Daily Life

Guess yet?

Our day in Ketchikan wasn’t completely rainy.  We had this much Sun, anyway!

Some of the waterfront from the Lido Deck Buffet where we ate breakfast.

An uncropped two photo panorama of the waterfront (mainly tourist traps, but fun!) where we docked and the gangway being installed, from the Promenade Deck.  (Click to enlarge; BACK to return!)  We never made it into the big place on the right.  The brown one beside it it s Christmas Store and we didn’t get any further…the rest of town is to the left.  There we got!

Our ship, the Amsterdam, and her sister ship the Statendam.  Two of those “Dam” Holland America ships.

Welcome to Ketchikan!  The main drag to nowhere…there are no roads to anywhere else…I think the little place under the sign on the left is where we hit the hot chocolate, chai tea and Internet.  $5.00 for an hour with a purchase over $10.  Strangely enough, a hot chocolate and a chai tea was over $10.  Who dod they think they are?  Starbucks?  No, it was down the road…

Something…interesting…in a fur store window.  I think the long, tourist free winters do something to these people up here…

In another window was this hand carved Mastodon tusk…it took the artist three years or some such.

At the top, note the Esquimos hanging for their lives below the Mastodons!

Lots of critters and foliage…not found in present day Alaska often!

 

Whales start at the bottom as the Esquimos start working their way up the tusk.  A fantastic piece of art!  I don’t think it had a price tag…

Heading back to the Amsterdam in the rain.

Then it was time for our Duckboat ride.  Duckboats are converted WWII landing craft in many cities near water.  You get a city tour on the streets, then a waterfront tour form the water!  Quite a lot of fun!  This Duckboat was purpose built a few years ago, but it looks the same as the originals, just a lot easier upkeep.

They sold Duck Calls: plastic duckbills that quack when you blow in them.  Even ‘Stache loves his!

This is Married Man’s Trail…the trail the married men in town took to get to Creek Street.  For extra-marital fun.

The river through Ketchikan was full of spawning salmon.

This is Dolly’s House.  She held off the do-gooders and government for decades before they bought her out and she retired…in her 80’s, as I recall!  Dolly started as a seamstress.  She survived because of bookkeeping.  Meticulous, detailed and accurate bookkeeping.  No one wanted her to make her books public!

Part of buying her out was the requirement to keep Creek Street as it was.  That and salmon are Ketchikan’s claim to fame!

Here is a detail from the one above.  Click on the photo and read the signs in the clear spot!  BACK to return!

And this concludes the land portion of our tour!

Curtis in Alaska! {!-{>