Monday, August 13, 2012

Alaska Trip Videos - August 2012

Here are our videos of our trip to Alaska
First, our Alaska Yidden Trailer.....



....Alaska Yidden Part 1

....And Alaska Yidden Part 2


Sunday, August 12, 2012

Our Trip To Alaska Part 11 - August 2012

Well, we are now on the plane winging our way to Toronto and it is time to complete the past two days and sum up the trip.

Very early on Sunday morning we began the two and a half hour drive to Seward Alaska for our 7 hour whale watching and glacier cruise. Everyone we had spoken to who had been on this cruise raved about it and in retrospect I believe that they all must have gone on days that were sunny with calm seas. Sunday started out as overcast and by the time we reached Seward there was an occasional drizzle. 





 When we boarded the boat the seas were calm. BUT all that was about to change. We headed out of the protected bay which keeps the waters near Seward calm, toward the open ocean and two things changed, the sea became much rougher and the weather changed to a steady downpour. 




Many passengers including some in our group began to feel queasy and very seasick, and needless to say, the bags that they handed out came in very handy. By the time we actually sighted whales and sea otters and glaciers, and bald eagles and sea lions and puffins, most people were either too seasick or too wet from the rain on the viewing decks to really enjoy the experience. And this was in the first hour of seven in total!




We all experienced this in varying degrees other than Fran who felt nothing at all....it was like the proverbial walk in the park for her. She even participated in the educational talks that the park ranger aboard the boat was giving to the "junior rangers"!





We did manage to see all those things and get quite close to two glaciers and get reasonably good pictures but we learned that this kind of excursion should only be booked at the last minute after checking the weather and the conditions at sea. Well, traveling is an ongoing learning experience.....

When we returned to shore wet and tired, we still had a two and a half hour drive back to Anchorage. Upon our arrival at the hotel we all had hot soup and hot Meal Mart TV dinners which were remarkably good. 



Btw, the rabbi's wedding simcha hit the front page of the Sunday edition of the Anchorage Daily News  and was  billed as the first "hassidic wedding in alaska" ....you might be able to see pictures at www.adn.com....I will try to find the link and send it out.

With the weather forecast being similar for Monday, we all decided to sleep in on Monday, finish packing and have a relatively leisurely day. 

Monday was rainy and overcast again. We had a late breakfast, and went to see the salmon swimming upstream but apparently because of very high tides the night before, the salmon decided not to swim on Monday. Disappointing! 

We then drove to the Native Heritage Center. Alaska has many different Indian and native tribes and Eskimos. This center was built to give the visitor some insight to their life, their culture and their homes. We spent a few hours there and while the place could use some guidance on how to professionally portray their customs and culture, it was interesting. 





In the afternoon after lunch, we decided to go downtown and visit the famous David Green furrier store....the store owned by the family that we had visited on Shabbat. Their motto is " if you do not know furs, then know your furrier " !




They are listed in all the tourist guides and have been in business at this location for 90 years. In the early years the founders ( parents and grandparents of the people who now run the business) would go out into the wilds and meet with the native tribes to purchase the pelts from which they would craft their coats, hats, etc. Today they go to all the major auctions and trade fairs and judging from what we saw, they are running quite a major concern. 




We met David and his wife Shani (she is from New York) as well as Debbie whose house we visited on Shabbat. They showed us their fur vault (there must have been one thousand coats in stock) and while we are not experts in the field, we were all very impressed with the workmanship and sense of style that they have. As I might have written in an earlier post, the family is a major supporter of all things jewish in alaska, and especially the Chabad center. While we had not intended on making any purchases, we ended up buying a few items which as David Green said was our way of "supporting the local synagogue :-) " !!!!!

They also filled us in on many interesting facts about the Jewish community in Alaska, the fact that there are only a handful of shomer Shabbat families, how intermarriage is rampant, and the difficulties of being Jewish way up north where you have little daylight in the winter and long periods of sunshine in the summer.

