This is one of the best vacation our family ever had. I began to ponder the reasons behind this. Here are some reasons I derived:
Money
After paying the initial upfront cost and later the daily tips, most activites and food on board the cruise ship are free. We don't have to worry about accommodation, meals and entertainments as it is all taken care of. This setting relived us of one very important psychology factor so that we can really relax our mind and focuses on enjoying what Norwegian Jewel has to offer.
Travelling Time
On this vacation, after boarding the Norwegian Jewel, we spend very little time on travelling. There is virtually no travelling time when we are on board the ship. While we are enjoying ourselves or sleeping, Norwegian Jewel is taking us toward our destination. When on land, we spend a total of 3hrs travelling since more places are closed by. To put into perspective, the 3 hrs represents just 3.5% of our total vacation time! This means we have more time to relax and enjoy ourselves!
The Crew
Norwegian Jewel's crews are always demostrating positive attitude and showing lots of initiative. This creates a very positive vacation environment for us. What is even more amazing is that they seems be working 7 days a week - after we disembark at 9am and a new group will embark at noon. I would certainly want to find their source energy and their ability to continously project these positive energy.
The Activities
The activities on board Norwegian Jewel is very comprehensive. I am surprise they have some many family activities. Before this cruise, I thought only senior people go on cruise. In addition, the main activity on board the ship is to eat. After this cruise, I know these are outdated impression. We enjoyed some many fun family activities on board and seldom think about food!
A sign board that outlined the disembarkment schedule
Disembarkment Information Page 1
Disembarkment Information Page 2
Disembarkment Information Page 3
Disembarkment Information Page 4
The Night Before
Here are the things we did the night before to ensure a smooth disembarkment
1. Filled in the hero card
I saw many crew wearing a "Hero" pin. I guessed someone filled in the "Vacation Hero" card for them. I am doing my part here for these well-deserved thanks!
2. Fill in the Custom Form
The custom is delivered to our bedroom the night before. Fill up the form early and keep it together with your passport.
3. Pack your stuff
We packed all our belongings the night before so that the next morning, we can just have our breakfast and roll off the ship leisurely. We rolled our luggage off Norwegian Jewel ourselves. The luggage has to be outside your stateroom by mid-night if I need the crew member to off load it for me.
4. Check your account
Although I knew that our account will be delivered to me early on the disembarkment morning, I still went to the front desk to request a copy the night before to correct any possible error. I did not find any error this time.
We had dinner at Azure. Great meal! We also used this chance to thanks the waiters and waitresses for their excellent service they provided us during our stay.
Pajama Party
The pajama party is organised by the Splashdown Kid's Club. The kids had a good pillow fight session!
From the second day of our cruise, my youngest had been referring Splashdown Kid's Club as her "school". This most likely meant that she had been doing the similair work in Splashdown Kid's Club as she did in her preschool. When asked to choose, without even thinking, she choose Splashdown Kid's Club. The crews working in Splashdown Kid's Club is just awesome!
Art work from the 2-5 kids club
Art work from the 2-5 kids club
ShowTime
From Freestyle Daily:
We're bring back some of our incrdibly talented entertainers. Enjoy an electrifying opening with the Norwegian Jewel Production Cast, the hilarious comedy of David Naster, and comedy magic of Jean Pierre with all new material. It is a family show. Don't miss the breathtaking finale known as "Fountains". Photograpghy and video recording of "Fountains" is encoraged. The Metroplittan Boys Choir of Minneapolis / Saint Paul will honor the troops, veterans, and those in service before the 9:30pm show.
Packing Time
We spend the later part of the evening packing our stuff. Our kids would really love to stay longer....
Up until this point, getting off Norwegian Jewel is very fast. For this port, not sure what was the problem, the queue was very long and slow. Once we were off the ship, we could walk pass the custom. No security check at all!
Tip: We carried our passports as a precaution but what we really need is just the cardkey.
Tip: We did not have any Canadian currency but it is not a problem since in Victoria, they seems to accept US currency as well.
The plan was to visit downtown Victoria downtown and the Minature World. We wanted to be back by 6pm for dinner and the ShowTime.
Getting There
Norwegian Jewel docked at Ogden Point's Cruise Ship Terminal which was quite a distance from Victoria downtown so we had to take the Cruise Victoria Downtown shuttle. Another alternative is a 30 minutes walk. A roundtrip ticket is $8 USD or CND per person. Our 2 youngers kids were free. The bus dropped us off at the government and Humboltt streets where we started our downtown exploration.
Tips: I was told a taxi to downtown for 4 people is $8 total each way. Therefore, that may be a better option in some scenarios.
Downtown
Empress Building
A clown!
Minature World
We specifically wanted to visit the Minature World since our kids had some experience building the shoe box model. We spend about 2 hours appreciating the great work!
