For the second year in a row, Nome welcomed the Westerdam cruise ship on Thursday carrying 1,800 passengers. Visitors walked around town, some trying to decide if they should take off a jacket in the “hot” 60-degree weather.
Paola and Rob, a couple from Amsterdam, said they met a few locals while walking from Nome’s Small Boat Harbor to Anvil City Square.
“We’ve already had three talks with people and they were so nice to talk to them. We feel very welcome here,” Paola said.
Standing just a few feet from the Iditarod’s famous burled arch, Rob said he had seen the sled dog race on TV before, but never in real life.
On the north side of town, the gym at Nome’s Recreation Center became a busy marketplace. Local vendors sold things like blueberry jam, handmade kuspuks, and beaded earrings. Sherry Czarnecki from New York bought moose-print fabric from Sew Far North and a pair of beaded earrings at the craft fair. She said that everywhere she went, people were friendly.
At 4:30 p.m., the last few passengers and crew got on the final small boat heading back to the Westerdam, which was waiting just offshore. Looking back on the day, Robin Johnson, who helped plan the activities on land, said it went well.
She added “A lot of people don’t realize we’re a gold mining community, so they think all the dredges out there were fishing boats. I heard that several times today, and when I told them, No, those are suction dredges, that’s amazing to them.”
The Westerdam visits to Nome as part of a unique 28-night “Alaska Arctic Circle Solstice” cruise, where it aims to cross into the Arctic Circle for the Summer Solstice.
