Friday, September 24, 2010

Touring Anchorage with Good Friends

Our 13-day Alaska adventure ended in Anchorage, where Steve and I were lucky to have the opportunity to connect with old friends whom we hadn't seen in 16 years. Tim and Sharon Jackson have lived in Anchorage for a number of years so we felt privileged to have them personally show us around. Shortly after we arrived at the Anchorage train station after an eight hour ride from Denali, Tim and Sharon took us to the Crow's Nest at the Captain Cook Hotel for a glass of wine or two or more -- frankly I can't remember since we were having such a great time catching up. From the Crow's Nest, we enjoyed a panoramic view of Anchorage. Although Anchorage is Alaska's largest city with a population of 280,000, it isn't very big and you can get the whole lay of the land from the Crow's Nest.

A few days before we arrived in Anchorage, Tim had asked me if there was anything we particularly wanted to see in Anchorage. Since Steve had been craving for really fresh grilled halibut ever since we arrived in Alaska and hadn't yet had any, I told Tim that we were on a quest for halibut. The next day, after taking us on a brief tour of downtown Anchorage and Earthquake Park, Tim and Sharon took us to the Alyeska Resort in Girdwood. Since Tim and Sharon used to work at the Alyeska Resort, everyone knew them there and we were treated like family. And Steve finally got his fresh halibut. Misson accomplished!

Alyeska Resort is Alaska's most luxurious property. The grounds are gorgeous and populated with some of the largest flowers I have ever seen. But then everything is bigger in Alaska, right? After lunch, we took the tram to the Seven Glaciers Restaurant, Alyeska's Four Diamond restaurant which Tim used to manage. We got our very own private tour of the restaurant (it wasn't open for lunch) and I enjoyed hearing Tim's stories about what it takes to get and maintain the AAA Four Diamond Award. On a clear day, one can see seven glaciers from the restaurant. Since we didn't have a clear day we didn't see the seven glaciers but still managed to take a few good pictures through the patchy fog.

Our trip to Alaska had it all -- stunning glaciers, majestic mountains, wildlife sightings, inspirational moments and a visit with old friends. I know I'll be back!

More photos of Anchorage

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