Kodiak, Alaska May 19, 2009

Kodiak.

We did not see any Kodiak bears but there were warnings around about how to act if you saw one or were approached by one. Gald we missed the experience!

We saw a lot of crabbing again. This time not for the King Crab but for the Dungeness Crab. The guys that we met were just coming in with their haul. There must have been over 1,000 crabs in that boat! They were selling them for 3 for $20.00. Those guys worked together to package up those crabs like they were dancing partners. It was fun to watch. In the cold water right by their boat were three or four different types of starfish. You can't really see them all that well in the photos but they were purple, pink and orange. Really beautiful.
The snow capped mountains that surround this small town really make it look like a postcard. The people here were very friendly and anyone you met on the street wanted to amke sure you saw all they had to offer. One guy on a bike quizzed us on what all we had seen and if he could have loaded us all up on his bike I think he would have given us another tour of the town!
The grocery store was a nice stop for snacks we have not had since January. A real Diet Coke was a welcome treat. Diet Coke does not exist world wide. Most countries have Coke Light. Not the same!
A local Chowder House was were everyone in town told us to go eat. We did and it was wonderful. Nicky had to stop and get a chicken sandwich from Subway, as it has been a LONG time since he has had one of those. He had his gift cards he got for Christmas and his birthday with him and used them here!!!
It was nice to be able to use American dollars and not worry about the exchange rate. We have been doing that for so long.... We managed to save money from every place we visited...The kids will have quite a collection.
The owner of the restaurant seems to advetise for the town on the side, his car tag says "Kodiak", very cool!
Bald Eagles once again were in abundance. When the eagles are young, they do not have the stark white heads yet. In some of the photos the eagles look like Golden Eagles but the locals said that they were young Bald Eagles.
They have a Russian Orthodox Church. Their gift shop was open so we went in and got some Christmas ornaments.
The local quilting shop had two ladies in it that were happy to show us their store and their work. They had some beautiful quilts. The one of the penguins was our favorite. They have a "Longarm". There are photos of it for all of you who enjoy quilting. The quilt with the toilet paper would be great for a powder room!!

The movie theatre in town has one screen.
There is one McDonald's.
There is one local brewery.
There are no traffic jams.
There might not be a traffic light, didn't see one.
Small, friendly, clean, crisp town. We had a great day.