Going South

This title is sort of misleading. Juneau was the northernmost spot, so we went straight there, and were going south the rest of the time. However, I can't really title this post Victoria, because it tells you nothing about Victoria, and is more about the deterioration of the cruise in general.

So, one thing I learned from this cruise, and I had heard it before, is that if the cruising company is foreign-owned, all of its stops cannot be US stops. Therefore, since this was Holland America, going from Seattle to Alaska, it is illegal to not hit Canada at all.

We were glad there was going to be a stop in Victoria. We had gone there many times as children. When we visited our friend in Vancouver, we had some hopes that we could take a trip there, but it was farther than we realized, so not practical. That's when I remembered that sometimes we went to Vancouver and sometimes to Victoria, but never really both.

Still, now we were going to have a chance to go back, and our friend had started taking classes in Victoria, so she had not completely relocated, but was spending a few days a week there, and we could meet up. It was a very short stop, but Victoria is a beautiful city, so wandering around a little with our friend should be just fine.

That ended up being the worst day of the cruise. First of all, we had the talk with disembarkation instructions. We were all supposed to go together, but we accidentally overslept, and I was the only one ready in time. I got out just as they stopped serving breakfast, and just as the dolphins everyone had been seeing were no longer visible. Oversleeping was our own fault, but scheduling an overly long and pointless, self-congratulatory thing with some important information during breakfast, when we were not even going to hit land until 6, is on the cruise line.

It really started the day on the wrong foot, but you need to keep going, so we went for our walk around deck, and at some point I got some varnish or something all over my purse, pants, and arm. I do blame this on the ship. At this point I ordered my sisters away, ordered room service, and took a nap. Yes, it was the last day of the cruise, but it was coming a day too late.

We were originally supposed to get into port at 6. That was moved to 7, then to 9. I don't know if the seas were rough or what. They didn't really give us any information about this. Better updates could have been good. Also good would have been them changing the Muppets Quiz to an earlier time so those people stuck waiting could participate. As it was, we waited in a long line and finally got to see our friend a little after 10, and spend about 40 minutes with, going and returning past a big and beautiful ship that had beat us into port by at least an hour.

Ketchikan

If Sitka was the least touristy of our stops, then Ketchikan was the most.

There is a big harbor and just a huge shopping section there. There was a vending machine with used DVDs, something that I had never seen before, but that made a lot of sense in the context of the last major stop for many cruises. There was a lot of decorative artwork, and everything was well-maintained, and it was probably the best stop for nicer handicrafts. There were some great quilts and mobiles. (At the same time, some of it was quite pricey.) The shop staff that we spoke to were all very helpful.

For these reasons, this was probably the favorite stop for my sisters. I spent most of my time waiting outside for them to be done shopping, because I am not into that. Still, the stop was not a total loss because I got to pet a dog. I saw a dog in Juneau too, but I did not get to pet it, so in that specific area, Ketchikan was superior.

Of them, my favorite store was Christmas in Alaska. There are a lot of nice ornaments and decorations, but the really cool thing is that you can get your picture taken with Santa all year long.

Ketchikan was also the place where we came closest to going on a shore excursion. We tried to get tickets for the Lumberjack Show, but we waited too long. There was only one spot left for the 11:00 show, and we weren't motivated enough to go to the 8:15 show, so we did no official shore excursions on the entire cruise. It is much cheaper that way, though, some of the money could have been well spent. (There will be other posts on cruising in general and that specific time of year.)

Honestly, we probably should have taken the funicular, and gotten a view that way. Apparently that only costs $2.00. We did get fairly near there on our way to the library, but there were no free terminals, and we really weren't feeling it, so we got back on the ship. It was a short stop, leaving at noon, so we did have some concerns about making it back in time, and ultimately, that was our day.

Sitka

Sitka was the most disappointing of our Alaska stops. I feel like I'm being mean for saying that, but I will explain why, and then you can judge.

First of all, it was probably the smallest of the stops, with a smaller harbor. We needed to board tenders rather than just walk down the gangway. That may have been part of it. It is probably the town least set up for tourists. There is a main street with shops, but it is not as in your face about it as Juneau and Ketchikan. The first place you find is the library, and there is a visitor's center, and then you start getting into shopping.

There is a Tlingit Ceremonial Canoe set up right by the library, so this was the first attraction, and we walked around and took pictures of it. This one specifically was commissioned for the Alaska Purchase Centennial.

We had thought we would check out the cathedral, because that was a stop for most of the shore excursions, and it was certainly within walking distance, but when we got there it was not really that grand on the outside, and kind of peeking in it did not really seem worth exploring.

Not to be discouraged, there was also a Totem Pole Park within walking distance, and so we headed there, and somehow I thought there would be multiple totem poles, but there was just the one. That was pretty much at the end of the main walk too, so we were going to turn around, but then I saw a path leading uphill, and a sign that said Castle Hill. All right, that sounds intriguing.

I started up the hill, and there was no castle. There was a sign explaining about the different things that were once up there, but there were all gone now. It was a really good view though, so I took pictures from various angles, and continued to get wet, because it was also raining. Feeling adventurous, I decided to take the other path down, which put me pretty far from where I had left my sisters. I was working my way back, but at this point they were already starting to get worried and call me. Fortunately, this was one of the spots where I had a phone signal, so that ended up being fine.

I mentioned enjoying the small town feel in Juneau, and this seemed smaller, but less friendly. Actually, I did have a few people greet me, but they were all people from the ship who had been at karaoke the night before. They were telling me I had done a good job, so that was really pleasant, but that could have just as easily have happened on the ship.

From a livability point of view, it is probably better for the town that it is not as touristy. I'm just saying that from a tourist point of view, this is probably a place where you really need to sign up for a shore excursion. The most tragic thing is that I have a friend from Alaska, and I had tried to reach her before we left, but we didn't get a chance to talk. If we had, her mother would totally have come and picked us up and shown as around, and that would have been great. Rats.

Juneau

Our ship stopped in Juneau, Sitka, and Ketchikan. (It stopped in Victoria too, but that almost doesn't count. I'll explain when we get there.) I think the favorite for my sisters was Ketchikan, because there was more shopping. My favorite was Juneau.

I know it's the capital, but it had a nice, small town feel. Actually, I can tell you what won my heart. We were working our way up the main street and stopped to look in a toy store, and were chatting with the owner. Not only was she very helpful with going over the merchandise and where to find different things, but after we had been chatting for a few minutes she asked if we could watch the store for a few minutes while she went to get a cup of coffee.

Okay, on one level it was some pressure, but still, it felt kind of of cool. Also, fortunately, we didn't have to do anything. She was quick and no one came in during that time.

We also found helpful assistance at the information booth. The guide told us everything we wanted to know, including pointing us to the library for internet access, which was right there and it was free, and it was the nicest of the different libraries that we visited.

In general, I think Juneau did better for public art. There was gorgeous stained glass in the library, murals on buildings, and statues in the park, including one of Patsy, a dog who elected herself as Juneau's ship ambassador. We are suckers for animals.

All of the cruise ship stops tend to have well-maintained houses visible, but somehow with the setting, and the public art, to my  mind Juneau was the prettiest of the three. Plus Juneau was the one with Mendenhall Glacier and they also had a tramway you can ride up Mount Roberts, and they are the location of the famous Red Dog Saloon.

So, Juneau is the way to go.

http://www.juneau.org/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juneau,_Alaska