A Day Off?...

The fog is hanging over Denali National Park as lay in my extremely cozy bed here at the McKinley Village Lodge - no complaints from this girl :) I have a "hold over day" which means there is nothing planned on my itinerary. This won't be normal (as my other co's are in the lobby sending off excursions all day), but my entire group went on the 9 hr tour of the park. I sent them off at 8am and have been in PJ's ever since. I'll be leaving for a hike here soon. (maybe a jeep ride or an ATV mud ride...not sure which yet)
Week 2 of being on my own is great. I have an entire group (25 people) that met on a previous cruise and had a HORRIBLE time, but they all bonded because of it. So, the pressure was high (on having a great and organized time) when I received them, but I think I've proven myself. I loved sending them off in smiles and giggles on the bus this morning. It's really been an easy tour so far, so I'm thankful. Already, the commentary I'm suppose to give everyday is coming really easy, so I'm thankful for that. It's amazing how much I know about Alaska already. So crazy!
Although it's weird not going to church on Sundays, I'm SO thankful for podcasts. I got to lay in bed and listen to one this am (listening to preacher pillow actually happened this am).
I have to say, I really feel like this job uses my abilities in a great way. It's been extremely rewarding to see it all come into play.
let's see..stories:
- all my Aussie's, Kiwi's and South Africans have been teaching me fun sayings and "profanities" in a way my fellow American's wouldn't know. They LOVE it went I use their accents as well.
- My new friend Katie and I went hiking right before we left for this trip. We hiked up a mountain called Flat Top, which has 4 spread out peaks. We were only going to hike one until we saw peak 2 with what looked like sled marks down the face. We met a few guys at the bottom who were carrying trashbags and offered us 2. We climbed up this peak (with about a 70% incline and about 700 ft), sat down on the trash bags and slide on our butts all the way down. My butt cheeks were icicles but the outcome was AMAZING! I videoed the entire thing.. I may try and post it in the next few days.
- we have all 7 roommates in the house - and it's not too crowded, so that's great. We all have different schedules, so we've only been home all together once for about 2 hours.
- I've already gained a few new grandmas and parents on this journey. Your guest really come off the ship loving you before they even know you.

OK, that's just a quick summary. The outdoors is calling me. :)