Month: July 2021

We woke up early and were greeted by brand new sunrise versions of our beautiful view from our Southerly facing room:

Not hard to take!

I had realized a few days earlier ( so much for my months of planning and endless itinerary writing!) that our ride to the airport would be a bit longer than other rides we’d taken this trip: the mileage door to door was 222 and change, and according to Google maps would take us 4 hours and 19 minutes. ::deep breath:: OK!

Lots of GOOD news: A nice clear morning which was a little overcast, so easy viewing …. got to see all that fabulous scenery all over again …. and, we left in plenty of time to get to the airport. I did set the GPS … even though there aren’t very many turns and it’s pretty difficult to screw up the ride, but here’s the odd thing: At one of the FEW turns, Tallulah (my GPS) was as _silent as the grave!__ The sign at the intersection was quite clear in the direction we should choose …

(Don’t get confused, Alaskan locals, we were actually at the intersection of Route 1 North / South and Route 9) We _were_ on the road to Anchorage, but … confused as to why we weren’t directed to make this turn? Thank God I’m intelligent, and chose correctly!

While I drove toward Anchorage (and my passengers snoozed 😉 ), I ruminated about this trip. Honestly, attempting to visit all of the 50 states has been challenging, fun, a great cocktail party conversation starter, and overall incredible. I continue because I yearn to accomplish the task, and feel very confident that I will do so. Despite the “)%&)_#$*)@!” heat wave, I very much enjoyed seeing Seattle … loved seeing Mike again (and meeting Darlene), and ABSOLUTELY ADORED finally meeting Katy (& Scott). But visiting Alaska, in my very humble opinion, was a life altering experience. A switch somewhere deep inside me flipped “on” in Alaska. People curious about my 50 States Quest often ask, “What’s your favorite state?” I have high praise for Hawaii, with its own brand of jaw-dropping scenery, and which contained a lot of friend-generated unique experiences (Thank you, BBD!), but I feel like Alaska has permanently moved into the #1 position. I will visit Nevada & Arizona in August, and (someday) Kentucky, Nebraska, Colorado, New Mexico, North Dakota, and Montana ……. but I cannot imagine anywhere topping the majesty, the scenery, the wildlife, the sheer size, the very AIR of Alaska. It blows my mind that I’ve only now seen a small portion of the 49th State. I will certainly make the time to finish seeing all 50 of the Nifty United States, but I will hope that a return to Alaska will someday be possible.

A couple of random & odd (who, ME???) left over photos … At breakfast on the morning of our Kenai Fjords National Park Tours cruise, this was the artwork hanging on the wall of the restaurant:

LOL _NOT_ exactly what you want to see just before boarding any kind of water vessel. (Oh, THAT’S why I had extra anxiety before the cruise!)

And … here’s the ONLY MOOSE we saw in person in Alaska:

Yeah. Taxidermy at the Anchorage Airport. LOL ( All good … just another reason to return! 🙂 )

It was a long, long travel day that began in Homer, AK at 6:45 AM (Alaska Daylight Time) on Friday, and ended in Newark, NJ at 6:30 AM (Eastern Daylight TIme) on Saturday, but it was an unforgettable vacation!

I often share posts on social media from a site called the Power of Positivity, and I shared the following recently, because it resonated so deeply with me:

Agreed! Thanks for reading — and, for traveling with us, too — friends! 🙂

While I love to title blog posts with a song lyric, I hadda go with a “The Simpsons” reference this time. 😉

The drive on Thursday morning, from Sterling to Homer is just a little under 2 hours, and as I mentioned, Jim drove down in his truck, in order to show us around Homer. (He hopes to retire there someday.) We arrived at the Homer (“Halibut Capital of the World”) Overlook, with views that were very much as advertised … and bowled us over, as usual!

We visited Bishop Beach ..

We drove onto the Homer “spit” … a 4 or 5 mile strip of land that extends out into Kachemak Bay. Here’s Jim, looking over the Homer boat harbor …

We walked around on the “spit” for a little while …

Had a pretty good lunch at this cute little place …

We drove down to the very end of the spit, where our hotel was located … the very lovely Land’s End.

Check in wasn’t until 5 PM, so we drove Jim back to his truck, and left him with many thanks and appreciation for all that he did!

