Alaska Cruise. Port Call: Sitka, Alaska! (Page 4)

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The Eastern Orthodox Church

Byzantium! Constantinople! The piece of the Roman Empire that survived right up until two years after Christopher Columbus' birth. This is the where the Russian Orthodox Church has its roots. The churches that once were one, split into two in 1054, the one in the west, today known as the Roman Catholic Church, fell to the Pope in Rome, and the one in the east, to the Patriarch of Constantinople, a split that continues today.

But Constantinople fell to the Arab invasion in 1453 AD, and its beautiful Christian cathedral Saint Sophia, is today ornamented with symbols of Islam, and resides in Istanbul, the fallen and renamed capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. It is the only part of Europe still held by the Turks from the old Ottoman Empire.

But what of the Patriarch of Constantinople? Today, he still exists! Or at least he has since he was allowed to return in 1600 AD. Currently, the position is held by:

"His All Holiness, Archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch, Bartholomew I."

Although the church lost control of its prized Saint Sophia, the Cathedral Church of St George, in Istanbul, is the seat of the Patriarch of Constantinople today. The Eastern Orthodox Church has held on to just a piece of history in that conquered city, and the religion of the dead Eastern Roman Empire survives it.

The position is weakened though. There are several autonomous patriarchies, who do not have to answer to the Patriarch of Constantinople in the same way as they once did. The Patriarch is less a head to the Orthodox Church than the Pope is to the Roman Catholic Church.

When the seat of the Patriarch of Constantinople was temporarily taken from him, the Eastern Orthodox Church quickly expanded into the Slavic nations, and today the church in Moscow is the largest Orthodox patriarchy.

However, the Russian Orthodox Church has suffered a split as well, because of the Communist domination of that region, and the church being forced to duck for cover, or be killed, especially in the early 20th century. Many of the church leaders were killed, but today the church appears to be doing well. In Sitka, it is still the best known landmark, even though the Russians left long ago.

Harrigan Centennial Hall

The Harrigan Centennial Hall is built roughly in the shape of an irregular hexagon, wider than it is deep. The auditorium takes up the heart of the building, and most of the back wall (two of the sides of the squashed hexagon), which sits right along the waterfront of Sitka Sound.

The entrance doors to the hall are built right into a vertex, or corner, of the pentagon, with one of the 6 sides on the right and another on the left of the doors.

Inside along the wall to the right, the Isabel Miller Museum is located.

Straight ahead on a line running from the entrance vertex, through the opposite vertex of the hexagon was the auditorium where the New Archangel Dancers perform.

The Russians originally named this city, New Archangel, and the dance group took that name, and they do traditional Russian dance routines.

Sadly, we arrived at the hall in the middle between their two performances for the day, and so we didn't get to watch them live.

I did get to see a video later with them on it, and at the time I was less impressed than I should have been, because I didn't realize they were all women doing the dancing. The "men" didn't get down as low or kick as strongly as I have seen Russian dancers normally do. My first reaction—since the clothes, at least from a distance, hid their gender—was that perhaps it was because they were one-step removed from the real Russian setting, or maybe it was because they were just part time dancers, and didn't have time to practice and develop the unbelievable leg strength required for Russian dance. But when the camera moved in closer, it became apparent that the "male dancers" weren't, and that explained the difference.

With this new found perspective, the dancers were very good indeed. I am sorry that we missed them.

From this view of the stage, it is difficult to see that its shape is actually roughly in the form of a diamond. The center of the stage is thicker than its sides, because the walls of the hexagon building come to a vertex at the rear center of the stage. They also extended the inner edge of the stage, mirroring the rear line.

The auditorium itself is a little hexagon, following the general shape of the entire building.

MODEL OF
ST. MICHAEL'S CATHERAL

Paulus Lindhout, an instrument maker of Breder, Holland, took up model building after an automobile accident forced him into retirement. He happened onto an early (1869) photo of St. Michael's Cathedral while reading a magazine article. Having no blueprint he worked out the correct proportions and angles of the building from the one poorly reproduced photograph.

Two side of the building were visible in the picture; since the cathedral is symmetrical he could guess at the third side. All that was lacking was the front.

Lindhout constructed the front based on other Russian cathedrals, so did not include the main clock face, an unusual feature in Russian church architecture (in use then, as well as today) which faced out over the front porch.

At some point after 1869, the clock faces on the sides of the cathedral were replaced with blanks, but the photograph seems to show a working clock face, so Mr. Lindhout's model includes clock faces on both sides.

