Alaska 09'

Flying into Anchorage, Alaska from Orlando, Florida was a huge change. It took about 10 hours total flight time and another 4 hours counting check-in times, connecting flights, and baggage claim. Overall it wasn’t a short trip but it was well worth it. The flight itself was just as good as any sightseeing tour I’ve ever been on. You could see every snow tipped mountain, every lake, every stretch of trees and all of the clear blue water around Anchorage. We arrived in Alaska at around 3PM (AKDT) the first thing we noticed was that it was not as cold as we all expected; A long sleeve shirt did just fine in the afternoon. We rented a car from Budget at the Anchorage International Airport and drove to the Marriott in Anchorage which was only about 10 miles away but having the freedom of driving at your own pace and being able to stop whenever you felt like it was the best part of the deal. The Marriott was a very clean hotel in a great location near shopping, the “beach” and a train that takes you to the ports for major cruise lines. After checking in at the hotel we drove around town to kill time as we waited for three more of our family members to arrive. The hotel workers informed us that the most popular place for tourists in Anchorage is 4th Avenue. Though it’s not as busy or crowded as Times Square, it had everything you needed as a tourist. All of the gift shops had generally the same things such as hand-crafted Native American goods, Animal mounts, T-shirts, and more. I also can’t forget to mention that everywhere you turned was an “Ulu Knife” which is named “the knife of Alaska”, it’s basically a handle attached to a semi-circular blade prices ranged from as little as $2.99 for a basic wood handled knife with a stainless steel blade to over $300 for walrus tusk or bone handled knife. Whichever price range you choose be aware that Alaska does not want you to leave without an Ulu Knife! After walking around town for a few hours we headed back to the hotel and waited for everyone else to arrive. We were on the 19th floor and the view was amazing. One major thing we noticed is that from 3PM to 6PM the sunlight has not changed one bit, we were in Anchorage at the time of year where the sun does not set until around 1AM. After we all settled down we were on the hunt for a place to eat, our first pick was Simon & Seaforts Saloon & Grill mainly because of all the advertisements we’ve seen in the magazines in the plane and the good reviews from the locals and it was a very short drive away from the hotel as well. The overall setting of the restaurant was very laid back and comfortable. The menu consisted of mainly American Steakhouse classics; I had the Pan Seared Chicken Breast with Roasted Mushroom Stuffing. It didn’t take long for the food to arrive and I can say it didn’t take long for it to go either it was absolutely delicious in every aspect no wonder Simon & Seaforts ranks with some of the best steakhouses in the country. At the end of our meal we each received individual cards with an important life quote, similar to a fortune cookie- it was a very unique concept. We left the restaurant around 10:30PM and the sun was still shining as bright as it did at 3. After driving back to the hotel we settled down again and prepared ourselves for a good night’s sleep after a long day’s travel, and got ready to take off for Salmon Fishing at Knudson Cove in Ketchikan, Alaska.