Musings of a Virgin

LOL!!! Have you ever watched the movie Dirty Dancing? If not, go rent it, then watch this spoof. I was laughing so hard.

Man Dirty Dancing came out in 1987, 10 years before I would start my professional career. I still remember going to watch the show about 4 times in 2 weeks at the old Lido theater by the MPH bookstore at Stamford Road.

The guy is Channing Tatum who will be in the GI Joe movie in a few months. The gal is played by Charlyne Yi who as far as I can tell is an unknown actress.

Posted by emyln at 5:12 PM | Permalink | Comments

Being alone again after having the folks for 2 weeks is... lonely. I do miss having them around. I can't believe it but I left home at 21, and since then have not spent this much time with them.

Even when I go home for 2-3 weeks, I don't get to spend all that much time with them. So it was great to see them for so long. And here's the final photo we took at the JFK airport before they left for Singapore.


Here's my first meal back home in Minneapolis. Home made chili and chips


Oh and I've been having a chronic cough, too much phlegm. Mom used to make this home brewed recipe to get rid of phlegm. Its 2-3 slices of ginger, 2 eggs, rock sugar and pour in boiling water to cook the egg.

I've always been prone to coughs and this always seemed to cure my phlegm problem. Thanks Mom!

Posted by emyln at 5:23 PM | Permalink | Comments

So I sent the folks to the airport on Friday and then rushed to catch the 8pm show of Billy Elliot. This year's Tony Award winner for best musical.


After the show I took this next photo of time square. Dad made a comment about how crowded it get's in Time Square even compared to Orchard road, but all we saw didn't compare to Time Square on a Friday night. The photo was taken at 11pm and it was literally shoulder to shoulder people.


And a picture of a stretch limo that dad wanted to get.


Here's the picture of Rockefeller center. Its a restaurant in the summer but in the winter they make this entire spot a skating rink.


Finally, a great photo of time square and the new M&M store. I visited the store on my last day there and that was a mistake because I came away with 3 new shirts, on the 2nd photo below. The orange is mine, green is mom's and red is dad's. A final souvenir of their NYC trip from me.

Posted by emyln at 5:04 PM | Permalink | Comments

Its Friday. This is the folk's last day in New York and they are flying out at 9:15pm.

Although not much happened it was a fun day. We went to central park, took a horse carriage ride which you HAVE to watch on the video. And walked down 5th Avenue.



A great shot of central park.


The horse carriage we rode on.


The folks on the carriage.


And again sitting on a bench in central park


Lots of squirrels in central park.

Posted by emyln at 4:51 PM | Permalink | Comments

We got out of the hotel a little late today, about 10+am. I had to do some work on the laptop. But then we hopped on the red bus and went to Century 21. An awesome place to clothes shop. I always buy underware and socks here, and perhaps a shirt or 2.


Then we had lunch at the harbor and even managed to catch a fun street show. Then at night, we all went to watch Jersey Boys, a broadway musical. I never thought that my dad would actually sit through the entire show but he did! And I think he even enjoyed it.

Posted by emyln at 4:38 PM | Permalink | Comments

Its Wednesday and our first full day in New York City. Its so easy to forget just how crowded this city can get, its very unique and all the people and the huge billboards and its simply perfect for people watching.

This is also the first time that I have ever tried going on the red double decker buses. Its actually a very good way to see the entire city and it goes to all the major tourist spots.


The next 2 videos are mostly just snatches of the bus sight seeing. So feel free to skip if it get's boring.





We mainly saw some sights from the bus and then spent the day at the Metropolitian Museum. This place is huge and its always fun to spend a few hours, besides I never knew that my dad was interested in seeing art.

PS. All video footage was taken illegally. Seems you can take all the photos you want (without flash), but no videos. Which is yet another reason the Vado which looks like a phone is so awesome.





After the Museum, we took a cab to Chinatown and had an early dinner. There's a nice short video of a lady making wantons. We also decide to turn in early.

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Here are some choice photos from the museum and the 2nd last one is mom posing in the re-created chinese scholar garden in the museum itself.

Posted by emyln at 4:26 PM | Permalink | Comments

OK I know the title of the post is misleading since we're not in Alaska anymore but hey it follows the entire theme. Anyway today we fly to the Big Apple.


There simply nothing quite like New York. And best of all, the hotel we're staying in is right the the heart of Time Square. You simply can't beat the location. My only advice is to fly into LaGuardia Airport instead of JFK airport if you can manage it.