Port Call: Sitka!

September 21, 2006

Walking up (northeast) on Lincoln Street,

soon brought us to American Street, where we found this friendly Yogi Bear-minded friend. Sadly, we were fresh out of "pic-a-nic baskets" but he took it really well!

We convinced him to be patient and

pose for another picture or two, and it was Tammy and Jim's turn.

It must have been a girl bear,

because Jim was holding its hand. ☺

In the shop window next door we saw this wooden

carving of an eagle. (Dotti and I always think of our son LeRoy whenever we see an eagle, because he loves them.)

This book store is across the street from the

cathedral, and belongs to the Russian Orthodox Church. Just beyond is a Christmas store. ☺

One of my favorite things about our Alaska Cruise

was finding all of the Russian stores where they celebrated Christmas all year around it appeared. Grandfather Frost (Santa Claus) played a prominent role on the sign for this shop.

Just like we found with St. Nicolas' Church in Juneau,

St. Michael's Cathedral has an "Onion dome" topped by an Orthodox cross. (It differs from the Roman Catholic cross, in that there are three lines crossing the vertical line. The top shorter line represents the sign nailed above the head of Christ, and the bottom diagonal line is the foot rest.)

Unlike in Juneau, in Sitka the church is not a small

structure tucked in among residential housing. Here the Russians established the city, and it was their seat of government. This is the place where they worshipped. It was not merely a church to them, it was THE church.(See sidebar.) It was placed right in the middle of everything and was large enough to be seen from almost anywhere in town.

Jim's lovely Tammy is on the front steps of St. Michael's Cathedral,

on her way into the cathedral. In the background is the church store we saw earlier.

When I went in, the proprietor, who was collecting donations to allow access to the interior of the cathedral, was having some real difficulties with a few tourists who appeared to be ignoring him. He told them to either clear the door or come in because they were blocking the way for others. They stood there, they argued, but they wouldn't move.

There was another door, and I had no problem bypassing them, but I felt a little sorry for the guy. So, later, after I had taken a look around inside, I came back and talked with him, just to let him know that not all tourists were "bad." ☺ He was an older gentleman, with white hair, and with his "ruffled feathers smoothed down a bit," he was quite happy to speak with me. He was a member of the congregation, and he was very proud of his church. He was intent on not having it desecrated.

I certainly couldn't fault him for that!

They wouldn’t let us take any pictures inside, so I can't share what it looked like with you, at least not visually. If you visit our St. Michael's page (click here or on the graphic) I will share what I can about this interesting building.

Tammy and Jim are standing with me outside of an

art shop we had just visited. The shop was called the Fisherman's Eye, and specialized in presenting art by Alaskan artists. The St. Michael's Cathedral was just across Lincoln Street, to the right of where we were standing, and Cathedral Way was at our back.

We have been ashore just over an hour at this point, and were making up our minds where to head next on our great adventure.

Here are two signs of side-by-side art shops that we visited. The shops held carvings and paintings: mostly of wildlife of the area.

I was working a kink out of my back as we were

listening to Jim tell us some sea stories about when he and a few shipmates visited the Louvre, and the Metropolitan Museum. Don't hold me to that, the bars may have been called something else. ☺

Wells Fargo has indeed "gone far" in its

history. In 1852, when Henry Wells and William Fargo began the company, the Russian flag was still flying over Sitka, Alaska, the capital of "Russian America." Today, it has a branch here on Lincoln Street...on what is now American soil.

With Mt. Verstovia

in the back ground, the camera is looking up (northeast) Lincoln Street, along the route we about to be walking shortly.

Here I am proudly showing off my Alaska hat.

(How many people around me could possibly have been to Alaska do you suppose? ☺ I am sure they will all be duly impressed: tourists!)

Behind me the mountain is still clearly visible, but the area in background closer to me now shows the masts of boats tied up in Crescent Harbor. If you recall, this is the harbor that is protected behind a stone seawall that we could see from

our ship as we were pulling in.

Gee, how do you read this thing?

It looks like the kids really love this store, or at least their mother did. We thought the shop name was really cute.

It reminded me of something my Dad told me many years ago, about when he got in a bit of trouble in grade school by making another student laugh during class by asking the question, "Do bees have knees?"

My father's name was LeRoy, and our son is named after him.

Naturally, Dotti and I both thought of our son, as we did so many times during this cruise, when we saw the name printed on the back of this tee-shirt.

