Our first port call - Juneau, the Capital of Alaska!
From our Daily Program newsletter: “In the late 19th century, a Tlingit Chief named Kowee led two prospectors to a creek that emptied into the Gastineau Channel. After a few hours of panning, the prospectors, Richard Harris and Joe Juneau, found gold. That discovery changed not only their lives, but the course of history and the face of Alaska itself. On October 4, 1880, Harris and Juneau laid claim to the area, which they called Gold Creek. Their discovery produced one of the largest finds in the history of the Alaska Gold Rush Era. Juneau is nestled between Mt Juneau (3,576 ft.) and Mt Roberts (3,819 ft.) which gives the town not only a beautiful scenic setting but also a natural protection against the cold winds and permafrost which are so much a part of Alaska. Glaciers like Mendenhall, Taku, and Herbert help contribute to the mild climate in Juneau, but also to Juneau’s isolation from the rest of Alaska. in 1900, the capital of Alaska was moved from Sitka to Juneau, where it has remained ever since.”
We docked at 11:30 AM. When we arrived on board ship, we found that the Narges’ had given me a birthday gift of $50 shipboard credit, so I decided to sign up for a spa package called the Unwinder - one and a half hours of pampering consisting of a facial, neck and shoulder massage, and a pedicure.
My appointment was at 9:15 AM, THREE HOURS later, I was finally able to join Paul and Abby to go visit Juneau. While waiting for me, Paul was teaching Abby to play chess! I had a grand time at the spa chatting with the ladies and hearing all about their travels working on cruise ships. I also enjoyed an excellent neck and shoulder massage that turned into a full back deep-tissue massage at no extra charge because my therapist couldn’t believe how tight I was. No wonder the treatment was 3 hours long!
Juneau is a city of only 30,000 people, however, it is the largest city in America because Mendenhall Glacier is considered a part of it. Downtown was tiny and we walked from one end to the other in about 20 minutes. Main Street was lined with a lot of touristy shops, my favorite by far was the House of Russia. I have always been entranced by the Russian nesting dolls, so I was in heaven seeing some of the most lavish and delicate Matreshka dolls. Sadly, the ones I fell in love with - containing beautifully decorated drawings depicting fairy tales - start at around $275 each and the ones I picked up to examine were roughly $650!!!
We had originally booked two shore excursions on Juneau - a photo safari by land and sea plus an Alaskan Salmon bake. When we arrived on Saturday and checked in at the Shore Excursions desk, we found out that they couldn’t get Abby on board the boat because there were strict restrictions regarding the number of boat passengers and even though Abby was a lap guest, the boats had already reached max occupancy and could not accommodate her. We received a full refund, thank goodness.
The canceled shore excursion meant that we got to spend a leisurely time strolling through Juneau. It was cloudy and rained off and on throughout the day. Had lunch at the Hangar on the Wharf restaurant. Food was only ok, as was the service. Abby fell asleep then and Paul and I spent a long time shopping around Del Sol - a really neat shop we found during our Caribbean Cruise that sold unique, color-changing clothing and various other merchandise, such as nail polish and toys. We picked up shirts and a bear-bear for Abby after she latched on and wouldn’t let the animal go.
We returned to the Oosterdam for a brief spell before heading out for the Salmon Bake.
Abby made friends with port security because she insists on carrying her own stateroom card to show the security men as we reboard our ship and she likes holding it out to and waving it at them, which the men found highly amusing.
The Salmon Bake was awesome. A beautiful location about 10 minutes from downtown Juneau that contained a gorgeous waterfall 100 yards from where we ate under heated torches and covered tables. There was a local musician playing original, live music throughout dinner. The salmon was grilled over alder wood and served with a maple glaze. After eating, we went to see the exquisite waterfall. It was located next to an old gold mine and some mining equipment were still kept around to enhance the scenery. Salmon was spawning and we saw several in the river as we approached the waterfall.
Shortly thereafter, the rain began to fall heavier and the roads became too muddy for Abby’s stroller, so we got on the bus to head back to the ship. About 20 people from the Oosterdam attended the Salmon Bake and everyone was so pleasant and we got to meet a group of very friendly people.
Overall impression of Juneau is that it is old, hilly, very touristy, industrial, laid-back, but pretty enough. The locals boast about their Wal-Mart and Fred Meyer....’nuff said!