We did some more souvenir shopping …

And it was there that I sampled …

… Fireweed flavored ice cream! (It was interesting. And pink. 🙂 )

Unfortunately the restaurant at Land’s End (which came highly recommended) was closed for dinner, so we went in search of a meal where we wouldn’t have an hour’s wait. The answer? Nowhere … but we eventually did eat. And Lulu made a new friend …

We were finally able to check in to Land’s End, and spent the rest of the evening admiring the amazing view out of our hotel room window:

Oh, my goodness, Alaska … you did NOT disappoint!

My next (and last) post will wrap up this incredible trip!

I wish to immediately dispel any mystery surrounding the way I ended the “Cruising” post: I realize that I may have alluded to something far more intriguing and/or salacious than it actually was. While waiting for the shuttle back to our hotel after the Day-Long cruise, “Someone” (not me) said they’d be “5 minutes” in the souvenir shop across the street, and subsequently MISSED that shuttle. “Someone else” (yes, me) boarded that shuttle, and asked the driver (after she’d dropped off the others) to circle back to the cruise port before going to my hotel, to look for “Someone”, who’d actually been picked up by the _next shuttle_. In the end, “Someone else”‘s driver GOT LOST (oy!), and by the time “Someone else” _finally_ arrived in the hotel room, “Someone” was sitting there, and asked, “Oh, there you are! 🙂 Did you go for a walk??” Yup. After being on a boat for 8.5 hours, that’s JUST what I did. Not! In the spirit of the title of this post, I guess I’ll keep him anyway. 😉

On the way out of Seward on Wednesday, we got a great shot of Mount Marathon, and the lovely, cool, crisp morning:

On to the town of Sterling! As I gushed in a previous post, “Amazing Alaska – Day 1, Part 1”, Jim P. provided so much help, information, and guidance on this trip, and sent me a few short videos of moose (!!) stopping in his yard in Sterling, the day before we got to his house.

https://www.facebook.com/messenger_media/?thread_id=1134272862&attachment_id=335604378060363&message_id=mid.%24cAAAAAGDWysmAjHY4hF6WyYkSUIin

Just in case you aren’t able to view the video (privacy protected, maybe?), here are some stills:

There were actually TWO calves with the Mamma Moose. It must be just amazing to look out your window & see these creatures on a regular basis! Jim met us on Wednesday morning, at a previously arranged spot, right on the Sterling Highway, and led us to his house. It’s a beautiful, recently built log cabin style home … very cozy!

It was one of those times when, upon walking in, I immediately felt right at home. Although Jim suggested a local festival that we might want to explore, we welcomed the opportunity just to hang out, and have a “Power Down” day. We certainly deserved it! And I loved seeing the Alaska “slice of life” Jim leads. We may have barely known each other back in the 1970’s, but he’s become a friend, and one whom I KNOW will remain one. He already seems like an “old friend”, and I am not referring to our age! LOL

Jim went to run an errand, I caught a quick nap, and by the time I woke up, Gerry had bonded with Shirley over their mutual love of the Hallmark Channel. SHIRLEY!! OMG, Shirley is Jim’s 80-something MOM, who visits him for a few weeks every summer. Shirley is hysterically funny, interesting, spunky, and sharp as a tack! My own Mum always said, “There’s no such thing as a coincidence”, but how crazy is it that Shirley was visiting at the same time as we were, and only days later I’d be in Methuen, Massachusetts, Shirley’s home town? It is safe to say that Shirley and I bonded, as well!!

At dinnertime, Jim cooked for us — freshly (the day before!) caught salmon, halibut, shrimp, chicken, & fixins. A feast fit for kings and queens, for sure! Just before dinner, Jim’s friend Julie arrived, bursting through the door and exuberantly proclaiming, “HELLO, NEW FRIENDS!!” LOL Julie is so sweet, and was interested in hearing all about our travels, both this trip, and previous ones! It was a lively and completely delicious meal!