I have a receipt that says we bought an "angel's bag" and a "skinny mug" here, at 11:21 a.m. We had about 4 hours left before the last launch would pull out heading for ms Westerdam. Plenty of time left!

The end of line for Lincoln Street for

us came when we reached the point where it intersected with Harbor Drive. (Lake Street runs out north of town beside Swan Lake...and you thought it was a ballet.) We turned here to follow Harbor Drive, the road that runs over O'Connell Bridge. However, we wouldn't be following it that far.

This little mall was where we later stopped

and grabbed a bite to eat. (Notice where it says Restaurant Westmark Lounge.)

It wasn't gold that brought the Russians to Sitka, or Alaska generally: it was furs. And, since gold brought the Americans in large numbers, or at least larger numbers (the population of the marvelous state is terribly anemic compared with most of America) it makes a kind of weird sense that tourists are treated to innumerable fur and jewelry stores. It's for historical reasons you understand. I am sure that is why the stores are here. Yeah right!

I know that Westmark Sitka Hot Chowder

place is around here somewhere! ☺ We were really zeroing in on the Isabel Miller Museum, and we were getting close.

Did someone say food? Whenever we are

together we always have a lot fun and seem to be laughing most of the time. Jim's great sense of humor is one of the reasons why.

Yet another crazy tourist. This one looks

familiar though.

In the background, ms Westerdam once again appears. We've looped back around a little, and are near the waters of the Sitka Sound where our ship is parked.

If you take a close look at the sky, especially the part behind the light pole behind me (the one that doesn't make me look like "My Favorite Martian" antenna coming out of my head ☺), you will see a large number of sea gulls in flight.

My three traveling companions all caught in a picture

of them taking a picture. Dotti has Tammy and Jim posed in front of the statue of Alexander Baranof (Aleksandr Andreevich Baranov). It was no mere coincidence that we were standing on Baranof Island at the time.

Harbor Drive curves off in the background towards Lincoln Street. We were standing due east of St. Michael's Cathedral here, and even though it was not visible to us at the time, we were about as far away from it as we were from the green light you can see on Lincoln Street.

Alexander Baranof (Aleksandr Andreevich Baranov)is

looking pretty good for a 259 year old man. He was the Russian governor of Alaska for 28 years, and Sitka owes its existence, at least in part to his man. (See Sidebar.)

Dotti and I taking our turn in front of Mr. Baranof.

What do you suppose he would think if he could look down the years of history and see what has become of the land he loved? Would he be excited by the changes or devastated?

The statue and plaque were placed in commemoration of the centennial of the Alaska Purchase in 1967. Eighty-four years before I was born, the ground we were standing on was Russian soil, and I was in high school when this statue and plaque were put in place.

The year before that a terrible fire had rampaged through downtown Sitka, and a mere four years before our president had been assassinated. Historians try to set a pattern, and some order, to that which is left behind by the passing, often churning waters of history; but we live forever on the edge of the wave, moving forward, forward, ever forward. Civilizations rise and fall, and land changes hands, with borders adjusted accordingly. The future is out there waiting for us, and our children, with all of its surprises held in store.

After all of the map reading and the searching,

it looks like we finally made it. Here we are at the Harrigan Centennial Hall, once again commemorating the 100 year anniversary of the Alaska Purchase in 1867. Jim was feeling was pretty frisky for an old man. ☺ Look at him go! I wish I had that much energy.

Dotti was taking a picture of Mt. Verstovia and the boats of Crescent Harbor, as Tammy looks on. The lovely ladies are standing in front of the Harrigan Centennial Hall, which houses the Isabel Miller Museum. That was to be our next stop.

While Jim and Tammy read the plaque on the wall,

the hall entrance stands open waiting for us. (See Sidebar.)

On the right is a sign for the Isabel Miller Museum that we were planning to visit. On the left, a sign for the New Archangel Dancers.

The brass plaque on the wall inside of

Harrigan Centenial Hall celebrating the Alaska Purchase.

Can you imagine the Cold War going on with the Soviets populating Alaska? We were worried about them putting missiles in Cuba (and forced them to remove them), but what could we have done if they had planted missiles on their own soil? It would have been messy I think.

Aside from the obvious political advantages of owning Alaska, the oil and other natural resources contained in this state are immeasurable. It is a paradise waiting, protected by its physical isolation, and its cold weather. I am glad that Alaska is part of America today!

