Juneau, Alaska

The Little Capital of Greater Alaska


Bubble Hunt
Humpback whales carry out attack a shoal in group
Arm of Sea
The Alaskan Gastineau Canal in which the state capital was housed.
Red Dog Saloon
Customers mingle at the Red Dog Saloon, Juneau's historic and iconic bar-restaurant.
Meeting point
Seaplane slides to Juneau dock, after mooring in Gastineau canal.
tight ride
Passersby pass by on a shopping street lined with Juneau jewelry stores.
Mount Roberts Tramway
Gondola lift climbs the steep slope of Mount Roberts, already high above the Gastineau Canal.
Mendenhall Lake & Glacier
View of the Mendenhall Glacier from this side of the homonymous lake to which it originates.
Orthodox legacy
Orthodox chapel proves Alaska's Russian past, also in Juneau.
Landing more handy
Sea lions rest on a buoy lighthouse at the exit of the Gastineau Canal.
In the Taste of Time
Long glacier flows from the gigantic Juneau ice field that stretches into British Columbia.
Juneau by Ares
Two paragliders hover on the projection of the slope of Mount Roberts.
Thunder Mountains
Snowy top of the Thunder Mountains. Across its summits, the Juneau Ice Field is hidden.
Public Submersion
Baleia sinks before a boat full of enthusiasts.
flight over deck
Seaplane flies alongside a huge cruise ship moored in Juneau's main dock.
From June to August, Juneau disappears behind cruise ships that dock at its dockside. Even so, it is in this small capital that the fate of the 49th American state is decided.

There's always room for another boat in Southeast Alaska.

Isolated between the Pacific Ocean and the vastness of British Columbia, the region is fragmented by countless channels and fjords.

From them rise the Coast Mountains, a coastal range next to Tongass and one of the largest forests in the United States.

Alluvial Valley, Juneau the Little Capital of Greater Alaska

The Alaskan Gastineau Canal in which the state capital was housed.

This rude nature makes the construction of roads unfeasible. With the exception of Skagway, Hyder and Haines, the local villages still lack a road connection to the outside.

The route of choice is, therefore, the Alaska Marine Highway, a kind of maritime highway that starts in the distant Aleutian port of Unalasca/Dutch Harbour.

And that goes through the interior passage of the «frying pan» to Bellingham or Prince Rupert, north of Vancouver.

We become your frequent flyers.

On one of several marine voyages, we boarded the “M/V Malaspina” in Skagway, bound for the Alaskan capital.

Alaska Marine Highway Down, Toward Capital Juneau

During the winter, practically no tourists arrive. Juneau lives a genuine life. State lawmakers entertain themselves here with their lobbies and political confrontations.

They meet daily to work at the Capitol and City Hall. Then, due to lack of space and supply, they socialize together in the few streets, restaurants and bars of the city.

Tight Ride, Juneau the Little Capital of Greater Alaska

Passersby pass by on a shopping street lined with Juneau jewelry stores.

From 2006 to 2009, the protagonist of this circle was the Republican governor Sarah Palin. Born in Idaho, she moved with her family to Alaska at a young age.

It didn't take him long to become attached to the state and to Juneau, where he has a poorly protected roadside mansion that he almost never inhabits, to the detriment of the original, in Wasilla.

But the Republican was not as fond of it as expected.

Twenty-two years after placing third in the Miss Alaska pageant, just days after taking office, Palin angered the people of Juneau by telling her commissioners that they didn't have to move to the capital.

Orthodox Chapel, Juneau the Little Capital of Greater Alaska

Orthodox chapel proves Alaska's Russian past, also in Juneau.

The truth is that few politicians like the prospect of being besieged in the miniature capital, condemned by a dismal weather and hours on end in front of the television. Even so, the governor's sincerity was excessive.

In August 2008, Sarah Palin left the state capital to strengthen John McCain's candidacy for the White House.

The result was not what the Republicans expected and the objective of the presidential election was defeated.

Lower 48 Americans' Surprise at the Capital of Greater Alaska

Summer has always brought changes to Juneau. "This is it??" people just disembarked from summer cruises ask over and over again.

