We hit rough seas for the first time
We went to breakfast on the ship by 6.30 and soon after went down to American immigration . Then I finished my breakfast in the cabin .
At 7.30 we were called to board the tender but then had 30 minutes wait on deck as only one tender seemed to be a use and we were the first people, in the queue for that . They assured us that we would not miss the plane and they would hold it for us but we had our doubts about this. Eventually we got up to shore and there was a minibus awaiting us and we arrived at the airport by 9 am for the 10 am flight to Anchorage.
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The airport itself was tiny and only had space for about quarter of us. Chris was heartened to hear that over 75s did not have to remove their shoes for security but then cress fallen when this rule did not apply to anyone who made the x-ray machine beep and her metal knee always made it beep , the body searcher was very politically correct and wasted a good minute saying that a search would not involve anything untoward.
The flight itself lasted 90 minutes and there was plenty of room in the aircraft. The pick up at Anchorage airport was remarkably efficient and we were in our hotel room in the Marriott well before one p.m. We read for a while and then went out for a walk but it poured on us when we came back a bit sharpish then had a siesta before we had a coffee and danish pastry.
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About four we ventured out again in this time had a very pleasant successful walk to the town centre, which was very underwhelming, and then down to the sea where we found Resolution Park and a statue to James Cook. Cook had made it up to the Bering Strait, but failed to find the NW Passage from the Western end. Back at the three star hotel we read for an hour or so and then had a pleasant supper of Rolls, cheese, fillet steak and fruit , watching the sunset with views of the mountains. More reading and a coffee and then a short bit of television before collapsing in our own beds.
For a larger photo, click on the thumbnail photo below
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If the people of Anchorage ever voted on a city mascot, the favourite would be a gentle, affectionate creature named Star, the reindeer who has charmed locals and visitors for years. Star lives in a pen attached to a house at the corner of 10th Avenue and I Street, the former residence of Anchorage pioneers Ivan and Oro Stewart. She goes for walks with her caretaker, Albert Whitehead, to get her exercise, eats alfalfa and and timothy hay, plus a variety of tasty fruits and veggies. And while visitors may stare and point at the sight of a reindeer along a busy downtown street, Alaskans have grown used to seeing Star take a stroll down the city sidewalks to the grassy (or snowy) Park Strip. Since the original Star came to Anchorage in 1962, there have been 7 successive Stars
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