From there we went to visit the family's other enterprise in town, the Polar Bear Shop which they call the "tchotchke" shop. They have the largest supply of tourist type t shirts, hats, chocolates, salmon and small gift items in Alaska. They have two shops downtown and we later discovered that they have a number of outlets at the international airport as well. We all stocked up on some gift items and returned to the hotel for a final packing and our drive to the airport.




This has been a very wonderful trip, a chance to hang out with close friends, a chance to see a remote part of the world, a chance to experience cruising, and a chance to eat tons of salmon....double wrapped, of course. It was also an opportunity to interact with one of the most remote Jewish communities in the world that seems to be doing quite well because of the dedication of the Chabad family that is literally moser nefesh to be there and the support of a few dedicated families that could just as easily be living in a large thriving jewish community. 




We were warned that the weather in Alaska could be a potential problem because even though it is not real cold in Alaska in the summer, it rains a lot and that could ruin many excursions that we had planned. Well, other than the final two days, the weather was amazing. Sunny, warm,with zero humidity. A great way to really appreciate G-d's beautiful creation, the amazing vistas and the unique wildlife that you do not see anywhere else. 

We had a great time and we all agreed that the way to sum up the trip in one word was the word that Josh used at the beginning of the trip, which was used repeatedly throughout the trip...it was most "bekovodik" ....not sure how to translate that other than we had a great time. 

In a few hours we will be back in Toronto, but the memories and the scenery and the camaraderie will linger on...

All the best and thanks for following us....

Fran and David
Josh and Liz
Shabsie and Ruthie

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Our Trip To Alaska Part 10 - August 2012


We had an absolutely wonderful Shabbat in Anchorage
We arrived early enough on Friday to go to the local supermarket and buy supplies for Sunday and Monday and get ready to go to shul.

Chabad has just moved into its new building, a magnificent centre which houses its shul, kindergarten, and soon to be opened Alaska Jewish Museum. The rabbi and his wife moved here about 20 years ago, soon after they were married. 



The Chabad centre is located next door to the hotel where we were staying, literally a 2 minute walk. So given that the forecast was rain, we had no worries. 
We lucked out this Shabbat as the Rabbi and rebbitzin were hosting Sheva brachot for their daughter and new son in law who got married this past Wednesday. The wedding received wide coverage in the local press as it was the first chassidic Wedding in Alaska and was attended by many dignitaries including the Alaska state senator. The mechutan from Kiryat Malachi and his many children were all here for shabbat so there was quite a large crowd for Anchorage. 

There are about 4000 Jews in Alaska with the majority of them in Anchorage. There is only one Orthodox shul in the entire state and this was it. There are a number of other reform shuls in Anchorage, Juneau and Fairbanks. 
On a normal Shabbat in the winter, there is no minyan on Friday night as Shabbat begins at about 3 pm and there are few tourists. On Shabbat morning they will get about 10 to 15 people.  
In the summer, with the number of cruise tourists, there is a Friday night minyan of 15 to 20 men and women and a Shabbat morning minyan of 20 men and 20 women plus tourists. This week because of the simcha there were about 25 men and 25 women Friday night and 50 men and 50 women on Shabbat morning.
There is a famous Alaskan Jewish family here called the Greens. They moved here in the early 1900s and established a furrier business. They are celebrating their 90th anniversary this year and are recognized as the leading fur business in the state. But more important they are also the address for hachnosas orchim and chessed in the Anchorage area. 
They have been responsible for establishing the minyan and raising much of the funds necessary to expand and sustain the Chabad center. Some of the original Green family children lived in Seattle so they knew the Genauer family (Ayala's family) well.
On Friday night after davening we had a very nice meal (our first meat meal in about a week). Besides the tourists like us, Rabbi Greenberg and his wife Esti and their children, the chosson Levi and kalla Mushka, the mechutonim and some of the leading Anchorage Jewish families were all there for dinner.

