Karl’s Korner

Good afternoon, friends and family,
Yes, as Kirk Douglas sang to the Walrus named]
Esperanza, (remember that, it’s on a trivia question on the ship), we have a whale of a tale to tell.
Sometimes, you make the right decision - today was another one of those times. We almost slept in and said, “to heck with it”, when we heard Icy Strait Point was a small village of only 900 souls. I was worried about Carol being able to get on the tender if the water was choppy or the weather bad.
Then we awoke and looked outside to see the most perfect day we’ve had so far, (and we’ve had our share of beautiful ones). It was bright sunshine, almost 65 early, and a cloudless sky. The scenery is fantastic - lots of small islands around us, and snow capped moutains showing their glorious heads through passes between smaller mountains in the foreground that are covered with tall, tall evergreens and pines.
The bay was as smooth as that proverbial baby’s butt, so no problem with the tenders…
So, it was no contest. We got out of bed, ate and headed belowdecks, (see how nautical we can be), to catch the tender.
We got off at an old cannery about 2 miles from town whiich has been converted into a shopping center, welcoming center, theater, etc, and decided to walk into town with our friends, Tom and Nancy Saga, from the saga of Kodiak and the looonnngg walk through the forest.
When we arrived there, we met three local men, (actually one local and two friends), all vets, one a Navy seal, the others Viet Nam vets. David, the local, was cleaning a huge pile of salmon on a plywood table connected to the side of a restaurant he and his wife own. He was preparing to “smoke” the fish in a homemade cabinet, also attached to the restaurant, that looked like an out house.
Nels, (short for Nelson), and Herman, two of his friends and the crew members of his boat, were standing around BS’ing, (their words, not mine). We inquired about whale watching, and after talking another couple into going with us, David gave us a deal for $110 per person for a three hour trip, (which turned out to be longer), and guaranteed we would see whales.
Sorry to say, I can’t recall the name of their boat, but it was a beautiful, modern craft seating six inside a nice warm cabin, (although we didn’t need it much, as the temp got up in the 70s).
We headed out and went about 20 miles from Hoonan. And, our guides did not mislead us.
We saw at least 40 whales, maybe as many as 50, they were all around us. Most would come close and then “tail”, which meant they would dive, waving their barnacle crusted tails high in the air as they dove under. “Spouting” was all around us. We grew tired of yelling, “Thar she blows!” and just said, “There’s another one off the port/starbord/aft/bow.
Two of them came very close and must have been “resting”, as they stayed on top of the water for several minutes and gave us lovely views. Nels said they seldom saw any do that, so it was a rare treat.
Seals and sea lions played all around the boat. We met a pod of several sea lions who really put on a show for us, cavorting, diving and playing like trained ones in a sea show, but this was in the wild and just for us. What a treat!
All around us was scenery you can only dream of, wilderness at its best. No, we didn’t see any bears, (”bars” up here), but we really didn’t care. Believe me, the views would have been worth the fare, even without the whales.
Finally, we headed back to the ship with many wonderful memories to add to our memory banks.
So, now we’re back on the ship, full of good soup and a sandwich and a couple small slices of watermelon and enough iced tea to sink the Titanic.
Last night’s Captain’s Circle party was nice. Since it was June 6th, I reminded the Cruise Director about it being D-day, and she did a very nice salute to the WWII vets we have on board - yes, we have several - isn’t that wonderful?
The show was great - a humorist and piano player par excellent. Carol and I even got in a dance before the rocking of the ship made it difficult to accomplish.
Carol is sitting by my side in the sun, I think she could use a nap, so we’ll head down to the cabin. Since we ate so late (3 pm), I doubt we will do dinner in the dining room at 6).
Before I leave, I will tell you Nels and Herman had so many stories I’d love to publish sometime, and they said David could fill another book with his tales, so a fact finding trip to Alaska might be in the near future.
What a trip this is turning out to be.
Until next time, thanks for dropping by.
Via con Dias, my friends,
Karl & Carol

