Three weeks have passed. I used the last two days to check out Anchorage, to write some postcards, and get my gear packed for the trip back to Europe. Right now I am sitting here at the airport and wait for my Condor flight DE 6067 back to Frankfurt and then to Vienna, thinking about my time here.
Two days ago I arrived in Anchorage at the most beautiful weather you could imagine. Sun and clear blue skies wherever you looked. Wow, that’s a whole different Alaska that appears under such conditions! If it had been like this, we would have had a whole different journey, probably at the price of haven’t seen as many things as we have, because the wonderful sights would have made us stay at so many places so much longer. So even with lots of rain, we spent several thousand kilometres on the road, even getting to Canada’s Yukon Territory.
I came down from Palmer, not too far away from Anchorage. We visited the Musk Ox farm there and you know what? “Musk Ox” is quite misleading, there’s nothing about an ox in them. In fact, they are probably the biggest goats you find on earth. Goats! And to some extent they look like little relatives of bisons!
I took a photo of one of the “bulls”, Goliath was his name. I assume he wasn’t in too good a mood that day, since he immediately charged me when I bent down to take the picture at eye’s height. The guide told me, I was the first person that day that made him charge, despite his bad temper (it was the last tour, so I guess it was about time anyway). Funny animals, they make grunting noises like lions. Hm, lions, let me see – maybe I should then add my “musk ox encounter” to my “wildlife series collection” that I started in Bangkok two years ago?
What to write about Anchorage? In terms of citizens it is about the size of Graz, the second largest town in Austria. The geographic spread up here in the north is probably bigger since the houses are not that tall, mostly the very usual American way of building. By the way, there are some nice areas in Anchorage that might also fit Beverly Hills and other sunny sides of the world. Wouldn’t mind living there (at least in the summer). Also in other respects it resembles very much many other US cities. Few taller buildings in the center (mostly banks, hotels, administrative buildings, in that order), then very flat at the “outskirts”. Some nicer streets for tourists (4th and 5th Ave).
Three things however are really remarkable about this town: First of all, the Native Heritage Center and the Rasmuson Museum of Arts and History are really great. The first, because you got a good impression on native cultures (there are much more than only Inuit) and you could talk the natives all along the open air museum and listen to their stories. Awesome!
And the Museum of Arts and History has also great exhibitions: photos, paintings, exhibition about the lifestyle, many things to touch and try out, really amazing! Could you imagine that people paddling their canoes could hear seals under water by using their paddles? I didn’t know that!
And there’s one more thing: Anchorage is THE capital of small airplanes and floatplanes. I have never ever seen so many of them scattered throughout the town as here! At other places, people have a second car, here they have a (float)plane! Amazing! Lake Hood alone is said to have more than 800 starts and landings – per day! Maybe it’s well worth spending one summer here, doing a pilot licence and take that back to Europe?
Right now I am waiting for an other flight, the one that is to take me home again. Unfortunately the plane is late, it has arrived late and departure is postponed by at least 2 hours. Together with the three hours or so I had 5+ hrs to check out the not-so-big international terminal of Anchorage. Chances I get my connection in Frankfurt are quite small, but maybe they manage. Well, at least they have free WiFi here, so I can write and post this update.
Thanks if you read my few brief lines and joining me on this cruise – I appreciate you bearing with me 🙂
Take care, my friends and have great days until this feature is continued with my next journey