Ju Know?

Day 3 of our Alaskan adventure involved fellow Couch surfers who helped make our visit to Alaska's capital Juneau extra special. We were picked up in front of the Red Dog Saloon only we weren't the ones standing on top of the electrical box like this tourist on the right...

Off we went on the city's only road to visit the Jensen Olson Arboretum (normally closed to the public Mondays.) Manicured flower beds and grounds were bordered by a temperate rainforest. The owner wanted to preserve her life's garden work and donated her property to be an  arboretum.

With all the moisture everything grows bigger in Alaska. Take a look at this double begonia, fungi and these ginormous caterpillars that could be found  all over...

After a lesisurely walk through the arboretum off we went to visit nearby St Therese's Shrine off the beaten path for most tourists built 60 years ago. 

Charming stone church

The peaceful grounds now serve as a retreat for any denomination where you can stay in a lodge / recently built cabins with a serene view of this French garden and the bay ...

But the day was not over so from the shrine our hosts took us to Mendenhall Glacier National Park which will be shared in the next entry. So check back as the views will be very different than the End of the Rainbow Valley...