Good afternoon, friends and family,
We slept in until 9 this morning, then got up, showered, shaved and cleaned up for another glorious day at sea. The waves are rolling at approximately 10-12 feet, with white caps, but we are rocking gently too and fro, and a little side to side, but nothing for old salts like us.
We ate, then walked around the ship again - that doesn’t take long, as this is a tiny ship compared to many others we’ve been on. We spent a few minutes on the open deck in bright sunshine watching ice carving by one of the cooks - a swan - it was neat. Then we decided to don jackets and caps to walk several laps around the top deck - there was a light cool breeze blowing there, but the sun helped make it a nice stroll. We met another couple and walked many laps as we talked about the cruise and things in general.
The afternoon brought an art auction, as I won a very nice painting of an eskimo surrounded by his tools and the animals he hunts. For $20 shipping, it is a bargain.
Tea time found us eating - AGAIN - scones, pastry and small sandwiches. The red hat girls were right behind us, raising cain as usual.
Now, we are taking time to get you caught up on the day, as we have at least an hour and a half until we will be required to eat again - at the Princess Circle meeting at 5:30. It’s a formal night, so back into uniform.
After that, more to eat at dinner - probably lobster, as they haven’t had that yet. Then yet another wonderful show and off to bed.
I haven’t said much about the shows, but they have been wonderful. Last night we had Bernie Fields, often seen on CNN as a news analyst - to our surprise, he is a concert harmonica player - fantastic is all we can say.
The Princess Players, dancers, gals and guys, do a different show every third night - don’t know how they remember all those steps and songs.
So, we are off to the cabin to get ready to get ready. Hope all is well with everyone at home.
I see our Daughter-in-Law has responded, so will see what she said.
Thanks again for dropping by. Come back soon, until then,
Via con Dias, my friends,
Karl & Carol

Good afternoon, my friends and family,
Yes, we had an amazing day today, here in Kodiak, Alaska. We got into port about 8 a.m., with a beautiful blue sky overhead and a few light and white clouds hanging over the horizon. It was a fantastic way to begin the day, and it got even better as the time passed by.
We ate breakfast on the Lido deck and then caught a shuttle bus into town, where we found a Bazzar was going on, and one of the women there was “a wounded warrior” named Robin.
We were lucky enough to meet her and thank her for her service. As with Carol and me, she and her husband were both in the service, and their son just returned from the “sandbox”, thankfully unharmed.
We walked around town and met lots of nice people.
Those who know me well know that I believe everything that happens to you is supposed to happen. That’s the way the rest of the day went.
We stopped by a grocery store to use the restroom and met two friends from the boat,
Nancy and Tom Saga. They asked if we’d like to share a cab to Fort Abercrombe to see the WWII relics there. We said, “Sure”, and we took off.
We had a loooonnnngggg walk around the park, but it was beautiful, high over the bay with fantastic views. We walked the complete “flower trail”, which was ten times as long as it looked on the map - Carol had a heck of a time walking on some of those hills, but kept up like the trooper she is. We finally found civilization again after two hours and our cab was there to pick us up.
Earlier in the day, someone on the bus remarked that the “Cornelia Marie”, the ship you see captained by Phil Harris on “The Deadliest Catch” on Discovery channel, was in port.
Carol and I decided to go see if we could meet Phil and his crew, so we took a cab over to where the boat is docked, but no one was on board. We were disappointed, but would have kicked ourselves later if we hadn’t tried.
Then is when good things came about.
We were sitting there, waiting for our cab to return, when a man walked by and offered us a lift to town. He said the cabbie would understand, so we finally agreed.
It turns out this wonderful fellow is David Jenty, Captain of the “Alaskan Spirit”, anothe ship you may have seen on the same TV show.
We talked for the trip to town, and discoverd there is much more to Alaskan fishing than you see on TV. David told us someone should write a book about what is really going on up here - it’s too long to list here - and we stood and talked about that possibility for another half-hour in town.
If I am lucky enough, David may allow me to come up, go out on his boat Salmon fishing for a month, to write their story. He also says there are a number of boat owners who would love to tell their stories too. So, let’s hope this all comes true. Wouldn’t that be something?
Keep your fingers crossed. I’d love to do it.
We’re back on board now, taking it easy. Carol is worn out and we’re heading down to the cabin for a nap before dinner.
We managed to get our dining time changed to the early dinner tonight and for the remainder of the cruise. We can’t take eating at 10 p.m.
So, that’s the latest news. Let’s hear from some of you at home.
To all my other visitors, thanks for dropping by. Don’t be strangers. Six more days of cruising are ahead - what adventures will be next? Stay tuned.
Until then, Via con Dias, my friends,
Karl & Carol