Something I’d known about, but momentarily forgotten, was how light it stays so LATE at this time of year in Alaska. Dinner wound down, Jim escorted Julie home, Shirley hit the hay, and shortly afterward so did Gerry (hey, them Hallmark Christmas movies’ll wipe ya right out!), and I stayed up with Jim, laughing over “Seinfeld” & “Schitt’s Creek” re-runs, until I realized:

D’oh!! Time to visit dreamland myself!! Loved this decor in the guest room, LOL:

(And thankfully, that’s the closest we came to seeing a grizzly bear! lol)

The next morning we were off to our final destination, and last full day in Alaska, the town of Homer (more in the upcoming post, “Amazing Alaska – Day 4”), and Jim drove down to show us around.

Before leaving, I made sure to capture “the menagerie” in photos … at least part of it. Jim has three pets … Riley, the canary:

Fenton, the cat:

And the king of the menagerie is a gorgeous (and quite crazy) Malamute, named Chumley. I’ve been avidly following Chumley for years, via Jim’s Facebook page videos, and to be perfectly honest, meeting Chumley was absolutely on my bucket list. We didn’t get to interact much … the dog is more than a bit wacky! … but I got to feed him some treats, and pet him for a while, and he’s really (deep down) very sweet. Thanks for your lively “Bye Bye!” at the fence, Chum! Be a good boy!

Before we left, I was very happy that Shirley agreed to pose with Lulu. I can’t decide who’s more lovable, but this photo ranks high on the “Cutest” meter!

Great to meetcha, Shirley, you’re a GEM! I certainly hope our paths cross again!

We hopped into the vehicles, and began the 2 hour drive to Homer, the last town at the tip of the Kenai Peninsula. See you there in the next post!

Shortly after Gerry agreed to join Lulu & I on this trip, he said, “I was talking to a friend of mine, who said the BEST part of his trip to Alaska was a cruise to see the glaciers and whales, but I told him that my wife would never do that.” “Well,” says I, “that’s the first thing I booked.” He was shocked … because I am a hopeless victim of chronic seasickness. Flying, driving, train travel, parasailing, hover boarding, bumpin’ up & down in my little red wagon … I’M PERFECTLY FINE, but put me any water craft, and I’m Not Good.

But … God only knows when I would ever get this opportunity again, so I took the advice of MANY, booked it anyway, and planned to take the Dramamine to make it happen. Although I was dubious, these came highly recommended:

And, in the Lolo & Lulu Grand Tradition of “Go Big or Go Home”, I chose the longest possible cruise (8.5 hours). I wore the wristbands, took another “less drowsy” version Dramamine tablet, and also brought along a whole bag of Dramamine ginger chews. (I shoulda been a Boy Scout!)

Here’s the vessel that would take us for the day … My social media post of this photo included the caption: “Wrist bands, don’t fail me now!” Best news EVAH: THEY WORKED!! Nary a sign of seasickness; I even sat outside for large periods of time!

Going forward in this post, I will share several photos for your pleasure viewing, with minimal text. (It’s a cruise. There’s water. And scenery. And some animals. You’ll get it. 😉 )

https://linksharing.samsungcloud.com/7LB502nMa3MG

https://linksharing.samsungcloud.com/jwNtlUW5PVsf

8 hours on the water sure did tucker the three of us out ….

A word about wildlife sightings: We saw plenty … puffins, eagles, dolphins, orcas, humpback whales, etc. but I wasn’t prepared for the old men pushing me out of the way to get to the rails and get a better view. LOL Most of those images will have to live in my memory, and not in photos or videos.

A word about the weather: We were so lucky: It was sunny & between 50 & high 60’s all week. God is good! 🙂

This wonderful cruise makes one stop, near the end of the trip, at Fox Island, where they provided an ample dinner of salmon cakes & veggies. Here’s an aerial view of Fox Island, showing the boat dock and canteen.

All in all, an absolutely fabulous time. THANK YOU (once again) Jim for the recommendation, and THANK YOU Kenai Fjords Tours for doing it right!

When we were finally reunited back at our hotel (another story for another day … maybe 😉 ), all I could say was “Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz!”

About a week before we were to leave on our Washington / Alaska trip, I was speaking to a friend who’d just seen a piece aired on GMA, featuring recently opened tourist locations in, of all places, Alaska!

https://www.goodmorningamerica.com/travel/video/alaska-welcoming-tourists-back-pandemic-78396771

(Thanks, Babs!) I was absolutely THRILLED to find that I’d already booked two of the featured events, and while very intrigued by the whole sled dog thing, I wasn’t really sure. (Would the animals be hurt / mistreated? Would I feel guilty, having the dogs pull my big fat a**? Is it close to anywhere we’ll actually be in the state?) Welp … it was VERY CLOSE to our Seward hotel, and after I was encouraged by another dog loving friend (Thanks, T!), I booked the dog sled ride and tour, and it was incredible!

