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Back in Alaska 4.11.10

We left Palm Springs on Wednesday, flying up to Ketchikan with a quick stop in Seattle. We’ve always prided ourselves on how little we actually need with us. In the past 3 years we have traveled in our own vehicle and boat and it seemed like we had so little! Well….our flight brought us to reality! We had 3 bags weighing 50lbs, 1 ‘overflow’ bag with about 25lbs – and 2 carry-ons each. That’s a total of 8 bags! Haha… And NO….before you blame me for bringing a ton of clothes, I brought just what was needed….well, and 5 pairs of shoes! Haha… But we did pretty good. I’ve only found one item I forgot so far that I can’t replace here – a type of dental floss that is not sold here, go figure! I’ll have to order it and have it shipped up I guess.

The flight was fine, we chatted away with the passenger beside us on the first flight – the entire flight! It turns out him & Michael had a lot in common, grew up in the same area, went into the Military at the same time, etc. And it all started because he was reading a book written by the same author that I was. I don’t think I have EVER talked the entire flight with the passenger beside me!



Once we arrived in Ketchikan, which is on Gravina Island, we took the ferry over to Revillagigedo Island and John, the owner of the company we work for, picked us up and brought us to the apartment we are staying in this season. John & Jillian had us over for an incredible dinner of geoduck clams & linguine (YUM!!) and we chatted over a great bottle of wine for the rest of the evening. It was nice after the hectic day to just relax & catch up.

The rest of the week we have been getting the apartment in order for the season & getting settled. We left a box-o-goodies here last season with some of the items we needed but there’s always lots of ‘staples’ that are needed. You know – paper towels, Ziploc baggies, coffee filters, groceries, etc. Plus this season we splurged on some items that will make our place more like home - two desks, chairs, our requisite pan that we seem to buy every year, and just homey stuff. :-) We’re all unpacked, the apartment is cleaned, & the fridge is stocked!

We went into the office on Thursday and Friday and have a lot of work in front of us! What were we thinking?! Haha… I’m sure it’s ‘normal’ but the first day and even into the 2nd day I was stuck thinking I had SO much work to do….but not a clue where to start! Luckily, John & Jillian are patient with us as we get back into work mode! It’s quite a change from cruising life! We even have to wake up to an alarm clock!

On Friday, we participated in a ‘Fam’ with Carnival Cruise line, which is a familiarization tour with the shore excursion managers & directors who are working both on the cruise ship and in the corporate office. One of the Ducks was brought down to the dock and a group of 10 Carnival employees boarded. We had snacks & beverages and toured the town on the duck, explaining how the tour worked & answering any questions they had. It was fun & nice to meet the folks we will be working with this season.

The weather has been COLD! Temps haven’t gotten any higher than 45°! Brrrr!! We arrived and it was snowing. It has snowed every day since (except today).



Luckily, it isn’t sticking so no worries driving. Of course, Michael is still wearing his shorts. He refuses to wear long pants the entire time he’s here. And you can imagine – folks around here look at him and say ‘You’re not from around here, are you?!’. Haha!! We were walking into the grocery store the other day and someone looked over at him and turned to his wife and said ‘Geez!’ We’ve also had several comments about how tan we look and since we’ve been back in the U.S., I don’t think I’ve seen the sun more than once! Funny… But today it’s sunny and 50°. In our apartment we have a wind chime that has a mini solar panel that spins the middle spinner and makes noise when it sees sun. Today is the first day we’ve heard anything! Layer, layer, layer – that’s my mantra.

So after all that complaining – I’ll tell you too that I sure missed this place! We’ve missed our friends, the breathtaking views, trees, natural beauty, & lifestyle.



We have reconnected with a couple friends from last year and have a list of others we need to track down. It has been fun to be walking through the grocery store or driving down the street and seeing & catching up with friends from last year. And we’ve only been here 4 days! :-)

Most of the downtown merchants are still shut down for the season but there is a TON of work going on in the city to prepare for Cruise season – less than a month away! The docks are getting spiffed up – new pylons & planks – the bollard ropes are getting their spring pressure wash cleaning, buildings downtown are getting spiffed up, part of the town is getting a new sewer pipe so the streets are torn up right now, but will be finished soon.



