One day during a 10-day hot spell in July, Barbara mentioned she would like to be somewhere cooler. I somewhat jokingly said, "How about Alaska?" She quickly responded, "When?" I answered, "How about the end of August?" In no time at all, she was on the internet checking what was available. I also asked, "Do you think Katie would like to go with us?" A phone call quickly settled that question!

As a result we drove to Kent, WA for a couple days at Katie's before driving on to Vancouver, BC where we boarded Holland America's ms Zuiderdam on the 2nd of September.