Monday, August 19, 2013

Summer Vacation Time in Alaska!


This summer, my family and I went on a vacation to Alaska. Our vacation started with a plane trip from Los Angeles, California to Anchorage, Alaska. I always thought that Alaska would be icy and cold, but it wasn't during the summer. We took a long bus ride to a city in Alaska called, Whittier. Whittier wasn't much of a city, just a small port. The bus driver told us that all of the people who lived there, lived in one building.  Docked in the port of Whittier, was a huge cruise ship, and I couldn't wait to get in it and start sailing.  My family was booked for a seven day cruise down the inside passage of Alaska, which stops in the cities of Hoonah, Juneau, Skagway, and Ketchikan.  

"The Norwegian Sun" photo by : my Dad

Once we got inside the ship, I was amazed at how big it was.  I was most impressed by how many activities the ship had on it. The ship was so big, it even had a basketball court! They had a kid's club, a teen club, two pools, basketball courts, shuffleboard, golf areas, ping pong, (table tennis) and last but not least the ship had shows every night for seven nights. My favorite city in Alaska would probably be Hoonah. I really liked Hoonah because it was an island, and there was a lot of wildlife. I also liked it because the population was only 700 people. I've always wanted to live somewhere where its not too crowded. The people of Hoonah live modestly and the live off of the land. The natives of Hoonah are from the Clinket Indian tribe.

The City Of Hoonah


The next city we stopped in was Juneau, which is the capital of Alaska. In Juneau we saw the Governor's mansion (which was not really a mansion in my opinion). In Juneau our bus driver told us that Alaska has the second largest rain forest in the world ( The largest is the Amazon in Brazil ). In my opinion, the most important fact from my Alaska trip was that the Russians owned Alaska, but then the Americans bought it from them. Our last stop in Juneau was to the Mendenhall Glacier. When I first saw the glacier, I noticed the blue color of the ice. It almost looked like a giant crystal. The ice turns blue because of the many compressed layers of ice. I thought the glacier was going to be smaller, but it was huge!

 The Huge Mendenhall Glacier


Governor's Mansion in Juneau Photo by : Me



The next city was Skagway. In Skagway we took a long drive to the Yukon, which is actually in Canada. My absolute favorite thing from our trip was going to the Musher's camp! We saw the trainers training the adult husky breed to eventually run in the Iditarod race! Then we got into a cart, and the trainers had the husky's pull us on a trail! I was so impressed, because the dogs knew exactly where to go. I loved the part when we got to play with the husky puppies. They were so cute!

Alaskan Husky Pup


Our final stop in Alaska was Ketchikan. One thing I remember about Ketchikan was all the shops. We also took a nature tour. We looked for bears... sadly we didn't find any, but we did see a lot of bald eagles. In Ketchikan, I was introduced to the Salmonberry bush, which is a common berry used to make Salmonberry jam (no, it's not actually made of salmon). When I tried the Salmonberry jam, I was blown away. I have to say it is now one of my favorites. If you ever get a chance to try it, do not hesitate.

Alaskan Salmonberry Bush

Bald Eagle


Alaska was a great experience and I am so glad I went. I got to see and try a lot of new things. I hope I get to go back to Alaska again.



 Have you ever been to Alaska?
Have you ever seen any wildlife creatures up close?
Would you like to try the Salmonberry jam?






4 comments:

  1. Dear Alexandra,

    I loved reading your new post about Alaska! About five years ago, I went on a cruise with my husband and his parents, and we had a magnificent time as well.

    One of my favorite places was the Mendenhall Glacier. It was so large and blue! The ranger brought a barrel of ice chips from the glacier for visitors to see, hold, or taste! It was so clear, it looked like glass.

    I also really enjoyed seeing the wild life. We went to an eagle rehabilitation center in one of the cities and got to see an eagle up close. They are quite majestic. I can see why we chose them for our national bird!

    Did you go to any of the camps on board?

    Did you bring home any souvenirs?

    Your proud former teacher,
    Mrs. Y♥llis

    P.S. See you tomorrow! :-)

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  2. @ Mrs. Yollis,

    Thank you for such a wonderful comment on my blog!

    To answer your questions, I did not go to any camps, but I did spend a lot of time with the sports (especially basketball), and I brought home 2 souvenirs, such as a small clay turtle, and a bottle of Alaskan sand.

    I also loved visiting the Mendenhall Glacier! I could not believe how big it was! I did not know glaciers were that big (probably because i've never seen one before that). When I went to the Mendenhall Glacier, I didn't get to try the ice, but if the guy with the barrel was there, I would.

    I also saw many eagles, and I agree, they are majestic! I went to a place where they kept baby animals until they were adults, and we saw many animals, such as mules, eagles, caribou etc...

    Did you have any other favorite places in Alaska?

    Your former student,
    Alexandra

    P.S Is it true that you collect heart shaped rocks?

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  3. A wonderful post. Well written. I like your short sentences. You structure your thoughts in such an ordered and logical way that make a pleasure to read your story. Congratulations Alex and welcome to this exotic and fabulous world of story tellers. I am so proud of you. Keep writing and read as much as you can. It will make richer your prose and I can imagine that you will write your first novel before you are 16.
    I love you very much and I remember you every time I seat in front of my computer to work in my stories.
    A big hug and a kiss,

    Abuelo Manuel.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dear Abuelo,

      Thank you for commenting on my blog!

      When I read the part when you said when you sit in front of your computer you think of me, I smiled :). I really want to be a writer like you when I grow up, and I look forward to when I do write my own novel. I will continue to read, maybe even more than I did before!

      Your granddaughter,
      Alexandra

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