The Seavey family (dad, Mitch, and son, Dallas) have entered and WON the famous Iditarod Dog Sled Race several times ( Iditarod / Ididaride … see what they did there? 😉 ), and operate this facility, where they breed, raise and train dogs to run the famous race. The whole thing is positively fascinating … well run, well done, and one of the best experiences of our trip! (When I threw caution to the wind & booked it, after which Gerry said, while reviewing the itinerary, “We’re going on a DOG SLED???”, I had my doubts, but it was better than I could have imagined.)

We learned so much — about the event and its history, the dogs, the breed! When the dogs run the Iditarod race, there are 12 – 16 dogs pulling the sled, the musher, and the supplies, which weigh a total of about 300 pounds. The steel wagon in which we were about ride weighs 900 pounds, EMPTY!! But, as we were told, the 14 dogs pulling us are doing weight training, much like a weight lifter or other athlete trains using weights. We were fully assured that the dogs are not hurt in any way, pulling the wagon.

Before boarding the wagon, we were escorted to … the PUPPY PEN!!

OMG, they are so darn cute!! They are NOT, as I (and most people) expected, members of the Husky or Malamute breed, but rather “Sled Dogs”, per se, and are not a recognized AKC breed. They’re specifically bred & raised to have long legs for racing, and have a variety of coat colors.

This lil guy was chewing the leg of my jeans, and was happy to picked up … licked my face, and nuzzled in. Not gonna lie, I was momentarily in love!

We then proceeded to hear more about the individual dogs when they race, and the canine who modeled the gear worn, etc. was a great dog named, Fez. Yes, once again we found THE GOLDEN DOG! (LOL — see my Facebook post on June 23 to get the reference https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=10158355781316376&set=a.45346541375)

Fez was great, and walked along very placidly through the audience, although he was less than cooperative when it came time to don the gear.

Atta boy, Fez. 🙂 Thanks for the entertainment!

It was then finally time to climb aboard the dog “sled” (like said earlier, really a steel wagon), and travel a 2-mile trail, led by 14 VERY excited dogs!

If I had any doubts about this ride, I was finally convinced when I saw how out-of-their minds EXCITED the dogs were, upon being hooked up. Here’s a short video of the beginning of our ride: https://linksharing.samsungcloud.com/6iuyUl1Jsexv

Incredible! (and sorry for the sideways camera, my friends. BTW, you might be wondering where Lulu was during all of this … she was safely tucked away in my purse. “I’m actually more of a cat person, Mom,” she said. “You & Dad enjoy!”)

At one point along the trail, these amazing animals were given a rest. Time for us to catch our breath, and once again admire the scenery. THEN, our Musher, this 5 foot nuthin’, 95-lbs.-soakin’-wet gal named Lara collected all of our cell phones, and ran around taking photos of us. Watching her do this … balancing 4 cell phones while both taking shots and NOT DROPPING anyone’s phone (!) … was delightfully astounding!

From afar:

And then closer:

And finally a great close up of the wagon:

Great job, Lara! Wonderful ride, Dogs! Stunning attraction, Seaveys! We will remember this experience always!

I must begin the Alaska portion of this story by taking a moment to sing the praises of our champion: Jim Perzechino. Jim & I graduated from Salem (NH) High School, both in the Class of 1976. The best we could each probably say back then is that we knew “of each other.” Never really traveled in the same crowd, never really took any of the same classes. In a class of 422 students, that was not surprising. We became Facebook friends a few years ago, and have done some sharing between our classes from time to time (we’re both teachers.) He’s an awesome person, and offered a wealth of information and travel tips about Alaska, as he’s lived there for many years now. We would have had a _very different_ trip if it hadn’t been for Jim’s guidance, suggestions, and hospitality … Oh, yes, he invited us to stay at his place one of the nights of our trip! (More on “Day 3 Alaska”) THANK YOU, Jim, for EVERYTHING!

OK! On to Alaska, the Last Frontier!

