Juneau et le glacier Taku

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(Map of Juneau Icefields with Taku Glacier indicated by green arrow.)

Our last stop was Juneau, and it turned out we'd saved our best excursion for last: a helicopter ride to the Taku Glacier. The sky was overcast but fortunately not socked in as we took off, and we were treated to absolutely amazing views.

We toured around the area for about fifteen minutes before heading to the glacier. Having never been on a helicopter before, I was amazed at how smooth and relatively quiet the ride was. On the way to the glacier, my son and I rode shotgun up front with the pilot, allowing for some amazing picture taking.

Soon the glacier was in sight...

Coming in for a landing...

We landed on a smooth spot near this crevasse. Before we left the helicopter, we were warned that these crevasses can be hundreds of feet deep, and it's best to stay far away from the edges. We were told to go to the top of the crevasse and view it from that angle.

This picture below gives a better perspective of the size of the crevasse.

This is a "moulin" (French for "mill") a narrow chute that funnels water from the surface of the glacier. They can also be as deep as the glacier is thick.

The Taku glacier is the only advancing glacier in the Juneau Icefields. It advances at the rate of three feet per day, though loses two of those to calving where it ends at the river, for a net advance of about a foot a day. It is something like 27 miles long, and is the largest glacier in the Juneau Icefields.

I've decided that for my next career I'm going to be a helicopter pilot. It was SO much fun!!

After our glacial adventure, I met up with mon mari (who hates to fly and passed on our aerial fun) for a fabulous lunch of cedar plank salmon and Alaskan microbrew beer at the Taku Smokeries. We also bought some yummy cold-smoked salmon that they shipped to arrive a few days after we got home. So we still have a little bit of Alaksa in the fridge.
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Wednesday Arm Candy

If I weren't on a self-imposed-post-vacation spending moratorium, I would be all over this bag. Cole Haan Triple Zip Satchel, $498

And this one:

m0851 Knot bag, $425. I looked at this one in the Vancouver store while shopping with materfamilias, and really liked the design. I was seriously considering it in grey, but I hesitated and they'd sold their only one by the time I broke down and called. :-( Probably for the best considering my Visa bill this month...
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Skagway to the Yukon!

Skagway, and our first sunny day of the trip! We were glad for the clear skies, as we'd booked a ride on the White Pass and Yukon Railway, known for providing amazing views when the weather allows.

We travelled 27 miles each way, crossed over the Canadian border and climbed to an altitude of over 2,900 feet. The scenery was indeed spectacular; I'll let the pictures tell the story.

This wasn't our engine, but rather an out-of-commission relic along a siding.
Looking back down into the harbor, and below a closer shot of the docked cruise ships.




Once we reached our maximum altitude and crossed over the Canadian border, the terrain changed to a more Arctic tundra environment.


Turning around to head back down the hill.
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The Age of Irony

Before too much time goes by, I wanted to catch up with the discussion about dressing ironically after 50 presented in Cathy Horyn's NYT article, "Irony and the Old Lady," and commented on by Duchesse at Passages des Perles.

Horyn:

“The fashion message we’re so used to in New York doesn’t translate elsewhere in the country,” said Charla Krupp, a stylist and the author of “How Not to Look Old.” “People don’t get the joke.”

For that reason, Ms. Krupp tells older women to err on the side of classic and elegant. “No irony,” she said. “You can’t wear that porkpie hat. People will think you’ve lost it.”

It may just be that we’ve had a bellyful of abstractions like irony and now hanker for something direct and concrete. This desire for clarity isn’t limited to an age group — young people seem to crave it, too — and it’s not a defense against the standard complaint that you’re not cool enough to get the joke. Who cares if the joke is available to everyone through the Internet?

Duchesse seems to concur, saying:

Dressing with ironic intent is best left to the young, who enjoy irony's cousin, sarcasm, and think their costumes are highly original. And sometimes they are, but mostly they're just a goof, a wink, a bagatelle.

Irony is a form of self-referential elitism: I get the joke, do you? I'm willing to miss the recherché humour, and aim for well, instead of ironically, dressed.

In my twenties, I was a frequent flyer in the ironic dressing program, though at the time I didn't consciously label it as such. My budget relegated my shopping to thrift stores, so I went all in, cultivating a John Waters-inspired aesthetic. Donna Reed shirtwaist dresses, ragged vintage beaded sweaters, bowling and Hawaiian shirts, cat-eye sunglasses with glittery gold frames all were among my wardrobe treasures. "Bad taste as an art form," was how I probably would have described my style, the sartorial equivalent of plastic pink flamingos in the front yard.

Even so, I longed for a level of disposable income that would support a more sophisticated and elegant style of dressing. As my clothing budget slowly grew, I began to dial back on the irony, to the point that by my late thirties, I had adopted a more serious, classic style (necessitated in part by my office environment). But after a few years, dressing more or less classically and conventionally began to feel stultifying and I realized that there was a part of me that wasn't being expressed: the irreverent, whimsical, creative, goofy part.

