Well hey everyone!!
I’m back for another post in our series chronicling our trip to Alaska!! Whoop Whoop.
And you know what day it is?
#2!!
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Oh you.
But yeah, this one gets us one day closer to getting on the ship. Yeah, we aren’t quite on there yet. But soon. Like seriously. Next post.
I know – these just take forever, right?
But Day 2 is a good one. We make it into Vancouver (by TRAIN, like hobos), see some sights, have an awesome dinner, and most importantly, everyone going on the cruise is here by the end of the night.
It’s all coming together.
Annnnnyway – let’s get on with Day #2 yeah.
Right.
Our “It’s my birthday” 2026 Alaskan Trip – Day 2
6:30AM. We were up on Day 2 at 6:30AM. And you know what? 6:30AM isn’t even close to the earliest you’re gonna see us up on this trip. But yeah, 6:30AM on Day 2.
On account of we had an 8:30AM train up to Vancouver and we were told we needed to be at the station at least an hour beforehand since we had to check luggage, handle pre-boarding, and get situated before we crossed over into Canada.
We were taking the Amtrak Cascades train out of the King Street Station in Seattle. We ordered up a Lyft but when it arrived, it couldn’t hold the four of us plus all our luggage so Nickie and I took the Lyft with the luggage while the boys made the 12 minute walk over.
We were at the station by around 7:00AM.
And just in case you didn’t believe me about the luggage…
My wife is the prettiest.
But yeah, the luggage. I mean, we were going on an Alaskan cruise in July. It was kind of like we were packing for ALLLL the seasons, bro.
The Falzones had already checked in and what not by the time we made it into the station. On account of they are overachievers and enjoy making us look bad. But yeah, it’s a good thing we got here early. On account of this line became madness.
Pretty station tho.
Oh also. I know “King Street” sounds a lot like “Kings Cross” BUT don’t go trying to run into any of those columns. Learned from personal experience. They aren’t magical. They’re more…hurty.
Thankfully, as you can see in that picture, we were kind of in front of that whole line situation and most of it built up after we got in there. So it didn’t take us that long. We did, however, have to switch some stuff in our bags around because here, one of our bags was weighing in at over 50 lbs. Which is a big no-no. So yeah, a little bit of switching.
Which was new for us. We are usually pretty good at keeping things under the required weight. The Falzones, on the other hand? The check-in desk switcheroo is like a Falzone vacation mainstay. I am pretty sure they hold some sort of record.
And today? Their streak continued.
But eventually, everything was sorted and checked. And we had a little bit of time before we could board so the boys, Mia, and I went in search of breakfast. On account of this train station doesn’t have breakfast? King’s Street? More like Peasant’s Street. Amirite?
But right up the street we did find a little coffee shop named Zeitgeist Coffee.
TRAIN 5 ALASKA 2026 DAY 2
Cool little place. All the vibes and what not.
I went in for a Cappuccino and a Ham.Yah. A ham.
Pfft, I wish.
No, it was this.
And yeah man. This was kind of delicious actually. Had some serious kick from that chipotle mayo.
We brought breakfast back so people could either enjoy it in line or on the train once we boarded. I decided to enjoy mine in line. Which made for a real disgusting display on my part. Like I had to eat it so quick so it wouldn’t fall apart in my hand. Which resulted in just a lot of open-mouth chewing and food on the floor.
Hey Seattle, I’m disgusting. Sorry about that.
We were on the train by 8AM. And like, oof this was a stressful situation. We had a plan. Find a table seat on the left side of the train and a couple other seats on the left so everyone could have a nice view of the scenery as we were traveling up to Vancouver.
But like, once we got on the platform, we kind of froze and didn’t know where to go. It was like some sort of bedlam in there. People REALLY wanted to sit on the left. It was like I was trapped in a Beyonce song.
You know. To the left, to the left.
Beyonce. She’s like a really well-known singer you guys.
So we ended up with most of our seats on the right. Like this one.
And this one.
Not THIS one though. Larissa and Nickie still ended up on the left. AND WITH my mom’s cookies.
Pfft, that tracks.
Get it? Cuz train.
Mia – you get it, right?
Everyone’s a critic.
The train started rolling at around 8:30AM and whatevz you guys. Look, we still had some sort of a view.
AND we had Nerds AND Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups courtesy of Nickie and the bag of goodies she gave me when we kicked off the trip that I never took a picture of like a complete idiot.
But still, candy. This side of the train. Alllll right.
Tony, Mia, and I also played some Rummy 500 to pass the time.
Well eh. I guess we played Rummy 300. Mia wasn’t in for the long haul.
Here’s a glimpse of Nickie and Larissa’s view at around 10:30ish.
At around 11:30, we got some lunch from the café car. I went in for the Turkey & Swiss Sandwich with Chips.
