Alaska, Again!

Ive had the fabulous opportunity to travel again to Anchorage, Alaska. I love it, 60 degree temperatures, a full day of sun, 19 hours and 22 minutes of sunlight, that is!

Im loving all of these wonderful planters that line the streets and adorn storefronts and restaurants all over Anchorage and the surrounding areas. They are filled with the local wild flowers, petunias, geraniums, and what seems to be violets. The sunlight may be all day, and almost all night, but it is not so intense here to bleach out the flowers. They are so bright and vibrant.

There is a local joint here called Wildberries of Alaska - they make chocolates and local berry jellies and jams. This is the worlds largest chocolate fountain. I think the guy said there was something like 40,000 calories in here... Loads of fat, etc. It was fun to watch though, kindof reminds me of the movie Charlie and the Chocolate factory.

While at Wildberries of Alaska, they have some reindeer that they let you in to pet and feed. This is a male reindeer. He is a few years old, and his antlers have been growing for a couple of months since he shed them last. They are very tender, and do not like to be touched on their antlers. It was fun to see one though - and up close at that :)

Here are some more hanging flower baskets. I love this, and wish we could grow flowers as big and gorgeous as these back home in Oklahoma!

I also got to stop off at the Anchorage Zoo today to check out some of the local wildlife since they are all in a controlled environment. The very best thing I got to see was the moose and the black bears. They all look so nice and cuddly, but really they will eat you alive, or chase you down and run over you. I have to say that I did have higher expectations of the zoo than what was actually there, but still it was nice. I guess they are working on some improvements there, and perhaps they rely heavily on donations and such. They did have a bald eagle, which was fascinating.