Aurora Borealis

On my bucket list I have see the Northern Lights. And for the past two weeks Jed would check the forecast to see what kind of changes we would have and if it would be clear skies or not. Jed really wanted us to see them and mark it off my bucket list. What better chance then while in Alaska.

Finally the day came! 

As you can see, it was cold and dark. hee hee We drove 2 hours north to a town called Talkeetna, AK. It was a pretty drive and we made it just in time for them to start. SO cool!!

Seward? Stuart? Seaward? Swearword? How do you say it?

Kim and I have now experienced and have become familiar with the two ports which our Company cruises out of. We drove down to Seward last week and had a great time together. (That is once we got there and on our way back.) Kim and I drove separate vehicles. I drove our car and she drove a brand new Toyota Sienna. She was jealous of my time spent driving brand new vehicles in Juneau, so I guess she wanted to have her turn.

By the way, if you are wondering about the title of this post, I have an explanation....  So, we get people from all over the world that call our office to book their tour and cruises. Many have no idea how to pronounce the names of towns, rivers, national parks, etc. I can sympathize with them a little. But, it is hilarious to hear them try to pronounce the names of these places. First and foremost, the Kenai Fjords. Oh, this one gets so many people! I wonder if they even know what a fjord is when they have no idea how to say the word. So, here is a little lesson on pronunciation of the following words: Kenai Fjords (Key-nye fee-yords), Seward (Sue-word),  Chugach (chew-gatch). My favorite wrong pronunciation of the word fjord is "jord". I believe people get so intimidated by the sight of the word that they just decide to drop any attempt to pronounce the word using the letter [ f ] at all. I wish I could record some of the pronunciations I have heard.

The drive to Seward was beautiful! Our least favorite part of the drive is the pot holes. Holy smokes! I seriously felt that the car's axle had snapped in two as I hit one of the Mammoth pot holes! Starting next weekend, I will be driving our cruise passengers down to Seward. I am thinking if I get an annoying group of people or anybody that starts nodding off while I am narrating the tour, I will just hit a few pot holes during our travels. :)  

Another benefit of working in the tourism industry, is that you get to do a lot of things for free. For instance, we walked into the Sea Life Center and told the gentleman that we work for Major Marine and he let us in free. Saved us $40 dollars, admission was $20 bucks per person.
Here are some photos we took @ the Sea Life Center

Here is Kim lifting up some buoys that were on display at the Sea Life Center.
Look at those muscles!

Alaskan King Crab getting ready to pounce on Kim.
Little known fact, these things are super aggressive and unpredictable!

Giant Sea Spider otherwise known as "King Crab"

Starfish

Mohawk Fish

Shrimp

Mohawk Fish with his fin slicked back 

Nuff Said!

A lot of weird sea birds, this one has two antennas on its back

Puffins, we were a little amazed at how small they were. I guess we were expecting them to be as big as penguins.
These guys dive down into the water and swim around like maniacs. Fun to watch!

Horned Puffin
Some thick eyebrows, huh?
They remind me of Lovelace from Happy Feet, except less Penguin like.

Stellar Sea Lion
These guys like attention. They came waddling out when we showed up and they kept swimming by and looking back at us to see if we were watching. They get pretty big too, one named "Woody" weighed 1700 lbs.

Another weird sea plant

Sea cactus or something like that...

Don't try this at home!

All aboard!

Captain Kim! 

Who's got the fiercest face?

Hormonal changes cause the snout to curl inward, facial hair to grow (or skin becomes darker), teeth become longer and sharper, such changes cause rapid mood swings. Effects can be seen in both creatures.

This fish gives me nightmares! 

Trip to Whittier with my best friend

Kim and I decided to take a little road trip to Whittier to find out what the little coastal town has to offer our customers. Whittier is one of the places our Wildlife and Glacier viewing cruises travel out of. We had been telling people about how to get to Whittier and warning them of "The Tunnel" and Tunnel Times", but had little idea of what we were actually telling the customers about as they would call the Anchorage office and book their cruise. Finally, we decided to go see it for ourselves.

