Week 4: Alaska

Hi!

This week we ventured into the cold Alaskan tundra!!!   J/K... although it was quite nippy up there.  First, I feel that I should dispel a rumor about life in Alaska... for one, people DO NOT live in igloos up there... Yes I have had heard people say that they believed there were igloos there... but there are not... and yes, there is life up there!  Ok!  Now back to my adventure.... my hotel was right next door to the theater which was also about a block away from the mall. I was also around some really nice restaurants, but sadly I was in a tourist area... hence things were expensive!  Part of the reason why it is expensive is because many things are imported into Alaska.  Oddly enough, a lot of people live there and many of the people I met in Alaska were NOT from there.  Many of them really enjoy Alaksa despite the cold and the high prices.  Sadly, I'm not able to say the same myself, but I was encouraged to come back and make a visit in the summer, because I hear it is absolutely gorgeous.  Well, here are the observations and conclusions I discovered during my week long visit (which btw, these thoughts and feelings are solely my own and do not reflect in any way shape or form members of the tour!)

Alaskan air, though cold, tends to be a bit dry.  It wasn't as bad as New Mexico, where I had vocal problems due to the dryness of air.  Vocally I was o.k, but Alaska is hard to adapt to... partly because it has it's own time zone.  It is 4 hours behind E/P so when it is 6 pm there it is 10 pm in New York!! :-/  I also noticed I was relatively tired throughout my stay.  Usually after I was done with a show, I literally only wanted to go to sleep.  When I would go to bed, I wouldn't wake up until after 10 am the next day.  The times I did wake up before 10, it was dark outside.  Basically, Alaska in the winter only has a few hours of sunlight... I noticed sunrise didn't begin until around 9:30 am and would set at around 4 pm.  So majority of my days were filled with darkness, which of course would make anyone tired!

To my surprise, I also found out that many people were not huge supporters of Palin.  In fact, I didn't meet anyone who supported her... but I did find cool t-shirts from her campaign on sale for $4.99 and $9.99 (no, I did not buy one either!)

Aside from the difficult time change and climate (which I was pretty much used to seeing that I lived in Illinois all my life), the people there are very friendly.  I sat next to a woman on the plane who was coming to the show that weekend, and while on the plane I relearned how to knit thanks to her.  I met up with her after the evening of the show that she attended so that I could meet her family, and out of the goodness of her heart she bought me knitting needles, thread, and a printed guide on how to knit!! :o)   I also met with other people (including a friend of my father's) who were genuinely nice.  

Overall, by the end of my time there, I came to realize  how incredibly grateful, lucky, and blessed I am to have met such wonderful people and to travel to so many places.  I don't think I can thank God enough for this wonderful opportunity... and again I would like to thank you... the people who read this and those of you who have continually encouraged and helped me along the way throughout the years with your love and support.  God Bless you!

Well I am currently in downtown L.A. so until next week... Peace and Blessings!

~Amber