PATSY ANN, OFFICIAL DOG GREETER OF JUNEAU, ALASKA

This is Patsy Ann. The collar that lies across her foot is symbolic.  The one time I read of Patsy Anne being given a collar, she got rid of it as soon as she was out of sight. Even though someone had put a collar on in a few of her photos, I smiled at those photo ops knowing that they would soon disappear.  And here she is, still watching the ships come in, as she did all those years ago. 

(all my old photos I found online)

I was drawn to the statue immediately, as my father's mother had a Bull Terrier in the 1940s, and I have many old photos of my grandmother and my dad with Tony. Even though Tony was long gone before I came along, my dad told me stories of him.  He became part of me through those stories and photos, and so Patsy Ann is now part of me too, in heart at least.  I felt quite moved by her story.

Her statue wasn't erected until 50 years after her passing. 

Patsy Ann was a purebred white Bull Terrier born in Portland, Oregon in 1929 and sent to Juneau - by ship - to be the companion of two little girls.  Patsy Ann proved to be too challenging for this family, on top of the fact that she was deaf.  Her owners gave her to another family and I was sad to read that this family abandoned her.

She began roaming the streets living on handouts and sleeping where she could, often with sailors.  She became well known in Juneau, especially when dock workers noticed her special talent.  Despite being deaf Patsy Ann had an uncanny ability to know not only when a ship was due, but on which dock it was going to berth.  Townspeople would follow behind her when they saw her heading to the docks, where she would stroll and begin pacing.  Sure enough a ship would come into view.  She was never wrong and some people speculated that she sensed the vibrations of the ships' motors.  

One of the stories that really amused me, was that one morning the townspeople were given information and stood at the dock a ship was expected.  Patsy Ann strolled up, took one look at the crowd, and trotted off to another dock.  It was at that dock the ship arrived.  She became the most famous dog west of the Mississippi, and kindhearted travelers began to look forward to seeing her, throwing treats out of portholes for her to gobble up.  She dined very well.

Patsy Ann was named the town's official greeter by the mayor.  When Juneau passed a law requiring dogs to be registered and tagged, townspeople collected funds to buy her a tag and collar.  Patsy Ann thumbed her nose at that, figuratively speaking, and got rid of it as soon as she was able to.  Wisely Patsy Ann was given an official exemption to the new law. This sweet little dog was celebrated on t-shirts, post cards and in time there was a book about her life.  Her photo also appeared on postcards, and she was soon more photographed than Rin Tin Tin.  

 She passed over the Rainbow Bridge in 1942 and was buried at sea.  Half a century later, her life was celebrated with a statue sculpted by Anna Burke Harris, honoring her memory.  I was directed to this short video about her on YouTube.  If you can't see it you can click on this link.

Patsy Ann touched many lives and became a legend in Juneau.   Even though she belonged to no one, the whole of Juneau seemed to look out for her.  As well as greeting those ships she could be found in the lobby of one of the fine hotels, or the dark corner of a saloon, or hanging out at the Longshoreman's Hall, but she really preferred to be outside and was said to enjoy life on the docks.

She would probably be wagging her tail that so many people love her to this day.

You can read more of her story here.

ALASKA CRUISE - MAY 2018 - JUNEAU - TUESDAY, MAY 15TH, 2018

(This is the ship we booked for our cruise, Celebrity Millennium.  It is tied up at the pier in Juneau)
I am adding this on every post for those who don't know that we are already back home.  I am now sharing daily journals and photographs of our holiday.  If you have missed any of the posts and would like to take a look, you can go to the bottom of this post and click on "Alaska Trip-May 2018".

Tuesday, May 15th, 2018

We docked in Juneau at 7.00 a.m.

Our niece had a chat with her Dad at 10.00 a.m.  She is trying to see if the connection works better on our balcony.  Wi-Fi is iffy at best, which I think I have mentioned before, sometimes working but more often not.  The ship is 18 years old and it is having an overhaul after this cruise.  I am sure it will be something taken care of before they put out to sea again. 

I learned about Juneau here.  Juneau has been the capital of Alaska since 1906.   It was named after a gold prospector from Quebec, Joe Juneau. 

Because of the rugged terrain surrounding the city, there are no roads and the only way you can get to it is by boat or seaplane.  While we were there we saw seaplanes, one after the other. landing on the water or taking off.  

(There was another cruise ship that had arrived the day before.  It was about to get underway in this photo.)

