The Return from the Honeymoon
Dearest Mother and Father,
Vancouver has met us with the most pleasant weather. The natives are friendly; my bride and I have even picked up a smattering of the local language. Our gear is packed for our passage to Alaska. We should have enough rations for the winter but shall return to the east if our supply should expire. The Yukon calls, so I must be off. Hope this letter finds you well.
Yours,
A.
I never claimed to be much of a travel writer, but I thought I would give it a shot here at AdamDShandler.com. Besides, it’s been a while since I filled the pages of this section with anything, so why not a blurb on our fascinating honeymoon — on an Alaskan cruise with a few days in Vancouver.
First, some jabber on the wedding itself. (I can hear you all saying, “Please, Adam, tell us all the details and don’t leave anything out!) Well, I never thought that the bride and groom could actually have a good time at their own wedding, but we did. In fact, I think this was my favorite wedding. But then again, I have six in the coming year, so it’s very possible that another couple’s “Oops I Did It Again” could knock our “Genie in a Bottle” off the top spot.
The big day can be summed up like this: 300 people and we got around to all of them. We all danced a very long horah, two actually, where my old cronies lifted me up on a chair in an attempt to send me into orbit. Michelle and I actually got to dance with one another a few times, but regrettably, did not get to eat. Oh, if I could only get those minutes back! I would have scored me some cocktail weenies! If you live in the New York area and need a great band for your affair, you can’t do better than the Mo Shapiro Orchestra. This name may conjure up an image of a bunch of geezing white tuxedoed Catskillians drooling into their trumpets, but let me inform you that these guys can rock. (One of the horn players even played with Bruce. Springsteen. Not during the wedding, regrettably.)
Is there anyone in the house willing to write our thank you notes? Anyone? No? We have a template. It’s real easy. We pay by the hour.
So the following weekend it was off to the Pacific Northwest where Michelle and I would hang in Vancouver before voyaging up to Alaska’s inner passage. Vancouver is a beautiful city — a marvel in that can be surrounded by bucolic, pastoral forestry yet still be a thriving urbania. The town is clean as its mass transit system runs on an electric cable system. We tested out our new digital camera at the Harbour Centre, Vancouver’s much smaller but formidable answer to the CN Tower in Toronto. There, one can take in all the beauty and sprawl from a 360 degree rotunda. It costs about 14 dollars to go up the chute, but hey it’s Canadian dollars. Go twice!
Also of note were Stanley Park, a haven for nature sniffing bike riders and in-line skaters. It’s also the home of one of the finest Aquariums we’d ever seen. And, hey, I’ve been to Sea World on both coasts! A beluga mother just gave birth to a baby boy this summer, so hurry over there because these things don’t last as babies for long.
Beluga and son at the Vancouver Aquarium Beluga and son at the Vancouver Aquarium
Dinnertime brought upon us a perfect sienna sunset, which made dining at artsy Granville Island a treat. At the Sandbar Restaurant (awesome fish) we were lucky enough to get a table overlooking the rivets in the support stanchion of one of the local bridges. You just don’t get that from the Discovery Channel. A 2-dollar water taxi ride (again, Canadian dollars) will get you from downtown to Granville in about a minute.
Alaska, the former Russia! To there!
Ever been on a cruise? The steel drums, the water slide the non-stop festive atmosphere…yeah, this didn’t have any of that, but before you sign off all disappointed and such, let me explain.
Alaskan-bound liners, naturally not destined for tropical climes, do not have the spirit of cruises headed for the Caribbean or the Mexican Riviera. The (ahem) demographic is considerably older. (The average age on our ship, The Norwegian Wind, was about 60.) But that’s okay, because by 8 PM most of the ship is asleep and you have free reign of the vessel. Also note that Alaska can get rather chilly (yes, it’s true) and it tends to rain somewhat as summer takes its final bow. Thus, there isn’t a lot of nonstop partying on deck. But never mind that, because one can overcome their nipping partying desires at an art auction or heart-pounding games of Scrabble.
Now, some Alaskan cruises will shoot you all the way to the Bering Strait where you can sip duty free vodka with a Siberian. Others will take you to the beautiful Denali National Park, home of Mt. McKinley. Yet others, like the Norwegian Wind, simply glide through Alaska’s inner passage — a strip of land in the southeast part of the state that borders Canada’s Yukon territory. It’s just as breathtaking as the other jaunts and highly educational, as this is the home to some of the state’s first cities.
Aboard the ship, pulling into Juneau Aboard the ship, pulling into Juneau
Our first port-of-call was Juneau, the state capital. It’s a city that has all the trimmings of a standard state capital, with civic buildings, courts, banks and a downtown area of reasonable dining and tchotchke shops. Michelle and I took part in the panning for gold expedition, just like settlers at the turn of the century. Except the settlers weren’t given pans with gold already in it. We were driven up Mount Juneau on a tour bus that cruised through residential Juneau and then up the mountain. We came to a bloated river (the Juneau river, I think), and were instructed in the delicate, backbreaking, but whimsical task of gold panning. The rushing water and Alaskan wilderness made it all worth it. So did the local water hole– the famous Red Dog Inn, replete with live, sing-along music and sawdust on the floor.
Skagway was our second stop. This was an old mining town that had its historical heyday in the late 1890’s. Main Street gives the town that Old West feel, and if you listen to the stories hard enough you’ll know that Skagway had its own share of outlaws, saloonery and “businesses of negotiable affection.” It was in Skagway where our tour group was taken to a nearby cookhouse and treated to a salmon bake, one of the best meals I’ve ever eaten. Picture hundreds of long salmon filets cooking up pink on a big ol’ barbecue. Patrons were then presented with a show detailing the history and culture of the area. There were tunes and poems and a giant Malamut. But not in that order.
Glacier Bay — Some of the World’s Largest Icecubes Gacier Bay — Some of the World’s Largets Icecubes
Finally, it was off to Ketchikan, Alaska’s first-ever city. That was our only sunny day and the one with the highest temperature — a comfortable 65. It was an ideal day for kayaking near the Tatoosh Islands (tatoosh being the Tlingit word for “breasts”. I kid you not.) Michelle did a tremendous job steering us, while I did a tremendous job rocking the boat. I was hoping to see some bears, whales and salmon, swimming by us with smiles as we navigated the family of islands. But alas, we only saw eagles. But I was not disappointed. Eagles in the wild can be pretty splendid too. (Y’know I think I’ve seen more bears in New Jersey than I did in all of Alaska…)
So that is merely a quick report from a honeymoon that celebrated a great Canadian city and our country’s 50th state. And make no bones about it. Alaska (though some feel it is still a territory) bleeds red, white and blue, as many of its storefronts display banners that read “This is my flag.”
The Adam D. and Michelle Shandler travel agency is now closed. Until our next trip.
-Adam