A light drizzle misted my glasses. The arrival of the Volendam had nearly tripled the population of Skagway our northernmost point on this cruise. It was insistently overcast and cool but my fleece was exactly right for the conditions and I happily watched two White Pass trains depart for different excursions. On our first foray from the ship, little was open. For a town boy from the south of England used to the cities of Europe and the US this was strange place. We knew of course that much of its antiquity was faux but the history was there. It has roads where Juneau had not and we saw our first Yukon plates.
Poor communications by Holland America coupled with the usual representation of the hard of understanding meant some confusion over passports – though not for us. The train trips go into BC but the authorities on both sides of the border need to lighten up. The only time Canada and the US were ever enemies was surely in the South Park movie. This fanatical checking of documents is wearisome. In fact it is so at all major ports given the quasi-legitimised porosity of the border to the south.
After a brief visit to the ship we went out again. I have been frustrated by the apparent lack of roaming agreements with providers in Juneau and Skagway and have had to rely on Skype and, occasionally, the cabin phone. It appears some of the shops at least reconfigure for their almost entirely local winter clientele – the last cruise call on 23 September. For the season there is a proliferation of Alaska branded clutter which must, I suppose, appeal to someone. I must say I was pleased with my acquisition of a pictorial history of the White Pass and Yukon Route ahead of my afternoon ride as far as White Pass summit.
Poor communications by Holland America coupled with the usual representation of the hard of understanding meant some confusion over passports – though not for us. The train trips go into BC but the authorities on both sides of the border need to lighten up. The only time Canada and the US were ever enemies was surely in the South Park movie. This fanatical checking of documents is wearisome. In fact it is so at all major ports given the quasi-legitimised porosity of the border to the south.
After a brief visit to the ship we went out again. I have been frustrated by the apparent lack of roaming agreements with providers in Juneau and Skagway and have had to rely on Skype and, occasionally, the cabin phone. It appears some of the shops at least reconfigure for their almost entirely local winter clientele – the last cruise call on 23 September. For the season there is a proliferation of Alaska branded clutter which must, I suppose, appeal to someone. I must say I was pleased with my acquisition of a pictorial history of the White Pass and Yukon Route ahead of my afternoon ride as far as White Pass summit.
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