Walk: 10 km
Grand Total: 1259 kilometers
Bonus Activity: Yoga (before leaving for Alaska)
I attended an Alaskan Trade show this past week and what a brilliant experience! It was all work, but there is still much to see by just being there.
We arrived in Anchorage on Sunday evening, where I found myself delirious and lost. My sales manager and I were settling in for a late dinner, where we randomly met four VERY legitimate Alaskans. By the end of the meal, they had given us all their personal information and insisted on having us over for dinner the next time we visit. By the end of the trade show, we would see them again and they brought gifts of salmon. Delish! The funny part was, the Alaskan that was more revered was the dude who hadn’t combed his hair in a month and removed his boots to eat in the middle of restaurant!
We flew to Fairbanks on Monday, which was very cold yet pretty. We hung out with the customers and flew back the same day. On the flight back, we sat beside a Pilot who pointed out the sights – including Mount McKinley, the highest mountain range in North America.
Seriously gorgeous.
Not too shabby for an iPhone snap from the plane! It was a clear and sunny day – also proof that it’s not night time in Alaska all winter.
This event was also my first trade show – and it was a great first event. I did some schmoozing with presidents, CEOs, and owners of the major Alaskan air businesses. They are all super down to earth people and at the end of the day – just people. 
I was pleased to be able to apply some of Jeremy’s and my interests to such a group. We did a vino tasting on the top floor of our hotel, in a la-dee-da restaurant called the Crows Nest. I was able to comment (at least) on my favorite reds and agree with people that it was the best chardonnay I had ever tasted! (I was too swept up in the moment to grab the name! I know it was an $80 bottle, which would explain a lot.)
We had a banquet one night, where I was literally dragged out onto the dance floor. Corina would have been super proud, as I stumbled through a two-step - apologizing profusely to my partner. Dancing was mandatory and the peeps super let loose. I saw a woman (sister to the owner of one of major customers) leap on to a table to strike a pose. If one of the super stars of Alaskan aviation was table dancing, I could do a little gig around the dance floor. LOL. There was also a mechanical bull situation later in the evening, where I saw many suits go for a ride. Thankfully this was not mandatory (like the dancing) and I declined. Head injury waiting to happen…
Snap time!
Foodie shot. This was room service halibut and chips with a side of Alaskan Amber beer.
This was the view from my hotel. They accidently gave me an executive corner suite, so I had windows on two sides of my room. Try banging out some work emails in between customer site visits and trade’showing with THAT view! Mesmerizing. I was smiling a lot.
Plus, we saw a moose! Apparently, Anchorage is crawling with them – but, I didn’t see one up close until our last day. It was Bullwinkle himself, hanging by the side of the road. It was hilarious – as my sales manager and I took paparazzi shots of our new friend, a local Alaskan just walked by nonchalantly. Like dude – it’s a moose!
It was a great week and many lessons learned – including the test of my endurance! Jeremy picked up us on Friday from the airport, where we cozied up for the night. I believe I was asleep by 10:30, stumbled into my actual bed at 11:30, THEN didn’t get out of bed until 1:30 Saturday afternoon! Jeremy had gone to work for a bit and if he hadn’t called me, I may have stayed there longer. It has been a hectic number of weeks, I suppose. Unfortunately, my body is now very confused and I did not sleep last night. Am I on Dutch time? Alaskan time? Or Central? I laid in bed until 5 this morning, then decided to get up and hang out. It was a great opportunity to punch out some blog entries.
I am looking forward to getting back into some routine. I am going to a yoga class this morning and I have some major laundry and “Pamela apartment stuff” to attend too. I’m very happy we have tomorrow off – I have big plans to get my cardio on!
