It was only a 10 minute walk into the town of Skagway from the ship. The town was definitely "period," the buildings all looked to be in a style that was 100 years old. In spite of this, it was difficult for us to find the "charm" of the place. The stores were almost exclusively trinket shops, mostly selling the same imported trinkets as the place two doors down.
The Skagway Harbor
Nevertheless, we did actually use the coupon books provided by Princess for two T-shirts for the grandkids and another one for Claire.
Telling the Story of Soapy Smith
We signed up for a walking tour with a Ranger at the Tourist Information Center. He attempted to provide interest by telling the story of town boss "Soapy" Smith in reverse chronological order. We could tell he had prepared in some way, as he had a typed script in his hand and he occasionally referred to it. But, at the first stop, he told part of the tale but he forgot to mention why he took us there--this was the spot where Soapy was actually shot and killed.
Original Log Cabin
In short, we were underwhelmed by the place. But, in fairness, this is largely due to the fact that we have no interest in shopping and did not find the "culture" particularly appealing--not their fault. (Perhaps it brought back memories of Virginia City, Nevada. We drove there a couple of years ago, finding a virtual ghost town with nothing going on. We thought we'd try the camel races, but were too early; to wait, we drove to the cemetery, where they wanted to charge admission. We immediately decided to "blow this pop stand.")
Movies Under the Frozen Sky on Board the Diamond Princess--BYOB (Blanket)
I remember with shame (growing up) the attitude that so many groups had, looking down on the Natives, and some of us kids tried to change that. It wasn’t right. I’m glad we are all one people again ~ Barbara Kalen, oldest white person born in Skagway, who then sang a short love song and received a standing ovation
