Vacation

Another train journey today, also very scenic, taking us from Anchorage to Whittier where the Holland America cruise ship Nieuw Amsterdam is waiting for us … at one point the train goes through a long dark tunnel, and once we exit we get our first view of the ship!

On the ship we were guided to our “most premium” Pinnacle Suite (one of two on the ship), our home for the next seven days; the Willem Barentz suite has a sitting area, dining area, bedroom, bathroom with jacuzzi tub and big multi-head shower, and a huge balcony with another jacuzzi tub …

In the evening the Nieuw Amsterdam left Whittier and we started our cruise journey – with great views!

The day began very cold, at freezing, but took us on a long and beautiful journey by train to Anchorage on the McKinley Explorer:

Coach transfer from Fairbanks to Denali Lodge near Denali National Park was some 3+ hours with views somewhat ruined by the damp windows – another disappointment was that the planned Denali Natural History Tour was completely cancelled due to excessive snow within the park, so we were left with an empty afternoon but a nice upgraded-by-us room to enjoy it in!

Evening dinner was a struggle, the lodge dining had long lines as did most other across-the-road alternatives, but we found one place offering crepes.