20090805 – Haines, Alaska

We got a decent night’s sleep. Our room is finally at a temperature that we can withstand. It’s too bad that each cannot be control independently.

We went to the breakfast buffet again. This seems to be the best option if we get there early. The buffet also gives more choices than the sit-down breakfast. We planned to meet the Bensons at 10:00 and it was about 8:30 when we were done eating, etc. So Ann decided to do a load of washing while I did a quick scouting of Haines. Our pier is fairly close to the town, so I was able to do a loop in less than an hour. I went past the library thinking that it had free wireless internet. I was wrong. Most things cost money here. So I decided to delay publishing this blog for another day.

I met Ann and the Bensons back at the ship. We left for our own walking of the town. We stopped at the cultural center/museum to get a feel for local history. Then we wandered around the downtown area bypassing the hammer museum (yes, it was a museum for hammers) and visiting the local supermarket. Then we went into the visitors’ center to ask about free wifi and not-free brew pub. There is no free internet and the brew pup was too far away. So we walked back to the ship and ate at the lunch buffet.

After lunch, Ann, Ellen and I visited old Fort Seward. Most of the buildings were still standing a in pretty good shape. They are now owned by private companies and individuals. Some are shops, some are condos and some are hotels and restaurants. Many of them have been restored. After this visit, we returned to the ship.

We actually relaxed for awhile. I thought that this was what we were supposed to do on a cruise, but there is so much to see that you can’t miss anything. When dinner time came around at 6:00, the Bensons knocked on our door and came in and chatted for awhile. We then went to the dining room where Alaska specialties were featured. We mixed and matched and had excellent food again.

After dinner, Ann, Ellen and I listened to a string quartet for awhile. Then we came back to our staterooms.