11.39 a.m. Our niece is sitting with us now.  The weather is good for the next two days.  She taught me an old German saying, "When angels travel..."  It's a sweet saying.  She is my angel, not just for bringing the good weather but a whole lot of joy along with it.  

We had gone for a walk around the ship, but when we got back to our room it was being cleaned.  We decided to go down to the 5th deck, where we sat in a lovely quiet area before going for a late breakfast.  Not long after we went up to Deck 10. Gregg and our nephew studied the view through the window in the floor.  It was quite dizzying to look down to the water far below, but fascinating at the same time. 

12.10 p.m.  The four of us are going ashore and meeting Gregg's sister and her husband.  We are heading up the mountain on a gondola ride.

5.34 p.m.  After an afternoon out Gregg and I left our niece and nephew to continue their walk around Juneau.  As we have been out since about noon-ish, we wander back to the ship slowly, but I am jumping too far ahead.

When we first disembarked we had a pleasant walk along the pier, and hearing the sound of the seaplanes, we headed towards where people were boarding.  It was very busy, people were coming and going.  

They were fascinating to watch.

We met up with sister-and-brother-in-law later to ride the gondola up to the top of Mount Roberts. 

Very smart looking in that bright red paint job, and I liked the artistic design.  

At the top after enjoying lunch we all admired the handsome bear greeter near the restaurant's entrance.

Gregg's sister and her husband decided to walk down the mountain on one of the trails.

There are also other ways to get down...

but we elected to take the gondola again, eventually.  

We wanted to see the raptor exhibit and found where the Bald Eagle was being kept.  Sadly she had been injured and was now blind in one eye.  She would never be able to fly properly again, and would always have to be taken care of.  There was a donation box nearby and the money collected would be used to help take care of her every need.

As you would feel for any living creature who, for one reason or another, is not able to live in their natural habitat, it was sad to see this wonderful bird behind bars.  All that being said, she looked healthy and well taken care of.  You could just tell the lady standing guard over her loved her and cared very much for her well-being.  We were asked not to get too close and to also speak in hushed tones, so as not to scare her.  She was a real beauty, now being used for educational purposes. Young and old would learn from her, and she would be taken care of for the rest of her life.  

We went into the Nature Center/Gift Shop.  

We enjoyed several casts of animal tracks on display.  

It wasn't a big exhibit but it was very interesting. 

 For instance...  

 you could check out your own wing span by that of the Bald Eagle.

 

Both niece and nephew wanted to check out theirs.

You could also sit in an eagle's nest for a spell, one man-made of course but it gives you the idea.

I was told by one of the staff that there are no grizzlies in this area, but there are black bears.  A lady joined in on our conversation, another visitor like me, with more information. She had the same job as this lady but on the East Coast, and the three of us talked about the differences between these two animals.  

We were ready to take the gondola down the mountain.  It was super crowded and we were packed in, safely, but like sardines.  We felt a bit claustrophobic my niece and I.  Once we got back to terra firma, we walked on a little ways together, but we left them to carry on as we felt like going back to the ship.  

Looks cold doesn't it?  But truly as we are bundled up, we are very comfortable.  Otherwise we wouldn't have stopped to sit on a bench and admire the view across the water, and we weren't the only ones admiring the view.

There are security guards at the pier gate, and also at the ship's entrance.  There were about 40 people in front of us.  Just like at the airport, we took our coats off, put personal belongings in trays provided,  so that they could run them through the x-ray machine.  And then we walked through the metal detector.  They were very organized and it wasn't long before it was our turn.  The only difference between here and the airport is that someone is waiting with a cup of hot chocolate on the other side.  That brings a smile to everyone's face.  The staff are all bundled up with warm clothing, including balaclavas and woolly hats, and the kind of thick gloves with the fingers showing on some.  They need them as there was a dreadfully cold wind going in, and I am sure being on the water doesn't help that wind tunnel effect.  They swipe my card and I hear once again, "Welcome back on board Denise."  Feeling the cold more by then I am given my cup of hot chocolate, I take a sip and go, "Ahhh, that's lovely!"  I hope those crew members get their hot chocolate too.  I have no idea how long they stand watch, but I hope it isn't for too long. 

Now we are in our room both exhausted, but it certainly has been another lovely day. The ship has set sail and we are heading towards our next port of call.

Tomorrow our family will meet at the pier where a tour company van, large enough to accommodate our group of eight, will take us on a 4-hour ride. We have to take our passports with us as we will be driving into Canada.