I wish to skip past (and, if possible, completely block from my memory) the Seattle Airport Frontier, where we waited an hour in a line that snaked & rat mazed all over two floors of SEA-TAC, just to _GET_ to security clearance. Ridiculous!!

But, cleared we were, flew we did, and upon arriving in Anchorage we were rewarded with NO LINE at the Car Rental counter, AND the cars located directly on the Airport property — no Shuttle necessary! We hopped into our Jeep SUV (“This?” questioned Gerry. “Trust me,” I replied. And, FYI, I was right. ;-))

Here would be a good time to mention that, THE MOMENT we got on the road to the Kenai Peninsula from Anchorage, I was on a Scenery Overload that never quit for the whole week. Photos will prove it, but the photos don’t do the Real Place a fraction of the justice it deserves. To say that Alaska is Amazing is a vast understatement!

First Official Alaskan Stop:

The website describes it best: The Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center (AWCC) is a sanctuary dedicated to preserving Alaska’s wildlife through conservation, education, research and quality animal care. It’s a WONDERFUL place! And … only an hour out of Anchorage, and the dirt pathways leading to / around the AWCC was immediate proof of the need for an SUV. 🙂

We saw … a delightful porcupine …

Beautiful deer …

A herd of musk ox … (Note: That SCENERY!!)

A truly majestic eagle … which, seemed to me to be about as tall as I am (5’3″)

“Thing” from The Addams Family … oh, wait … no, just more deer. 😉

A brief video of a black bear … with another cameo appearance by “Thing” …

.https://linksharing.samsungcloud.com/hJ80evXeWML0

A buffalo herd …

And, speaking of buffalo … I simply MUST comment on this photo, which has now become the quintessential Lulu in Alaska photo, one of the very FEW I posted to Facebook while still in Alaska …

Ummmm … how can I put this delicately and kindly? THEY AIN’T REAL BUFFALOES, FOLKS!!! (Holy Moly!!) This is a very cute photo-op at the AWCC … but I was pretty confused by some of the comments on the Facebook post, proclaiming how “amazing!” this was, and what a dare devil I must be!! Not. Even. Close. LOL Just look at their hooves, sweet people: Cardboard cut-outs, mounted on wooden blocks!!

The Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center was a great way to begin our Alaska experience. About halfway between Anchorage and our first night, in Seward (a port town on the east coast of the Kenai Peninsula). We were refreshed in so many ways, arriving in Alaska, not the least of which was due to the temperature!

(And, no, it was NOT 2:17 AM, but 48 degrees was a fact! YAY!!) We arrived at our “hotel” …

… dumped off our stuff, and headed to our last adventure for the day: A visit to Seavey’s Ididaride, where we were scheduled to do a Dog Sled ride & tour of the facilities where sled dogs are raised & trained.

Our time at Ididaride was so wonderful that I will devote the next post solely to it! Stay tuned … will there be another Golden Dog in our future???

No joke! 90 degrees at 8:30 AM when we left our hotel! Upon walking out the front door, we saw this:

Had to text this photo to my 16-year-old nephew, who is the World’s Foremost Authority on High End Luxury Cars. Frankly, I’d rather drive my 2007 Honda Fit, but … 🙂

Before we go on, I’d like to share the free promotional shot from the Space Needle on Day 1:

Our first stop on Day 2 was just a few miles away, at church, namely St. Anthony’s in Renton, WA.

And ….. Guess what Seattle doesn’t have much of? No, there are plenty of churches. Seattle & surrounding area (Average temps in June in the 60’s) doesn’t have much ……………yeah, air conditioning (!!) So, because of the current situation, St. Anthony’s wheeled out the industrial strength FANS, which thankfully drowned out the voice of the priest, who spoke with such a garbled accent and cadence, that understanding him was next to impossible.

And after church, we traveled to the place I was MOST looking forward to visiting in all of Seattle: Mercer Island, and the home of my friend, Katy!

