Ketchikan, which was our first stop (on our second full day) was a really tiny little town. The famous feature of it was a row of old wooden houses perched on stilts by the side of a running stream. This was the former red light district of the town when the Gold Rush was in full force. As the day was pretty crappy, rainy and cold, my brother Ryan, and father Paul, snuck off from us and hit a local bar. Much to my brother's chagrin my father asked the bartender (a little too loudly) if they served "tourists". The bartender answered "only if you can deal with the locals"....which was a pretty heavy looking bunch...who were already seriously drinking at 10 am. The two guys had a beer and checked out the scene there...while my mother and I walked around the town. We took a tour in "Dolly's house" the house of the most famous prostitute/madam in town...not so thrilling...but what the heck, I had a couple of extra bucks in my pocket.... (Here's a photo of my Mom in Dolly's bedroom)

The third Day we landed in Juneau, the capitol of Alaska. Ryan and I had a hiking trip booked. Not realizing that Juneau is actually a rain-forest, I was not well equipped for a hike, even an easy one! I only had tennis shoes, and wore jeans. The hike was beautiful...but rather muddy and wet. Thank God they provided some rain ponchos to those in need! We hiked for a few hours. Ryan, who was a little disappointed with the hike (too easy for him) was the only member of the group who got a chance to see a Black bear. We hiked near Mendelsson Glacier and got quite a nice view of it. I suppose that was the highlight of the hike for me. I didn't realize how blue glaciers are, due to the density of the ice, and that even the lakes that are fed by glaciers are the most amazing blue green color. Mom and dad took a tour of Juneau, and had a drink in a famous little pub in the town called the Red dog.

I was surprised at how tiny Juneau is, considering it is the capitol of Alaska...but it is the only state capitol that cannot be reached by road. You either have to fly there or arrive by ship. Indeed when we took the van out to the place we hiked there was a road sign that said "Road ends 500m"....so what can you expect! Ryan and I arrived back cold and wet to the ship...and nearly squealed in ecstasy to see the crew serving hot chocolate at the entrance....we were freezing!

Our fourth day we visited a small town called Skagway. Skagway is a tiny town, with the charm of the 1800's gold rush era, and is the closest town to the Yukon valley. We poked around the town, ate in the Red Onion bar (complete with girls dressed up like old time prostitutes posing for hokey pictures)...they surprisingly had the most amazing vegetarian gourmet thin crust pizza with goat cheese...mmmmmm.....

Then we boarded a train for a trip into the Yukon. We passed by incredible scenery, and got a good look at the actual trails that the old goldrushers would take into the Yukon...on their way to either their fortune or death.

Our fifth day we went to icy straight point, near the small town of Hoonah (population aprox 700). Ice straight point is a place privately owned by the local Klingit native tribe. They have all kinds of eco tourism activities that one can take advantage of. Ryan and I went Kayaking in the bay in the early morning. We actually had a humpback whale in the bay at the time we were paddling around, and at one point he even passed underneath us! Our guide was very informative about local customs and beliefs...and there was a lively discussion about how the local natives are allowed to hunt seals, whales etc., although it is forbidden to non natives...one of the tourists kept asking about the taste of different animals...and our guide finally broke down and told him that if he really wanted to try he could go to the local famous pub "the office" and ask the owner (who happened to be his aunt) if she would serve him some seal...as most natives in Hoonah had their freezers packed with seal and other creatures. The intrested tourist guy kept trying to talk my brother and myself into going with him to try it out....but I had to let him down and tell him that I am a vegetarian...and not interested!

I had the chance to ask our guide, while we were ahead of the rest of the group about the current connection of Christianity to the tribe. He told me that at the time of his grandmother, "missionaries" were actually kidnapping children from the tribes and sending them to Christian boarding schools, his own grandmother was among the local children that this happened to. As a result, her generation was converted to Christianity, and brought up their children as Christians, and lost most of their interest in their culture...including their language. His father was brought up as a Christian, and does not speak their native tongue....but after this, the third generation started a revival of their native culture, religion and language...and as a result the local school now teaches their native language, which had been fazed out by the Christians.

Later Ryan and I took a bike trip around Hoonah, which was led by a really nutty kid who joined the national guard and kept talking about guns and wrestling.....all in all a charming boy.

Mom and Dad went on a whale watching trip and said that they got a chance to see many whales and orcas, and that it was a great experience.

Our Sixth day was spent sailing to the huge hubbard glacier. I went up on the top deck of the ship (with a million other people) to get a good view of the Glacier. Whenever I see such mammoth features of nature, I find it quite humbling. We think that we are so important...but here is something that has existed millions of years before we were born, and will continue to exist long after we go. It makes one feel very small and unimportant in the ultimate scheme of things!

