Australian euros?

Deb got ready first. I had gotten out of the shower and was doddling, when Deb suggested, "Maybe we should take the 5:40 shuttle." Did I mention the flight is at 8am, and we're 10 minutes from the airport? I mumbled something about waiting until six, then starting packing up. I finished getting ready, closed up my bag, and we returned to the lobby. Due to no effort on my part, we actually made it in time for the 5:40 shuttle, so we got on it and arrived at the airport before six. Did I mention we had an 8am flight? It’s all right, though, I got back at her. As I wandered the airport (since I didn’t have anything to do for two hours) I noticed the drinking fountain in our gate area made loud splashing noises. Specifically, there were speakers attached below the fountain generating excess noise. I returned to our seats, “Hey Deb, will you go fill up my water bottle?” She innocently walked to the fountain, and I watched (and snickered) as she began to fill my bottle: blurp, blurp, blurp. She came back with about two sips worth to which she responded, “Did you hear that thing? If you want more you can go over there. It’s loud.”

I got breakfast at the airport's Japanese restaurant. Actually, when I read the menu and saw the breakfast sandwich with Spam, I decided it may have been Filipino instead. I skipped the Spam but did enjoy some good bacon and eggs.

The flight to Juneau was interesting. It was a cargo plane, too, so we were all in the back of the plane and the cargo in front. That’s some nice first class packages. I was listening to the conversation of the two people next to me. I was on the window, a man who had travelled to Australia was on the aisle, and a not so bright young lady sat next to me. He was telling her all about Australia, when she throws out this thoughtful question, “Do they use the Euro there?” Hmmm, I’m thinking Euro sounds kinda like Europe, which is in another hemisphere, but what do I know? He was much more gracious than I and said, “Well, no. They use the Australian dollar.” To which she asks, “What’s that?” At this point, I am thinking some fairly judgmental thoughts, so I’m really glad she’s not talking to me. The man responded a somewhat hesitantly, “Uh, it’s the dollar…they use in Australia…they have their own…money.” Amazingly, this was before she ordered the two vodkas. Did I mention it was an 8am flight?

The weather in Juneau was sunny and warm. We took the public bus into town and walked around a bit. We had fish (halibut) and chips out on the water then went on a shopping spree. I happened to have my Barack Obama sweatshirt in my backpack, so we hiked up the hill, on the west side of town, to visit the governor’s mansion. There was a woman in her late thirties, posing for her husband’s camera. She was a Palin look alike, which made me wonder if she knew what type of currency they have in Australia. Anyway, I walked up to the mansion and she said, “I’m not giving autographs (laugh, laugh).” I just smile and told her I wouldn’t want one anyway. I smile, pumped out my chest, and Deb took a couple pictures.

We rode the bus back to the airport and flew to Gustavus. The proprietor of the Annie Mae Lodge picked us up and delivered us to the guesthouse. Linda met us at 6 for dinner. She and Deb had some beef dish, but I went for the crab and lots of butter. In order to get my blood pumping again, we walked to the beach after eating. It was a great way to end a very long day.Weiterlesen