Aside from the spectacular Alaskan scenery on board the ms Westerdam, one in a fleet of Holland America Line vessels, there are many options to educate yourself in the arts, technology, fashion and wines, the latter with chocolate pairings that proved worth the small fee to attend. But the most fun is when you get a chance to sit in on a martini sampling in the Atrium, where there were more attendees than stools at the bar. That didn’t stop me from sampling four delicious takes on the cocktail sipped by sophisticated travelers. Here are my favorite four recipes:

Classic Kamikazi: 2 lime wedges, 1.5 oz. vodka, .5 oz. triple sec and 1.5 oz. sour mix

Tuscan Lemon Drop: rosemary sprig, 1 lemon wedge, 1.5 oz. citron vodka, .5 oz. limoncello, 1 oz. sour mix.

Pomegranate Ginger Drop: 2 lemon wedges, 1.5 oz. vodka, 1 oz. sour mix, .5 oz. pomegranate juice, .5 oz. ginger syrup

Tropical Cable Car: An eighth of a grapefruit, 1 oz. Captain Morgan, 1 oz. malibu, 1 oz. sour mix, 1 oz. pineapple J. and a dash of bitter

I have to say that my favorite martini proved that pomegranate and ginger work well together, and the Tuscan Lemon Drop made me wish I were headed to the rolling hills of Italy.