We traveled on Sunday . All. Day. Long. Many miles, many modes.
Sibling vacation time! Me and Mike, Robert and Janet, Butch and Donna.
(I am doing talk to text on my phone to update my blog post. I hope it makes mostly sense.)
Damian drove us to the San Antonio International Airport at 5am on Sunday. We caught a flight to Seattle. Robert and Donna had come and gone, but Butch and Donna were there. We had lunch with them. We were on the same flight with them to Anchorage, too . Even on the same row, but apart. And we all snoozed and listened to audio books.
In Anchorage, we took a shuttle bus to the Hilton Hotel in Downtown. There were no keys for us for hours. I managed to get into my stored suitcase to get long pants, shoes, and socks, and to grab a jacket. Mike and I were still in our summer attire! From San antonio, where it was 90 degrees fahrenheit. Mike left his shorts on and didn't change into long pants, but I did grab a sweatshirt for him. It's a little cool here in Anchorage.
We had a 3:00 p.m. meeting with our tour director person, carol. She was quite confusing. But, after that 30 minute introductory meeting about what was going on in the next few days, the six of us headed out to find a place to eat. But it was Sunday. Most of the places we tried were closed! Or they had closed just before we got there. So, we wandered the few blocks around our hotel and eventually found a tequila cantina. It wasn't what we expected! It was kind of a high-endish Mexican place, but really nice and the food wasn't your typical Tex Mex selection. Donna had a pork chop with fancy roasted veggies, Mike and I had chicken and beef tacos which were really nice. Butch and Donna and Robert and Janet got appetizers, and we helped them eat them so there was a little bit of shrimp and guac and jalapeno poppers to taste and try. Butch and Robert both had a halibut dinner, and Janet had chicken alfredo! So, like I said, not your typical Mexican restaurant.
Interestingly enough, Robert and I must share the same gene. When he was at the airport in the men's restroom, a guy came up to him and said " my wife found your wallet on the plane. They have it at the gate. "Robert was shocked! He had no idea it was even missing. It had a lot of cash in it. How embarrassing. Then, when I was at the hotel and in the midst of swapping out clothes in and out of suitcases in a back storage room, I had laid down my purse while I was kneeling there on the floor sorting through stuff and trying to find things. I had just set my purse on a table nearby. Then I went to the bathroom clear on the other side and changed, came back, replace clothes, and then went out to the lobby. It was a few minutes before I realized wait! Where is my purse!?? We are truly blessed. It was in the luggage storage area where is left it, and the guys let me in to get it. I did not have tons of cash in mind ( $2.50 to be exact-- I never carry cash) but that purse does contain our passports!
After our dinner out, we were all kind of starting to droop after a long full day of travel so we just went to our rooms. I had to rearrange suitcase contents so that two could go into storage and two would come up with us to Denali for our overnight trip there. And then we had to decide what we were bringing with us on the train and bus to get to Denali. It's going to be an interesting, very full next 2 days! And it should be full of beautiful scenery, and I hope lots of wildlife, too! We shall see! I don't think Alaska ever disappoints, does it?
I did chat with Mom on the phone for a little bit last night when we came in on Sunday evening. She asked me if I had a nice view from my hotel room. Here it is:
