From JuJu with Love

We had dreamed of seeing Hubbard Glacier under blue skies, with the thunderous crack of calving ice echoing across the bay. Mother Nature had other plans.

Rain. Fog. Wind. Ponchos. Lots and lots of ponchos.

The glacier played hide-and-seek behind the clouds, revealing just enough of herself to remind us she was there. We never got the dramatic calving we’d hoped for, but somehow the experience still felt magical. Giant chunks of blue ice floated silently past the ship while a faint rainbow stretched across the mist, as if Alaska was reminding us that beauty doesn’t always arrive the way we expect.

Sometimes travel isn’t about perfect weather. It’s about standing on a freezing deck, laughing with friends, getting soaked together, and realizing you’ll remember the moment long after you’ve forgotten the forecast.

After viewing the glacier and before breakfast, we got to do something that few passengers ever experience—a backstage tour of the Celebrity Theatre. We stood on the stage looking out at nearly 1,000 empty seats (which somehow felt even more impressive than seeing it full), wandered through the dressing rooms and backstage hallways, and learned how the performers bring a different production to life almost every night.

Five members of the cast walked us through everything from quick costume changes to rehearsals and life as entertainers living aboard a cruise ship for months at a time. It gave us a whole new appreciation for the shows we’d been enjoying all week. The theater may look glamorous from the audience, but backstage it’s all organized chaos, tiny dressing rooms, racks of costumes, and a lot of hard work.

It was one of those unexpected experiences that made the cruise even more memorable.

After a short Best Day Adventures meeting, we went back to the buffet for our last lunch onboard the ship.

As if the day wasn’t already fun enough, we discovered the chocolate fountain. And not just a little fountain—a full-blown chocolate buffet with marshmallows, cake cubes, fruit, brownies…basically a dentist’s worst nightmare. Naturally, we had to sample it. Research purposes, of course.

Judy deserves an award for enabling. She marched back to the table with a bowl of melted chocolate and a mountain of cake cubes and marshmallows… then Judy, Helene, Mitchell, Michele, and I absolutely demolished it. We have no regrets.

The chocolate fountain was definitely a success… unlike my brief visit to the casino, where I made a small donation to Celebrity Cruises before calling it a night.

Our last sea day turned out to be packed with surprises—from a backstage theater tour to a chocolate fountain (thanks to Judy, our official dessert enabler!), to a brief and unsuccessful attempt to beat the slot machines.

Tonight we’ll gather for our farewell dinner, which feels a little bittersweet. Half of our group will head home tomorrow, while the rest of us continue on to the next chapter of this adventure—Denali National Park.

We may be saying goodbye to some wonderful travel companions, but our Alaska adventure isn’t over yet. Tomorrow we trade the ship for the mountains… and I can’t wait to see what awaits us there. 🏔️💙

From Juju with love 💙