Sunday, August 05, 2007

Vacation in Pictures -- Day Skagway

Next stop, Skagway. This was probably my favorite of our port stops as far as the town goes … really small, really quaint. If I remember correctly, they said the population of the town is 800 during the winter, but several thousand during the summer months due to tourist season. The entire main street is lined with picturesque shops, and the sidewalks are wooden planks, all contributing to a very Northern-Exposure-ish atmosphere. I confess, there is no big-city blood coursing through my veins, so this was a perfect stop for me.

Even better, we arrived in port on July 4th, so there was definitely a cheerful atmosphere when we got off the cruise ship and headed to town that morning. They had Broadway blocked off for the festivities, and we were able to enjoy the parade that morning before our excursion.

Shopkeepers and locals were dressed up for the celebration:




And of course they had people passing out flags, candy, flyers, etc:


{my gosh, we look positively washed-out, compared to that lady before us, don't we?}



It was most certainly a small-town parade, as the master of ceremonies greeted many of the participants by name as they walked or drove by. We watched kids on scooters and bikes, or being pulled in decorated wagons by their parents, and also floats of local businesses, fire and police cars, a bagpipe band, old-timer cars, etc. Honestly? You can keep your Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, thank you very much, with your thousands of people and grandstands and crowds, I much prefer this sort of cozy atmosphere.





And of couse, you can never go wrong with weenie dogs ... never:

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Awesome! This is how we felt at our first Christmas parade in Leesburg last year. It is a small town thing with people lining the streets and it's at night so the floats are decorated with lights and all. So neat!

Trish
Leesburg, VA

Unknown said...

Lovin' the Weenie Dogs! We have our own Weenie, along with 5 more in the neighborhood!

I love small town parades too. I grew up thinking they were the most wonderful events, especially when they tossed candy to the kids. Now I make sure my kids get to experience the small town parade by driving to a neighboring small town. Our big town parade? Nice, but no candy :(

Anonymous said...

Skagway was my favorite port also. I could have spent more than a few hours there but do plan to go back someday. It's a really neat little town!

Liz from Maryland

Anonymous said...

You look like you are having a blast and a half!! I love the pictures of the weenie dogs! Very original!!
Can't wait to see more pictures! So the big question is.....when are you going back to run the Midnight Sun Marathon with me??
Take care,
Cathy in Suwanee

Anonymous said...

Tee hee! I knew you'd love Mohawk Kellen in the video!

And I agree about small town parades. I'm counting down the days until our Santa parade here in Eagle. I'm hoping it will be kind of Christmas Story-ish!

Off to give Finn his LAST CHEMO!!!

Monica H said...

I absolutely love the character that woman has all over her face!