Juneau has the ability to leave many of the Lower 48's compatriots in disbelief. Its small size seems like a joke to them.

Seaplane Mooring, Juneau the Little Capital of Greater Alaska

Seaplane slides into Juneau dock after mooring in Gastineau Canal

Especially when the shipping companies are present with several of their huge cruise ships, part of the city is “stuck” between the monstrous ships and the shops at the base of Mount Juneau.

The squeeze generates the same consumerist stimulus that governs Skagway, but suffocates the city.

Visitors with wide views and full wallets monopolize the few possible escapes.

From the ends of S Franklin Street, a cable car ascends to the summit of Mount Roberts.

Mount Roberts Tramway, Juneau the Little Capital of Greater Alaska

Gondola lift climbs the steep slope of Mount Roberts, already high above the Gastineau Canal.

From the same top, we unveil, in panoramic format, the townhouse in the city and the contiguous liners.

The long channel of Gastineau, furrows the dense forest.

We see it transformed into a busy airstrip, such is the number of seaplanes taking off to fly over other scenarios in the surroundings:

snowy mountains, lakes, the Mendenhall Glacier and the vast ice field that slips.

Glacier, Juneau the Little Capital of Greater Alaska

Long glacier flows from the gigantic Juneau ice field that stretches into British Columbia.

The latter are the region's great natural attractions, plagued by waves of outsiders throughout the summer.

Whenever the weather permits, helicopters after helicopters rise from the capital's airport to the icy domain of the Juneau Ice Field. where huge Dog Mushing camps await them.

On these expensive tours, cruise passengers combine divine scenic flights with quick baptisms on dog sleds.

Full Dog Mushing

The Breathtaking Visits of Orcas and Bossa Whales

Juneau attracts other visitors. As Alaska's warm months approach, huge colonies of humpback whales and other species arrive from tropical waters like those around the Hawaiian archipelago.

In about 30 days, they travel almost 5000 kms until they reach the frigid, krill-filled sea around Juneau.

With another marine menu in mind, hundreds of orcas follow.

Whales, Juneau the Little Capital of Greater Alaska

Baleia sinks before a boat full of enthusiasts.

As might be expected, its sighting has become one of the most popular activities in the region.

Contrary to what happens in other places as or more remote, it is simple and almost guaranteed.

We boarded at a busy marina in the immediate vicinity of Lake Auke.

Sea Lions, Juneau the Little Capital of Greater Alaska

Sea lions rest on a buoy lighthouse at the exit of the Gastineau Canal.

We set sail for the open waters of Auke Bay. We're on our toes from repeated night trips but we barely have time to grieve.

With just a few minutes of navigation, we find ourselves side by side with an opportunistic herd of orcas. Shortly thereafter, we detected the tails of another of these sinking mammals.

Soon, we are gifted with the main show. A group of humpback whales is positioned in an almost circle.

In a flash, they produce huge bubbles around them that disorient and force a large number of fish from the target school to emerge.

Whale Hunting with Bubbles, Juneau the Little Capital of Great Alaska

Humpback whales carry out attack a shoal in group

Once the fish are close to the surface, it is the whales themselves that emerge with their huge mouths gaping open, eager to swallow as many fish as possible, harassed by hungry and fearless seagulls.

Passengers, a little in disbelief, rejoice in the phenomenon, in most cases, only witnessed by them in television documentaries.

Or never seen.

The American-Alaskan Way of the Short Juneau Summer

With the customers satisfied and the scheduled time running out, the crew returns the boat to the dock. From there, they take you to an international get-together picnic lunch.

Fresh salmon and root beer blend well in the cool of the hillside forest where we found ourselves.

Soon, a chauvinist American couple sits at our table. “Portuguese?

We don't have many there in Texas. And they have already decided in which part of the United States are they going to stay alive?” the plump, ruddy husband asks us as if nothing else in the rest of the world could ever matter.

We abbreviated the meal. We return to Juneau's waterfront, which is always flooded with passersby. It is unusually hot for these latitudes and we only dress up after sunset.

On that day, at that hour, we surrender to curiosity.

