Man that bloody alarm is getting pretty annoying in the mornings and I can guarantee that it won’t be going off tomorrow morning because I don’t have a port until 6 pm tomorrow and wild horses wouldn’t be able to drag me out of bed until just before the breakfast buffet closes.
But today….
I dragged my sorry ass out of bed … the margarita’s might have had something to do with that ‘wish I could sleep some more’ feeling and reluctantly got ready for a my morning of exploration of the quaint town of Ketchican. All I could see out the breakfast window ( apart from the other two ships in port) was the streets and streets of shops ready for our greenbacks….
And most of it was built on reclaimed land but not the type that is done on dirt… we’re talking stilts people… all the streets alongside the port
were these seriously huge planks that are built on presumably stable footing ( although, I swear I could feel it move underfoot like the ship does on occasion) and it was way way up high to accommodate the huge tides that the area experiences.
Amazing stuff.
Anyway, I got off the tug boat, got a map from the information centre and then headed out on my day of discovery. I think this is my favourite port. The buildings built on stilts were just so cute and doll house-like and all painted in brilliant colours and were gorgeous. Nothing is on the same level in Ketchican, everything is another step up or another step down... or mulitples thereof.
I got halfway to Creek Street and heard that now familiar booming ‘Geday Lisa’ in a southern drawl that makes me chuckle every time. Sure enough out of the overcast day came a brilliant yellow raincoat in the shape of Sherri, with Steve doing the calling.
So it was off to Creek St to explore the quaint shops, do some shopping and then up the cable car to the top of the nearest mountain. I am still working out the money-it all looks the same, and it takes me a lot longer than anyone else to hand over two dollars because it is in notes rather than fishing around for a coin. I finally found the needed notes by the time we reached the top of the cable car trip to the top of the mountain and after hitting the ATM and an intravenous coffee for Sherri later, we were heading down the mountain again on foot, in search of more totem poles.
The Heritage Centre was fascinating with many seriously old totems that the community is doing its best to stop from decaying. The Tinglit culture and folklore was intriguing and much time was spent here soaking it in.
It was about here that my little point-and-shoot camera wouldn’t play the game ( had an issue with the battery - I had charged it but it was saying it was empty for some reason) and because I couldn’t fit any whole totems in the one frame with the Canon, I had to spend the rest of the days photos being ones I’ll have to join together when I scrap them … very frustrating. But anyway, the silver lining is that I actually had an alternative with me.
Again, I photographed almost everything that moved and then some stuff that was trying hard but couldn’t. This is just the most picturesque town and we were so lucky because we were told that there was an ‘in the high 90’s’ percentage that it would rain and to expect it while we were in port…. And we lucked out and got a day where there was nothing more than one tiny sprinkle and that was it. I heard peoples incredulous comments on the fine weather we’d had on this cruise and said a silent thank you to the bloke upstairs for my good fortune.
It has been so cold, and adding rain to that would surely have made the whole thing much less enjoyable. But this is Alaska and it apparently rains more than it doesn’t, so we were indeed fortunate.
We walked back down the mountain, photographing more totem poles that were around the town in peoples front yard and such
and then hit the shops before heading back to the ship. We laughed all day, it was great fun hanging out with Steve and Sherri again. I’m very much enjoying learning about the finer points of American life, in particular the South and Arkansas (Go Hogs…. Sooooeee Pig!) and in return trying to make sense of the Australian lingo and culture for them.
This is our last port of call in Alaska, a fact that everyone was lamenting most of the day, and that was evident in the way people were shopping till they dropped. Astoundingly so. And I was no different than anyone else. But I’ve spent way less than I thought I might - which has surprised me no end.
It is sad that after this port we have left Alaska and are heading for our final port of call. You can feel a different vibe throughout the ship tonight as the realisation sinks in that, but for tomorrow, its all over and many a much anticipated vacation is drawing to a close.
We left this port by early afternoon for the trip to Victoria BC and many people too the opportunity to buy the stuff onboard that they’d been meaning to do for the duration and hadn’t gotten around to, seeing as the Alaskan component was now over. And I was one of them, purchasing gifts and a rain jacket for my Orca tour the next day - and it was teaming down outside at that point so I was pretty sure I was going to need it.
Tonight was the formal night on the cruise so we all got glammed up again for the last time. And because we’d bought our DOD’s early in the day after we left port in Ketchican at a particular bar, Steve, Sherri and myself had acquired ourselves some $5 blackjack cards that we could then gamble with in the Casino.
Steve did remarkably well, winning back his drinks money and then another $40 bucks over the top ( not bad when you are betting $5 at a time) to spend tomorrow in Victoria.
So how did I do?
I was stunned that I won my drinks money back ( with Steve poking me in the shoulder - one side was to ‘stay’ and the other was to ‘hit me’ only trouble was, in my nervous ‘never been in a Casino let alone sitting at a Blackjack table state’ I forgot which it was I was supposed to be doing so that was probably pretty funny to watch…. ) So when those two $5 chips landed in front of me ( and me not being any kind of a gambler without knowing I have pretty good odds) I snatched up those chips so fast that everyone at the table was sitting there with their mouths open that I had walked away when I was on a winning streak…. I just didn’t want to be walking away with nothing….. And I was still in shock that I’d won anything at all. I was supremely happy to have broken even. Easy pleased huh?
But I was bit by the bug and I did make it back there to feed the pokies the next night and my $5 investment lasted me a remarkable amount of time… of course, until it was all gone the way of many a quarter before mine hit the machines. I was happy though, that was a fun perhaps 20 minutes and I can now say that I have done pokies and played real blackjack at a table rather than my gambling being reserved for the odd game of strip poker that I inevitably lose because I don’t know how to play poker…. Course, if I’m playing that, I’m aiming to lose anyway…. Hehehe. …
Naturally, a late night ensued and I did have a decent swing at the remaining clicks on my cocktails card, can’t waste them after all….
I think we might have been the last three people awake again, wandering around the deserted ship taking photos without a million bodies in front of everything. The lighting at night is soft amber and just beautiful with all the leather and woodwork onboard, and makes for photos that should be in brochures and Steve ( a photographer) taught me lots of tricks with the flashes, dials and setting…. Steve’s camera did some amazing things and should I buy a Digi SLR one day, I will be heading for that particular Nikon. I learned some great stuff…
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