Good afternoon my friends,
We just returned from a fast trip into the big city of Seward - about twice the size of Valdez, so you know it wasn’t huge, but it was nice. We met lots of friendly people and left behind my camera of many years, cruises and trips to foreign lands.
My son, Kris, will be happy to hear my camera finally died, as he has been after me to get one of those new fangled electronic things.
(My birthday is coming up, Kris…Hint).
I thought it might be the battery, so bought a new one…still nothing. Then the clerk suggested the roll of film might be stuck, so I rewound a nearly new roll and bought another. Still a bummer. Then we noticed the “zoom” lens was sticking out - a bad sign that it’s shot - and it was. I pitched the entire thing in a nearby trash can.
But, back to Seward. They have a beautiful sealife museum and quaint downtown area. Lots of bars, restaraunts and gift shops, a bakery or two and a book shop.
We awoke to dismal skies, sort of overcast, and several people said they heard there was a threat of rain, but it didn’t materialize, so we stayed dry. A little cool with a brisk wind at times, but nothing Nanook of the North and his trusty sidekick, Carol the wrapped up Eskimo couldn’t handle!
We’re back aboard, waiting for the computer room operator to show up and download my second lecture from a laptop I borrowed. Then I’ll deliver it so Carol can time it and see if we’re too long or short. Hopefully it is just right.
The hot soup and a small portion of spaghetti was great for lunch (I had a couple BBQd ribs to see if the compared to Mac’s BBQ in Rockport - they weren’t bad.
Not much else to report. We’ll take it easy and relax until it’s time to eat AGAIN!!
Thanks for dropping by. Haven’t heard from many of you in reply to these daily reports. Take the time to say a few words below. We’d appreciate it.
Hope all is well at home and wherever you are, my friends,
Via con Dias,
Karl & Carol

Good afternoon, my friends,
Yes, here we are in the new town of Valdez, not where the Exxon Vadez went aground, but where the terrible earthquake hit back in the 1960s. It wiped this entire town out, and they moved it four miles down the road to rockier ground and rebuilt it. It is the end of the Alaskan pipeline, another amazing feat of engineering. Now, they have discovered even a bigger oil field that contains 27 BILLION barrels of oil or more, but you’ve never heard of it down in the lower 48 yet.
We slept in, did some washing around 9 a.m, and then had breakfast and headed into town on a nice walk. Met some neat people and enjoyed the day. The weather continues to amaze everyone except us - they forget we brought the TEXAS sunshine and warmth with us. It is in the high 70s here, t-shirt time and a walk around the upper deck after soup and salad for lunch, along with a nice piece of roast pork.
Carol is managing to survive, with her parka, new hat that pulls down over her ears, new gloves, and socks pulled up high. I’d hate to have her here in winter - LOL She is a trooper though, and takes my ribbing with a smile.
We don’t leave here until 6 p.m., so we still have 3 and 1/2 hours to relax and enjoy the sun. No wind, clear blue sky and a smooth sea. We’ll sleep well again tonight.
But, for now, thanks again for droping by. I see a lot of friends are following our journey, according to the number of “hits” I’ve had on my website. The next time you’re here, you can check too, by clicking on that blue globe with a “Z” running through it at the bottom of my home page. It is “Extreme Tracking” and keeps track of how many people visit my site, and where they are from.
(I’m still waiting to hear from the movie producer in Hollywood about a film deal!)
Take care, come back soon.
Via con Dia, my friends,
Karl & Carol