Alaska Trip Journal Entry 1
In-flight to Anchorage from San Francisco. The sun has set and behind it trails the last remaining rays of day.
I’m flying to Alaska. A land I have never been, yet all that is on my mind right now, is how the horizon burns. Aflame for a moment in time, to be swallowed in darkness the next.
All times are in Hawaii Standard. Alaska, add two. “View all of the Alaska Trip Journal Entries”:/archives/category/alaska-trip-journal/
*Alaska Trip Journal Entry 2*
Things are so familiar, it’s scary. During the day, my surroundings could pass for a brisk Hawaii day. There are the obvious signals that tell me I’m not in Hawaii, like the mountains in the distance. Dark, looming things with shrouds of white. Then there are the not so minute things, like short, skinny construction workers. Upon closer observation, they turn out to be petite women. There’s nothing wrong with female construction workers, mind. It’s just something I rarely see in Hawaii. Especially the fact that half of the workers were female. I found that pretty neat.
Other minute details that I read about but haven’t seen are animal sightings in town. Bears and moose meandering all over the place.
And let’s not forget the fact that things are a bit more pricey here.
But there’s no sales tax in Anchorage.
Familiarity is bountiful when searched for. Yet it’s the wonderful differences that have made me thrilled and I’ve fallen in love with the place. I lub the cold weather.
All times are in Hawaii Standard. “View all of the Alaska Trip Journal Entries”:/archives/category/alaska-trip-journal/
*Alaska Trip Journal Entry 3*
The trip to “Hubbard Glacier”:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hubbard_glacier is a fleeting image in my mind due to the length of time that passed. However, I do remember that the cruise ship rocked quite a bit. It was weird, of course, but unlike most of my family, I didn’t get sea sick. I didn’t need to take drugs (Aw, shucks!) nor did I need to put magnets on my wrists.
The air outside the ship was cool, not really cold but as we neared the glacier the weather dropped. At times when the ship needed to stop or slow down, it did get warmer, what with the sun and our layers of clothing upon us. Yet even just a slow glide, things got nippy again.
Chunks of the glacier floated all around us. Some were slabs of ice that seals would sometimes be laying on and others were just small bits. Hubbard Glacier was beautiful. A tinge of sky blue in stark white and streaks of gray. We were able to see parts of it break off and dive into the water. Along the way to the glacier, there were three Native Alaskans. I wish I remembered their names. They came aboard to talk a little bit about the glacier and their people’s history. They even did a presentation in the theatre of the ship and I got the chance to feel seal skin they brought aboard. It was a nice presentation even though their little slide projector threw off the colors of the slides making it harder to comprehend. They even taught a few words in their native tongue. I only remember “thank you” (“gunalchéesh – Tlingit”:http://www.uaf.edu/anlc/expressions.html).
With that, it was off to our next stop… Skagway!
“View all of the Alaska Trip Journal Entries”:/archives/category/alaska-trip-journal/
*Alaska Trip Journal Entry 4*
With docking procedures complete, we were able to make our way to the first town since weighing anchor in Seward. I didn’t really do much the night before, just hung out and played my Nintendo DS, so I was up and chipper quite early. Ate breakfast and got ready for an all day adventure.
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*Alaska Trip Journal Entry 5*
The first spot of civilization that resembled the cities I’m used to seeing; space a commodity and every building tightly packed. Roads laid out in a seemingly haphazard way, yes, “Juneau”:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juneau was stiffling but still fun to wander through.
We took a bus ride to “Mendenhall Glacier”:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mendenhall_Glacier. It was an alright ride, but what made it pretty good was the amount of sightings of bald eagles we saw on the way to the glacier. The glacier itself was a pretty nice sight, but what accentuated it was a waterfall nearby. Unfortunately we were pressed for time and couldn’t make the trek closer as some folks were doing. Instead, we hung around the main viewing area and took a couple of photos.
Once we got back to Juneau, it was a frantic rush to do some shopping. There were two bookshops that, if I had more time, would have loved to peruse their selection. Old books and such… Ah well.
All times are in Hawaii Standard. “View all of the Alaska Trip Journal Entries”:/archives/category/alaska-trip-journal/
*Alaska Trip Journal Entry 6*
Day 6 was the best part of the trip for me. We headed to an up and coming tourist spot called “Icy Strait Point”:http://www.icystraitpoint.com/ and a visit to the town of “Hoonah”:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoonah located nearby. Accessible only by “Bush Planes”:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bush_plane and boat, Icy Strait Point/Hoonah was very small, rivalling Skagway. In fact, where we were able to dock in Skagway, we had to get to Icy Strait Point by “tender”:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ship%27s_tender. It was a fun ride to get to the town.
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*Alaska Trip Journal Entry 7*
“Ketchikan”:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ketchikan was the last stop (not to be confused with “The trip’s over and we’re docked in Canada, get the hell off the boat!” stop). A big departure from Hoonah but not in a bad way. It was pretty cool. It was neat that they had long stairways that were considered streets. I visited Dolly’s house and took a tour through it. Got to see the wonderful shower curtain with floral patterns on it, made from condoms. Yeah.
Anyway! Across from Dolly’s, there was a book shop. Found a few books to buy (blank journals, actually). Creek Street was the area where the two places, and more stops, were located. Wooden walkways from stop to stop over the water. Pretty nice sight. Of course, we went there while the salmon weren’t spawning so it was pleasant. From the locals, it’s been said it reeks over there otherwise. The usual weather in Ketchikan is similar to Hawaii but a lot rainier. Not to mention that the mosquitos there are huge. I mean, HUGE.
After the little walkabout, my family and I took a “Duck Tour”:http://www.akduck.com/ and while in the water, we passed by a hangout spot for bald eagles. Back on land we toured around town and our tour guide, Katrina, went over the pink, silver, king, sockeye and chum salmon. The fact I remember the five types of salmon and the tour guide’s name is a testament to her presentation. It was lively and fun. There was wi-fi in one of the large shopping areas but I didn’t bring down my laptop. The spot was nice too.
Ate hotdog and fries after the Duck Tour. The fries were pretty good. The hotdog was good too but kind of reminded me of Costco dogs.
The end of the day marked the near end of our cruise. Bought a new watch just before we had to board the ship.
All times are in Hawaii Standard. “View all of the Alaska Trip Journal Entries”:/archives/category/alaska-trip-journal/
*Alaska Trip Journal Entry 8*
Slept in on the last day. Ate as much for breakfast as I could. I doubt I’ll ever see buffet breakfast again unless I get on another cruise or something. Also, the night before I got a lot of pool fix since the Radiance of the Seas has two pool tables that are regulated by a gyroscope to keep the tables levelled. It’s a novel idea but an auto-levelling floor would’ve been much better since although the tables remain levelled, the player is constantly moving along with the ship.
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