So that’s about it! In a nutshell – snow, cold, moving in, setting up & WORK! Haha… It’s all good…

More to follow!
Rene

Easter in Palm Springs 4.6.10

We left our incredible beach house on Saturday and drove to the Palm Springs area to spend Easter and the few days before we leave for Alaska with Michael’s family. Most of Michael’s family live in the area – his sister’s family, Mom, & Dad. We had a wonderful time with them and look forward to seeing them again when we pass back through in October. My niece & nephew, Gracie & Nolan, are getting SO BIG! What a difference 6 months makes. I’m so glad we got so spend time with them.



We had a wonderful Easter dinner at Muriel’s house. There were 10 people at the table and we had all the fixings – ham, potatoes, zucchini frittata, rolls, and most importantly – family and friends.



I was bummed that Doug, Michael’s dad could not make it but we were able to see him the following day. We set him up with our boat computer which replaced his old Win 98 computer & visited for a couple hours before meeting him again at Jennifer’s house for dinner. I had my work cut out for me as Jennifer put me to work on her computers, checking some items off of her ‘to do list’ by getting printers, wi-fi, & programs updated. No problem! I’m glad I can put my skills to use every once in a while!



We even had a chance to go see Pete, Muriel’s husband who has alzheimers, who recognized both Muriel & Michael. The weather in Palm Springs was heavenly – temps in the 70’s and even up to 80’s a couple of times. Though it was certainly cooler than I expected in the evenings.

Gracie & Nolan took us to Boomer’s – a mini amusement park type place with mini golf, go-karts, bumper boats, rock climbing wall, & video games. We had SO much fun! OK, I may have had the most fun… Michael wore flip flops so he couldn’t do the go-karts and Gracie & Nolan both needed to ride with an adult….and luckily I qualified! So I got to ride both times and screamed my voice hoarse going around the corners.



In the bumper boats we all got soaked and I couldn’t stop laughing trying to maneuver those little boats. We screamed through mini-golf and video games and Gracie showed off on the rock climb wall by reaching the top 3 times. Bummer, my ankle is still giving me troubles or I would have been right there with her!



I was surprised when one of my friends who moved away from Ventura messaged me on Facebook and said she would love to see us while we were in Palm Springs. It turns out, Linda, a good friend and fellow bunco player lives on the street caddycorner from Michael’s mom’s house. Cool! We hooked up at Starbucks for a quick coffee & catch-up episode. It was a nice surprise and I’m so glad I could catch up with her!

We left Tillie, our VW van, at Michael’s dad’s house for the summer and hitched a ride with Jennifer & the kids to the airport. We left sunny, warm skies….and arrived to 40 degree temps and snow in Ketchikan! What a difference a day makes… :-)

We had a good time visiting with family and look forward to seeing them again in October. But now, it’s time for Alaska!

More to follow…
Rene

Hanging out in Ventura 4.1.10

We have spent the past couple weeks at Sue & Dennis’ house in Ventura. It is always so nice to visit with them & get caught up on everything. And you can’t ask for a more amazing house – right on the beach – and the weather was incredible (except for a couple days of rain). It was so nice to spend a week relaxing before preparing to go to Alaska. Sue & Dennis caught us up on some TV shows, we had incredible dinners & wine, and great conversation. We miss them both and look forward to seeing them!



We were plenty busy while we were there too, of course. We picked up and went through the stack of mail we had waiting for us, took care of our taxes, had lunch & dinners with many friends, and spent a few days just vegging out. We were always coming and going, getting everything ready for our 6 months away...again!

Spring has definitely sprung in Ventura and it was great seeing all of the blooming wildflowers & trees everywhere. The beach was packed as it was Spring Break and sunny & warm.



We were also rewarded with the amazing weather as Sue took some long overdue photos of Michael and I on the beach at the ‘magical’ time of day. They turned out GREAT! Sue is an excellent photographer!! We're lucky to have her as a friend. As always, there's lots more photos in the photo album...



We're heading to Palm Springs to spend Easter with Michael's family...
More to follow!
Rene