Newest Members of the Cavanna Family!

This fall has been quite busy at our house!!! We are very happy to announce the newest members of the Cavanna Family. Please welcome ....

Luigi & Lily!

Our babies are half Dachshund and half Rat Terrier and were born on June 1st, 2008. We brought them home on September 14th -- 8 years to-the-day from when Rob & I started dating.

Luigi (green collar) is a crazy pup! He loves to go tearing around the house, but usually has problems stopping. His favorite pass-time is to chase his sister around and around the couches downstairs. He is a very sweet boy, but he's a bit of a weenie. He sometimes gets scared of his reflection in the sliding glass door and he likes to bark at bigger dogs ... and then run and hide behind you so that they can't get him.

Our Lily-bug (pink collar) is more dappled than her brother. She has one brown eye and one blue eye -- we call it her bionic eye. She is definitely more brave, but more mellow than her brother. She's mischevious and is most definitely a "daddy's girl."

The pups have taken over our hearts ... and our couches!

P.S.: Just for the record, the pups were not thrilled with their Halloween costumes, as you can see from the look on Lily's face. The only way we could get them to sit still for five minutes was to bribe them with their favorite treat!

We're back to Seattle for the rest of the trip. While I don't think I can ever get enough of the Alaskan scenery, it was nice to be back under a sun-lit sky after all of that rain. We ended up staying at the Westin for the next few days while taking in the sights.


Not really knowing what to do, Shelley and I bought the Seattle City Pass, an inexpensive way to see the city. Our first day out, we ended up checking out the Seattle Aquarium and the bay cruise. That's a picture of the Blue Angels practicing over the bay during our cruise.


After the bay cruise, Shelley and I finished the day at Pike Place Brewery. Great food and beer are what you can expect at this place. I recommend any of the burgers along with a pint or three of the Kilt Lifter.

Victoria, CA

This was our last stop before heading back to Seattle... Victoria, Canada on Vancouver Island. This was another short stop, only lasting from about 7:30 in the evening until about 11:00. Not much you can do with that little time. Shelley and I took a walk and admired the scenery and architecture, only stopping for a short break at Darcy's Pub near the water line. Back to the ship to head home...

Timberrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!

Ketchikan, Alaska. The home of the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show. Remember that nice sunny day we had in Sitka (read the last post)? It didn't follow us to Ketchikan. This is one of those places that reminds you that the jacket you bought at Old Navy 8 years ago is water "resistant" and not water proof.

Despite the rain, Ketchikan was a nice town. We only got to stay a short while... until 1:00 in the afternoon, but that was enough time to catch the lumberjack show, Canada and USA in a gut wrenching, heart pumping battle of chain saws, axes, and very slippery logs. As corny as it sounds, the show was a pretty entertaining mix of comedy and skill with sharp objects. That picture is one of the last images of that little boy before being sawed in half by team Canada... just kidding. The boy is fine.

Sitka - Is that the sun?

Apparently, Sitka, Alaska gets about 5 days of sunshine per year. Fortunately, we got one of them. Shelley and I signed up to do a hike in the rain forest and were told to expect a grueling and soaking day. Lo and behold, when we arrive on land, the clouds part and we're in for a beautiful day.

"Did you say rain forest in Alaska?" Yes. Alaska has a lot of trees and rain which equals rain forest. Apparently they also have really shy bears cause we never saw one despite all of the recent sightings of a mama and her cubs. Nevertheless, we got to see a lot of small wildlife include banana slugs and some other mean looking slugs that like to attack the banana slugs. I was going to eat one then I remembered I'm not starring on Man vs Wild so I passed.

This is Shelley and I in front of a large body of water with jumping salmon. You can't tell in this picture, but there's a lot of salmon getting ready to jump... trust me. We also found some really tiny crabs hiding under the rocks on the shore. Our guide said that to prove you are a real Alaskan, you have to eat one. Thankfully, since I'm neither Alaskan, nor do I star on Man vs Wild, I didn't have to eat one. I'm getting enough calories on the ship, thank you very much.

Glacier Bay

Glacier Bay is otherwise known as the highlight of the trip. You know that moment when you get your first 50" HDTV, you flip on Discovery Channel, and they are doing some nature show about how global warming is melting the glaciers? No I'm not going into a rant about global warming. It's just that seeing these glaciers up so close was one of the most awe-inspiring sights and I'll never forget it.

Keep in mind that the Amsterdam was one of the smaller boats we saw going through the inside passage in Alaska. Thanks to the size (or maybe the captain was intoxicated) we got to pull right up to Marjorie, one of the most awesome glaciers you'll ever see. Not 20 minutes after we pulled up to Marjorie, a huge section of the glacier (must have been about 8 stories high) started to crack and then it fell into the water. That got our attention.

To our right, the park ranger was standing with her jaw dropped as this massive wall of 200-year-old ice slid into the water. To the front, about halfway between the ship and the glacier, was a group of adventurers on kayaks, unexpectedly caught face to face with a pretty menacing wave. They did what they were taught to do and turned into the wave, avoiding a very cold dip in Glacier Bay. Thankfully no one was hurt.

At last... Juneau

After a grueling night out in the open ocean, we have finally arrived at Juneau. It's raining, but Shelley and I were prepared with our waterproof jackets. If you forget a jacket, you can buy water resistant jacket with a hood at the gift shop just outside of the ship for about $20.

Now let me do you a favor and help you get around Juneau for a bit less than the cruise will charge you. Let's say you want to visit the glacier? That will be $7 billion euros (I choose euros because the dollar is a bit of a pansy at the moment) plus the souls of 8 defenseless kittens if you opt to go with the cruise excursions. Orrrr.... when you get off the boat, you can take the bus for $14 round trip every 20-30 minutes.

Mendenhall glacier is the first glacier I have ever seen. It was like watching Expedition Alaska on Discovery, but somehow you figured out how to get the 1080p working on the new 74' (that's foot not inches) LCD television. It was a cold and rainy day, but we got some nice pictures of the glacier and had a nice time hiking around the park.

So after freezing and soaking yourself into a chilled raisin for about 2 hours, what better way to warm up than to have some beer. That's right. I'm talking about the Alaskan Brewery in Juneau. But let me stop and save you some money. The cruise will happily book an excursion to the brewery for $90+ per person... on a bike. Hmmm... something doesn't sound right here. Bike riding and beer tasting (in my case gulping) go together like rollerblading on a Nascar track mid-race with a blindfold. Not a good idea. How about taking the bus for $3 per person to the brewery. It's about a 1/2 mile from the bus stop and here's the best part... THE BEER TASTING IS FREE.

When you get to the brewery, the nice brew master (pictured above) will hand you a glass and start you on the light beer. It's all good beer but I am partial to the Alaskan Amber. Shelley and I almost got through the beer line twice. The tour isn't so much a tour as it is a story-telling session in the middle of the brewery. Every so often, if the brew master sees too many empty glasses, he stops the tour for some refills. But all good things must come to an end. Shelley and I took the bus back into town and ended up at the Red Dog saloon and met some new friends that happened to be on the same cruise, and surprisingly, close to our age. It's a nice little bar with some live music and plenty of Alaskan Amber.

More pictures of Juneau? Go to Picasa.