Blogs from Alaska, United States, North America - page 206

Today marks the countdown. Officially, I will be in China in less than a week! So exciting. I have a mess in my living room. Clothes, meds, and bags spread everywhere. It's been that way for a week or two now. I figure if I look at the stuff enough, I'll be able to figure out exactly what will make the cut. Make it to China that is. The comfy neck pillow? It takes up so much space... But I'll be flying for ages! Figure in all of the dodgy accommodations and train rides and I expect that it may be given a coveted space in my new "Beast" duffel/backpack. It is a huge bag-but more importantly-light weight. I don't plan to fill it. I plan to keep it under 20lbs AND make it fit in ... read more

(voor Nederlands, scroll naar beneden) Hi folks, From the Canadian Rockies we crossed the province of British Columbia with only 1 goal: Alaska. The road trip could now truly begin. The further we drove north, the wilder and more desolate the feeling became. Along the 750km long Cassiar Highway (the highway is just a small 2-lane road), we find only 3 settlements where a couple of Inuit people just look foolish at us. From the infinite spruce forrests, an occasional bear or moose squeaks into the road , as if it needs some air out of the dark wilderness. In the northern Canadian province of Yukon, where the gold rush, after a century, apparently still florishes, we arrive at the famous Alaska Highway (aka the Alcan). This 2200km long road was built in World War II ... read more

We had an excellent time on the floating buffet up the inside passage and on to Whittier, then back by air. The trip was organized by cousins Ed and Vickie. There were 14 of us dining and touring and snacking and dining. The weather was great. Not absolutely clear, but sunny and warm. The only rain we saw was at Anchorage after disembarkation. Diamond Princess food was great. Several venues have extra charges. The dining room service was good, not as polished as it could be, but still quite good. Ketchican is unique. Well, all the Alaskan towns are unique! I liked Skagway. The train to White Pass was worth the cost. The first real treat, though was Mendenhall glacier near Juneau. After that the scenery started. I would score Glacier Bay maybe a little better ... read more

August 13 - I write this while Jesse is shaving in a Fairbanks hotel (he wants to look nice for Cousin Nancy) - or more accurately, if he shaves that means he doesnt have to touch the hair on his head or face for a good week - so it’s more of a management strategy than anything. Anyways, we drove and drove and drove yesterday - we kept thinking we would stop somewhere before fairbanks, but kept driving when we got to possible options. Since it’s so light we had no problems driving from 10 am to 10 pm....stopping a few times to eat the food in our cooler, go for some short walks, etc... Nothing much to report about the drive other than it was absoultely beautiful. The "top of the world" highway that links ... read more

I arrived in Bethel the morning of Saturday, August 9th. New teacher training was to begin on Monday, August 11th and I wanted to see a little of the sights before starting work. I stayed at a Bed & Breakfast on the Kuskokwim River and spent my day wandering the town. It is a utilitarian town of about 5,000. From the moment I arrived people were nothing but nice to me. It started with the school district sending a driver for me at the airport. I got a brief tour of the town by truck and we stopped by at the Saturday market that is held in the community center. Julie introduced me to a few of her artistic friends and I met the local organic gardener and bought some local produce. I spent Saturday and ... read more