Which, honestly, was pretty good. I mean, full transparency – the burgers and grilled cheeses others got were erm…less well-received. But this sandwich was def filling and tasted fresh.
Oh wow, wait you guys. Before we get to Canada, I should talk a little bit about our conductor. Dude was not loving his job today. Every time he came on the speaker, he just seemed so annoyed with every announcement he had to make. Like literal sighs before he’d make a statement.
But the MOST annoyed he was? The most annoyed was when he had to explain to everyone that when we crossed into Canada, the customs officer had to walk through the train to check everyone’s passport. This meant no one could be in the café car. No one could be in the bathroom. Everyone had to be in their seat.
And dude like straight up Minority Report’ed this situation. Like he just pre-crime-style just sort of assumed all of us would be trying to buy turkey sandwiches or take pees during this and did some preemptive scolding over the loudspeaker. And I mean, to be fair, when they finally did come around and look at passports, he did end up ALSO having to admonish some folks that decided that would be a good time to go to the bathroom.
So yeah, eh. I suppose I get it. But still, I was a good boy. And I still got a talking-to.
Oh but hey look – We were in Canada!
As you can see in that timestamp above, we rolled across the border at a little after 11:00AM. But we still did have a little ways to go before we reached Vancouver.
And look, Nickie actually said I could sit with her for a little bit.
Which yeah, promised a pretty view, but an even prettier seat partner.
I also could look over to my right and see the boys.
Who I believe were doing a sort of “whole album” listening party situation. I know they did Thriller but also maybe a Strokes album as well? I dunno. This was a private party.
And since I was over there sitting with Nickie, Larissa was forced pleased to sit with her family too!
And they look really happy there. Like, happier than I had ever seen them when I was sitting over there.
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Eh, I’m sure it’s just for the camera.
At around 1:15PM, we were in Vancouver!!
I know. The sign is hard to read. But in my de-fence, that was the best I could do.
OK so now. Take a look at this image.
This is how the luggage is handled. It’s all lined up in this narrow corridor against the fence. With legit no rhyme or reason. I could technically be in the front car of the train and my luggage could be the last bag all the way at the end. Or one bag could be at the end, and another could be in the middle somewhere. Or two could be in the middle, and like one in the back.
I mean look. The combinations are endless here. Point being, bags could be everywhere up in here.
Everyone also gets off the train at the same time so it’s sort of like this every-direction free-for-all looking for your luggage, again in a super narrow space.
It was kind of a situation out there.
But eh – we all did end up finding our luggage and I think we were through the line by like 2PM or so? The whole process maybe took like 30-40 minutes.
We ordered up a Lyft and by 2:30, we were at our hotel – the Pan Pacific Vancouver!
And like, if you forgot it was the World Cup? The Pan Pacific was here to remind you of that fact.
Like right out in front, there was a big soccer ball hanging above the door.
And then in the lobby? There was this giant soccer ball.
And behind Mia? Even more soccer balls.
And also? This guy, right outside.
It’s like jeez Pan Pacific we get it. If you love the World Cup so much, why don’t you marry it?
Btw – and this is super embarrassing to admit. But while I am sure when they think of soccer, most people have images of like Messi and Beckham and Pele and the beautiful game and all that, maybe even Ted Lasso. Me? When I hear the word soccer or even moreso the word “soccer ball”, this song is like somehow stuck forever in my brain (minute 3:05 or so)
I mean “I am a Soccer Ball” is a banger. Obvs. But like why? Why am I cursed with this song being stuck in my brain forever. For some reason, “I am a soccer ball” will always ALWAYS pop into my brain when I think of soccer.
Yah.
But yeah, it was a pretty hotel for sure.
And it was right on the water, which meant we could watch seaplanes take off.
See? Planes.
Seaplanes.
Nickie checked us in and up to our room we went. It looks like I didn’t take enough pictures for a full room tour, but here is a quick look at the whole situation.
Now, I should mention while it was the four of us checking in today, we actually had two more guests planning on joining us tonight – Liam and Hannah. So like, we had to get a little creative with the bed situation.
Nickie and I were obviously taking one bed. I mean, we paid for the room so. And Myles and Hannah would take the other. We ordered up some extra bedding and set up one set of blankets, sheets and pillows in between the bed and the window for Owen and another set over in that little corner near the coffee maker for Liam.
It was gonna be tight but I mean there was no chance we could swing another room. World Cup and all. How else do you think the Pan Pacific could afford ALL those soccer balls?
We didn’t really have too much time to hang in the room since we had tickets to go check out Flyover, an attraction less than a 5-minute walk from our hotel.
Man, look how pretty though.
Vancouver? More like Vanc-ooooooh-ver. Amirite?
And I mean. Speaking of pretty.