Here is what the plaque said:

ERECTED TO SYMBOLIZE THE
ENDURING NATURAL SIGNIFICANCE
OF THE ALASKA PURCHASE
CENTENIAL IN 1967, THIS
STRUCTURE WAS BUILT WITH FUNDS
CONTRIBUTED BY THE PEOPLE OF
SITKA, THE STATE OF ALASKA
AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

^{ALASKA STATE CENTENNIAL COMMISSION

MARCH 30, 1967}

Standing inside the Centennial Hall itself, and

looking towards the stage. The windows backing the stage provide a view unlike any other in any theater on earth. Normally a stage has a solid wall behind it, and if you are lucky it is covered with a velvet curtain or something else decorative. But this...

Moving closer, right up the edge of the stage,

the ms Westerdam dominates the scene. Here is where we have lived for the past 5 days. The boys playing Basketball, and the girls swimming in the hyrdopool, and evening meals in the Vista Restaurant all took place in this floating city. Soon we would be returning to her, but not yet. The stage's rough reflection appears to show two more illusionary window panes.

High in the sky a gull looks down on Sitka Sound.

The ms Westerdam stands at anchor, with two of its launches at the floating dock. In the foreground, the rock seawall that protects the Crescent Harbor begins moving outward into the water. A motorboat sits unattended. The remnants of the last rainfall puddle on the asphalt, and is showing signs of leaving as dry spots on the pavement appear. Looking just past our ship, Kutkani Island lies on the right and The Twins sits just beyond the bow. Mt. Longenbough, off in the distance, looks as if it were begin hit with rolling clouds, twisted and shooting up just like ocean waves hitting a rock. This view out the window from the stage of the Harrigan Centennial Hall, is an Alaska cruise in a nutshell.

Standing on the stage and looking back into the hall, shows

a lot of empty seats. Seeing a theater or hall filled with empty seats brings just a bit of the same feelings to mind that walking through a ghost town, or looking at an old empty house does. People bring the soul into a building or town. The inanimate structures are interesting to study on their own, but that study always includes how the structures serve man. Archeology is not a study of old buildings and clay tablets; it is a study of people through old buildings and clay tablets.

The 500 seats of Harrigan Centennial Hall would not stand empty for too long. Another show of the New Archangel Dancers was scheduled in the early afternoon.

The lighting fixtures were interesting, carrying a touch of Russia, and there was a painting on the rear wall. Looking out the back doors you can see light coming in from the entrance doors where we came through. Our next stop would be just down the hall which begins just outside the door on the left.

A close up shows what the painting is of. In

the foreground are women members of the New Archangel Dancers, and in the background is Sitka Sound with a cruise ship at anchor. Although the painting shows them dancing in a field, the stage very nearly simulates that with the windows behind it showing a scene very similar to this.

While I was busy taking pictures of the empty hall, the others had been gathering information from the office. Now, with the group reunited, we all headed for the museum down the hall.

When we walked into the Isabel Miller Museum we were first greeted with a very interesting model of Sitka as it once was.

On the front of the glass case that protected the model was this card:

Harrigan Centennial Hall

The building we are now in was built on fill acquired by dredging for Crescent Harbor in 1967.

The site for this building is just to the left of the rocks in the foreground.

YOU ARE HERE

	These are shots of the model of Sitka of 1867 from various angles. St. Michael's Cathedral is visible, looking very much as it does today, except for the color. The Russian Flag is flying on Castle Hill, but that was just about to change. The official ceremony of change of possession took place on that hill. None of the buildings of Castle Hill remain today, as we would be seeing later in the day. The town was protected from Tlingit attack by the wall, which incorporated two towers which could be manned in case of an attack.

This sewing machine reminds me of the one my

grandmother had set up in her bedroom. I always thought it was great the way it would run without electricity, simply by pushing on the large pedal on the bottom.

Jim and I both enjoyed seeing this Navy display.

The "crow" (the combination of the eagle, rating insignia, and petty officer stripes) is for a petty officer first class (E-6), which is what I was when I got out of the Navy, but this one has the insignia for a "Hull Technician." (Most sailors had another name for that rating but we won't go there right now. ☺) My crow had a schematic drawing of an atom, which represented the Electronics Technician rating. (Yeah, they had a name for us too. ☺)

A ship's wheel is right up there with an anchor as

a symbol for the world of the sea. Originally, it was tied to the rudder with a rope, and later more sophisticated linkage mechanisms were designed, but here is still the device that directs the ship's course.

Sitka, or New Archangel ("A rose by any other name...") has always been a sea town, and the military presence here was sea based.

These two beautiful girls were navy wives