1. First, I had a half day in Anchorage by myself. I went to a bakery/coffee shop that was recommended in my Alaska guide book (which I checked out from the library). I got a coffee and noticed they had a basket of day-old pastries for $1 each. I snagged a pecan cinnamon roll, which would have cost $5. Score! Then I headed over to Resolution Park to enjoy the view and a conversation with a fellow middle school teacher I met at the hostel. I didn't take a picture of my coffee and pastry because I didn't want my new friend to think I was a weirdo.
2. Next, upon my sister's recommendation I headed to the visitor's center. I would highly recommend seeking out a visitor's center when you travel to a new place. This one was super impressive! It had a mini-museum, old school videos on TVs, 3D postcards, and a really nice theater with informational films about Alaska. I watched one on the 1964 earthquake, the railroad, and bears. It was a great place to learn and to spend a few free hours.
3. Food! First, I enjoyed a reindeer sausage for lunch. It was SO good! I have been craving one since I've been home. :) I spent $6 on the sausage, chips, and a bag of soda from a cart outside the visitor's center. I ate it in the sunshine and then went to meet my sister's bus. Another meal idea is to hit up a nice restaurant for lunch instead of dinner. Ray's was the highest recommended place in Seward, so Erin and I hit it up for lunch. We split two different entrees and spent $18 each including tip. We would have spent more than that on dinner and dealt with crowds. Last, we took the hotel shuttle to Safeway and got breakfast stuff (I spent $7, and it lasted me the whole trip). We also stopped and got salami, cheese, and bread (and two tall beers) for dinner one night. We hung out in our room and enjoyed the free cable.
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| This is my sister classing it up at Ray's for lunch. 5. Sights! Erin and I spent $19 each to rent bikes in Seward. (Side note: I LOVED the bike I rented. I really want to buy one, but it's a $500 bike. sigh.) Then we spent the whole day biking around Seward and taking in the beauty. That was the day we went to Ray's. We also checked out the Benny Benson Memorial (13 year old orphan who designed Alaska's flag), walked along the boat harbor, peeked in the Seward Museum (we skipped it though), stopped and got gelato, window shopped, and took tons of pictures and laughed all day long. Which brings me to my last free way to have fun on vacation: go with someone who you love to hang out with. My sister and I had so much fun laughing and talking. Seward was a lot of fun and it was memorable, but the time spent with my sister was just as great at the sights. |
Stay tuned for part three: taking advantage of perks!
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