Skagway and a Tiny Tragedy

I am gearing up to write this as I had completed drafts of my entire travelog only to leave it on the plane on the way home. Not only have I lost a clever turn of phrase or two, but also details of the days that I fear may now be LONG GONE from my pea brain. So here is my recollection of our day in Skagway. First a correction: Alaska has a population of around 800,000, not 400,000. Still, it's puny. Today we spent over 3 hours on the White Pass Scenic Railway, turning around on top of a mountain on the border of Alaska and British Columbia, a stone's throw from the Yukon Territory. Couldn't help but think of Preston Foster in his Mountie uniform. The snow cover, ice, and brilliant blue water made me wonder what in the world those gold miners were thinking when they set off to make their claims. Those dreams of gold dust and wealth must have been pretty powerful to propel them into a place that can be so very harsh. Also, they had to have been in possession of some pretty incredible physicality. We had fun being in the caboose on the way up and taking pictures of the front of the train along some pretty awesome curves. Little did we know about the switcheroo at the top when the last became first. Can you say, "Choking on diesel fuel?" We bundled up for the trip. Good thing. Damn cold when the wind blew. Ship antecdote: One day before the trip, Ron caught me in a pose, staring into space with my neck slightly outstretched. He said I looked just like a cat. One thing led to another and I became "Miss Kitty". The story, as well as my new name, was shared with Jackie and Larry who thought it a good one for our cruise. Each night, we had a lovely dinner in the formal dining room. Our waiter, Benedict, was a personable young man from the Phillipines and his assistant,Roman, was a Russian man who was as reserved and proper as Benedict was animated. We all became fond of each other and enjoyed our nightly dinners. One night, Benedict was taking our orders and when he came around to me, he said, "And what can I get for you, Miss Kitty?" I did a big ass double take wondering if I could really have heard that! Of course Ron had put him up to it. Before he agreed to it, he asked Ron if it was "bad", but Ron assured him I'd like it. Welllll... It was pretty funny!