Anchorage Cultural Events

As spring arrives, the breakup leaves outdoor treks rather mushy, there are cultural opportunities indoors to lure the locals to acquire some cultural events. Namely, the past week brought the Symphony, highlighted by a quirky presentation of “An Orkney Wedding with Sunrise” by Peter Maxwell Davies, which ends with a bagpipe solo by Joe Albrech playing while walking down the left aisle. The Opera comes next weekend, and that is always a special event, too.

On a personal level, the winter ended with a trip to Florida, which made me again appreciate the positives of Alaska. We don’t have traffic jams, altho’ some refer to a backup of twenty cars a jam, and waiting thru two traffic lights. As for crowds, we have nothing like ‘Downtown Disney”. It took an hour to find a parking space in a huge parking lot, and walking down the strip was not unlike Christmas shopping. Lots to see and do, but I’m sure the reader will agree it’s great to get away, but greater to get home.

Basketball season is about over now, in the local schools, and the Final Four nationally, and we have so many sports bars here that they’re crowded out the former jazz joints. Sports are just more magnetic by comparison, and more profitable for the clubs.

This remains a good vacation destination, and a land of opportunity. Bring your laptop, because there’s free wireless internet everywhere, and you’ll stay in touch with the whole world! Don’t forget to take out travel insurance because you just never know when Redoubt might ‘blow’ .

Live in Anchorage

It just happened a minute ago. I went downtown Saturday morning to help decorate tables for our Harvest Dinner tomorrow. . . then was dragging home (actually a 2 mile drive) down a main couplet when big ole mama moose and her darling yearling (also big) decided to cross the road right in front of me. Lucky I was alert enough to slam on my brakes and watch their nimble steps across C Street. I didn’t have time to get my cell phone out for a picture, but thought I’d post this old one anyhow to give you an idea of their size. A friend of mine hit one a few years ago and it totaled his car. Also he was reprimanded by Forest Service, and had to fill out forms to show it wasn’t his fault that the moose ran out from the woods into his car. Yes, they have right of way, as do bears and other wildlife.

I don’t remember any November in the past 43 years since I came, that didn’t have snow. We’re having a long autumn season, and it’s all right with me. There are so many events going on, it’s just hard to keep up. The First Friday Art Walk is always pretty special, and this month the Museum of Art and History is featuring a friend from Fairbanks, Sandy Gillespie. We have a huge new addition built on the west side of the original museum, that is quite overwhelming. It was designed by some famous architects in U.K., named Chittendon, or something like that. Well, if this were a proper blog, I’d look it up, but I’m just chatting here. In addition to this, this weekend’s events include (but are not limited to) a Book Sale at the Library, Silver Tea at the American Legion, Gift Bazaar at the new Dena’ina Center, installation of new pastor at our church, Heritage Center Dances, and more.
On the sports scene, the football season at the high schools is winding down now, but the indoor programs at the schools are in full swing — wrestling, volleyball, basketball, gymnastics, etc. Sunday morning and evening has the NFL games in many bars, and clubs, and since Alaska timeis 4 hours earlier than East Coast time, it’s easy to stay awake until the end of the game.
So, let me again tell you that Alaska is a great place to visit year round. Don’t think that because you entered on a cruise ship and left the next day that you’re seen Alaska. There’s much more. One of the best tours I ever took was an extension of an Alaska cruise that took us to Fairbanks, Chicken, Eagle, Dawson, Whitehorse, Skagway and Juneau. . . and don’t forget to buy travel insurance when you come here, there, and everywhere. See my webpage for info and app!

Iditarod underway across Alaska!

This is the big week in Alaska, whether you’re a fan of the Iditarod Races or not. There are already several DQ’s along the route to Nome. I got to thinking, “I wonder if these racers can take out travel insurance.” I guess I’m personally involved, because I was recently licensed to get travel insurance anytime I traveled, usually by plane, or cruising, or even a road trip. Several times I’ve had to file, and made good use of this small investment when my bags were lost, or I missed a flight, or needed medical help. You really should put a few bucks into getting a policy your next trip to anywhere. You can get it online, right here.
In the meantime, keep cheering for your dogteam, and check back to see who the winner is. Later . . . vrc