Killed by an Alaskan Amber beer that we hadn't drunk since Skagway, we entered the Red Dog Saloon, a bar, now considered by many to be in bad taste, famous for having opened in the days of the Alaskan gold rush.

Red Dog Saloon, Juneau the Little Capital of Great Alaska

Customers mingle at the Red Dog Saloon, Juneau's historic and iconic bar-restaurant.

The establishment maintains the old formula of live music.

DJ entertainers update it who, still at the piano but equipped with much more technology and a huge tip bottle labeled Viagra, take spectators to ecstasy.

“Anyone here from New Orleans?” the bald white musician asks the crowd indulging in home-cooked meals. "I'm going to take off my cap." You can see why I won the Louis Armstrong lookalike contest.

He grabs a kind of language from his carnival mother-in-law, husks his voice as hard as he can and starts a sort of euphoric Blues recital.

Key West, USA

The Tropical Wild West of the USA

We've come to the end of the Overseas Highway and the ultimate stronghold of propagandism Florida Keys. The continental United States here they surrender to a dazzling turquoise emerald marine vastness. And to a southern reverie fueled by a kind of Caribbean spell.
Ketchikan, Alaska

Here begins Alaska

The reality goes unnoticed in most of the world, but there are two Alaskas. In urban terms, the state is inaugurated in the south of its hidden frying pan handle, a strip of land separated from the contiguous USA along the west coast of Canada. Ketchikan, is the southernmost of Alaskan cities, its Rain Capital and the Salmon Capital of the World.
Anchorage to Homer, USA

Journey to the End of the Alaskan Road

If Anchorage became the great city of the 49th US state, Homer, 350km away, is its most famous dead end. Veterans of these parts consider this strange tongue of land sacred ground. They also venerate the fact that, from there, they cannot continue anywhere.
Maldives

Cruise the Maldives, among Islands and Atolls

Brought from Fiji to sail in the Maldives, Princess Yasawa has adapted well to new seas. As a rule, a day or two of itinerary is enough for the genuineness and delight of life on board to surface.
Mount Denali, Alaska

The Sacred Ceiling of North America

The Athabascan Indians called him Denali, or the Great, and they revered his haughtiness. This stunning mountain has aroused the greed of climbers and a long succession of record-breaking climbs.
glaciers

icy blue planet

They form at high latitudes and/or altitudes. In Alaska or New Zealand, Argentina or Chile, rivers of ice are always stunning visions of an Earth as frigid as it is inhospitable.
sitka, Alaska

Sitka: Journey through a once Russian Alaska

In 1867, Tsar Alexander II had to sell Russian Alaska to the United States. In the small town of Sitka, we find the Russian legacy but also the Tlingit natives who fought them.
Talkeetna, Alaska

Talkeetna's Alaska-Style Life

Once a mere mining outpost, Talkeetna rejuvenated in 1950 to serve Mt. McKinley climbers. The town is by far the most alternative and most captivating town between Anchorage and Fairbanks.
Prince William Sound, Alaska

Journey through a Glacial Alaska

Nestled against the Chugach Mountains, Prince William Sound is home to some of Alaska's stunning scenery. Neither powerful earthquakes nor a devastating oil spill affected its natural splendor.
PN Katmai, Alaska

In the Footsteps of the Grizzly Man

Timothy Treadwell spent summers on end with the bears of Katmai. Traveling through Alaska, we followed some of its trails, but unlike the species' crazy protector, we never went too far.
Valdez, Alaska

On the Black Gold Route

In 1989, the Exxon Valdez oil tanker caused a massive environmental disaster. The vessel stopped plying the seas, but the victim city that gave it its name continues on the path of crude oil from the Arctic Ocean.
Skagway, Alaska

A Klondike's Gold Fever Variant

The last great American gold rush is long over. These days, hundreds of cruise ships each summer pour thousands of well-heeled visitors into the shop-lined streets of Skagway.
Florida Keys, USA

The Caribbean Stepping Stone of the USA

Os United States continental islands seem to close to the south in its capricious peninsula of Florida. Don't stop there. More than a hundred islands of coral, sand and mangroves form an eccentric tropical expanse that has long seduced American vacationers.
Miami, USA