Posted by emyln at 5:26 AM | Permalink | Comments

Victoria was a fun place to visit for a very short while. But the videos do it more justice. Trying to take a picture of a whale that only surfaces a second in random spots is a futile effort without a very expensive camera.

Posted by emyln at 12:36 AM | Permalink | Comments

Ketchikan is a wonderful place to visit (but not stay - they don't have cable internet). If you like the outdoors its definitely a great place to visit.

We saw lots of Bald Eagles, some totems and a lighthouse, just like the tour promised.

Posted by emyln at 12:32 AM | Permalink | Comments

While the Videos of Glacier Bay were ok, I think its best suited for photos. Here are some of the better shots I got.











Sunset is about 9+pm, and as you can see, gorgeous.

Posted by emyln at 12:29 AM | Permalink | Comments

You have to watch the videos of the Davidson Glacier in Skagway. There are about 3000 glaciers and only about 600 are named.

Posted by emyln at 12:27 AM | Permalink | Comments

Watch the video post on Juneau and match them with these pictures.

The first 3 pictures were all taken in front of the Glacier. The final picture of the seals was from the catamaran.

Posted by emyln at 12:21 AM | Permalink | Comments

The first day back in Minneapolis and we are taking it easy and getting last minute shopping done. Tomorrow, we fly to New York City (The Bog Apple) till the folks fly out on Friday night.

Sadly, I think the internet connection at the hotel will be slow so, I can't guarantee anymore videos till I get back in town on Saturday.

Posted by emyln at 11:45 PM | Permalink | Comments

This is the last day on board the ship. We are getting off in the morning and returning back to my home in Minneapolis.

Not too much to tell so there's only one video.

Posted by emyln at 10:44 PM | Permalink | Comments

Day 7 on the ship, its also 4th of July and we are in Canada. Our final stop of the cruise is in Victoria, British Columbia. A town of about 300,000 people.

We spent most of the day on board the ship, arriving in Victoria only about 6pm. We went for our final excursion to see Killer whales, also known as Orca. The tour guarantees Orca sighting or it will refund $100 of the fee. And yes we did see Killer Whales. Watch the 2nd video, about 1 min into the video is some great footage.



Victoria is a very lovely town, especially at night.

Posted by emyln at 10:38 PM | Permalink | Comments

Day 6 on the ship and we are at our 3rd port of call. The very picturesque town of Ketchikan. Here we are signed up for a tour to see Bald eagles, totems and a lighthouse.



You'll notice the amazing view of the sea and the surrounding. It was a beautiful day. Ketchikan usually has about 15 feet of rain a year so its almost always raining year round or snowing. Today was one of the rare days of sunshine. In fact this was the 4th day in a row with no rain and they are close to calling it a drought. Seriously.


This video is a must watch if you like dogs. Especially a not so bright one swimming in very cold waters.


The final video shows the town of Ketchikan and the rest of day 6 on the ship.

Posted by emyln at 10:29 PM | Permalink | Comments

Almost all the video today is of the scenery as we pass by on ship. No ports of call, but the ship is going through the Bay of Glaciers and it is very scenic.

As you go through the video you'll notice some scenes are clearer than others. Sunlight factors a lot into the VadoHD. The more natural lighting you have the clearer the picture will be.


Most of the rest of the videos are our food schedule and some more scenic views along the day.




And a little late night stroll before getting ready for bed. I actually did 6+ laps which is a little over a mile.
(They showed that 5 1/2 laps on deck13 = 1 mile)

Posted by emyln at 4:44 PM | Permalink | Comments

Our 2nd Port of call is Skagway. Its a small town of only 700 in the winter but swells to about 2k in the summer because of the tourism.

Bewarned that day 8 has got a ton of video!!!

We arrived about 7am and we're off on our Safari to see a glacier!

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You can fast forward the next 3 videos. Benji, our guide is one of the BEST guides I've ever had. He's very informative and can field any question you ask. Initially I thought he might be a grad student just because of the explainations and terms he was throwing about. But as we went on he and the other 11 guides are just people who are very interested and passionate about the subject.

The next 3 videos was just on the bus from the beach shore to the site where we would start our safari adventure.

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And here the real fun starts. Wearing boots, raingear and lifevest, short hike, getting in a canoe and see the glacier up close!





The final video with Benji I promise. Lunch and the trip back to shore and Skagway. And finally dinner at the fancy french restaurant.

Posted by emyln at 3:02 PM | Permalink | Comments