We made it...4 flights and a lot of random naps later, we are in Fairbanks, Alaska! We were up at 4am, and in the taxi by 5:25am. It was early, but I knew that traveling with Anna, Jake, and Charles would be a lot of fun. We have spent so much time with each other the past year and a half, we can predict each others moods (good and bad!) At the same time there is never a dull moment because one of us is always cracking a joke, dancing around, or making up a song...and that's without any alcoholic influence.
There was an issue with our baggage at the Luleå airport...Jake and I both packed for 2 months of traveling, and were a bit overweight for our luggage. However, we are silver members on SAS airlines, so I travel with overweight baggage all the time! But, I guess the 6am crew was not feeling so generous, and the we had to repack our stuff. As silver members we are allowed 2 bags at 23 kilos, but not 1 bag at 28 kilos. Strange! So....we were totally those people unpacking at the airport (luckily Jake brought an extra duffel bag, so we stuffed all of our toiletries in it and checked it!) Then, we were running a bit behind, and they angrily called our names over the intercom...which is quite hysterical seeing that there were only about 15 people in the entire airport. Great start to the morning!
Once we were en route, everything went smoothly. Lovin' our in flight meals....
The Stockholm - Chicago flight was a bit crazy. There were about 15 kids in the cabin...and evidently it is ok to let children climb over seats and scream at the top of there lungs repeatedly. I will one day write a book about in-flight etiquette.
Anna's first steps in the US were at the Chicago airport! Woohoo! We are only half way through the day....
I guess I put my camera away until we arrived at Fairbanks. It was another 4 hours to Seattle, then 4 more to Alaska. Whoa! Intense, but nothing was delayed and we were smiling...most of the time :)
We were greeted in Fairbanks by snow, freezing temperatures, and our awesome friends Fiona and Eric!!
We decided we need a beer to relax after the long journey, and needed to catch up with Fi and Eric!
We are staying at Eric's family's house, and it is absolutely lovely! We woke up bright and early head into the campus for some rehearsals. It is definitely colder in Fairbanks than in Piteå right now! crazy!
We stopped at a fantastic coffee shop, that we will frequent throughout this visit. Mmm...bagels. :)
After rehearsing, the four of us headed to the little Alaskan museum that they have on campus. Beautiful views of the landscape on the way...
Stuffed bear...better than running into a real one :)
Someone made this outhouse into a piece of art. We still thought it was an outhouse.
Day 2 in Alaska...morning at Eric's. Anna shows Chaz some yoga moves. We performed and gave our masterclass, so it was important to be loose and relaxed!
The house is so cozy! The morning view is fantastic!
Yes. Eric cookin' breakfast and Jake ironing. Gender rules broken!
Ensemble Evolution doing some last minute preparations for our performance/masterclass. Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures while we were presenting. It went really well, though! A lot of non-percussion students were there and they were very responsive to what we had to say and complimentary of our playing.
We had a lovely Arctic family dinner at a Thai restaurant to end the day.
Now, I'm sitting in Morris' office, and will leave soon to attempt to drive on the snow and pick up Anders and Daniel at their hotel! Wish me luck :) We'll then rehearse Ionisation (the first percussion ensemble piece) and enjoy Anders' and Daniels' masterclass. This evening we plan on heading out to a natural hot spring to bathe a bit! So excited! Our concert is Saturday, and I need to start taking pictures of the actual "work" we are doing :)
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