27 May 2015 Ketchikan

27 May 2015: Ketchikan

Arrived in Ketchikan early morning and no rain!! For we have been very lucky for who wants to walk around in the rain. Today I explored the Indian community’s neighbourhood and went to the Totem Heritage centre and then back to the Main Street. Spoke to a local and he says a few more weeks and the Salmon should be here. I really hope we are still here to see this amazing event, can’t imagine what it must be like. Saw a few more fishermen along the creek, busy fishing, so maybe that is a good sign. Next week I want to explore the west end of this town and see they have an eagle viewing area so hopefully I will be able to watch these beautiful birds. We are so lucky to visit a town so many times for how can you explore a town in 1 day, impossible. Tomorrow we are in Juneau again and might be going on a bicycle route . So until tomorrow bye.

28 Mei 2015 : Juneau

Vanoggend eers 10h00 in Juneau aangekom,toe ek wakker word en ons seil nog toe weet ek oooo kan nog bietji inle want nie vroeg in die hawe nie.Het gisteraand weer n games aand gehad so dit was nog n laat aand en ek en Aaka het weer rooiwyn uit ons papierbekers gedrink,die ander moes maar net ruik!!! Met sulke algemene kennis vrae  besef ek en liefie ons sal ons kennis moet opknap en meer flieks moet kyk,clueless met al die nuwe jong akteurs en sangers.Lyk my dit gaan nou n weeklikse instelling wees, die kombers en al die games bly nou sommer permanent in ons kamer.Vanoggend is ek ,Leigh-Ann en Abrie met 3 van die skip se fietse hier weg,ek en Leigh-Ann is met 2 van die ouderdoos fietse hier weg,het net 1 rat !! so was omtrent trap,hyg,en stoei teen die bulte uit.Het vir Liefie op sy hardloop roete gekry met sy omdraai en hy se nee wat, bulte glad nie erg nie! So dankbaar hulle het my saam genooi en kon vir n uur en n half lekker saam met hulle fiets ry tot by Sheeps Creek!! Met die gaan was dit maar n getrap en gedink ooooo ons gaan bars met die terugkom want die wind ook teen ons maar was eintlik nie so erg nie,vir my was die gaanery erger.Toe ons by Sheeps Creek kom het ons eers vir n rukkie so teen die water gaan sit op rotse en gekyk hoe nog n passasiers skip inseil in die nou area.Het nog gese gaan probeer terug wees by ons skip voor die ander een dok en gedink ons sal dit nooit maak nie en wragtig daar maak ons dit toe,back safe and sound voor die Disney dok.Groot planne gehad om na die fiets ry nog saam met liefie in te gaan dorp se kant toe maar na n lekker stort toe is dit middagete en woerts  onder die blou kombers en dit  was natuurlik die einde van enige verdere rondloop.Hoop nie die melksuur skop nog later in nie want was n getrapery en weet gaan sit met n seer stert!So tot more mooi bly.

29 May 2015 :Skagway

Today we are in Skagway and the sea around us looks like a mirror, so beautiful and sunny. Are in this lovely town until tonight at 20h00 so have lots and lots of time to do things, slowly.This morning while having my breakfast I had this amazing view over the mountains and had a family of ducks doing their thing and having breakfast right under my window. They were under the water for quite some time so had me worried at one stage. Also had the helicopter pad in front of me so could watch them coming and going and can just imagine what views there passengers are going to have on this cloudless day. A ride starts at $349 and the most expensive excursion, $659. We were docked in a different berth today so had a longer walk to town but not far. First I landed up in an auditorium watching a movie telling us about the gold rush and all that happened in those days, I found it very interesting. Next week hubby is off when we dock here again so hopefully we will be able to go and watch the show in town. Have not told him but last time they called someone out of the audience and the poor guy just had to play along, think he will kill me if he knows that, but not saying a word!! My next stop was the local library and there I sat for a long time, going through all the latest magazines and paging through books about Alaska, must say very nice library. Once you land up in there lovely comfy leather chairs you don’t want to leave, will have to take a pic so you can see what it looks like and the view you have from your chair. Also though of asking hubby to come with me to the gold rush cemetery that is a 1.5 mile/ 2.4km walk from town but will see if I can get him so far, does not like graveyards. On my way back to ship I decided to indulge in a strawberry ice-cream, en ooooo was lekker. No wonder the tummy tube is growing!! On the shore side a passenger fell and has broken her ankle in 2 places, so she has to be airlifted out of Skagway at 19h00 tonight to Juneau for further treatment, poor thing and they are Chinese so you can’t understand a word she says. Another guy decided to go rondloping in town with a hangover and passed out just after he had put his legs on dry land ,don’t know what happened to him after that but maybe with something like a hangover you must first sleep it off, I would say. See funny things with our travels. Tomorrow we will be visiting the Glaciers again, maybe this week we will be lucky and see a big caving of the ice and hope I have my camera ready. So until tomorrow, Bye