But right, Flyover.
Flyover is a (for all you Disney folks) Soarin’-like attraction in that you sit in this seat that sort of suspends you in mid-air in front of a massive spherical screen and simulates the experience of flying. It is also like Soarin’ in that it’s multi-sensory, meaning the seats move, there’s wind, and mist, and scents and all that to more immerse you in the locations you are seeing on screen.
It’s NOT like Soarin’ in that this attraction focuses squarely on Canadian locations and landmarks.
We made our way up to the attraction, showed our tickets, and were shortly led inside. Prior to the actual attraction, there was this film which I think focused on Canadian heritage? Or culture? The feeling of living in Canada?
I’m honestly not sure. But I can say it was longer than I expected it to be.
After that, we were led to, much like Soarin’, a dot to stand on while we watched a safety intro.
Lol. Oh you. Not THAT one. This one.
Yeah. Not as fun.
Though much to I assume the chagrin of everyone standing with us, we definitely said “Nice work, pal” and “these little beauties” more than once or twice while watching the video and I can’t imagine we were the first.
So right, yeah. It was basically Canadian Soarin’. I think the film we saw was technically called “Awaken Canada” (there are others they show seasonally).
And it showed locations like the Yukon, Nova Scotia, Toronto, the Canadian Rockies, Old Quebec City…
But while it was like Soarin’ I would honestly say maybe Flyover Vancouver was better? I mean, first off it’s like double the length (not even including the pre-show). And also? I loved how while you still sort of loaded like on Soarin’, it was sort of like every row and what not was separated from everyone else. Like, no one else’s feet were visible. I dunno. It’s hard to explain but it was just sort of structured better than Soarin’.
Was also deffo wetter than Soarin’. Like legit, they LOVE that mist machine up in here.
After we exited Flyover, it was kind of basically time for dinner. So we went up to our respective rooms to quickly get changed for the night.
Welp. I mean, except me. My co-ord was versatile as hell.
Our dinner rezzie was about 1.1 miles away and since it was like super pretty out AND the walk was along the water, we decided to forego a Lyft and take the walk.
Oh also, while we were on our walk, Myles got a call from Hannah. It turned out, her plane was delayed. That actually feels like a bit of an understatement. She had already boarded her plane and was being asked to exit it because of the weather. And like – it was kind of feeling like maybe this plane could potentially not end up taking off tonight.
Which, I mean, was a problem. We were boarding the ship tomorrow so if she had to get a flight in the morning (which was something we were looking into), it would be a stressful situation for her. And our options for tonight were limited since yeah, while it was around 5PM in Vancouver, it was near 8PM in Newark. We were all scrambling, looking at flights out of Philly, JFK, Laguardia…and while there were options, she actually ended up boarding that same plane, just like hours later.
So yeah. Poor Hannah ended up getting in REAL late on Day 2. But hey, at least she got in right?
And right ok – back to dinner.
Dinner tonight was at…
There’s a joke there somewhere about not taking a Lyft but ending up at Lift but like…I dunno. I got nothing.
But yah, dinner was at Lift tonight!
I wasn’t sure what I was in the mood for, but hopefully they have giant pears.
Jackpot.
Funny thing? I took that picture because I thought the hanging fish were so interesting. I had not even noticed the giant pear until now. Do you think they do that on purpose? They put the hanging fish cabinet there to distract from the obviously mutated pear? Diabolical, Lift. Diabolical.
We had reserved a table up top on the deck on account of (A) we wanted to be outside, and (B) I didn’t want to wear pants. Super pretty up here tho.
We were seated at a non-flammable table.
Oh and while we were getting seated, Hannah sent us this pic.
Yah, a rainbow you guys. Which we took as a good omen. But honestly, it could have also meant…
But I mean, as I mentioned, she did end up making it. So good omen it was. Murderous leprechaun it wasn’t?
We started off with some drinks. A BUNCH of us got Mai Tais. I actually had originally ordered a martini, but I give in real easy to peer pressure.
Made with white rum, dark rum, triple sec, pineapple, lime, orgeat, and grenadine, this was lovely lovely stuff.
We also – of course, got some apps. We ordered the Wagyu Steak Tartare (with Black Garlic Aioli, Flaked Salt, and Egg Yolk).
The Sourdough Baguette with Butter. On account if there is a baguette on the menu when Owen is there, it’s getting ordered. Dude is like, “Oh We Ba-GET that.”
I don’t know. Sound it out.
Anyways. Bread.
Also, we went in for the Meatballs (with Fire-Roasted Tomato Marinara, Shaved Parmesan, and Basil).
Annnnnd the Karaage Bites (Boneless Chicken Thigh, Green Onions, Gochujang Sauce, and Sesame Seeds).
Yah alotta apps.
