CALIFORNIA'S GOLD RUSH CREATED UNEXPECTED MILLIONAIRES ~ The founder of Bank of America was Amadeo Giannini, born in San Jose, CA in 1870. His father immigrated there 20 years earlier to find gold. John Nordstrom left Sweden when he was 16 to look for gold in California too. When he arrived in New York City on 1887 he had 5 dollars in his pocket. These men did not find gold, but they did find business needs to fill. In the case of Giannini there was no bank for poor miners or farmers and in Nordstrom's case gold miners and farmers needed good shoes. In 1904 another natural born entrepreneur arrived to Victoria, B.C., Canada wanting to get in on the booming construction business. Robert Butchart opened a limestone quarry near Victoria. He was the first builder to ever ship cement powder in cloth sacks instead of barrels. Prompted by a neighbor who asked her to stop blowing up nearby mountains, Butchart's wife Jennie insisted to her husband they not leave gigantic holes in the hills surrounding Victoria. It was irritating the neighbors. So together Robert and Jennie began planting flowers to replenish what they'd stripped out of the ground. By the early 1900s their highly successful Portland Cement Company allowed them to take voyages around the world. From their exotic cruises they would bring home gorgeous plants and flowers to flourish in Victoria's climate. Their quarry eventually closed, but their Butchart Gardens grew to become a National Historic Site in Canada with more than 100 acres of flowers and plants open for public viewing all year round. On this cruise you can visit the world famous Butchart Gardens in late afternoon and early evening because the sun does not go down 'til near 10 PM in Victoria. Just as it's hot and dry across America in August so will it be warm and dry across Alaska in August. On this cruise wear casual clothes in layers and bring only one all-weather jacket. No big coats are needed. Whales and moose will be out. Salmon swim upstream and Husky dogs can take you on sleigh rides. You could board Celebrity's Solstice in Seattle on Aug. 6, 2021, the day the ship departs. But it's better to arrive at least one day earlier to visit Seattle and adjust to the Pacific time change. A pre-cruise hotel stay near the Space Needle will be offered. In Ketchikan why not learn about totem poles? In Ketchikan stand the largest collection of totem poles in the world. In fact, Seattle's Totem Pole is its own Space Needle. Just as Alaskan families tell their heritage by carving out and standing up thick wooden totem poles in front of their houses so did Seattle erect its own totem pole for the 1962 World's Fair. Seattle told the world then it was entering the Space Age never to return. Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, Starbucks, UPS, Expedia and Boeing were all born in Seattle. No city in America has a more highly educated population says the U.S. Census Bureau. In Skagway take the world famous 3 hour White Pass Train ride to climb up Alaska's behemoth mountains into Canada. You will never experience a more beautiful train ride in all of North America. Juneau is the Capital City of Alaska. It became a state in 1959. Every day on the cruise you can attend water exercise classes held in the ship's heated, indoor Solarium pool. There will be land based class exercises offered too. Class times do not conflict with shore excursions. Because it's day light 'til 10 PM every day there's ample time to do many excursions in Alaska. Exercise classes are taught by your hometown certified water instructors who travel with you. All classes are held aboard ship in private for club members only. Cruises going to Alaska sell out fast for all cruise lines. Book yours now knowing you may cancel any time up to Feb. 2, 2021, and would receive a full refund.