passing ferries. 

Then we passed through James Bay, strolled through this quiet, historic neighborhood with charming homes and gardens and arrived at the Inner Harbour. 

There, we could admire the Fairmont Empress Hotel, lit up at night, walk past the British Columbia Parliament Buildings, glowing with thousands of lights and then ventured into the heart of the city at night, we watched street performers and musicians, crossed the Johnson Street Bridge for views of the harbor, then loop back via Government Street, lined with boutiques and pubs. 

We got a great taste of Victoria’s elegance, history, and coastal charm, and were ready to return to the ship…