Yesterday was spent squashing 'everything' back into the suitcases, saying our farewells to many new friends we have met onboard this cruise, also having evening drinks with our closest buddies and then our last supper in our favourite dining room. As usual at the end of each sector, we cheer the waiters by waving our serviettes in the air as they parade with the traditional Baked Alaska desert… Another last was having a nightcap and listening to a great band "Indigo" in Explorers Lounge – they have been the best band ever!!
Well, all good things come to an end and another wonderful voyage hasn't disappointed us in any way. Away for 50 days, we visited 17 ports (10 new ports for us), spent 2 days cruising the Inside Passage of Alaska, travelled approximately 17,000 kms and taken thousands of photos!! A huge 'thank you' to Captain Foster and your wonderful staff/crew for making this cruise so memorable... xo
Fortunately Princess Cruises provided another wonderful service for those passengers flying straight home from LA Airport, which meant us as well. We were taken by coach, along with all of our luggage to Long Beach, for 3 hours on our own and then on to the airport, for the duration of the afternoon/evening.
It was only a short drive to Long Beach and we could hardly believe that the drop off point was at The Outlet Centre!!!! That's just not fair, as all our bags are packed and I for one, am not allowed to buy anything else to lug on board the plane. I did however, spend quite a bit of time browsing/drooling and after using up my last USdollars, was able to 'smuggle' some small items into my big handbag!!
Walking around the waterfront was beautiful with hundreds of amazing yachts, boats, shops, restaurants and it is now the home of the very elegant "Queen Mary", which has been transformed into a hotel permanently docked at Long Beach.
LA Airport was ridiculously crowded but we were able to find a table and chairs and enjoyed a late lunch, coffee and caught up with 'mail', etc. The most amazing sight came into view when some good old cruisy friends, from the past, appeared in front of us. Ray & Paula were returning from their holiday and had been staying in LA for a few days en route to New Zealand. It was brilliant to catch up with them and we probably chatted for a bit too long, as when we went to check in, the queue was enormous – but it was all worth the time we had with them, and we still had plenty of time to board our 10.30pm flight.
To our delight our Qantas plane was barely half full, so we were able to stretch out – 3 seats each – and actually slept for some of the flight – a miracle for me!! Losing a day, we arrived on Sunday, 9th July, at 6.30am and were met by our dear daughter, for our very chatty drive home.
How wonderful it was to be home again and hug all the family that very day……..