After we ate, there were a number of divrei Torah and then the rabbi began asking people in the crowd to make a toast to the bride and groom. Representing us, Shabsie made a wonderful speech. Everyone who spoke praised the rabbi and his wife for all that they had done for their family and for the community.
We made it back to the hotel by midnight. 
Like a typical Chabad shul, the davening began on Shabbat morning at 10:30 am. Being rosh chodesh, davening was longer than usual and the rabbi's son was the shaliach tzibbur and the Baal koreh. He lained faster than anyone I had ever heard, but was remarkably clear.
The kiddush that followed was a sit down meal complete with hamotzi and zemiros and divrei Torah; and again the rabbi challenged people in the crowd to contribute something. This morning, I was the spokesman for our group.
At the end of the meal, we struck up a conversation with one of the couples who were members of the Green family, David and Debbie Grashin. They have lived here and in Seattle, she went to Stern and he went to YU and their kids have all been to yeshivas in Israel. 
They invited us to seudah shlishit and while we were not up to more eating, we did decide to take them up on their offer to try and learn more about growing up Jewish and frum in Alaska. 
We finished our meal at about 3:30 pm.
After a good rest, we headed over to their home. It was close to 9 pm and was still very bright outside. Sunset was close to 10 pm and Havdala would not be till past 11 pm. 
They had a few other people there, including a couple that had just left Alaska for Hawaii. Talk about going from one large community to another and changing climates. He was a sea pilot before he retired and he is working on setting up a Chabad community in Kauai. He has a Sefer Torah there and an etrog orchard. 
We heard a number of interesting stories about the community and its early origins. One of the interesting things was that everyone we met over the weekend spoke glowingly about life in Alaska. 
After Shabbat, we went to pick up our rental cars for the next two days and finally got into bed after midnight. 
On Sunday, we are driving over two hours back to Seward to take a cruise of the fjords.
We will fill in again Sunday night
All the best
Fran and David

Friday, August 10, 2012

Our Trip to Alaska Part 9 - August 2012

Here it is about half an hour before we go across the Street to Chabad of Anchorage for Mincha  Kabbalat Shabbat and our first Shabbat meal.

We anchored in Seward Alaska this am and were off the ship by 8:30 am.







We rented a van and thankfully were able to get all our luggage into the van with enough room for us to sit comfortably. We drove the 2 and a half hours to anchorage and checked into our hotel. It is literally next door to Chabad.


We then did our laundry and did our shopping for food for Sunday and Monday. We found out that we are very fortunate that the Chabad rabbi's daughter got married this week here....it was covered on the local news as it is the first chassidic wedding to have ever taken place in Alaska. 
So therefore we will not only be dining with Chabad but we will be participating in Sheva brachot with the family.

We met the mechutan from Kiryat Malachi at the supermarket this afternoon. 

So it should be a very interesting Shabbat.

Btw, Shabbat ends here at about 11 pm.

Anchorage is a city of 200000 people and looks quite developed and modern. It is our first taste of urban Civilization in a week.

We hope you all had a great Shabbat

We will let you know how our Shabbat was by Sunday or Monday.

All the best

Fran and David


Thursday, August 9, 2012

Our Trip to Alaska Part 8 - August 2012

Today thursday is the last full day of the cruise. Tomorrow morning we disembark at about 8 am and we are driving to Anchorage for Shabbat. 

Today we stay on the ship....no port stops. Instead the ship sailed last night in the direction of the Hubbard Glacier, a six  mile wide glacier which is about 300 feet high. We arrived near the glacier at about 8 am and the captain steered the ship within the legal limit of about one mile away from the glacier. 






Because of its sheer size, you thought you were much closer. The real thrill of seeing the glacier is when it "calves" which is when pieces peel away from the glacier and deposit themselves into the icy ocean below. And for this, about 2000 people were lined up on the decks of the ship to watch this phenomena. 