And all of them were delicious. Honestly. Everything was good. But if I had to pick a favorite, those Karaage Bites were insanity. Flavorful, a good crunch on the outside, little bit of kick. And a pretty good-sized portion too.
It was legit so pretty out.
Oh right, main dishes. There were some of those too. Though I only got a picture of my Tuna Steak & Frites (Seared Sesame Crusted Tuna Steak, House Dressed Parmesan Frites, Arugula Salad, Lemon Caper Dill Sauce).
And Nickie’s Smash Burger (with Cheddar Cheese, Tomato, Red Onion, Lettuce, Roasted Garlic Aioli, and a side of salad), which she ordered off the Happy Hour Menu.
But I mean – that covered a good chunk of the table. A bunch of people got the burger and I know Larissa and I got the Tuna Steak Frites. And that Tuna Steak was sublime AF. Super fresh, well-prepared, and the parmesan fries were really nice too.
Good good stuff though over at Lift. And hey, the night wasn’t over yet. Nickie and Larissa split an Affogato.
While others, namely me, Tony, and Myles, opted for an Espresso Martini to end the meal.
Oh I should also mention, Owen took full advantage of being able to drink under 21 in Canada. Dude was double-fisting.
But yeah, hell of a dinner at Lift. I didn’t even mention the service but our waiter was awesome. Super chill yet very attentive AND he said Happy Birthday to me like no less than 15 times? Which I appreciated. Because I love attention.
Thanks Lift. You were great.
The night was still young. And so were we.
Well. Eh. The night was young.
Us? Mixed bag.
Still though. We ARE just a real good-looking bunch of people.
And look at this shot. I was getting all fancy-pants with this one, trying to get the skyline framed in the boat…frame.
A regular Amy Adams over here.
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Ansel?
Nah, I’m pretty sure it’s Amy.
And while an Espresso Martini is good, it’s really not dessert right?
Right.
So a bunch of us, minus Nickie and Larissa who already did the whole affogato thing, went in search of ice cream.
Are you here ice cream?
Are you there, ice cream?
We did end up finding some, about 15 minutes and a hell of a lotta hills away. Behold – Ricardo’s.
I had to run across the street to pretend-I-was-a-patron-at-Red-Robin-so-I-could-pee, so I left the boys in charge of my ice cream selection. I gave them a couple options and they went with the Cotton Candy for me.
Which shows me they really do know me. Solid choice. And this ice cream was real good. Super creamy. Very good flavor. I will say – the one thing this cotton candy ice cream was missing was more cotton candy bits. I like bits in my ice cream. And like, if I knew they didn’t have a plethora of cotton candy bits up in here, I probably would have gotten some sprinkles.
But still, really good ice cream.
We were back at our hotel by 8:20.
The kids went up to the room while Tony and I met up with the girls at the Coal Harbour Bar off the lobby to have a drink and catch some of the World Cup. We went in for an Oban 14 to end the night.
At this point, I could talk about how the bartender was a little abrasive. But I won’t.
I could also honestly talk about how we were standing up at the bar waiting for our drinks and talking with the girls while the two gentlemen sitting behind us in chairs literally like 15 feet from the bar asked us to move so they could see the TV. They asked us to not stand at the bar, which btw had a TON of open seats, so they could see the TV behind the bar from their seats all the way back in the lounge area.
But I won’t.
I could even talk about the fact that the woman at the front desk told us we didn’t have refrigerator in our room (we really hadn’t been there long enough to explore) so Myles had to store the McDonald’s he picked up for Hannah and Liam at the front desk. Even though we actually DID have a fridge? And in that fridge, there was an old bottle of chocolate milk the previous hotel guest there. And that was on top of finding hair in our shower before any of used it.
But I won’t. I won’t say any of these things because I don’t wanna be negative.
Plus, when we did tell the front desk about the chocolate milk and the dirty shower, they did apologize and make things right. But still – I mean we were really looking forward to this hotel and it was a pricey situation. But like…we ended up liking our hotel in Seattle much better. What are you gonna do though? The location of the Pan Pacific is hard to beat, even with old chocolate milk.
And that’s kind of all the pictures I have from Day 2. Liam ended up showing up around 9PM maybe? The boys tried to go out and hit a bar but to no avail – lots of stuff was closed or if it wasn’t closed, it was crowded. And it turned out a lot of the spots required two forms of identification? So.
Hannah ended up getting in around 1AM or so. Poor thing. But hey – with that, the whole gang is here. I wish we had a picture of everyone together from Day 2. I mean we have this post’s cover photo…
Oh duh. We live in the future. AI to the rescue.
Perfect?
Anyway tho. Everyone IS here. And ready to take on Day 3, our first official day on the ship! Get excited mofos!
So I’ll see you then. Take care.
Last post – Days 0 and 1!!
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