It’s been one week since Mr. Gossett and I got home from our Anniversary Adventure to Alaska. Our 20th wedding anniversary comes up in September and it seems we’ve chose to do a special trip every five years. That’s the current trend we happen to be on. I didn’t get to blog any while we were in Denali even though we were there three days. We didn’t have internet access in our room and if I wanted to do any internet surfing, blogging or Facebook posting via computer, I had to go to the main lobby which wasn’t an easy walk for us to get to. There was a shuttle that circled the property where people were staying along with Denali Square where there were two restaurants and several shops for purchasing all kinds of Alaska related items. Our hotel was really nice, especially for a National Park and there were a lot of people staying there as well as
Dawson City and Fairbanks
It’s Thursday and we’re on the down hill slide on our Alaskan adventure. We spent Wednesday in Dawson City which is in Canada and part of the Yukon which is part of where the gold rush took place in the 1800’s. And here’s to Dawson City, population 2,000 – SA – LUTE!!! Okay, the kid in me had to do that. Couldn’t resist taking a little Hee Haw out of my back pocket and play that crazy one eyed jack. Now, back to the topic at hand. Wednesday, June 7, 2017 was pretty much a sleep day for Mr. Gossett and myself. We had been traveling via bus for a couple days and were a bit on the worn out side. We did eat good in Dawson though. The Bison meatballs and spaghetti was pretty good along with the Canadian Beaver Tail desert. That was scrumptious. it was was similar to a pancake but made with a batter that made
Back in Canada, if only for a Night
Today has been a whirlwind of a day. We had a wake-up call set for 5:30 this morning but I actually got mine at 5:00. Woke up hearing the ringer on my cell phone and I was wondering who in the world would be calling me at that hour. Come to find out it was my veterinarian calling about my cats. Otis had gotten something of a tummy ache and threw up while boarding and our vet wanted us to know. The thing is, it was 8:00 when they called, Alabama time. We were 3 hours behind. Well, I laid down even if it were only for 30 additional minutes. We got going on a bus and headed for the White Pass & Yukon Railroad. We boarded and got to see all kinds of things. The mountains and trees are absolutely beautiful and yes, there is still some snow on the ground but it is in patches. It wasn’t long
A Laid-Back Sort of Day in Skagway
Today has been a very laid back kind of day here in Skagway, Alaska. Doing a sea and land tour of Alaska is turning into a real adventure. Today has been a free day for our tour group and it’s been nice to be able to take advantage of the opportunity to be extra lazy. Not many shops open today which is a rare thing with it being tourist season. Mr. Gossett and I spoke with a gentleman who worked with an information center and we found out that there were no cruise ships docked today so, they had a day to regroup. Typically, when tourist season begins here in Alaska, it’s a 24/7 endeavor. They stay busy all season long. Skagway does have a housing problem though. There are lots of places that want to hire seasonal workers and there are seasonal workers that want jobs but…..there’s not enough places for all of them to stay for the season.
Water, No – Land – Definitely
It has been a full day for Mr Gossett and me here in Alaska. We arrived in Skagway overnight and when we woke, the boat we were on had docked. We packed our bags and put them out for transport to the land part of our adventure while we did our orientation for what is ahead for us. We have been set up with a group of folks to tour via train and bus between Skagway and Fairbanks for our departure home when our trip concludes. We are staying here in Skagway two nights and we are on our own to see and do as we please. We had lunch at the Red Onion Saloon & Brother and yes, there was a brothel at the saloon for the frontiersmen to frequent. Kind of reminds me of the early days of the Peerless Bar & Grill when the brothel was upstairs there too. It was quite an experience being served by
And the Journey Continues…….
Today is day 2 of our vacation through Alaska. We stopped at our first port Juneau, the capital of Alaska. It’s the only state capital where a person has to either take a boat or plane into of out of the city. Many of the coastal cities of Alaska are that way. Juneau has roughly 57 miles of roads and that’s it. No roads coming in or going out of Juneau, just those that take people to their homes, work and shopping for whatever the family needs are. We arrived in port at 1:00 in the afternoon and everyone seemed to ready to get off the boat because there was a line…..Gave me a new understanding of what cabin fever is all about. The passengers, Mr. Gossett and myself included, have been on the boat, Volendam for almost 48 hours. I think many of us were ready to explore new territory since we pretty much knew what we
A Day on the Water is like……
Today is June 1st and our first full day on the water. WIFI is limited at best on board. There are typically floors on a criuse ship with WIFI access that’s stronger than other floors but from what I’ve learnd from the two other cruises Mr. Gossett and I have done, using the internet cafe on board is a persons best bet. On Wednesday, we went through customs for the second time in two days. First, we did customs to get into Canada. Before we got on the cruise ship, we went through customs again to back into the states. Funny how those things happen. Standing on the deck as we left dock was quite an experience. We watched float planes leave and return to dock, as well as watched tug boats come and go assisting larger boats. After spending so much time walking, it was nice to find a place to sit for an extended amount of time without
The Amusement in Traveling
We made it to Vancouver, BC, Canada in one piece. The trip from Birmingham to Vancouver was an interesting one for us. It appears that check in via a kiosk has become common place wherever you go, even for an international flight. United Airlines (as well as other airlines) has the ability to check bags, scan passports and print boarding passes without having to bother an agent. The only reason they’re there is to answer questions and tell you that our suitcase is over the weight limit and you have to pay a fee for having 2 weeks worth of clothing in one bag. That seemed to be the easy part. Getting through TSA was the interesting part. Typically, we’ve done TSA Pre which means we just drop our carry on in the scanner, walk into the scanner and go. No show removal, not unlading three quarters of your carry on in a tray that rolls through a scanner. This
Let the Adventure Begin!!
Today is the beginning of a great adventure for my husband, Mike and me. In just a matter of hours, we will be on a silver bird heading towards Vancouver, BC. From there, we will get on a cruise ship and head towards Alaska. After 3 days on that big boat, we will be leaving the high seas and to get on a train and see Alaska and Denali National Park from a different prospective than we’ve seen before. It’s a trip that I’m certain will amaze as well as one we will never forget. It’s been challenging for me to get ready for our trip since it’s been 5 years since we did our last real vacation when we went to Ireland. I’ve spent a lot of time at work at WDNG and I haven’t taken a whole lot of time for myself. This trip to Alaska is an opportunity for me to decompress a bit and hopefully get
Knitting for a Cause
I realize it’s been a while since I’ve posted anything on what’s going on in my crazy world, and it has been crazy. Being Top Chick at a small market AM radio station has its moments, but it’s all good. Got a couple of projects that are in the works that aren’t quite ready for publication but a couple are ripe for the picking. It was during the Christmas holidays that I taught myself to loom knit. It’s a form of knitting using either a round or rectangular piece of wood (or plastic) with pegs that yarn is wrapped around that allows different stitches to be knitted by using a specially made hook. I couldn’t quite figure out the printed instructions on how to get started, but I did have the where with all to visit youtube to find more tutorial videos on loom knitting. When I finally got it all figured out, I was off and running like I’d