Date: Jun 15 2012
Sunrise: 5:20am
Sunset: 9:25pm
Today's Forecast: Mostly Cloudy, 65F/18C
Arrival: 2:30am
All Aboard: 9:00pm
Enjoying the Sunrise
Early in the morning, I went for a leisure walk around the cruise ship. As always, I was rewarded handsomely for this decision. I saw a "gold" nugget created by the sun ray, a first in my life. There was a photographer there taking picture as well. I bet he captured some amazing pictures.
The "gold" nugget
Not sure what is the blinking light on the water
Breakfast with Nickelodeon
We weren't planning to attend the "Breakfast with Nickeloden" at Azure. We were having breakfast as usual at Tsar's Palace Main Dining Room when Officer Oscar came along to invite us over through a special passage - the kitchen. This is one big kitchen that serve both Tsar and Azure. I am amazed by the number of chefs in the kitchen preparing our food. This explained why our food is always decorated.
Three of us went. The cost is $10 for 1 kid and $15 for 1 adult. This is worth the price since the kids really enjoy it. You can see it in their eyes.
This is also the 2nd expense we charged to the card key. My kids, at this time, is already very familiar with a few of the warm-hearted crews from the Kids Room. The breakfast offered is also different.
The menu
After the performance, the characters visit each table to take a picture with the family. The cruise ship photographer first take a picture and you can take a picture after that. They are kind of a rush, so it is mostly 1 picture per family with 1 character.
Each Kids Club crew members use an alias which is interesting, I guess to make the whole place more interesting.
Meet Abracadabra
Meet Turtle
Seminar: Art of Thomas Kinkade
This is another great art learning opportunity put up by the staff of Norwegian Jewel's Art Gallery (Park West). It is disheartening to learn that Thomas Kinkade recently passed away. This is his official site. An interesting fact, Thomas Kindade likes to hide objects and letters in his painting. Happy searching!
Came across this article - "9 Completely Worthless Collectibles". It references Thomas Kinkade art pieces. Good read for some background knowledge.
David Naster Documentary
This is a documentary show of how people who are in very bad situation survived by using humor. A great showcase to the healing power of humor!
Family Circus Show
This is what the kids have been practising so hard for in the last few days in the Kids Room. To participate in the show at noon, a kid has to be in the Kids Room by 10am. The 2 hours is needed for both rehearsal and put on their face painting.
Clown face painting for 6 and older.
2-5 years old are all tigers
The Circus performers
Note: If you have a kids performing in this show, drop me a mail, I can send you the whole show. It is not HD.
Observation:The plates they used onboard Norwegian Jewel are heavy. The restaurant crews were able to carry six to seven of these plates in one go, with one arm. Wow!
Observation:The restaurant crews were all very presentable. There is no sloppiness in them at all. Did they go through an inspection before starting work?
Seminar: Rembrandt's Life
This seminar organised by the staff from the art gallery (Park West) is about one of the greatest painter of all time -Rembrandt. I learnt how talented Rembrandt was and the suffering he went through later in his life. My tears nearly dropped when I heard how his life ended. Lastly, the staff described his art's style and works.
Art Auction
I attended the art auction again. I have to admit that this was another great learning opporunity.
Love the Poolside BBQ. We had BBQ chicken and noodle. There was also a wonderfully cake for us too. Yummy!
Yummy cake
Norwegian Jewel Crew Show
The girls attended the Norwegian Jewel Crew Show. The feedback I got from them were excellent. I did not know that the Norwegian Jewel's crews are so talented.
Ok, I caught the very part of the show where the performaner was demonstating his skill of pouring from a stack of cups, each previously filled with different colors, into different cups on the table. That blew me off. That guy must be working in the bar.
Family Pizza Making Time
The girls were given a small empty pizza each. Then proceed to decorate their own mini pizza with pineapple, ham, tomato source. After all these, they ate the pizza on the spot! They obviously enjoyed themselves.
You just have to laugh with David
This was a talk by David Naster. The talk was about how a person can use humor as a tool to handle difficult situation. He had us laughted for 20 seconds.
What a view!
We had clear blue sky with some cloud cover in the afternoon. The water was so blue. Are we in the fairy land?
Chocoholic Buffet
The chocoholic buffet is one of the signature event on Norwegian Jewel. The event ran from 7pm to 10pm at Garden Cafe. There were a wide variety of chocolate desserts and lots of decoration. It looked really tempting when they are setting up the buffet. We decided to attend the 7:30pm show first. When came back to feast on it, I did not find it appealing any more. Maybe it was getting too late for me.
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Chocolate Sushi?
Tip: We managed to grab some food at the Great Outdoor at 6pm before heading for the show.
ShowTime
From Freestyle Daily:
The Norwegian Jewel Production Cast brings to life this artistic and awe inspiring spectacle. Journey into a world where dreams nring to life a land of colorful jewels while death defying acts soar high above your head.