Juneau photos can be found on Fotki.
From our Daily Program newsletter: “In the late 19th century, a Tlingit Chief named Kowee led two prospectors to a creek that emptied into the Gastineau Channel. After a few hours of panning, the prospectors, Richard Harris and Joe Juneau, found gold. That discovery changed not only their lives, but the course of history and the face of Alaska itself. On October 4, 1880, Harris and Juneau laid claim to the area, which they called Gold Creek. Their discovery produced one of the largest finds in the history of the Alaska Gold Rush Era. Juneau is nestled between Mt Juneau (3,576 ft.) and Mt Roberts (3,819 ft.) which gives the town not only a beautiful scenic setting but also a natural protection against the cold winds and permafrost which are so much a part of Alaska. Glaciers like Mendenhall, Taku, and Herbert help contribute to the mild climate in Juneau, but also to Juneau’s isolation from the rest of Alaska. in 1900, the capital of Alaska was moved from Sitka to Juneau, where it has remained ever since.”
We docked at 11:30 AM. When we arrived on board ship, we found that the Narges’ had given me a birthday gift of $50 shipboard credit, so I decided to sign up for a spa package called the Unwinder - one and a half hours of pampering consisting of a facial, neck and shoulder massage, and a pedicure.
My appointment was at 9:15 AM, THREE HOURS later, I was finally able to join Paul and Abby to go visit Juneau. While waiting for me, Paul was teaching Abby to play chess! I had a grand time at the spa chatting with the ladies and hearing all about their travels working on cruise ships. I also enjoyed an excellent neck and shoulder massage that turned into a full back deep-tissue massage at no extra charge because my therapist couldn’t believe how tight I was. No wonder the treatment was 3 hours long!
Juneau is a city of only 30,000 people, however, it is the largest city in America because Mendenhall Glacier is considered a part of it. Downtown was tiny and we walked from one end to the other in about 20 minutes. Main Street was lined with a lot of touristy shops, my favorite by far was the House of Russia. I have always been entranced by the Russian nesting dolls, so I was in heaven seeing some of the most lavish and delicate Matreshka dolls. Sadly, the ones I fell in love with - containing beautifully decorated drawings depicting fairy tales - start at around $275 each and the ones I picked up to examine were roughly $650!!!
We had originally booked two shore excursions on Juneau - a photo safari by land and sea plus an Alaskan Salmon bake. When we arrived on Saturday and checked in at the Shore Excursions desk, we found out that they couldn’t get Abby on board the boat because there were strict restrictions regarding the number of boat passengers and even though Abby was a lap guest, the boats had already reached max occupancy and could not accommodate her. We received a full refund, thank goodness.
The canceled shore excursion meant that we got to spend a leisurely time strolling through Juneau. It was cloudy and rained off and on throughout the day. Had lunch at the Hangar on the Wharf restaurant. Food was only ok, as was the service. Abby fell asleep then and Paul and I spent a long time shopping around Del Sol - a really neat shop we found during our Caribbean Cruise that sold unique, color-changing clothing and various other merchandise, such as nail polish and toys. We picked up shirts and a bear-bear for Abby after she latched on and wouldn’t let the animal go.We returned to the Oosterdam for a brief spell before heading out for the Salmon Bake.
Abby made friends with port security because she insists on carrying her own stateroom card to show the security men as we reboard our ship and she likes holding it out to and waving it at them, which the men found highly amusing.
The Salmon Bake was awesome. A beautiful location about 10 minutes from downtown Juneau that contained a gorgeous waterfall 100 yards from where we ate under heated torches and covered tables. There was a local musician playing original, live music throughout dinner. The salmon was grilled over alder wood and served with a maple glaze. After eating, we went to see the exquisite waterfall. It was located next to an old gold mine and some mining equipment were still kept around to enhance the scenery. Salmon was spawning and we saw several in the river as we approached the waterfall.
Shortly thereafter, the rain began to fall heavier and the roads became too muddy for Abby’s stroller, so we got on the bus to head back to the ship. About 20 people from the Oosterdam attended the Salmon Bake and everyone was so pleasant and we got to meet a group of very friendly people.Overall impression of Juneau is that it is old, hilly, very touristy, industrial, laid-back, but pretty enough. The locals boast about their Wal-Mart and Fred Meyer....’nuff said!
Juneau photos can be found on Fotki.
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