While I do concur with the wisdom that un certain age allows an expression of elegance that would have been misplaced on our younger selves, there is a part of me that is not willing to let go entirely of a bit of humor and whimsy when it comes to mes ensembles. I think of l'amie de ma grand-mère, whom we knew as "A.P."(Auntie Peg). A.P. was the master of the unique, clever and fun gift, and though she wore the dresses or skirted suits with thick-heeled shoes that seemed to be the standard uniform for older women of means during the 1960's, she always had one element that was just a little bit tweaked, whether a large brooch in the shape of a lobster, a scarf decorated with a martini glass print, or a charm bracelet with cacti and cowboy hats and boots. She expressed her humorous side subtly, but she always expressed it.

So while I've let go of the in-your-face irony of my younger years and still gravitate toward the simple and classic, I've made an effort to integrate some humor and joie de vivre into the mix. I think the trick to keep from looking like a parody is to pick one or two elements at a time, whether it be ankle boots with attitude, or a gold brocade "Jackie Kennedy" jacket, or an Hermès scarf tied in knots and worn like a necklace with a t-shirt and jeans. I'll leave the bowling shirts and gold glitter sunglasses frames to the kids. Dressing like a loopy old lady or conversely comme une jeune fille (e.g. accessories from Hello Kitty or Tokidoki) works either way when one is barely above drinking age, but easily becomes too literal or precious after forty unless one is an honest-to-God eccentric; in that case, anything goes and more power to you.

Horyn again:

Or Anna Piaggi of Italian Vogue, whose highly theatrical style places her above mundane questions of appropriateness. It must be said that Ms. Piaggi’s look, highlighted by bright color and a miniature hat tipped over her whitened brow, demands a commitment few women possess.

As Luca said: “Even in the middle of summer, in the countryside, she doesn’t go out unless she’s dressed like that. It’s her sense of life.”

(bolds mine)

Which is really the crux of the matter, n'est-ce pas? Regardless of age, if our style is out of sync with our personality, we will look out of place and ill at ease even if we are otherwise impeccably dressed. Certainly we often have the inclination to judge and police another's style based upon our own tastes, and while I may not always love someone else's choices or find them appropriate, ultimately it boils down to chacun à son gout, non?

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Happy 4th!

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Foulard de la semaine

This is a handwoven silk scarf that I picked up on our last morning in Vancouver, from a lovely shop on Granville Island. I seem to have misplaced the receipt and can't remember the name. They have gorgeous handmade silk garments from different artists and even a box of live silkworms on the counter busy chowing down on mulberry leaves. (Materfamilias, they also sell gorgeous silk yarns!!)

I love the subtle colors (all in my palette) and patterns. The yarns are very lightweight and soft.

Here's a shot in the sunlight to try to better show you the colors. But the beauty of this weave is that different colors predominate in different light. It doesn't show much in the sunlight, but there's actually a nice olive green in that mid section.


More Alaska and Vancouver posts coming, stay tuned...
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Le glacier Endicott

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(Map of Endicott Arm/fjord and glacier. The glacier appears on the right, looks like frozen rivers.)

Tuesday, we turned East into the Endicott fjord, on our way to see our first glacier up close. Even before breakfast, we'd noticed increasing amounts of blue ice in the water.

(You can click on pictures to see larger.)

We were finishing breakfast when as we turned a corner, I caught my first glimpse of the glacier in the distance. I ran back to grab the camera and get up on deck (in the rain, natch) to get pictures of our approach.

We kept moving in closer to the glacier, until we were only a few hundred feet away. Then the captain did an amazing thing: for the next two hours he spun our 900 ft. long ship slowly on its axis in the narrow fjord, (three or four complete rotations) so that everyone would have a good view! Those dark stripes you see are not tire tracks, but rather sediment, including large boulders, that have been picked up and dragged by the glacier. I was lucky enough to get to see one big piece toward the left calve off, with a crack and loud boom. Unfortunately, didn't get the camera on and focused quickly enough to catch it.

The sound near the glacier was like a giant cocktail, or maybe a bowl of Rice Krispies, a constant crackling and popping of ice. Yes, it really is this color!

The local seals like to hang out on the bits of calved glacial ice. BRRRR! (But they seemed quite content and comfortable.)
Magnificent, isn't it?

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North to Alaska - Le bateau

Our ship was Royal Caribbean's "Serenade of the Seas." This was the first time on a cruise for mon mari et moi, and my MIL's first time on a ship this size (approx. 2,100 passengers, 1,100 crew). We had some idea what to expect, and some expectations were exceeded. Still, we came away not sure that we are "cruise people," at least not on a ship this size.

The Good: Food was excellent, especially dinners in the main dining room. The portions in the dining room were also on the smallish side, which we welcomed as it is quite easy to overeat when one is surrounded by seemingly limitless food. There was a casual buffet in another area where we had most of our breakfasts and lunches, also excellent. We were pleasantly surprised at the availability and good quality of fresh fruits and veggies, which made it easy to eat more healthfully.

