How to Be a Good Traveler!

Seeing as how I meet a couple hundred travelers a day, I've gained some insight on how to be a good traveler.

Here is what I've learned :)
1) If you're riding a bus that has a narrated tour given by a live driver, please do not allow your child to sing twinkle-twinkle little star at the top of their lungs while the driver is trying to give the tour.  This is especially important when the child is sitting right behind the driver and singing said song in the driver's left ear.  Remember, other people are trying to listen to the tour they paid to take.

2)  If there is standing room only on the bus, please take the hint that you need to adjust your position when the driver says (5 times repeated)  "Folks, please be courteous of the people you're standing next to.  Leaning on the seat they're sitting in means you're practically sitting on their head.  If you could please be sure to just grasp the seat back with your hand while the bus is in motion, this would keep everyone safe and comfortable"  Yes, if you hear this repeated more than once, it means someone, maybe YOU, are the offender, and the driver is trying to tell you nicely that you're practically sitting on the person's head :)

3)  When the driver tells you there is no more room on the bus,and that the next shuttle will be along in 20 minutes, please don't try to get on the bus anyway saying "There are just two of us"  No more room means exactly that, NO MORE ROOM!  This means even two more people will no fit onto the already overcrowded bus.

4)  If you're not going to leave your driver a tip, that's fine.  We appreciate tips, but we know not everybody is going to tip, and we don't expect you to.  Do not, however, reach into the tip bucket and pretend you're putting money in, when indeed you're not.  We can see the tip bucket, it's clear plastic!  When you reach in like you're placing a tip in, but don't actually leave one, it makes you look like  a jerk, rather than just someone who chooses not to tip.

5)  Do not carry on a conversation via your cell phone at the top of your voice when the driver is trying to give information.  This is not only rude, it's in bad taste as well.  If you must make a call, or accept a call, please keep it brief and to the point.  Not everyone on the bus needs to hear you say "We're driving back from the Glacier right now"  Everyone on the bus knows exactly what you're doing already, they're on the bus with you!  :)

6)  Don't shove and push people in line while trying to get on the bus.  If the bus is on time, and you're running late, then it's YOUR fault you're out of time, not the drivers fault, and not the other travelers' fault.  Plan you're time accordingly please!

7)  Don't threaten to call someone's boss to get them fired because they're doing their job.  The person you're  treating so badly may just be the brother or sister of the boss :)

8) If you are traveling with a child, invest the $20 and buy an umbrella stroller from Walmart. Dragging your $300 Cadillac Stroller that is the size of a small bus onto a crowded bus is inconvenient for everyone. You paid for an adult ticket, that means one seat, not a seat for you and two more seats taken up by your baby paraphernalia.

9)  SMILE!  You're on vacation and you're supposed  to be having fun.

TTFN!

Pictures from my first boat trip in Alaska

My lucky day

What a Week!

This was the first full week of the actual busy season, and what a week it has been!  I worked a minimum of 10 hours a day since Monday, and on at least one day I worked 11.5 hours.  I get up early and go to work, get off around 7:00 p.m., come home exhausted and do it all over again the next day!
Don't take that as complaining, it's what I expected, so it's nothing I didn"t come willing to do, it's just how it is.  Am I tired?  Yep!  :)
Last Saturday night though we went out on the company boat and had a meeting.  Not a bad place for a meeting mind you, not bad at all actually.
After the meeting some of us went back out and just did some cruising around, saw some whales that were absolutely amazing!  The water was gorgeous, the mountains around us were magnificent, and for the first time I felt like I was in the "Real" Alaska.  I will post a few pictures I took with my phone of the trip.
Speaking of my phone :)  When I was taking some pictures the boat lunged a little, and I lost hold on my phone while standing close to the edge of the boat (I was on the upper deck) -  I watched in slow motion as my phone tumbled toward the water.  Imagine my surprise when I saw the phone land not in the water, but rather on the very narrow ledge of the lower deck.  Talk about having the luck of the Irish with me!  I have a picture that a friend took of the phone on the ledge before I retrieved it, and I'll post that too.  It was unbelievably lucky.  I'm so grateful it didn't land in the drink :)
The week, other than busy, has been really good.  Every day (except one) I had passengers who were engaging, and fun.  Being an extrovert I really get my energy from engaging with other people.  Thursday was the one day I had trouble connecting with the passengers.  It seemed like every group got more and more difficult to connect with.  I thought I was "on" with my presentation, but I may as well have been talking to the lamp post.  I came home completely empty and felt like the lifeblood had been sucked right out of me.  Fortunately today (Friday)  I was back on my game and everything was going well.

I guess that's it for now.  This wasn't especially clever, but not every day brings humor and clever, sometimes I"m just plain old Miriam :)

TTFN!