30 Mei 2015: @ SEA

Vandag is ons heeldag op die see oppad na Glacier Bay en dan vanaand vertrek ons na Hubbard Glacier in Alaska,is  heelwat noord van waar ons nou is.So weer een van daardie lui dae,maar ek was soet en vanoggend gym toe en moet se was nogal amazing om te gym en n uitsig te he op die pragtige wereld waar niks anders is nie,die area is deel van n nationale park.Het wraggies 2 cavings gehad waar die ys afbreek van die gletser en in die water val maar ek kon niks hoor nie want was binnekant en dit is eintlik die spesiale ding,laas mos gese klink soos n geweer skoot en dan val die ys.So met my hele gym sessie het ek n uitsig op die Margery gletser gehad,die kaptein is so nice en laat die skip so 3 draaie maak(360 grade) so almal kry n uitsig na alle kante toe.Waar die skip draai is ook die einde van die inham,lyk vir my of daar baie meer ysstukkies ronddryf so dink heelwat gesmelt sedert verlede week.Ook maar bly want moet bieg maar skikkerig vir die iceburgs!! Ook gevra om nie met ons vingers te wys na enige ding wat ons op die land sien nie want die Indiaan manier is om n plat hand te wys of palm te wys,die Tlingit Indiane het hierso gebly.Was weer n baie mooi dag en kon wyd sien.Nou vir geskiedenis les!!!!

In Junie is daar dorpe in Alaska wat vir 24 ure daglig het, plek se naam Barrow,in Fairbanks het hulle 21 ½ ure dag,Anchorage 19 ure en Ketchikan 17 ½ ure en tans ervaar ons so 11uur saans nog lig en hier van 4 uur in die oggend dan begin dit weer lig raak, so weird gevoel.

In Des is dit dan weer in Barrow weer net NAG!!!,Fairbanks het net 3 ½ ure daglig en Anchorage 5 ½ ure en Ketchikan 7 ure,weet darem nie hoe dit moet voel nie.Het ook gelees oor die maande van die jaar en wat die Indiane(Yupik) mense die verskillende maande genoem het,

Jan /the bad month ,

Feb/ frost

Mrt/cutting time

April/geese come

May/coming of eggs

June/hitting of fish

July/molting of birds

Aug/flight of birds

Sept/caribou shed velvet

Oct/masked festivals

Nov/time of drumming

Dec/time of going around

Hulle se in those days the people counted time by seasons and what was happening around them.Die Tlingits het net 2  groepe en tot vandag toe nog behoort jy aan die Ravens of Eagles.Ek het nie geweet dat Alaska aan die Russe behoort het nie en in 1867 vir 7.2 miljoen aan Amerika verkoop is nie, dit is minder as 2 cent per acre.Alaska het ook 5 dele waarin hy opgedeel word,Juneau/Anchorage/Bethel/Fairbanks en Barrow were the sun donts shine!!!  In een dorpie Kotzebue raak dit tot minus 73 grade en hulle se as jou vel aan die koue blootgestel word vries dit onmiddelik, dankie tog ek bly nie daarso nie het wraggies 3000 inwoners. Hulle se ook dat geen ander werk is more scary than crab fishery!! You have to go out in the fall and winter when the crabs are just right for harvest en dit is natuurlik die slegtste tyd van die jaar wat betref koue en storms,seker baie van julle het al dit op TV gesien. Toe ek weer die ander aand na n foto kyk van die Northen Lights toe was dit spesiaal om te weet ek het dit gesien, dieAurora! Mushing is Alaska se (state sport) dit is waar die honde hardloop met n slee wat hulle agter trek en n person is aan die stuur heel agter.Hulle het nogsteeds  elke jaar n wereld bekende wedloop, die Iditarod ,die mushers begin in Anchorage en eindig in Nome na 1600km!! honde dra skoentjies!! Om hulle voete te beskerm teen die sneeu. Nou ja genoeg van geskiedenis les vir een dag!!Tot more

31 May 2015: @SEA

Today we still at sea and would have visited the Hubbard Glacier but early this morning hubby woke up and said that very misty outside and icebergs just where you look. That was enough to have me wide awake and sure enough heard a scratching sound against the ship, nie die gewone kreun en steun geluide wat ons ken nie and think we definitely made contact with ice, just thought to myself how are we going to get anywhere in this kind of weather, dodging icebergs, you can hardly see anything in front of you. Well thank goodness not long after that I heard that the ship was turning around and the visit to the Hubbard Glacier was off, because too dangerous. Safety comes first. Funny how you sometimes know, this is eerie and trouble or dangerous without being told anything, that’s how I felt this morning. We picked up a pilot this morning at 5.40, wonder how he got to the ship, poor thing. Well I was very glad to get away from the mist and icebergs. Not great weather so maybe it is time, after all the nice weather we have had. I was back in the gym and even out of the gym you could not see anything, just mist or fog or whatever you call it. Sometimes I don’t know if hearing all the behind the scene dramas, is a good thing, what you don’t know about does not worry you .Heard after lunch that the captain and staff capt were up all night and that one can actually get stuck in the ice, that’s what I would call to much information!!! Anyway we are on our way to Seward and should be there tomorrow at  5.So bye for now.