Service was also excellent. Everyone was very friendly, knowledgeable and helpful. If they didn't know an answer to a question, they would find out or find someone who did know. They were very open about answering questions about what it's like working for a cruise line. All of the staff were graciously accommodating toward our son with special needs, especially at the Adventure Ocean children's program. They allowed him to participate in groups at his cognitive level rather than age level, and he seemed to have a blast. He was always asking to go hang out there.

Our balcony staterooms were quite nice, and although smallish were intelligently laid out. There was plenty of closet and storage space but the highlights, of course, were the amazing views right outside.

The Bad: Boarding and disembarkation, although quite organized were still way too frenetic and involved lots of standing in lo-n-n-n-g-g-g lines with pushy, cranky people. It took almost two hours from the time we pulled up to the dock until we were actually aboard the ship, and getting off was almost as bad. Once aboard, there was a crush at the few elevators, and it was a bit of a free-for-all (this occurred during return from some of the land excursions as well). Once everyone settled in, the herd energy was less intense, though it ramped up again around mealtimes.

My MIL had talked about how the cruises she'd been on had offered some great lectures and cultural activities during the "at sea" times, but there was only one lecturer on on our cruise (a Geology professor who talked about the glaciers, and sounded a bit like a Global Warming Denier™) and any other workshops were about trying to sell you something.

The So-So: Most of the organized activities were designed to further separate one from one's money. There were jewelry sales and [airquotes]Art[/airquotes] and rug auctions. Every single piece of printed information available about our stops was focused on the shops on shore selling "Real Diamond and Tanzanite Jewelry!" You'd think from the literature available that it was Alaska and not Antwerp at the epicenter of the diamond business.

We had too little time in each location to really explore beyond the tourist trap stores near the waterfront, especially if we'd booked an excursion.

I'd signed up for a facial at the spa on our last day at sea (more about this in another post) and while the facial was great, I'd decided to try a "microcurrent" treatment which is supposed to firm the skin. They scheduled that portion after the facial, and the guy administering the microcurrent treatment used some kind of goopy gel that he didn't wash off afterward and which dried to a crusty film, ruining the effect of smooth, glowing skin I'd had after the facial.

But the scenery really did make up for all of the negatives. I can't say that I'd never go on a cruise again, but I might pick something a bit more mellow on a smaller ship. And there were some cute touches...

Towel critter enjoying a coffee on the balcony.

Towel critter just hanging out.

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Re-entry

Glacial "blue ice" and a retreating glacier in the distance, a preview of posts to come.

I'm afraid that for most of the rest of this week, I'm going to be like that obnoxious neighbor who drops by to show you vacation slides until the wee hours of the morning. It was an amazing trip in so many ways, and I would like to share some of the highlights with you. I could've taken a thousand pictures of scenery as just as gorgeous as this.

But today we all return to work or commence summer camp and will come home tonight to mountains of laundry, so the next installment will come in a day or two. Happy Monday!

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J'adore Vanouver! (a parenthetical recap)

One of the very best things about travelling these days is getting to meet mes amis from our blogging community. Materfamilias was one of the first people to read and comment here regularly, so it's no surprise that when we finally met it felt like connecting with an old friend.

We walked and talked and shopped all afternoon. She made sure to take me to the Fluevog store where I succumbed to the boots I'd been ogling online for years, (but in black) and to the m0851 store where she'd purchased her knot bag (and I was sorely tempted, may yet succumb). She guided me on a walking tour through the West End area down to the seawall (we stopped for a sushi snack on the way). We talked about our histories (not surprisingly, lots of commonality), families and cultures, and of course clothes, bags, shoes, scarves and style. Meanwhile, I was kicking myself for having left my camera in the hotel room.

After a short break, our family met back up with Mater and Pater for a lovely, quiet dinner of burgers-and-beer (such a nice respite after cruise ship meal mania) where the picture above was snapped (The White Spot - one of the best burgers I've had anywhere!) and a nightcap in the piano lounge at the hotel. All in all a lovely day with a friend. I really appreciate her spending such a huge chunk of her weekend with me!

Even if Mater did not live here, I would still want to move to Vancouver. First of all, there are TREES, lots and lots of trees. (La Belette, you should really check out this town, think you'd love it!) It's cosmopolitan, but with a funky, laid back vibe (like une femme). It's a city with a very young demographic, which probably explains a lot. There's art, culture, shopping, trees, parks, community gardens, shopping, lots of wonderful ethnic eateries, and did I mention shopping? I'm afraid the rest of my So Cal native family wouldn't do well with the often cloudy weather here, but I'd be in heaven. I think future visits to this area are definitely in order.
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Foulard de la semaine

This is from a couple of weeks ago, "Champignons" scarf with a JJill sweater.
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Telegram from Skagway

Woke up this morning to our first sunny day of the trip. I have loads of photos to share, but no way to upload them until we get back to Vancouver. We've passed through some of the most gorgeous scenery imaginable, and yesterday cruised up a fjord to get within spitting distance of a calving glacier. Today we're off to ride the rails up into the Yukon territory.

Internet connection is a fortune, so will keep this short. Much more to come once we're back on terra firma.
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