Day 10 - July 20

 We both woke up feeling slightly better this morning. Seems like the worst of this cold is behind us. Grateful we could still enjoy things in spite of it.

Got our bags out the door by 7 and went in search of coffee. At least I went in search. Matt had coffee in the room, true to his self. I got a latte this morning. We did the river walk by the property after coffee. Beautiful morning and a lovely walk. My emotions have completely shifted again. Feeling so happy to be here and have the opportunity to travel. This shifting emotion when I travel from traveling euphoria to being unsure whether I want to keep traveling continues. It seems to be part of the landscape for now. 

We joined our group at 8:15 and took the bus to the rail depot. We will be riding the McKinley Explorer to Anchorage today. It is an all day rail journey.

The train is two levels. We are sitting in the top level with a glass top ceiling. The dining cars are the bottom level. It is a beautiful ride. Through mountains, lakes, rivers and trees. So wonderful. It is overcast today with moments of the sun trying to peek through but sill beautiful. 

We had breakfast in the dining car. Quite an experience. Food is really good and we are on a train! Shortly after finishing breakfast, they are taking a head count for lunch! We are on board for later. Not now. 

We ended up sharing a nice lunch at about 1:30. The beautiful scenery was constant for over 8 hours. We never did see the sun but the day was lovely and it didn’t rain.

We arrived in Anchorage at about 5:30 pm. Nobody’s room was ready except ours, not sure how we got that lucky. We said our good byes to the tour group including Meredith, our tour leader. Of course, good bye always includes the required tip. But we were happy to pay. She did a good job. We deposited our backpacks in the room and headed out to explore downtown Anchorage. The day continues to be overcast and gray and downtown Anchorage is not beautiful. But we enjoyed ourselves. Ended up eating Mexican food at a restaurant downtown. 

Headed back to the hotel and settled in for the night. We head home tomorrow. But we have had adventures that will last a lifetime. I have had the mercurial emotions, as I do every time I travel, but it has been a wonderful trip. I never cease to be amazed at how well Matt and I get along and dance to each other’s rhythms with no effort. Both of us feel lucky to have each other for whatever remains of our lives here. 

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