A Masterpiece of Urban Rehabilitation

At the turn of the 25st century, the Wynwood neighbourhood remained filled with abandoned factories and warehouses and graffiti. Tony Goldman, a shrewd real estate investor, bought more than XNUMX properties and founded a mural park. Much more than honoring graffiti there, Goldman founded the Wynwood Arts District, the great bastion of creativity in Miami.
tombstone, USA

Tombstone: the City Too Hard to Die

Silver veins discovered at the end of the XNUMXth century made Tombstone a prosperous and conflictive mining center on the frontier of the United States to Mexico. Lawrence Kasdan, Kurt Russell, Kevin Costner and other Hollywood directors and actors made famous the Earp brothers and the bloodthirsty duel of “OK Corral”. The Tombstone, which, over time, has claimed so many lives, is about to last.
Miami beach, USA

The Beach of All Vanities

Few coasts concentrate, at the same time, so much heat and displays of fame, wealth and glory. Located in the extreme southeast of the USA, Miami Beach is accessible via six bridges that connect it to the rest of Florida. It is meager for the number of souls who desire it.
Little Havana, USA

Little Havana of the Nonconformists

Over the decades and until today, thousands of Cubans have crossed the Florida Straits in search of the land of freedom and opportunity. With the US a mere 145 km away, many have gone no further. His Little Havana in Miami is today the most emblematic neighborhood of the Cuban diaspora.
Grand Canyon, USA

Journey through the Abysmal North America

The Colorado River and tributaries began flowing into the plateau of the same name 17 million years ago and exposed half of Earth's geological past. They also carved one of its most stunning entrails.
Monument Valley, USA

Indians or Cowboys?

Iconic Western filmmakers like John Ford immortalized what is the largest Indian territory in the United States. Today, in the Navajo Nation, the Navajo also live in the shoes of their old enemies.
Las Vegas, USA

Where sin is always forgiven

Projected from the Mojave Desert like a neon mirage, the North American capital of gaming and entertainment is experienced as a gamble in the dark. Lush and addictive, Vegas neither learns nor regrets.
Believers greet each other in the Bukhara region.
City
Bukhara, Uzbequistan

Among the Minarets of Old Turkestan

Situated on the ancient Silk Road, Bukhara has developed for at least two thousand years as an essential commercial, cultural and religious hub in Central Asia. It was Buddhist and then Muslim. It was part of the great Arab empire and that of Genghis Khan, the Turko-Mongol kingdoms and the Soviet Union, until it settled in the still young and peculiar Uzbekistan.
Host Wezi points out something in the distance
Beaches
Cobue; Nkwichi Lodge, Mozambique

The Hidden Mozambique of the Creaking Sands

During a tour from the bottom to the top of Lake Malawi, we find ourselves on the island of Likoma, an hour by boat from Nkwichi Lodge, the solitary base of this inland coast of Mozambique. On the Mozambican side, the lake is known as Niassa. Whatever its name, there we discover some of the most stunning and unspoilt scenery in south-east Africa.
hippopotami, chobe national park, botswana
safari
Chobe NP, Botswana

Chobe: A River on the Border of Life with Death

Chobe marks the divide between Botswana and three of its neighboring countries, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Namibia. But its capricious bed has a far more crucial function than this political delimitation.
Annapurna Circuit, Manang to Yak-kharka
Annapurna (circuit)
Annapurna 10th Circuit: Manang to Yak Kharka, Nepal

On the way to the Annapurnas Even Higher Lands

After an acclimatization break in the near-urban civilization of Manang (3519 m), we made progress again in the ascent to the zenith of Thorong La (5416 m). On that day, we reached the hamlet of Yak Kharka, at 4018 m, a good starting point for the camps at the base of the great canyon.
Architecture & Design
Castles and Fortresses

A Defending World: Castles and Fortresses that Resist

Under threat from enemies from the end of time, the leaders of villages and nations built castles and fortresses. All over the place, military monuments like these continue to resist.
Passengers, scenic flights-Southern Alps, New Zealand
Aventura
Aoraki / Mount Cook, New Zealand

