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Alaska Part I
Jun. 19th, 2007 12:24 pmI just went to Alaska for a week. I can't make a full entry about it, so I'll break up the trip. In all it was fantastic and I highly recommend that others go (although maybe it would be better in a month or so so that all the berries and wildflowers will be in bloom).
SOOOO much happened on Sasturday that was just so lucky and logistically wonderful and serendipitous. I exhausted myself by basically not sleeping from 4 am until 10 pm. Much of that time, I was not home (in the hospital with a friend for the second time that week, walking to tell people about things, walking back to hospital to check on friend, coming back after noting he was released, going to the pride parade with a slew of people, walking to shul, walking back, etc etc etc). Anyway, I fell asleep on my covers after I was too tired to do anything else and hadn't packed much.
That exhaustion from the night before led me to wake up a bit later than I wanted to on Sunday. I had to get everything together, pack, and get out. I also wanted to get my keys to![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
kellev so he could check my mail for me (and i had to get my air mattress to pimpin' nosockstorock who's had house guests 4 weeks in a row. Wow!
Ok, my flight is out of DCA at 12:30. I get to DCA at 12:10 or so. Far too late. They are no longer accepting passengers. Lesson #1 - don't miss your flight. Especially to Anchorage. The next flight to Anchorage (ANC) is the same time the next day. The next flight to ORD (where my flight transferred) would get in after my flight to ANC leaves. I consider spending the night in Chi-town (perhaps calling some friends I have in the area), but they don't have any Chi-bound flights that day anyway. So.... I try other airlines and go one-way on Continental through Houston (IAH). Lesson #2 - Never change carriers one way! Especially without alerting your original carrier. Apparently (I found this out on the way home), this is considered a breach of contract and they will cancel your return flight. That means you can no longer fly home on the ticket you already bought. Anyway, I didn't know this second part until next week, so we'll discuss this there. Suffice it to say, I spent much more on transportation than I had planned.
On the IAH-ANC leg, I sat next to a freelance oil pipeline inspector and had an interesting chat. Also, I somehow got the one window seat without a window. I snuck some awesome views out of the window in front of me. It was really amazing - you can see Kodiak and Kenai and mountains and glaciers and oceans and wowowow.
Oh also, Continental still offers food, but they offer cheeseburgers. It was so weird. I can't think of many religions that allow cheeseburgers. Vegetarians, Jews and Hindus, of course, would avoid it, but I would avoid it if I were Muslim, too, because who knows if it's beef or pork. There was no alternative offered.
I get into ANC only an hour and a half after I planned andarctic_alpine had been waiting for only an hour or so. We pick up the rental car and head to the hostel (pretty close to the airport). ANC is one of the prettiest airports I've been to, though the ones in Xining, Qinghai (XNN) and in Lhasa, Tibet (LXA) are better. At each of them, you get an absolutely breathtaking view of mountains as soon as you step out of the airport. ANC has glaciers and dark gray mountains. Xining has dark brown ones, and Lhasa has pale brown that are all way above the tree line, and a perfectly clear sky so you can see the cracks and crevices in the mountains. Wow. Mountains always bring me back to China and sometimes I-80 in Pennsylvania which were my first encounters with mountains of any substance. (I don't really consider PA's mountains to be substantial, but roads that cut through mountains generally remind me of family trips to my Aunt in Dalton, PA).
Our hostel is nice. Free breakfast in the mornings with waffles, fruit, instant oatmeal and dry cereal, a real community feel, a cute kid who belongs to the owners, a bunch of Israelis (of course), and really great rooms. We make some instant soup and couscous, eat and go to sleep at about sundown (12am).
To come...
And actually, I'll do Sunday right now.
I got to the airport for my 7:30 flight (I thought it was 7) andarctic_alpine's 7:50. I'm glad we got there very early (and I'm also glad we were at the same gate). It turned out that when I didn't take my flight there, it cancelled my flight home automatically, and I had to repurchase a ticket home. Unfortunately, there were no tickets home left. I bought my ticket to DC to get in at 7am, and they put me on standby for everything else. I easily got a flight from ANC-ORD (boring flight - I slept most of the trip even after I ordered some tea). ORD-DCA was more tricky. I was the second-to-last person called from the standby list, and wound up with a snazzy first-class seat. Row 1, baby. Anyway, I didn't feel like taking advantage of the alcohol and my kashrut restrictions didn't let me take advantage of the meal, so that flight was rather inocuous, too. I finally read Bill Bryson which I had brought with me. It is well-written and interesting. I noted that there was a chapter on Mount Washington in it. I look forward to reading the entire book, but it's not on my priority list, really.
I got back and was welcomed by a fun night withkellev, Rachel and Toby. It's great to be welcomed back by good friends. It's also great to get a good night's sleep after a long trip instead of red-eyeing it into work. This was be my first trip like this where I slept in my bed before work the next day, and I really appreciated it. In all, the trip was not long enough, but really really really good. I think the percentage perfect fluctuated between 87% and 92% which is really pretty good for a trip of any significance. Remember - this is percent perfect, not percent good. The trip was 99% good (the only real un-good was the cost of getting out there and back).
More will follow....
