We set sail for Alaska from Seattle on the Norwegian Pearl, one of the newer ships from the Norwegian Cruise Line. It was my first time cruising on open water (I’ve only been on river cruises in the Nile and in the Yangtze) so it was quite a different experience for me. While I ended up not being thrilled with cruising, it’s pretty much the only way to see Alaska and therefore totally worth the journey. The scenery in Alaska is more breathtaking than you can imagine, and none of my photos will do it any justice. Although there was less snow than I thought there would be, the pristine environment just makes you feel so close to nature. We saw countless whales, lots of seals, a few dolphins, and even bears in the wild. It really just doesn’t get any better than that.