I'm Famous!

Juneau Whale Watch - Juneau - Reviews of Juneau Whale Watch - TripAdvisor

This was my first passenger review, so excited and I received a $50 bonus from it!

Glacier Walk

This is some of the scenery I saw on my walk today. I wish pictures could do it justice, but they don't.

Lions & Tigers and Bears! Oh MY!

To the best of my knowledge there are no lions or tigers running wild in Alaska.  There are, however, Bears and Eagles and Harbor Seals and all other sorts of animal life running/swimming around.  Today I saw my first bear and I also saw eagles and ducks.  It was a warm , sunny, all together gorgeous day, and I am truly blessed to have been here on such a great day!

The passengers I drove were warm and engaging, not to mention very generous with their tips.  They laughed, I laughed, and everything just came together as it should.  I know not every day is going to be like today, and that's ok.  I'm just happy I had today!

A little more about the bears.  I mentioned today that if while visiting the Mendenhall Glacier people took the opportunity to walk out to the falls, that there was a very good possibility they would happen upon some bear cubs that have been very active in the area this week.  A couple of people looked at me and said "You  mean in the wild, without a cage?"  Trying not to giggle I responded "Yes, in the wild"  they then Said they were nervous about that idea, and weren't sure they wanted to see bear cubs.  I then encouraged them by saying "You came to Alaska instead of the San Diego Zoo!  Go see the bears and have a little adventure!"  They said they would, and when they got back on the bus they were thrilled to have seen bears!  All our visitors are always so in awe of the wildlife, and it would be a shame not to experience Juneau at it's best!

I also got to have a conversation with a gentleman who was traveling all over Alaska with just a backpack of his belongings before going back to work.  He recently moved back to the states after having lived in Australia for 20 years.  I found out he's a physician, and that after 20 years abroad he thought it was time to come "home".  During our conversation we talked about the plans Larry & I have of going to Italy, and how my being in Alaska was an adventure that was paying for that upcoming trip.  He stated I must have a wonderful husband to be able to come on such an adventure, and I couldn't have agreed MORE!  I do!  He also stated that I must have a naturally adventurous spirit to be willing to come here for the summer.  I don't know about that, but I sure do like the sound of it!

TTFN

~~miriam

So Thankful!

I don't know if there are words to express how grateful I am for technology!  I had a Spanish speaking passenger today who spoke literally no English.  My ability to communicate with him meant the difference between he and his wife making it to their Whale Tour pick up point, or missing the shuttle that would take them there.

Realizing that speaking slower and louder, but still in English wasn't going to get the job done (why is it I would think speaking slower and louder would help?? :)  I remembered I have google translate on my phone.  I used it to translate the instructions into Spanish, and so far as I know they made their pick up with no further problems.  YAY!  Problem solved with technology!

The most important reason I'm grateful for technology is the ability it gives me to Skype with my family!  It was a long (but good) day, and I was so excited to talk with Larry via Skype tonight..  Even just a few minutes of face time each day makes such a difference in my ability to keep focused on the incredible opportunity I have to be here in Juneau, and to keep a good attitude about being away from home even when I miss my family so very much.  So many people have sacrificed so I can be here.  Larry is making the greatest sacrifice so I can fulfill a dream, and I love and appreciate him so much for being the kind of man and husband he is to me.  People I work with at church are taking on extra responsibilities while I'm  away, and Sarah is taking on lots of things at home to make sure our house stays in order in my absence.  To have anything but a good attitude is so ungrateful and disrespectful to those who have supported me in my adventure.

So technology is the BOMB today!  And I am so grateful for the convenice it offers.

TTFN!

Roommate's Who Cook!

How lucky am I to have roommates who enjoy cooking, AND cook well!  Yummy biscuits and gravy with sausage and eggs this morning for breakfast!  As much as I enjoy cooking, it really is nice to have someone cook for me instead :)

Mucking Around

Before I came to Juneau I read a lot about what kind of clothing I'd need.  People dress in layers, because you never know if it's going to get warmer during the day, or rain, or whatever.  The main thing I found is that you need good footwear!  It rains here, and it rains a lot!  Keeping your feet dry is important.

The number one choice in footwear, by far, is xtratuff boots.  They are awesome!  They're also expensive, and I couldn't find any place in Boise to buy them.  I didn't want to wait until I got up here to get proper footwear, so I found some muck boots in Idaho (completely waterproof & insulated, just not quite as lightweight as xtratuff)

Yesterday I finally had reason to wear them.  It rained pretty  much all day, and when I got off after work I was feeling pretty discouraged and thought it would help to go for a walk.  I was right.  Now I'm not sure if it was the walking, or the total ridiculousness of the outfit I was wearing that cheered me up, but either way it worked.

