This morning, Brilliant Lady is docked at Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. The ship remains here until after 10pm as it is a very short distance back to our disembarkation port of Seattle. It is apparent that most of the guests have booked morning shore excursions as we can see hundreds of people walking to the tour bus staging area.

Rickee and I have a different plan today. With most guests off of the ship, we can use this time to enjoy the ship and get some steps in on the Deck 17 walking track. First, we head back to Razzle Dazzle/Rojo for breakfast.

The restaurant is nearly empty this morning with so many guests on excursions.

*Razzle Dazzle is almost empty this morning*

Once again, I ordered eggs over-medium, and for the fourth time, they came out cooked perfectly.

Since this is technically a “brunch” service, they do have French Fries on the menu. Rickee wanted some fries with her breakfast and they were super hot and crisp. The bacon here is delicious. It has a smoky, sweet, and slightly spicy taste.

After breakfast, we head to Deck 17 where we find a very nice walking/jogging track.

The track on Deck 17 is nicely designed with markings for those who are sprinters to measure their distances. In Alaska, this track is also used as a viewing area for whale/wildlife viewing, much to the dismay of some joggers who are forced to navigate around those searching for wildlife.

This deck is a great place for viewing wildlife or landscapes. We stopped during our walk so Rickee could point out something in Victoria Harbor.

This afternoon, we took advantage of our Rock Star perks once again by visiting Richard’s Rooftop for a complimentary glass of Möet & Chandon before we watch the USA play Bosnia in the FIFA World Cup playoffs.

The USA won their match in time for us to make our 7:30pm dinner reservation at Gunbae, Virgin Voyages’ Korean BBQ restaurant. Gunbae is located aft on Deck 15 portside, behind The Galley.

After greeting us and offering us a complimentary shot glass of Soju (Korean Sake), our waiter explains the menu. He brings us a platter of starters to sample. Most of the items were pickled. The bean sprouts and Kimchi were my favorites, but all of them were good.

Our waiter then started bringing plate-after-plate of various dishes. The Oi Muchim was pickled cucumber with avocado which we both enjoyed. The Dakgang Jeong was a platter of lightly-fried, crispy chicken pieces tossed in a sweet sauce and served with picked daikon radish. You could easily make a meal off of this one dish. Then there was the Kimchi pancake served with another sweet dipping sauce that was amazing. The standout was the braised beef short rib. Next time we dine at Gunbae, we will make an entire meal on the short rib and the chicken.

But wait…there’s more. Our waiter was just getting started. By the time our main courses arrived, we were already full! One platter of Kalbi was delivered consisting of thinly sliced beef, pork belly and shrimp. Another platter held my beef Bulgogi.

You don’t have to worry about cooking this yourself. The waiter cooks your meal for you at your table. Of course, there is a drinking game in between courses, which is a lot of fun. Normally, you would sit at a table with 4 to 6 others, which we did on Scarlet Lady. But, on this visit, we wanted a table to ourselves. The beef, pork belly, shrimp and Bulgogi were all delicious, but there was just way too much food.

So, here is the strange thing. Gunbae is the only restaurant where we had no trouble getting a reservation. And, on our visit, the restaurant was not even half full. This was one of the best meals we had on Brilliant Lady. Gunbae is a hidden gem. I suspect it is because a lot of Americans are not familiar with Korean BBQ. They should be. It is amazing and Gunbae is well worth a visit. I wish now that we had dined here twice. Do yourself a favor and book a reservation (or two, if you can) at Gunbae.

Tomorrow, we will be back in Seattle and disembark for the trip home.

Day 9 - Victoria, B.C.

Day 8 - At Sea