FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM JULY 12, 2018 • BUZZ • THE QUEENS COURIER 69
Last stop on the Alaska cruise:
Victoria on Vancouver Island
VICTORIA’S
SECRETS
Victoria
SCHNEPS-
YUNIS
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Being on a cruise creates a
cocoon of comfort. It’s a
small city on the sea. I love
seeing multiple cities and towns
in a week while living in the lap
of luxury.
My travel companion, Claire
Shulman, and I had a state room
on the Ruby Princess with a sitting
area, a bedroom and, best
of all, a large terrace to relax and
even dine on. My biggest luxury
was having a room service
breakfast there every day.
The ship holding more than
3,000 people offers over a dozen
restaurants and several entertainment
venues, ranging from
large to more intimate, and every
evening there is an offering from
dancing to musicals, to comedy
and magic shows. There’s also a
spa and pools. During the day,
there were also excursions as we
docked on the Alaskan coast.
On the ship, there are stores
selling everything from souvenirs
The 3,500 bulb-lit Legislative Building in Victoria reminded me of buildings copied in Walt Disney World. This, however, is the real thing.
to perfumes and fine jewelry.
There were also daily art
auctions. There is even a photo
gallery where Lawrence, one
of their staff, sat with me and
patiently showed me how to use
my new photo equipment. I’m
afraid it will take more than one
lesson but I have begun thanks
to his patience and a photo class
the ship offered.
A bonus of cruise travel are
the hundreds of kind professional
staff. Since Claire had
some mobility issues, she used
a wheelchair to get around what
seemed like a mile long walk
to get from one end of the ship
to the other. I was impressed
how totally wheelchair accessible
it is.
Having traversed the inner
passage from Seattle to Juneau,
to Skagway to Glacier Bay, and
to Ketchikan, our last stop was
my namesake city: Victoria on
Vancouver Island.
We had signed on for excursions
to go whale watching and
even a seaplane ride to see glaciers,
but it wound up being
cancelled by the ship. These are
the unpredictables of travel. I
promised Claire I’d get a video
of the whale watching tour we
missed!
Instead we did a city tour of
Victoria, located on Vancouver
Island. Our ship docked at 7
p.m. and we were off by 7:30
p.m.
In the dark of night, we
marveled at the stunning,
3,500 light bulb lit Legislative
Building designed by the
brilliant architect, Francis
Rattenbury, in 1893 in honor
of Queen Victoria’s Diamond
Jubilee. It was worth the trip to
see it in all its glory.
What a surprise! That’s what
travel is all about - turning a corner
and finding something unexpected
and glorious. We may not
have seen the killer whales or the
icebergs up close but the trip was
filled with eye popping sites and
experiences.
I’m so grateful to have accompanied
my dear friend Claire
on the seven-day inside passage
cruise through Alaska.
Snow-covered mountains seen from our state room.
DYNAMIC DENTAL WORK
���������������� Dr. Adam Lublin is an Elite Top 1% Preferred Provider
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