Saturday - pre-Alaska
SOOOO much happened on Sasturday that was just so lucky and logistically wonderful and serendipitous. I exhausted myself by basically not sleeping from 4 am until 10 pm. Much of that time, I was not home (in the hospital with a friend for the second time that week, walking to tell people about things, walking back to hospital to check on friend, coming back after noting he was released, going to the pride parade with a slew of people, walking to shul, walking back, etc etc etc). Anyway, I fell asleep on my covers after I was too tired to do anything else and hadn't packed much.
Sunday - Getting There
That exhaustion from the night before led me to wake up a bit later than I wanted to on Sunday. I had to get everything together, pack, and get out. I also wanted to get my keys to
kellev so he could check my mail for me (and i had to get my air mattress to pimpin' nosockstorock who's had house guests 4 weeks in a row. Wow!Ok, my flight is out of DCA at 12:30. I get to DCA at 12:10 or so. Far too late. They are no longer accepting passengers. Lesson #1 - don't miss your flight. Especially to Anchorage. The next flight to Anchorage (ANC) is the same time the next day. The next flight to ORD (where my flight transferred) would get in after my flight to ANC leaves. I consider spending the night in Chi-town (perhaps calling some friends I have in the area), but they don't have any Chi-bound flights that day anyway. So.... I try other airlines and go one-way on Continental through Houston (IAH). Lesson #2 - Never change carriers one way! Especially without alerting your original carrier. Apparently (I found this out on the way home), this is considered a breach of contract and they will cancel your return flight. That means you can no longer fly home on the ticket you already bought. Anyway, I didn't know this second part until next week, so we'll discuss this there. Suffice it to say, I spent much more on transportation than I had planned.
On the IAH-ANC leg, I sat next to a freelance oil pipeline inspector and had an interesting chat. Also, I somehow got the one window seat without a window. I snuck some awesome views out of the window in front of me. It was really amazing - you can see Kodiak and Kenai and mountains and glaciers and oceans and wowowow.
Oh also, Continental still offers food, but they offer cheeseburgers. It was so weird. I can't think of many religions that allow cheeseburgers. Vegetarians, Jews and Hindus, of course, would avoid it, but I would avoid it if I were Muslim, too, because who knows if it's beef or pork. There was no alternative offered.
I get into ANC only an hour and a half after I planned and
arctic_alpine had been waiting for only an hour or so. We pick up the rental car and head to the hostel (pretty close to the airport). ANC is one of the prettiest airports I've been to, though the ones in Xining, Qinghai (XNN) and in Lhasa, Tibet (LXA) are better. At each of them, you get an absolutely breathtaking view of mountains as soon as you step out of the airport. ANC has glaciers and dark gray mountains. Xining has dark brown ones, and Lhasa has pale brown that are all way above the tree line, and a perfectly clear sky so you can see the cracks and crevices in the mountains. Wow. Mountains always bring me back to China and sometimes I-80 in Pennsylvania which were my first encounters with mountains of any substance. (I don't really consider PA's mountains to be substantial, but roads that cut through mountains generally remind me of family trips to my Aunt in Dalton, PA).Our hostel is nice. Free breakfast in the mornings with waffles, fruit, instant oatmeal and dry cereal, a real community feel, a cute kid who belongs to the owners, a bunch of Israelis (of course), and really great rooms. We make some instant soup and couscous, eat and go to sleep at about sundown (12am).
To come...
- Monday - Anchorage - museum, falafel, Amy W. and a bike ride
- Tuesday - Seward Highway, a creek by Girdwood and Exit Glacier (including a bear encounter)
- Wednesday - Kayaking in Seward, Portage Glacier, Alaska Conservation Reserve, and the looong drive to Talkeetna
- Thursday - Talkeetna and Denali State Park (including a talk with some locals)
- Friday - hiking, seeing Denali, the drive back to ANC and preparing for Shabbat
- Saturday - Shabbas - Chabad and downtown touristy Anchorage
And actually, I'll do Sunday right now.
Sunday - the trip home
I got to the airport for my 7:30 flight (I thought it was 7) and
arctic_alpine's 7:50. I'm glad we got there very early (and I'm also glad we were at the same gate). It turned out that when I didn't take my flight there, it cancelled my flight home automatically, and I had to repurchase a ticket home. Unfortunately, there were no tickets home left. I bought my ticket to DC to get in at 7am, and they put me on standby for everything else. I easily got a flight from ANC-ORD (boring flight - I slept most of the trip even after I ordered some tea). ORD-DCA was more tricky. I was the second-to-last person called from the standby list, and wound up with a snazzy first-class seat. Row 1, baby. Anyway, I didn't feel like taking advantage of the alcohol and my kashrut restrictions didn't let me take advantage of the meal, so that flight was rather inocuous, too. I finally read Bill Bryson which I had brought with me. It is well-written and interesting. I noted that there was a chapter on Mount Washington in it. I look forward to reading the entire book, but it's not on my priority list, really.I got back and was welcomed by a fun night with
kellev, Rachel and Toby. It's great to be welcomed back by good friends. It's also great to get a good night's sleep after a long trip instead of red-eyeing it into work. This was be my first trip like this where I slept in my bed before work the next day, and I really appreciated it. In all, the trip was not long enough, but really really really good. I think the percentage perfect fluctuated between 87% and 92% which is really pretty good for a trip of any significance. Remember - this is percent perfect, not percent good. The trip was 99% good (the only real un-good was the cost of getting out there and back).More will follow....
