Sail Away, Sail Away, Sail Away

Booking a 7-day cruise to Alaska the same morning the ship sets sail only poised a few problems for our first days on the high seas.  1.  We were unaware of the full itinerary & onboard activities  2.  We had zero luggage (only backpacks & reusable grocery bags)  3.  Formal nights were out of the question  4.  Babbitt's name was left off the manifesto & when he was finally found, his name was listed as Brian Ociepka.  In the end, boarding Holland America's Oosterdam last minute was an excellent decision & Babbitt has now decided that cruising is the only way to travel.

View of Seattle's city skyline from the Oosterdam before setting sail to Alaska
We decided sipping our stowaway vodka while exploring the ship was the perfect
way to learn the layout & we hopped to get rid of the evidence as soon as possible 

The Oosterdam Kitchen during the Behind The Scenes Kitchen Tour
Babbitt's No More Buffet vow quickly went out the window when we boarded the ship &
he had to see the ins & outs of a kitchen that served 2,000 people 24 hours a day

Katie pursuing the art at the Champagne Art Auction
We spent our first night drinking & eating...luckily our hangovers
were nothing a little champagne & overpriced art couldn't fix 

Scenic cruising through Tracy Arm, AK
Our enormous cruise ship took us through this tiny passage to see amazing fjords

Katie freezing during our scenic cruise
Since we weren't getting off the ship in Tracy Arm, we made sure to get a front row seat on deck, but we needed a lot of coffee with Kahlua & traditional Dutch Pea Soup served by the crew to keep warm

Floating ice & turquoise water
Seeing the ice up close gave Katie flashbacks of Leo & Kate in Titanic

Sawyer Glacier
Apparently Captain Van Der Loo was able to get very close to this glacier, because the ice had melted

The O'Babbitt's with Sawyer Glacier
We couldn't believe our eyes & decided the only way to top this beauty
would be to watch a cheesy cruise stage show & eat at the buffet