Goodbye Alaska
6 July 2006
Emily May

      Today was a sad day, for we are leaving tonight. We have spent the last 3 _ weeks together, and are now heading home on a six-hour flight. We started out the day with the wake-up announcement that there were doughnuts for breakfast and it was first come first serve. That got people up and out of their sleeping bags and into the kitchen. For some people it was a mad dash to the kitchen for doughnuts. Though for the people who didn’t get up in time to get doughnuts they got bagel instead. Once you were done with breakfast it was time to pack up. That’s when it really hit me, and maybe some others, that we are going home tonight and are leaving Alaska. We packed up our sleeping bags, sleeping pads, toiletries and other last-minute things that needed to be packed in the morning. We then loaded the vans up with all of the bags and had a quick meeting inside the church’s chapel. We then went and jumped in the vans to head to Anchorage, knowing for sure now that this is a goodbye to Alaska.
      When we got into Anchorage we gathered around in a parking lot to have yet another meeting about what we are doing today. We were told we were going to go to a museum. We spent about an hour or so at the museum where some people looked at the bird exhibit or in an art gallery where there were some awesome paintings. After about an hour there, people went and looked in a gift shop. At the gift shop some people got things for themselves or for family members. We then headed back to the parking lot where we were informed that we had about 2 _ hours to go shopping in downtown Anchorage. The mall was right across the street where most people went. Some people bought more gifts or things for themselves. After we were done shopping we had a pizza party. We ate in a little park in Anchorage by the museum. After we were done with lunch and everything was cleaned up and taken care of we then were off to the airport where we were going to say some farewells.
      We arrived at the airport in anchorage at about three hours before we took off to Chicago. We got to our terminal and were told that we had one hour to go get food. This was after we went through check-in and security. Some people went to get food and magazines. While others stayed in the terminal and did other things. At 9:49 P.M. we officially left Alaska. I will always remember this amazing trip and the amazing people I met. Goodbye Alaska!

 
A Farewell to the Midnight Sun
6 July 2006
Braden DeWeese

     With it being our last day in Alaska and emotions working overtime, we were grateful for the little bit of extra rest we got. We all lethargically got up and out of bed, rolled up our sleeping bags, and packed away our clothes for the last time. Many AGLP students had stayed up most the night talking about memories from their three-week trip. A few even pulled all-nighters “just for fun,” as David Doud put it. With all of our bags packed we headed off to our last museum, one in Anchorage.
      While there, we split up into groups and wandered through the exhibits soaking up little tidbits of information to stow away in the back of our memories. There were art exhibits portraying life in ancient Inuit times, models of houses from the early homesteaders, and a special exhibit on birds of prey and their survival skills.
      Once we were done at the museum, we headed over to the field across the street to play Frisbee, talk, and have fun while some special members of the naked van went to pick up the pizza. Twenty large pizzas arrived half an hour later to the hungry appetites of 70 individuals. After our hearty lunch it was time for our presentation of van “paper plate” awards. Everybody in the van would converse about one person and come up with their special talent. Most awards were funny inside jokes within the van.
      Sadly, we all had to head back to the vans and start our journey home. We arrived at the airport in Anchorage around 7:00 (Alaskan time), preparing to leave at 9:49. Many passed the time riding on the express sidewalks, reading, or talking to their friends. Finally, we were all ushered aboard and within minutes, we were in the air.
      With most of us being tired from the previous day and night, we grabbed some pillows and blankets and nodded off to the drone of the jet’s engines. We would soon wake up in Chicago: happy to be nearer to our family, yet sad to leave beautiful Alaska.