Today we spent 6 hours in Sitka, Alaska ... Just not enough time to do and see all that Sitka has to offer!!
We began the day by entering the bay and being greeted by whales!!
Sitka is one of the ports that we have to tender into due to the water being so shallow. We watched them prepare the tenders (just lifeboats that they use when tenders are needed).
This particular tender into port was very interesting. When loading, we were all given a letter from the Captain stating that some of the people of Sitka were staging a protest on shore and that local media may be involved. Some citizens of Sitka were protesting the fact that the cruise line uses it's own people (who also happen to be foreigners) to tie up the tenders when going ashore, therefore taking jobs away from locals. The protesters were picketing with signs when we got ashore, but everything was peaceful. I don't quite understand all the issues, but something about the locals thinking that the cruise liners were breaking international laws and hiring illegals to work on their ships (all of which is unfounded).
For this stop, my grandmother had hired a tour guide/cab driver to take us around Sitka - she did this before we had left Seattle! We went all around Sitka and saw amazing things!
Our first stop was the:
This place had a very interesting history. Supposedly the site that houses the bears was originally a Navy base that was erected after the US purchased Alaska from Russia. The Navy base was eventually moved and a lumber/wood chip factory bought part of the base and even erected it's own water sanitation plant. Once the lumbar company had over forested, they had to move on and so the owner of the Fortress of the Bear purchased the sanitation plant part and turned it into a bear rehabilitation sanctuary to acclimate bears to people to prepare them for zoo life. Supposedly many zoos are afraid to take in Alaska wild bears because they can be difficult to train because they are used to the smells and temperatures of Alaska and adding human interaction on top of that causes them to become aggressive.
This sanctuary was very need - thread erected a look out tower above the walls of the sanitation silos so you could look down and see the bears!
The Fortress of the Bear also had a petting zoo for the kiddos!
The miniature pony, Princess. I heard that she lives up to her name ... ;)
They also had some really beautiful flowers planted that I couldn't pass up getting a picture of.
After the Fortress of the Bear, we headed to the Alaska Raptor Center.
This particular bald eagle was born with a genetic defect that caused her beak to become malformed. They found her in the woods extremely malnourished due to the fact that she couldn't catch her prey. She is still young and has not shed her dark feathers that reveal her white head.
After going to the Raptor Center, we went to:
This was a really neat place that had both old and new totem poles, a small museum with Native Alaskan heritage artifacts, and a short film on the Native Clans.
After the historical park, we headed to see the Russian Archangles dance. I took multiple videos, which I hope to upload to YouTube when I get home.
After watching the dance, we went to the Russian Orthodox Church. It was interesting and we saw some of the gold embellished relics.
This was a cracked bell sitting in front of the church.
We had to be back on ship by 4:30, so we had little time to shop at the local shops.
Tonight's dinner was the Master Chef dinner. It wad very fun - complete with dancing and singing by the servers!
Our waiter for most of the week, Ghandi!
Gandhi participating in the napkin dance.
Ghandi - the pepper provider for the salad dance!
Super yummy brie.
Lobster bisque
Sautéed shrimp
Dessert dance - Baked Alaska!!
Well, that's all for tonight! It was a long day and tomorrow is another day at sea as we head to Victoria, B.C.
Turtle, turtle!
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Location:Sitka, Arkansas
