Juneau whales and glaciers

For our stop in Juneau we decided to organise for an onshore excursion from the ship prior to disembarking - like the day before. That's the first time; normally we try winging it. But this time I wanted to make sure we got to see what we wanted for our stop in Juneau and not miss out. It was totally worth it.

We got up really early (as the afternoon tour was sold out so we had to get on the 8:30am session). Short bus ride to the catamaran that took us out to the channel where the whales play, and then away we went. The catamaran was fast, and manouverable.









For two hours we looked for whales, and when we came across one, the captain would slow down and quietly glide up close so we could watch the creature.









We then zoomed over to see some sea lions lazing around in the sun.





It's so beautiful out here. We were fortunate to have had spectacular weather. It was definitely crisp and cold, but it didn't matter. We were dressed warmly and the sun was out.









Back on land the bus took us to the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center. We went for the 2.5km walk to the waterfall to get a closer view of the glacier.













Then it was back to the township for a quick walk around before it was time for all aboard. Such a pretty little town. What an adventure we had.

Stadium to the sea

The 26.2-mile/42.16-km "Stadium to the Sea" route began at Dodger Stadium and ended at Ocean and California avenues in Santa Monica. But before that we had to actually get there. So Lynette and I (and Jef for moral support) got up at 3:30am to get dressed, psyched and coffee'ed. We needed to leave the house by 4:30am to drive to the finish line, park the car, and catch a shuttle to take us all the way back to downtown LA so we could run all the way back to the beach.

We arrived in Santa Monica within half an hour, and then the looooooooooooong wait in the really loooooooooooong queue to get onto the buses which seemed to take forever to move. I was absolutely busting to empty my bladder, and there was one port-a-loo (yes, count them, 1!) close to the buses with a queue that didn't look like it was moving in a hurry. As soon as I got in the loo queue the shuttle line started moving really fast, and Lynette was at the front of the line and waiting for me. I was still lined up waiting for the loo, and then in a blink there were no more people waiting for the shuttle, and we were seriously worried we were going to miss the last bus. But when you've had as much coffee as I had that morning, well, when you gotta go you just gotta go! So Lynette ran off trying to hold a shuttle for me, and after I was finally able to do my business we got on the bus and were on our way to the start line.

The sun had finally decided to wake up, and by now some horrible mangled rendition of Star Spangled Banner was blaring from the load speakers indicating the gun was about to go off. We were lined up for the loos, again, and there was a countdown and then the gun and horns and lots of cheering and music and it all seems like such a blur as the adrenaline kicks into high gear.

At the starting line of the 32nd annual Los Angeles Marathon.

The first half felt pretty good. I paced well and didn't go too hard. I was texting and sending pictures to Jef of the landmarks along the route.

Entering Chinatown.

The mass of people climbing up the hill up ahead.

Taiko drummers at the top of 1st Ave hill. It really helped to hear the cadence.

At mile 6 making our way around Echo Park lake.

Running through Silver Lake for mile 8.

The long strip of Sunset Blvd seeing Griffith Observatory and Hollywood sign in the distance.

The transition from Sunset Blvd to Hollywood Blvd.

Mile 12, home of the Academy Awards.

We were back on Sunset Blvd for mile 13 - yay, half way point. I think I looked at Strava and saw I did the first 21km in 2 hours 18/19 minutes or something like that.

Then it was into West Hollywood and through Beverly Hills. Just after mile 16 checkpoint was where Jef and Kien were waiting. A quick kiss from them both gave me a boost to keep moving.

Mile 19 on Santa Monica Blvd. I think I was still feeling okay at this point. By now I had sucked down 4 GU gels and numerous cups of Gatoraid that was handed out at every mile point.

I'm pretty sure it was after this that I hit the wall. Only 8km left. I kept telling myself how easy 8km was as my legs screamed at me. This was the furthest distance I had ever run, and the cramps were setting in. That smiling selfie was also the last photo I sent to Jef, as from that point on it was so very tough. I could not suck down any more GU gels - the thought of having another one made me want to throw up. I tried to talk myself into having one with caffeine, but I was over it. I just couldn't. The course profile write up had said this was one of the toughest points - a continuous 2 mile hill climb. It seemed never ending. I knew I had dropped my pace quite substantially, and was a tad worried I wouldn't make my goal time. After passing mile 25 mark all I told myself was that the finish line was less than 12 minutes away and to go go go to stop the pain sooner.

The finish line was in sight, but it looked so far away. I remember throwing my head back and pumping my arms harder just to propel my aching body forward along this stretch. It will be over soon, I told myself. And then...

When I crossed that finish line it was totally surreal. I told myself I could stop running now, but I was in disbelief at the same time, so in my state of confusion I was wobbling about not knowing if I was walking, running, or collapsing and dying. Stopping moving hurt so much. A volunteer lady came over and said she could stay with me if I needed help. I walked with her for a few meters and then decided I wasn't going to die after all. I thanked her and told her I was okay. She congratulated me and I went and got my medal.

Jef texted me my result. I made it.

Arriving in Venice

Last Saturday (24th Oct) we arrived in Venice in the early afternoon after being at sea for a night, a full day, another night, and a half day after leaving Athens. I was very excited; Venice is another one of my must-see-in-my-lifetime cities, so I had quite high expectations for this place. We sat at our cabin balcony relaxing and waiting for our arrival, and then we went up on the top deck for a better view.

The ship cruised through Saint Mark’s basin and the Giudecca Canal, providing us with a spectacular sail via the centre of Venice, passing Piazza San Marco. We were very fortunate to have been able to do this, as it looks like this route is under intense debate with environmentalists and celebrities petitioning for the banning of large cruise ships.















After docking at port there was a massive rush with people wanting to get onto the water taxis and into the centre. So we took our time and waited. We also wanted to make the most of the limited time we had left on the ship.



It was late afternoon when we took our water taxi to St Marco. By then the sun was on its way down. Sunset at this time of year is really early - around 5pm.



















We wandered around for a bit until it got dark, meandering small alleyways and over bridges through the canals. Venice is exactly how I imagined it to be.





We decided to head back to the ship for dinner since it was our last night on the cruise liner.