The glacier did not disappoint and calved many times; each time there was a sound almost like thunder when the ice fell into the sea, with the accompanying large splash of water. 

We stayed there for about an hour and it was cold, probably the only time that we have felt cold all cruise.

After watching the glacier, we went to our room and packed as all luggage has to be outside our room by 11 tonite. 

Because we are on the ship all day, they have a series of shows, sales, events etc to keep us occupied. First there was a talent show of the staff of the ship and they were excellent; better than the professional entertainers on board. Then we watched an Iron Chef competition put on by the chefs of the ship. After that, there was a lavish brunch buffet which we could not eat, but it looked great.

We then took a table for all 6 of us and we played a little cards. 

We are now In our room waiting to go to dinner at 6 pm. Tonight there will be a gala variety show in the theatre...should be good.

We are still a few hundred miles from Seward, which is where we disembark and pick up our car for the 2-1/2 hour drive to Anchorage. 

Overall, this has been a very good trip, a chance to be with close friends and also to see many places that we likely would never have dreamed visiting. 

The ship and the accommodations and the service have been outstanding, but it is really the camaraderie that makes it worthwhile.

We will likely post again after our Shabbat in anchorage or perhaps after our 7 hour Sunday cruise thru the Kenai fjords near Anchorage.

We thank you for following us and wish you all a Shabbat shalom.

All the best

Fran and david



Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Our Trip to Alaska Part 7 - August 2012



Well, today was another excellent day. The weather was magnificent. 

We arrived in Skagway, Alaska (population 600) at about 6:30 am. We had a van booked at one of two car rental agencies in town, Avis. We were scheduled to drive north from Skagway, cross from the USA to Canada into British Columbia and then a few mile further into the Yukon. Our destination was Emerald Lake, a pretty emerald colored small lake about 100 Kim's. North of Skagway, about 2/3 of the way to Whitehorse, Yukon. We were told that the scenery was magnificent all along the way.




It seems that the excursion of choice for all the cruise visitors was either the Klondike railway or driving like we decided to do.





Figuring that the single lane Klondike Highway would take an hour and a half each way and then another hour or two to stop for photo opportunities, and based on the fact that we needed to be back on board by 3:45 pm, we decided to try and be on the road by 8:30 am. 



Skagway was established during the yukon gold rush, when it was used as the gateway to the Yukon. At one time, at the turn of the 20th century, it was the largest city in Alaska. Today, the city looks like it looked then, a frontier town, with clapboard sidewalks and the traditional western town look. It is catering exclusively to tourists 99% of whom come into town on cruise ships. Today thee were 4 ships in town so it is likely that there were 10000 people in town. 




We left town pretty much on schedule and headed out of town on the only road that heads north. About 5 miles north we passed USA customs into Canada and because the area is an avalanche zone, the Canadian customs office is about another 6 miles up the road. All along the way there were scenic pull overs on the side of the road. The combination of clear blue skies, amazing mountains and glacier colored waters (lakes, rivers and waterfalls ) was truly scenic. There were very limited services (cafes, toilets, etc) and there are no gas stations at all between Skagway and Whitehorse, a distance of about 120 miles. 





Some of the highlights were Emerald Lake which was an amazing blend of light and dark emerald colors; the Carcross (short for Caribou Crossing) Desert ( a real large expanse of sandy dunes) that is the remains of the bed of a dry glacial lake; and the little town of Carcross where we ate lunch and found COR ice cream. 







It was a photographers delight. And the weather could not have been more perfect. 




When we returned to town, we had about a half hour before having to board, so we took a short walk thru town. I checked my Internet at the only place in town ( which was being run by an Israeli from Miami who lives here for 5 months a year) that has wifi services.

We reboarded the boat and sat in on a cooking demo by Jason our executive chef. We are now resting before dinner.







Tomorrow, we are on board all day as we pass by the Hubbard Glacier and make our way to Seward which is the gateway to Anchorage where we will be for Shabbat

Hope all are well

Fran and David