Anchorage, AK

 

So, Alaska.  It's almost nothing what you thought it would be and everything you hoped it wouldn't.  For example, I knew it would be cold.  But in relation to having lived in Hawaii, Utah and California nothing really prepares you for waking up to temperatures in the single digits.  Or 4 months of daylight and 8 months of darkness.  It can all be very confusing between how late the sun stays up and how long the nights last.  I recommend a very good time piece and some really dark curtains; otherwise you'll be too late for anything or very early to everything.  And then there are those days when you walk out the door, breathe in that brisk Alaska air, and as you look out at the world in front of you, something about it makes you say out loud "Ahh, shit!!"  Because it's the realization that the world has frozen over, and the distance to your car is somewhere between "falling on your ass," or "face plantin' it."  Neither of which I would recommend, because there is really no graceful way to recover from something like that.  Trust me -- I know of what I speak.

And then there's the nature element.  Specifically moose, of which, they usually travel in pairs.  So safety tip: if you ever see a moose, be careful because the second one is somewhere nearby.  There are laws in Alaska that explicitly state, "do no harm -- to the moose." I'm paraphrasing of course.  I have no idea what the laws are in regards to moose (I don't even know the plural form of moose).  But I do know that if you are driving on the road, you must yield and stop to allow a moose to cross  . . . and trust me they are usually in no hurry.  One might think that they are aware of their status in Alaska.  You cannot honk at a moose.  You must never, ever approach a moose.  But, apparently it seems okay to pull over to then side and take pictures with your camera phone.  While they may seem cute and cuddly, they are very, very large animals.  I'm gonna go out a limb as say that they,re bigger than a horse -- although I have no reliable data to prove that statement.  Just fyi, "coo" and "aww" from a distance.