Observations from my first day of travel on my Alaskan adventure. Coming into Ketchikan reminded me so much of Micronesia. I know, not the comparison you would expect. But coming in over water, the small village vibe of the buildings, the green of the mountains were all reminiscent of landing in say, Pohnpei. The big difference is, of course, the temperature. In the 50’s which is plenty cold for me, especially in July. It is overcast, but dry. Once off the plane, we took a ferry from the airport, which I guess is on an island, over to the mainland.
Alaska is really a whole place unto itself. It doesn’t feel like anywhere else in the United States. While we were waiting for the ferry, a guy told me that Juneau is the only state capital you can’t drive to. He says there are no roads into Juneau. You can only take a boat or fly in. He said there are a lot of places like that in Alaska.
Being here feels like being at a U2 concert. One chocolate chip in a sea of vanilla ice cream. So far it seems I am the only black person in the state--at least haven’t seen anyone else that looks like me so far. Which is fine. I’m not discomfited. My philosophy has always been to act as if I belong and in general people treat me that way.
I’m very tired. I didn’t get much sleep last night and of course while it’s only 9:30 PM here in Ketchikan, it’s 1:30 AM back home in Ohio.
I miss Babs and the kids. But I’m also excited for what tomorrow holds. And also really looking forward to seeing old and dear friends.
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