The Aeronautical Conquest of the Southern Alps

In 1955, pilot Harry Wigley created a system for taking off and landing on asphalt or snow. Since then, his company has unveiled, from the air, some of the greatest scenery in Oceania.
Ceremonies and Festivities
Look-alikes, Actors and Extras

Make-believe stars

They are the protagonists of events or are street entrepreneurs. They embody unavoidable characters, represent social classes or epochs. Even miles from Hollywood, without them, the world would be more dull.
Vegetables, Little India, Sari Singapore, Singapore
Cities
Little India, Singapore

The Sari Singapore of Little India

There are thousands of inhabitants instead of the 1.3 billion of the mother country, but Little India, a neighborhood in tiny Singapore, does not lack soul. No soul, no smell of Bollywood curry and music.
Lunch time
World Food

Gastronomy Without Borders or Prejudice

Each people, their recipes and delicacies. In certain cases, the same ones that delight entire nations repel many others. For those who travel the world, the most important ingredient is a very open mind.
Casa Menezes Braganca, Chandor, Goa, India
Culture
Chandor, Goa, India

A True Goan-Portuguese House

A mansion with Portuguese architectural influence, Casa Menezes Bragança, stands out from the houses of Chandor, in Goa. It forms a legacy of one of the most powerful families in the former province. Both from its rise in a strategic alliance with the Portuguese administration and from the later Goan nationalism.
Spectator, Melbourne Cricket Ground-Rules footbal, Melbourne, Australia
Sport
Melbourne, Australia

The Football the Australians Rule

Although played since 1841, Australian Football has only conquered part of the big island. Internationalization has never gone beyond paper, held back by competition from rugby and classical football.
Entrance porch in Ellikkalla, Uzbekistan
Traveling
Uzbekistan

Journey through the Uzbekistan Pseudo-Roads

Centuries passed. Old and run-down Soviet roads ply deserts and oases once traversed by caravans from the Silk RoadSubject to their yoke for a week, we experience every stop and incursion into Uzbek places, into scenic and historic road rewards.
Ethnic
Pentecost Island, Vanuatu

Naghol: Bungee Jumping without Modern Touches

At Pentecost, in their late teens, young people launch themselves from a tower with only lianas tied to their ankles. Bungee cords and harnesses are inappropriate fussiness from initiation to adulthood.
Got2Globe Photo Portfolio
Got2Globe Portfolio

life outside

Campeche, Mexico, Yucatan Peninsula, Can Pech, Pastéis in the air
History
Campeche, Mexico

Campeche Upon Can Pech

As was the case throughout Mexico, the conquerors arrived, saw and won. Can Pech, the Mayan village, had almost 40 inhabitants, palaces, pyramids and an exuberant urban architecture, but in 1540 there were less than 6 natives. Over the ruins, the Spaniards built Campeche, one of the most imposing colonial cities in the Americas.
Martinique island, French Antilles, Caribbean Monument Cap 110
Islands
Martinique, French Antilles

The Armpit Baguette Caribbean

We move around Martinique as freely as the Euro and the tricolor flags fly supreme. But this piece of France is volcanic and lush. Lies in the insular heart of the Americas and has a delicious taste of Africa.
Reindeer Racing, Kings Cup, Inari, Finland
Winter White
Inari, Finland

The Wackiest Race on the Top of the World

Finland's Lapps have been competing in the tow of their reindeer for centuries. In the final of the Kings Cup - Porokuninkuusajot - , they face each other at great speed, well above the Arctic Circle and well below zero.
Baie d'Oro, Île des Pins, New Caledonia
Literature
Île-des-Pins, New Caledonia

The Island that Leaned against Paradise

In 1964, Katsura Morimura delighted the Japan with a turquoise novel set in Ouvéa. But the neighboring Île-des-Pins has taken over the title "The Nearest Island to Paradise" and thrills its visitors.
Maori Haka, Waitangi Treaty Grounds, New Zealand
Nature
bay of islands, New Zealand

New Zealand's Civilization Core

Waitangi is the key place for independence and the long-standing coexistence of native Maori and British settlers. In the surrounding Bay of Islands, the idyllic marine beauty of the New Zealand antipodes is celebrated, but also the complex and fascinating kiwi nation.
Mother Armenia Statue, Yerevan, Armenia
Autumn
Yerevan, Armenia

