Sensational Sitka & beyond

What a great place Sitka turned out to be - doubtless the gorgeous weather helped. The ship anchored off shore and we were taken to the dock on tenders - aka the lifeboats. I figured if we had to use them for the real thing the food wouldn't be quite what we'd become used to!!
According to Wikipedia "The name Sitka (derived from Sheet’ká, a contraction of the Tlingit name Shee At'iká) means "People on the Outside of Shee," Sheet’-ká X'áat'l (often expressed simply as Shee) being the Tlingit name for Baranof Island. The town is sometimes referred to as "Sitka-by-the-Sea."
Once ashore Kev & I headed straight for the historical area on the advice of a local - great decision as it turned out. Becky & Martha had both decided to go off on seperate tours so we didn't meet again until it was time to re-board.
Down at the historical area, at the end of town, we walked through a beautiful park which had various totem poles amongst the trees. In times gone by, 1804 to be exact, there was a major battle between the Alaskan natives and Europeans which took place there.
The walk led us to the museum where we had a quick look around and then spoke to a craftsman who carved totem poles - also a woman was making beautiful bead jewellery which looked like very tedious work.
Back in the main part of the town we visted a couple of the shops, many of which were selling Russian artifacts. Fascinating Russian church in the centre of town amidst such natural beauty - Sitka would have to be my favourite of the Alaskan towns we visited.
Back on board we steamed towards Vancouver with breathtaking views along the way. The second last night there was a a midnight banquet which Kev & I attended - half an hour before the food was available to be eaten was set aside for photography - amazing works of art which tasted delectable!!
Our last dinner aboard Martha & Becky decided to eat from the buffet on the outside deck instead of coming to dinner with us. It wasn't quite the same without our travelling companions but we partied on regardless with the rest of our dinner table friends - Karen, Jacqui, Wendy & Bill from Canada. Great people, they were such fun to spend time with...the champagne helped too!! It was also a chance to say goodbye to the our fantastic waiters. Ah well - all good things come to an end at some time. Back in Vancouver disembarkation was nothing like the hassle it had been to get on! Suddenly it was all over!!!

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