We got up and brought some tea, coffee, and pastries back to the room. Like yesterday evening, the clouds were very low and it misted on and off, but we occasionally passed close to islands.
We got the “When and Where” schedule for happenings on board and planned out an ambitious schedule of events. The first one was a tour of the ship’s galley, and we looked forward to seeing the place where thousands of meals are prepared each day. Unfortunately it seemed that half the ship also thought this tour looked interesting, so we decided we’d try again if they offer the same tour on the return journey.
Next I attended a talk about bush piloting and Alaskan aviation while my wife went to “Everything Salmon” at the America’s Test Kitchen presentation. She learned some interesting cooking techniques while I heard about how important bush pilots are to Alaskan life. Tia, the presenter, also mentioned an aviation museum in Anchorage which holds the only U.S. fighter plane shot down over U.S. territory during World War II. This part of WWII history is not well-known because the government censored coverage of what happened in Alaska, but according to Wikipedia:
In the only two invasions of the United States during [World War II], a small Japanese force occupied the islands of Attu and Kiska, where the remoteness of the islands and the challenges of weather and terrain delayed a larger U.S.-Canadian force sent to eject them for nearly a year. The islands’ strategic value was their ability to control Pacific transportation routes…
We thought “Wildlife Spotting on Deck” would be a presentation, but it was more of a Q & A session. It had been scheduled to occur while the ship passed through an area where whales are sometimes spotted, but we did not see any today.
We found my sister-in-law and the boys during lunch and tried to convince them to join us for the Test Kitchen’s “Classics for Two” presentation, but my sister-in-law was suffering from sea-sickness, and the boys wanted to check out the (wet) basketball court, so just the two of us went. Allison, the presenter, was extremely competent and gave a compelling demonstration of cooking Chicken Marsala, Rice Pilaf, and Chocolate Fudge Cakes. I think this Test Kitchen partnership is a signature feature of Holland America cruises, and it is a good one, I was really impressed.
My sister-in-law had convinced us to sign up for a “mixology” lesson. This was limited to about a dozen people at a small bar. The bartender went over some tools and methods, then gave us a couple different drink recipes. We split into smaller groups and each group took a turn behind the bar making the cocktails. We made:
The bartender also made for us:
Our “classmates” were a fun group and the bartenders were entertaining, and of course we all got to drink several cocktails, so we had a good time. I liked the Ice Cool Aid best while the ladies preferred the Twilight Zone, but all three cocktails were very tasty, and the $15 class fee for several cocktails was a bargain compared to normal prices on the ship.
While enjoying our work, we talked to my sister-in-law a bit about her boyfriend, retirement plans, cancer, and people who are gone.
Tonight was “gala night” in the dining room, so we dressed up a bit for dinner. We had a nice table at the very back of the ship looking out through the rain at the ship’s wake. One of my nephews left early to get a haircut and the rest of us went to the ship’s theater where we caught the last of the Captain’s Toast, then watched the Rock Legends show.
The show got an A from both of us for the dancing and arrangement. My wife thought a couple of the singers had great voices while I was not as impressed – maybe the audio balance was off for my ears. Both of us thought the musicians did well.
After the show we stopped to check the Holland America Navigator page and saw there was a wildlife-watching presentation, “Alaska the Great Land” so we watched that as well.