On May 20, nine club members and three guests started making our way to Vancouver, Canada for one of the most beautiful experiences of our lifetimes.  They were the Orsolinis and their guests, Roger and Susan, the Anzalones, the DiMarias, Larry Oswald and his daughter, Nancy, and the Doggetts.  After touring around the beautiful city of Vancouver on our own, we boarded Holland America’s Rotterdam for an unforgettable vacation.  We were greeted with cool weather and clear skies.  The sapphire blue seas, snowcapped mountains, clear crisp air made us feel like we were in another kind of paradise, totally different from the one we are so used to.  We witnessed eagles, whales, otters, purple starfish, (we think the water was just so cold that they turned that color) puffins, moose, caribou, dolphins, bears, geese, and others.  Some of us soared through the skies to see the glaciers from above, and others hiked out to see them up close and personal.     We relaxed while sitting on the deck watching waterfalls and ice bergs.  There was always something to see on either side of the ship as we sailed up the inland waterways.  We were in a smaller cruise ship, so we were able to get into some of the narrower passages with beautiful lighthouses and snow capped mountains that you could almost reach out and touch.  We had daylight almost all of the time, so we slept when we were exhausted and couldn’t go any more.  The ship provided nature experts, entertainment and dining.  Of course you can’t go on a cruise without the inevitable shopping, gambling and spirits.  After a day in port, we would all compare sites and purchases.  No one talked much about sore muscles or blisters, but this author suspects there were some.
    After a week of cruising on the Rotterdam, the Anzalones, Orsolinis, DiMarias and Doggetts took off on another adventure into the mainland of Alaska via SUVs and Bed and Breakfasts.  What an adventure we had!   We spent a day on a small cruise going to Fox Island for a Salmon Bake and were able to see about 300 Orca Wales and other wild life as well.  It was one of the highlights of the trip.  Then it was on to our first bed and breakfast.  The next morning after a wonderful breakfast including bear sausage, we were loading up the SUVs, and two moose came walking through the yard!  Needless to say, all of the cameras were clicking away.  We had many wonderful days seeing the sights, and many evenings visiting and relaxing over cocktails with our B & B hosts.  We really felt a part of the Alaskan culture, especially when the Orsolinis found out the sounds they heard right outside of their room during the night  was a bear breaking into the enclosure where the trash cans were secured!!!
   We all split up again in Vancouver on June 4 and headed back to a more familiar paradise, where we will make many more wonderful memories with our MBYC friends.