North to Alaska
After waiting two long years (thanks Rona), we were finally able to go on our family vacation to Alaska! The first day was full of planes and buses and pizza in the hotel room, but I was so excited to be back in Alaska that I teared up when the plane landed. Our first night was in Fairbanks, the biggest city in Alaska. We were only there for a few hours, but the pizza we ate was definitely one of the best pizzas I’ve ever had (then again, I could’ve been delusional from the 13hrs of flights).
Our trip to the next hotel was breathtaking, and the hotel was just as such. The food was delightful, the room stunning, and then - it snowed! Pictures don’t do it justice but it’s still worth the try.
Waking up to this was the ultimate highlight of my trip - like, look how gorgeous!
Sadly, we were only at each of our hotels for one night but we took full advantage! After a beautiful glass-dome train ride through Denali National Park filled with scenery and wildlife, we arrived in Talkeetna. This quaint town is one of my personal favorites because of its great food, talented local artists, and they have a cat for a mayor! In 2015, I met the late Mayor Stubbs - a very exciting moment for a cat lover. Unfortunately, the current Mayor Denali was out of office, or roaming the neighborhood, and I wasn’t able to meet @denalimayorcat this time (I guess I will have to go back!).
We were so very lucky to wake up to such a clear third day, and were able to see the full Denali mountain! The mountain is covered by clouds two-third of the time, only allowing 30% of the park’s visitors to see the mountain - and thus coining the term “30 Percent Club”.
After an eventful and picturesque 3 days on land, we boarded the ship and began our 7 day trek south. The cruise we were on was a little over half full, which was nice and made for a less people-y vacation. We ate way too much food and had a little too much to drink, but it was a blast!
On the cruise, we visited three ports - Skagway, Juneau, and Ketchikan. In Skagway, we rode the White Pass & Yukon Route Railway and toured the city. We went whale watching, visited the Mendenhall Glacier, and had a fabulous lunch in Juneau. We finished off with my beloved Ketchikan, the coolest port city there is! We walked down Creek Street, visited a few local bars, and of course, went shopping.
Alaska, as always, did not disappoint. It was amazing, beautiful, cold, and calm. As everyone who knows me knows how much I love Alaska, I am glad to be back home with our cats and to get back to our normal routine. After every trip, there’s a time between who I was there and who I am back home. Allowing those two energies to flow into one new being is a weird transition but one that I am always eager to experience. ‘Til next time Alaska!
Oh, and I forgot to mention that out of 8 family members, 7 of us got Covid. So that was fun - we almost got stuck in Canada (the boat docked in Vancouver). Luckily, we got home and I was able to recover for a few days before going back to my big kid job. Although, I still don’t recommend getting Covid, it sucked.
Best,
Amber