About this outfit I had on :)  It has to start with this -  for the first time since I got to Alaska I was having a good hair day.   It had been sunny all week, and on the first day of good hair it rains!  Also, since I've been in Alaska I've been wearing shorts.  So now you have the picture -  a good hair day, ruined by rain, me in shorts, and to complete the look I put my muck boots on.  But I didn't just put the boots on over my boot socks, I folded my boot socks down over the top of the boots so they wouldn't slide down my legs.  Are you with me here?

So I'm all dressed up, looking very Juneau Local like and off I go for a walk in the rain.  I was laughing at how ridiculous I look, but realized that nobody thought a thing about it.  Here it's about functionality, not fashion, and I fit right in!  Oh, I forgot to mention, I was also wearing a fleece hoody, again, another Juneau staple when it comes to clothing.

Learning about myself and others

Today I had the chance to talk with a fellow driver, and a Juneau local about what people want when they hire a tour guide to take them around any given place.  He suggested that people want the wild west sort when they come here.  They want rough and tumble, tell it like it is and embellish a lot on the way.  I disagreed.

I told him I get a great connection with my passengers when I am simply myself.  I try , of course to be entertaining, but I let them know right up front that I'm from Idaho, not Juneau - and I have found that people really respond to the sincerity of the adventure I'm on and to my genuine enthusiasm about being here in Alaska for the summer.

He thinks I'm crazy, but the more I thought about it, and the more we talked, the more convinced I am that we can really only be who we are.  I"m not a wild Alaska native.  I"m a pretty simple girl, from a fairly quiet place, and I'm having a wonderful adventure in the Wild West of Alaska, but I'm not the product of that wild west.  I can't pretend I am, and I shouldn't even try!

And so today has taught me a greater life lesson.  Each of us needs to be the person we are with others.  People respond to that.  They appreciate the sincerity that comes with being genuine!  And more importantly, we need to appreciate who we are as individuals, and by doing so we are more capable of giving of ourselves, because we have learned what it is to be ourself.

Shuttle Adventure

I had my first experience driving tour groups today! Nobody threw tomatoes at me so I'm guessing I did okay!
The cruise ships didn't arrive until after 200, so I spent the morning training with a crusty bear of a man named Thomas. He is brilliant! He knows absolutely everything about Juneau, and is entertaining to boot. A great person to learn from, and a fun, FUN, tour guide.
I drove four tours out to Mendendenhal Glacier, and four tours back. Each run is about twenty minutes. I tried my best to make things fun and informative,, but have lots of room for improvement! Thomas has nothing to worry about with me...yet :)
It's 100. A.M. and I've spent the last 3 hours working on my tour presentation, so off to bed it is for an 800 start time tomorrow.  

Beautiful Scenery

Adventure Begins

Arrived in Alaska today around 12:30. The flight in through the channel was breathtaking. There was cloud cover, but snow capped peaks poked up through the clouds on either side and made the first impression a great one.

Serene picked me up at the airport and took me to my apartment. It took a few hours, but I've made things cozy enough and managed to make it a little bit of home.

We then took a quick tour of Juneau and went to dinner by the dock.  Now I have always enjoyed halibut,  but tonight I had the best halibut I have ever experienced. I could definitely get used to that!

I got to drive back alone, only got a little lost, and am now settled in for the night. I think this will be the time of day that is the most difficult. I knew I would miss Larry, but I didn't realize how much and how quickly it would hit. So honey, if you're reading this...a million kisses headed your way. xxoo

All My Bags Are Packed!

So excited and yet so sad. I am sure going to miss my family! I am so grateful for technology that allows immediate communication and video calls.

Countdown to Adventure!

Less than 2 weeks ago I was planning on spending a typical summer in Idaho, then BAM!  Adventure struck and I was offered a job in Juneau, Alaska for the summer.  After much discussion with my amazing husband, Larry, I decided to be brave and accept the offer.  Now I'm 48 hours away from embarking on the opportunity of a lifetime.

I know there will be long days of hard work ahead, and I know (because I miss them already)  I will miss my friends and family.  I expect there will be moments of loneliness and probably even tears -  but adventure isn't always easy.  Part of the challenge is to find a balance between the difficult times and the excitement.

That's what this blog is all about.  My sharing (to anyone who wants to read) the good and the not so good, and embracing it all along the way.

I hope you'll come along and enjoy the picturesque landscape, the stories-both happy and maybe not so happy, and the adventure of it all through this blog.  I've never blogged before, so I'm sure there will be mistakes a plenty made along the way.  I'll make apologies now for the typos and the posts gone awry right now :)

47 hours and counting!