Tip: You really want to sit further back to really appreciate this amazing how.
Stage layout for the main performance
From Freestyle Daily:
Immediately following the show, enjoy a special tribute by the Officers, Staff and Crew of the Norwegian Jewel.
There is a ping pong table at deck 12. There is always people (mostly kids) playing ping pong here - day and night. I had a good game of ping pong with my fellow cruise mates. Love it!
Dinner
We had dinner at Azura with the company of our cruise mates. This is the best moment of our trip!
Tip: Every night, Azura offers a different special entree. Tonight we had Spaghetti Salmon. Yummy!
ShowTime
From FreeStyle Daily:
Norwegian Cruise Line is proud to present the hilarious comedy and magic of Jean Pierre Parent. This amazing show is not to be missed. It is a family show, all ages welcomed.
The performance is amazing! I like the show so much that I went back to watch again at 9:30pm.
Sleepy Time
From our stateroom, while enjoying the ocean view, we saw a number of what looks like doplins swimming passed us over a period of half an hour. This was the first time on this trip that we saw sea animals.
Looks like we have a big companies tonight
We Time
After putting the kids to bed, my wife and I attended the "Beatles Tributes with Next Stage". We loved the performance! Later, we visited the "Blue Lagoon" (Always Open) restaurant for some late night supper before calling off the night.
Date: Jun 13 2012
Sunrise: 3:49am
Sunset: 10:14pm
Today's Forecast: Showers, 50F/10C
Arrival: 7:00am
All Aboard: 4:30pm
The Plan
Today is the third day in a row that the kids need to wake up early. One of our kids was not at her 100%. We were lucky that one of our cruise mates was a pediatrician before becoming a surgeon. She gave good advise and our kid felt much better. We decided to take it easy today and just hang around the Skagway downtown.
Tip: If you plan to visit the White Pass and beyond, passport is needed.
The Deal
The plan changed a little after our fellow cruise mates found a great bargain at the Days of 98 show site for the Charlie’s Days of 98’ Show and White Pass Tour! Instead of paying $60 dollars, we only payed $45 each. Again, our 2 younger kids were free!
At this time, all of our kids were at their 100% again. Must have been the fresh air!
Tip: When making the payment, you need to check their math. They over-charged me $10 and I did not realized the math mistake until I am back on Norwegian Jewel.
Tip: To do this tour, you need to have your passport as you will be leaving US.
Days of 98 Show
The show is about Soapy Smith - "Alaska most nortorious outlaw and con man". From how he tricked people into buying his soap to his final hours before he was killed at the Wharf. It has quite a bit of comedy component with some audience partipation. I especially like the part where the lady open the back door (which open to the street) to announce the opening of the show. Overall, The Days of 98 Show is very entertaining. Most important of all, it gave us some background knowledge for our bus tour later.
Tip: Arrive early, before the tour group, to get the best seat. Most important of you, you get to explore the stage and play the piano.
Tip: While waiting for the show, remember to buy some food that you can eat on the bus.
98 Show Program
While waiting, our fellow cruise mate Ricky did a performance for us.
The team!
The cast
White Pass Summit Tour
When the show ends, the tour bus was already waiting for us outside the theatre. All we have to do is to hop onto the bus. It's very convenient and efficient.
Tip: Before you start the tour, make sure you use the bathroom first. The next decent bathroom is 1.5 hr away. There is a honey bucket at the top of the White Pass but I am not sure you really want to use it.
Tip: Make sure you have your warm clothings and gear. Otherwise, you will most likely stuck in the bus.
The bus drove through the Skagway neighborhood. Throughout the journey, the driver shared different stories and pointed out historic landmarks. We travelled on the Klondike highway which runs parallels to the train track. The bus climbed 3000 feet in just ~15 miles. The driver stopped at a couple of locations for us to take pictures. On the way back, we saw a bear cub by the road side. Our first sighting of bears in this trip!
Our very knowledgable driver (most left)
At the summit before we turned back
There is still snow on the ground
The pipeline
Gold Rush Cemetery
The stop at Gold Rush Cemetry complimented the Days of 98 show as it took us to the final resting ground of Soapy Smith and Frank Reid. Out of respect for the dead, we did not take any photo of the cemetary. Instead, I am sharing a picture of the Lower Reid Falls. It is just a short hike from the cemetary.
Lower Reid Falls
View from the cemetery
Not a good place to park your car
The Scenic Overlook
Norwegian Jewel with its sister ship Norwegian Pearl
Downtown
After the tour, we spend sometime to explore the town. There are many restored historic building. I recommend visiting the tourist information center inside AB building. They gave out soft toys to any kids who can answer 3 questions correctly.
The A B Building - "the most photographed building in Alaska"
