Before dinner last evening, we enjoyed a pre-dinner drink at the Avenue Saloon. We had dinner at the Prego Italian Specialty Restaurant. This was our first dinner at Prego during this cruise. For us, dining at Prego is similar to dining at a small restaurant in Italy. We enjoy the charm, service, cuisine and ambience of the restaurant. Having sailed with Crystal Cruises and on Crystal Serenity for several years, we enjoy the familiarity of the outstanding wait staff team including Specialty Restaurant Maitre d', Antonio, Head Waiter Mario and the many waiters and the two sommelier's that make dining so very special. Our waiter for the evening was Costa who has taken outstanding care of us for many years. We saw him earlier in the day and he mentioned some of the items that he knows we enjoy from the special salad that Keith has to even the dressing that he prefers. To us, this is amazing. We also were taken excellent care of by sommelier Jiri who we also have had the privilege of knowing for many years. Jiri knows the types of wines that we enjoy. He already selected a wine that he knows Keith enjoys with the only change being it is a more recent vintage. We had a nice table by the window and enjoyed the beauty of the Alaskan Coastline as we sailed towards our next port-of-call in Hoonah. We began our meal with salads; caesar salad for Anne Marie and a simple salad for Keith of lettuce, fresh mushrooms and tomatoes. Anne Marie had for her entree Veal Scaloppine. Keith usually has either a seafood specialty (menu addition) if it is on the menu or the sea bass that is a regular on the menu. It has been well over ten years since he ordered an entree at Prego that was not seafood. Well, there is always a first and last night Keith had the Roasted Rack of Baby Lamb. We thought both entrees were absolutely delicious as was a side order of grilled vegetables that Keith had. Anne Marie thought that her entree was better than ever and Keith felt the same way about the grilled vegetables and we learned that there is a new chef in Prego who previously was a chef in the Crystal Dining Room. She is clearly great at what she does. We didn't have it but the additional item featured last night was pigeon. Yes there is a more formal name for this. This was a first for Prego. We heard the presentation was amazing and Costa said that it is quite good. We slept very well last evening. There were strong winds but Serenity sailed calmly on our way to Hoonah, Alaska. We began our morning as we normally do. Keith was up early enjoyed his workout at the Fitness Center. He tired the other style elliptical machine and with the stiffness he has had with his neck and the muscle issues he found that worked much better for him. He made a quick detour to the Lido Cafe for some coffee before returning the the room. He spoke with each of the Lido Deck Stewards including Jun, Martin, and Max. Once back to the room we both enjoyed coffee from the relatively new coffee maker in the room. There are several choices of coffee. Jijo brought some additional variety of coffee pods for us to try. We enjoyed breakfast in our room while catching up with the news of the day. For those wondering about the coverage of the Olympics on board the ship, there is a television station that features full coverage of the Olympics. Afterwards, Anne Marie took an hour walk on the promenade deck. We arrived to Hoonah close to the scheduled arrival time of 10:00 AM. Crystal made its maiden port of call stop to Hoonah earlier this summer. This is our first visit. Hoonah is relatively small with a population 750 people. Hoonah is located in Alaska's panhandle 30 miles west of Juneau. It is known for its screwy and wildlife. It holds many records from a record number of humpback whales (161) which were identified in 2007 to holding the world record for a 440 pound halibut which was caught nearby. We originally booked a whale watching shore excursion. We decided to cancel it a couple of days ago. Keith has been experiencing some soreness of the neck and muscle spasms from his shoulders down his back and we just thought it best to avoid the movement of the boat and the potential for cold on the water. Instead we walked around the area right near the terminal as this offered many more things to see and do than the downtown area. The actual town is only about a block long. We enjoyed nice views and saw two eagles as we made our way over to the museum and the shops and restaurants. The weather was a little windy and it was drizzling most of the time. The museums focus was mainly on salmon including the different types of salmon, how they are caught and how they are processed at the cannery. We walked through many of the shops. A few were your typical shops selling tourist items. Others carried hand made items. We stopped off at a shop where the owner made her own items and we ended up speaking with her for quite awhile and asked her lots of questions about life at Hoonah. She has lived in Alaska for many years and has moved around a few times. She prefers small towns such as Hoonah and called them authentic towns. Hoonah will receive 78 cruise ships this year which is quite a lot less than the larger cities. This is the only form of tourism. When the season is over there are no tourist and this town does not have any hotels. Unlike the larger cities where some of the workers stay for a few months and then work in the Caribbean or in places such as California, all of the people who work at the local shops live in Hoonah all year round. Many fish and/or work at the Cannery. This is the major economic driver in addition to tourism. The woman was so kind that we purchased a couple of items from her. This include a trivet which could also become a basket and a coaster. We wanted to mention that the vest Keith is wearing we purchased on our very first Crystal Cruise which was in 2002 on the Crystal Harmony when we sailed Alaska roundtrip to/from San Francisco. The third photo is Anne Marie with friend Barbara. We enjoyed lunch at the Lido Cafe. We made our usual salad entrees.
We each exercised this afternoon. Anne Marie walked for an hour and Keith worked out on the Elliptical Machine Later in the day we each met up with friends. This evening we have dinner in the Crystal Dining Room with two people joining us. We have two receptions to attend; one before and the other before dinner. We are posting now and will post tomorrow about dinner and the receptions. Keith & Anne Marie Comments are closed.
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