Mom and Dad joined me on the Rhapsody this week for my birthday, and we kept very busy!! We hiked out to Mendenhall Glacier in Juneau for some more ice cave photos, and still had time afterwards to see some salmon running in a little place called Sheep Creek just outside of town, and to eat some of said salmon at the Thane Ore House. In Skagway I took my parents to the sled dog summer camp in the morning, and then we took a train ride on the White Pass railway in the afternoon. After that we still had a little time to shop for souvenirs. I ate dinner in the dining room with them all week, as a result of which I've probably gained 5 pounds....but it was worth it. :-) In Victoria we met up with some friends from back home in Lake Arrowhead, and all drove out to the Butchart Gardens for a lovely day of photo-taking. We had barely enough time to have some fish and chips at my favorite place in town before heading back to the ship. My parents are great - it was so nice to have them on board and to get to know they were there watching every time I performed, being proud and supportive as always. I checked my email a grand total of once the entire week, and still have a bit of catching up to do. It was a wonderful week, we celebrated my birthday as they were leaving in Seattle, and they brought me some wonderful gifts that I'll get to enjoy here. I got some little gifts and cards from a couple of my friends here on board, which was really nice, too. I'm still getting over a little bit of a cold, but I've been trying to rest and take it easy as much as possible, Luckily thats pretty easy to do on board the Rhapsody. :-)
In other news, I've officially requested my extension, and should have the final confirmation in the next couple of days, though I already heard back from the Miami office with their OK. So it looks like I'll be here until March 24th.....yikes!!! I am so glad to be able to get to do the circumnavigation of Australia, though, which this extension will allow me to do. Very exciting!!
Yesterday in Juneau I did my final shopping with my friend Blanche, in preparation for the rest of my contract, and the crossing in particular. I've planned ahead a lot and done what I suppose could be called "preventative shopping", so if I'm careful I should need to do any more shopping for sundries for the rest of my contract. It will be much cheaper in the long run, thanks to Walmart and buying in bulk at Costco. I hear things are much more expensive and harder to find once we reach the South Pacific. So now I'm ready! after this week, 3 more weeks of Alaska before the crossing! Bring it on!
