There are hundreds of retail shops, art galleries, restaurants, different types of lodgings, transportation services, buses, ferries, rental cars, water taxis, float planes, charter fishing, guided tours, museums, public restrooms, phones, cash machines, all geared to the huge influx of tourists arriving from May to September. Since I'm here in the off-season, many things are closed, but there is enough to become acquainted with Ketchikan, and it's great without the crowds.
Tongass Trading Center offered every kind of wear for this weather, every brand, every price range, and hundreds of every item, it seemed.
Friday for lunch, we met Nicole at The Point, a trendy cafe, on the waterfront, a combo playing during the noon hour (wonderful, happy group playing and singing my kind of music), wonderful soups, salads, and sandwiches, and a special, home-baked cookie, your dessert, with each order.
Another reason for going there was to meet with Dave Rubin, wonderful artist-sculptor, musician, that I'll tell you about later. The Point is also a one-stop shopping area for all kinds of yarn, beading, (classes are offered in knitting, beading, etc:)as well as a great display of local artists works.
From what we are seeing, there are many, many talented, gifted, people in this town.
After lunch we rode to the north end of the island, not quite as picturesque as the south end, but nevertheless beautiful, along the water, very dense woods, and again, took a picture of the, "END".
Visited The Totem Bight State Park to see another selection of totems and a clan house carved beginning in 1938 by Natives working with traditional tools to copy fragments of historic poles that had mostly rotted away. Who remembers the CCC, the New Deal's Civilian Conservation Corps? This project helped save a Tlingit and Haida culture that had been essentialy outlawed until that time. There must have been 20 poles, some 60 feet tall, most very intricately carved, and in a perfect spot. The clan house was quite large and would house as many as three families. The setting, at the site of an old fishing camp, beautiful cove on the edge of Tongass Narrows.
Friday night took us to The Narrows for supper. Again, on the waterfront, good food, owner who came to our table and talked about Ketchikan. Of course, we all want seafood, but haven't tried King Crab yet.
Denise and Nancy did some shopping Saturday a.m. while we stayed home and geared up for the Alabama game and I cooked a tail-gate meal, barbecue ribs, potato salad, baked beans, coleslaw, even a dessert.
Sunday, early a.m., took Nancy and Denise to the ferry(they would not let us take them across to the airport), bid them good-bye, and came home to get ready to visit the Lutheran Church at 11:00.
It's like every Sunday, whatever church I'm attending, knows the message I need to hear and prepares it just for me. That was the case again this time. Wonderful message, friendly people, beautiful, old building, good crowd, and I'm happy to say, some children there, very out-going, up-beat pastor, communion, coffee hour after church, and a credo worth mentioning, "Called by Christ, to Invite, Equip and Send".
The Landing Restaurant at the Best Western Hotel called us to lunch where, again we had clam chowder, salmon steaks(which were very good, I had been kinda dreading ordering it because I had eaten some before that was "tasteless", but this was an exception), and by this time, my refrigerator is almost full having taken "doggy-bags" home with us, with no dog at home, and most of the left-overs never eaten.
The "Tongass Trading Triangle" had every kind of souvenier imaginable, clothing, jackets, raingear(every store has this), a nice rather inexpensive shop.
I haven't mentioned cards at all because I'vve had no one to play with since Janie(by the way, she is better, responding to medication, therapy, and all else that goes along with it)went home, so it was nice to play again, but not to lose as badly as I did.
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