I met Katy in 2020, during an online Writer’s Workshop. It was my birthday, and I asked the facilitator if she had room in her workshop that day, only to be told that she was working with a group in Seattle. If I didn’t mind, they wouldn’t mind, and so I met several lovely women from the Seattle area that day. Over the next several months, I had the opportunity to write with Katy a few more times online, and really bonded with her. Her personal story is stunning: She is a survivor of an extremely severe case of Sepsis. (See her story below, if you’re interested) Long story short … despite the loss of limbs (both legs from the knee down) and 7 fingertips, she has Risen Above, and not only has resumed a full life, but is now a member of the National Sepsis Alliance Board. When I began planning the trip to Seattle, finally meeting Katy in person, face-to-face was my NUMBER ONE desire!

Here’s Katy’s Sepsis story, told by her, on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_8NN1KpMx4

Meeting Katy and her husband, Scott was BEYOND fantastic!! We spent a few hours enjoying brunch and the view from their beautiful Mercer Island home … lots of camaraderie, lots of laughs, lots of bird sightings (a Peregrine falcon whizzed by the window at one point!) and Oh. Guess what Katy & Scott _DO_ have? ::drumroll:: AIR CONDITIONING!! LOL Bless you, friends!

This photo perfectly shows what our visit was like:

Loads of laughs & love! Thank you, Katy!! So happy to have you in our lives!

Our next stop _SHOULD HAVE BEEN_ the highly touted, not-to-be-missed Woodland Park Zoo, located just north of Seattle. Tickets had been pre-purchased, but … I thought to myself: Do I really want to shlepp up to this zoo, suffer through the weather, only to (most likely) SMELL the animals, but never actually (most likely) SEE the animals?? Lemmethink NO. I agreed with Katy (who loves this Zoo, but made the same prediction: “When it gets this hot, the animals HIDE.”) And so, we bid our friends adieu, and decided to smell the dead fish instead of the live animals.

OK, after this I PROMISE that I will STFU about the heat, but there you have it.

The upshot of visiting Pike Place at 4:45 PM when the weather was so unusual is … Most Things Closed Early, including the Guy who throws the Fish. Ohhhh, well. (The air was still full of the remnants of Fish Du Jour! LOL)

We _did_ get great shots at the entrance:

And the copper pig …

And with Sasquatch … (Sasquatch?)

All in all, we hit the heights in Seattle, and visited the most important sights (and PEOPLE!) that Seattle has to offer. We headed back to our hotel to rest up for the next day: Arriving in ALASKA!!!

Wow! After the last Year Plus of the Covid-19 Pandemic, and the school year I just finished, getting to TRAVEL again has been a privilege and blessing beyond measure!!

Yes, yes, that is, in fact, the Seattle Space Needle comin’ outta Lulu’s head! The skies were as blue as proclaimed in the theme song to “Here Come the Brides”, but we arrived in Seattle for our short 2-day stay during a RECORD HEAT WAVE! By the time we arrived at the Space Needle, the THERMOMETER NEEDLE was hitting almost 100 degrees F!

We began our weekend meeting up with a High School friend, Mike Limanni and his lovely wife, Darlene!

We met at Papaya Renton, a Vietnamese restaurant, a scant 5 minutes from our hotel in Renton, Washington. (ps~ Washington State is my _41st_ state to visit!!) The heat was keeping most people away, and we had the place to ourselves. A nice meal and a great reunion of old friends and newly met friends! THANK YOU, Mike & Darlene. It was FABULOUS to spend time with you!!

After lunch, we were on the road north to downtown Seattle, and the Space Needle & Chihuly Glass Gardens, both for which I had pre-purchased tickets online. We did what we could to find shade …

… and it was a gorgeous site, both from the ground …

… and from the sky!

We proceeded to the Chihuly Gardens — after sweating through the line for the place (yay for 99 degrees! LOL) — and the glass sculptures were fabulous. Here’s a sampling:

We skipped the outside portion of the exhibit — Lulu was begging to remain in air conditioning, and we were happy oblige. (When in doubt, ALWAYS blame it on the doll. LOL)

By then, our body clocks were registering the East Coast time of about 8:30 PM, and we were ready for dinner, no matter what the Seattle clock read, so we drove over to our dinner location, and were able to adjust our reservation and were seated immediately.

Assaggio is a sweet Italian place, that’s spacious and offered good food after a long day. Two thumbs up all around!

We ended the day, rather exhausted, in our hotel room (located on the southern shore of Lake Washington), with a stunning view of the sunset!

Busy day tomorrow! Looking forward to seeing more of Seattle!