A Capital between East and West

Heiress of the Soviet civilization, aligned with the great Russia, Armenia allows itself to be seduced by the most democratic and sophisticated ways of Western Europe. In recent times, the two worlds have collided in the streets of your capital. From popular and political dispute, Yerevan will dictate the new course of the nation.
Maria Jacarés, Pantanal Brazil
Natural Parks
Miranda, Brazil

Maria dos Jacarés: the Pantanal shelters such Creatures

Eurides Fátima de Barros was born in the interior of the Miranda region. 38 years ago, he settled in a small business on the side of BR262 that crosses the Pantanal and gained an affinity with the alligators that lived on his doorstep. Disgusted that once upon a time the creatures were being slaughtered there, she began to take care of them. Now known as Maria dos Jacarés, she named each of the animals after a soccer player or coach. It also makes sure they recognize your calls.
Semeru (far) and Bromo volcanoes in Java, Indonesia
UNESCO World Heritage
Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park Indonesia

The Volcanic Sea of ​​Java

The gigantic Tengger caldera rises 2000m in the heart of a sandy expanse of east Java. From it project the highest mountain of this Indonesian island, the Semeru, and several other volcanoes. From the fertility and clemency of this sublime as well as Dantesque setting, one of the few Hindu communities that resisted the Muslim predominance around, thrives.
Correspondence verification
Characters
Rovaniemi, Finland

From the Finnish Lapland to the Arctic. A Visit to the Land of Santa

Fed up with waiting for the bearded old man to descend down the chimney, we reverse the story. We took advantage of a trip to Finnish Lapland and passed through its furtive home.
Dominican Republic, Bahia de Las Águilas Beach, Pedernales. Jaragua National Park, Beach
Beaches
Lagoa Oviedo a Bahia de las Águilas, Dominican Republic

In Search of the Immaculate Dominican Beach

Against all odds, one of the most unspoiled Dominican coastlines is also one of the most remote. Discovering the province of Pedernales, we are dazzled by the semi-desert Jaragua National Park and the Caribbean purity of Bahia de las Águilas.
Passage, Tanna, Vanuatu to the West, Meet the Natives
Religion
Tanna, Vanuatu

From where Vanuatu Conquered the Western World

The TV show “Meet the Native” took Tanna's tribal representatives to visit Britain and the USA Visiting their island, we realized why nothing excited them more than returning home.
The Toy Train story
On Rails
Siliguri a Darjeeling, India

The Himalayan Toy Train Still Running

Neither the steep slope of some stretches nor the modernity stop it. From Siliguri, in the tropical foothills of the great Asian mountain range, the Darjeeling, with its peaks in sight, the most famous of the Indian Toy Trains has ensured for 117 years, day after day, an arduous dream journey. Traveling through the area, we climb aboard and let ourselves be enchanted.
Beverage Machines, Japan
Society
Japan

The Beverage Machines Empire

There are more than 5 million ultra-tech light boxes spread across the country and many more exuberant cans and bottles of appealing drinks. The Japanese have long since stopped resisting them.
the projectionist
Daily life
Sainte-Luce, Martinique

The Nostalgic Projectionist

From 1954 to 1983, Gérard Pierre screened many of the famous films arriving in Martinique. 30 years after the closing of the room in which he worked, it was still difficult for this nostalgic native to change his reel.
Transpantaneira pantanal of Mato Grosso, capybara
Wildlife
Mato Grosso Pantanal, Brazil

Transpantaneira, Pantanal and the Ends of Mato Grosso

We leave from the South American heart of Cuiabá to the southwest and towards Bolivia. At a certain point, the paved MT060 passes under a picturesque portal and the Transpantaneira. In an instant, the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso is flooded. It becomes a huge Pantanal.
Bungee jumping, Queenstown, New Zealand
Scenic Flights
Queenstown, New Zealand

Queenstown, the Queen of Extreme Sports

In the century. XVIII, the Kiwi government proclaimed a mining village on the South Island "fit for a queen".Today's extreme scenery and activities reinforce the majestic status of ever-challenging Queenstown.