The next day we disembarked from the ship to join our land tour. Ryan and I couldn't believe how old the entire group was....we felt like we had joined a geriatric tour! Thank God our guide was a really young guy named Vinny, whom we could relate to...a nature lover...hiker and mountain climber.

Our first day we visited a bird and fish aquarium, and then an animal reserve. We then took our bus to Alyeska. We stayed at the only 5 star hotel in Alaska, the Alyeska lodge. This is mainly a ski resort in the winter...and checking out the trails...I'd have to say that it is only for very advanced skiers....because the average trail was a DOUBLE black diamond...

The hotel was at the bottom of the Alyeska mountain, and from the resort ran a cable car to the top of the mountain. We took the trip up that evening, and Ryan and I decided that we would hike up the mountain the following morning. We started at 7am....and Ryan quickly moved out of my sight. I had my Govardhan Sila in the pocket of my sweatshirt...and took him out every now and then for him to see the beautiful scenery...and to pick him some berries and flowers. The trail was quite muddy, as it had rained the previous day, and the higher I went up, the steeper the trail got. I kept thinking that I would probably wait until the cable car started running instead of going back down...because it was steep and muddy...which would be quite dangerous!

At one point, not too far from the top, the mountain side got so steep it seemed vertical...and the trail disappeared! I kept thinking that I have to make it to the top...so I can ride the car back down...so I just kept going...but it was really difficult...first of all...I think I have a little fear of heights...(I can climb up with out difficulty...but if I had to turn around and go down...I would've had a heart attack...I'm not good with steep descents). It basically turned into mountain climbing...except there weren't any rocks to cling onto...just steep mountainside, grass and an occasional plant to grab onto. I was on my hands and knees trying to pull myself up...looking for some plants to grab onto...and I did start sliding down at one point...and really had to make an serious mental effort not to freak out! When I came up over the ridge of this steep section, the top of the mountain was in view, with a wooden observation deck. Ryan was standing on the deck and started cheering me on...which was (needless to say) very encouraging!

When I reached the top he told me that he was really impressed with how I handled it considering that it was really the first mountain that I have ever hiked....(and it was really tough...even he thought the steep part was very difficult!) and I made it up faster than he anticipated (1h 20 min)...but he made it up in 50 min.

The following day we traveled to Ankorage. Pretty uneventful town, but we managed to eat dinner at a bar that had over 50 different beers on tap...so Ryan was pretty happy about that. The two of us stayed at the restaurant and checked out a blues band that was playing while Mom and Dad returned to the hotel. We stayed for the first half of their set...and they were great. The following day we visited a native alaskan center, where we learned about all of the different Native Alaskan tribes and their cultures. (Here's a picture of me in the jawbones of a whale from the cultural center.)

The next day we took continued on to Talkeetna. This is the town that the show "Northern Exposure" was based on. The town was really tiny and cute, and we visited the bar that the main pub in the show is based on. We stayed at a beautiful resort, and could see Denali Mountain, which was amazingly in sight, out the back.

We then headed for a scenic train trip to Denali. The train was absolutely amazing. The seating was on the second level with a glass ceiling, and a fancy restaurant on the lower level. Denali mountain (Mt. Mckinley) was out, which was quite amazing considering since it is only in view about 30% of the year...and we managed to get good views of it three days in a row.

I had been so excited about visiting Denali national park, and I have to admit, it was the biggest disappointment of the trip. Instead of going deep into the reserve, and getting the chance to see some of the wildlife, we ended up on a hokey bus tour...but I did manage to see a squirrel....and some caribou a million miles away...that looked like dots even with super powered binoculars.

Ryan and I went white water rafting in the evening (it stays light untill well after 9pm at that time of the year)...and that for sure was a major highlight of the trip for the both of us...it was the first time we had both gone...and we both really enjoyed it. It was some of the only time that I really saw Ryan smiling and seriously enjoying himself.

We then continued our second part of the train journey to Fairbanks. In Fairbanks we visited a working goldmine. It was actually quite interesting little tour. They showed us how they pan for gold, and then later we all got to try. I managed to pan about $21 worth of gold...so not bad for a place you have to pay $35 to get into!

We also visited the Alaskan pipeline....and had a trip on a steamboat, which included a visit to a place set up like a traditional Native alaskan village....

The following morning we flew out from Fairbanks to Detroit to return home.

All in all, it was an amazing trip. Such a beautiful country! I'd like to go back one day...but I'd for sure do it with some people under 80 years of age for more enjoyment!