We boarded the ship and sailed away from Seattle.
The next 5 days were at sea. There was plenty of trivia, entertainment and food.
Finally we docked in Honolulu and I took a Pearl Harbor tour to see the battleship Missouri. See pics.
Transpacific Cruise
I am taking a 21 day cruise from Seattle to Sydney. Stops along the way include Hawaii, Maui, Fiji, Vanuatu and New Caledonia. We are also going to fly to Auckland for 2 days then back to Sydney to fly home.
We left on Wednesday to stay overnight a a hotel close to the airport. The next day we got up to get to the airport and catch our flight. We arrived in Seattle around 1pm and then walked to our hotel and checked in.
The son of one of my friends drove from Portland to see her so we all went for lunch at a nearby Mexican restaurant that had really great food.
Then on to Pike’s Market. It was late afternoon so there was not a lot of sightseeing time but we got to see the market and the waterfront. Then back to the hotel for some wine on the rooftop.
Then Marsha and I went to dinner at a Sushi restaurant. I have posted pictures of the food and we could even get natto (fermented soybeans). Then back to the hotel for sleep because tomorrow is more sightseeing.
Breakfast was at a Little deli across the street. I has musubi. It is a rice cake that can be topped with any combination of spam, cheese, avocado and/or bacon then wrapped in seaweed. Seattle is full of great restaurants.
We walked to the Space Needle, but it was raining and with time short we decided not to go up. Visibility was terrible. Instead we went to the Chilhuly Museum. We toured the museum and went back to the hotel to get our ride to the ship.
Graceland
Graceland is great if you are a true Elvis fan. Other wise it is the house of a wealthy person decorated in a 70’s style. We did see Elvis’ grave.
As usual it was time to leave so we could make it to Columbus Mississippi to visit with Beverly’s aunt and cousin. Unfortunately we could only stay the one night since we were due back home. Beverly’s aunt and cousin showed us true Southern hospitality, but we got up early to leave for the drive home since it was a 10 hour drive. We said our goodbyes and hit the road again. After a long day we finally made it back home.
Springfield
Today we decided to see the Lincoln Museum. At first it didn’t look promising but it turned out to be an exceptional museum. I would recommend it as a destination. The exhibits were engaging. They even has First Lady dresses the still had some of the original material.
We had to leave because we were short on time. It seems everywhere we went we could have stayed longer.
On the road to do a drive by of the St Louis Arch. We decided not to stop and see the Arch, but to go to Memphis to see Graceland.
Champaign
We got to Dorothy and David’s (Marsha’s brother) house for lunch. We had a nice lunch and enjoyable visit. Both Dorothy and David are very creative. But alas on the road again to Springfield Illinois. On the was to Springfield we stopped in Artur, town with a large Amish population
We saw the Amish in their buggies and stopped in at an Amish restaurant and store. After this short detour on to Springfield, Land of Lincoln. We checked into the hotel and then headed for dinner.
A local food item that appears on many menus is called the Horseshoe. It is a slice of Texas toast covered with your choice of meat or vegetables, then covered with fries and finally smothered in cheese. Below is a picture of a Pony since it is smaller than the Horseshoe.
Then off to the hotel so we can be rested for touring Springfield.