As we approached the first tunnel we encountered on our drive to Whittier we stopped and took a picture of the snow covered mountains surrounding us. The mountain directly behind Kim's head is the one the tunnel goes through. This is the longest tunnel on the North American Continent and is approximately 2 miles long. It is one lane and allows access only one direction at a time. Go figure, right? Vehicles are allowed into Whittier every hour on the hour, and access out of Whittier is on the half hour. Throughout the tunnel there are about 8 different "Safe Houses" I am assuming these are put in place so if the tunnel were ever to cave in at any point along the 2 mile stretch, the people stuck inside would have a nice place to go and share a cup of hot cocoa while they wait to be rescued. That's if they happen to be so lucky. I am sure the tunnel is completely rock solid, though. :)

The small A-frame structure is the entrance to the tunnel heading into Whittier. Looks kind of puny compared to the big mountain, eh? 

Entrance headed out of Whittier.

Kim posing for a great advertising shot of the Whittier office.   Seats are filling fast!

This is to prove I was there too :)

The light at the end of the tunnel

First glance of Whittier...    Ok, can we go back home now.

The snow was a little deep off the beaten path.
Is this some kind of sick joke targeting those who are handi-capped?

Its okay though, it seems to keep the riff raff out.

Kim and I were looking at some of the ocean front property 

We found that Whittier offered small quiet neighborhoods with custom built homes under 400 sq. ft.
We decided that with all the extra space we would have and no one willing to come visit, we would have to pass up the opportunity to settle down in Whittier.

It was actually good weather and turned out to be a beautiful day

View out into the Prince William Sound
Can you see the killer whales?
Huh?
Neither could we

There's not much for sandy beaches here in Alaska, but if you like sharp jagged rocks and steep cliffs, its the place for you!

Magnificent sight!
It was such a clear and beautiful day you could see the snow blowing off the tops of the peaks and ridges. 

Sun beginning to set over the mountain peaks

So this is LOVE

I had the day off before Valentines day and I spent my whole day planning something special for Jed. He had no idea!! That was my favorite part! I picked him up from work and said that I didn't accomplish much today... just sat around pinteresting the whole day so I think we should just have spaghetti tonight. He didn't seem to mind. Little did he know what really happened at home.....

Jed was super surprised to walk into the apartment and see the table set. 

Just light the candles and wah lah! A romantic candle light dinner for two by the window with a beautiful view of the city lights. So perfect and cozy! We didn't have to leave the comforts of our own place or deal with the noise of others. We ate and enjoyed being together. 

The happy couple after a delicious candle light dinner and ready for a fun "love hunt" game to play. 

The view from our condo. Good ole Downtown Anchorage. 

 I got online and found this activity and it turned out great!! Its called a "love hunt". You leave clues and task around the house. My favorite part were the tasks. 

Share your most favorite character trait about each other before reading the next clue.

Sweep you lady into your arms and dance to an entire romantic song before reading the next clue. 

Pour and enjoy some "bubbly" and take turns making a toast before reading the next clue.

Share your most favorite memory of the two of you before reading the next clue.

Kiss your women like she'e never been kissed before and then you can read the final clue.

It was so cute to follow Jed around as he figured out the clues and smile as he read the tasks. We both felt a little awkward doing it but Jed kept saying how he felt special and how he will always remember this day. 

It was fun to share our favorite memories together and make a toast, but when Jed swept me into his arms I played the song he picked for our first dance at our open house. Wanted by Hunter Hayes. As we danced I couldn't help but flashback through all the adventures Jed and I have had within our 6 months of marriage. I also thought about how happy I am and how much I can actually love someone inspite of how different we are ( and stubborn ). And then the tears came. And then Jed's tears came. 

And I didn't want the song to end. 

After our open house I asked Jed why he picked the song he did for our dance ( we wrestle with which song to pick when his family egged us to dance at the open house. So on the spur of the moment Jed picked Wanted) he said he picked it because he always wanted me to feel loved by him and constantly wanted. Jed can be super romantic if I let him.

Then at the end of the "love hunt", I had a paper with 40 reasons why I loved Jed and of course some mints! I "mint" to tell you how much I love you. I didn't plan for Jed to hold me while he read each one and gave me a kiss after each. But it was nice to hear him read them aloud. 

Love you Honey Bunches of Oats!!