Embarkation Day

So...early to rise as we are still adjusting to the time change. We checked out of the hotel at 10:15 a.m. and grabbed an Uber ($9) to the Port of Vancouver to embark on Holland America's Zaandam to set sail to Alaska.

The entire check in process was smooth and fairly quick. We arrived at the port by 10:30 a.m. and were on the ship by 11:00 and the rooms were ready by 11:30 a.m. - amazing! We dropped off our hand luggage and toured the boat a bit. We had some lunch sitting beside the pool, along with some sangria. Zaandam is a smaller ship which had about 1500 passengers on board for this cruise.

Sail-away just after 3:00 p.m. Great day in Vancouver for beginning our trip through the inside passage and onward to Alaska. The weather was fantastic! WE enjoyed a super dinner in the main dining room and then sat around the pool to watch the scenery. We even went up to the Crow's Nest on Deck 9 which was a indoor lounge on the top deck with great views on both sides of the ship.

I caught an amazing sunset while walking around the outdoor promenade on Deck 3 and to my surprise saw a humpback whale emerge from the water - but too quick to grab a photo. Very cool! Maybe another day - wildlife and weather can be very unpredictable in Alaska.