On Sunday I drove the final leg of my 6,765-mile odyssey to Anchorage. I actually drove south from Tok, but Alaska's motto is "North to the Future," so... It was a bit cloudy, but the sun did peek through every so often. More importantly, the smoke from the forest fires had dissipated a fair piece, so I was able to make out the mountains…and what mountains they were! As with the rest of the journey, every time I turned a curve, I was amazed by yet another gorgeous vista. I stopped many times to take photos (yes, I really will post them soon!).
It was also nice to know that I could drive from Tok to Anchorage on a single tank of gas. During the BC and Yukon portions of the AK Highway, I was constantly worried about where the next gas stop might be and if I would make it there…and with good reason. I was able to fully enjoy every twist and turn without the worries of gas in the back of my mind.
I rolled into Anchorage, and Sandy and Dennis’ house around 6 pm. It is always amazing to me when complete strangers will open their home to you merely because you know a friend of theirs. Susie and I had emailed and talked on the phone enough though that we didn’t feel like strangers. After a month of being on the road, I was very ready to be at the end of the journey.
I started looking for apartments the next day. At first I was totally overwhelmed…I hadn’t looked for apartments in over a decade! Fortunately lots of people seem to be on the move in Anchorage, so there were lots of apartments advertised.
I totally lucked out and found a super cute apartment that is right next to a very big park and lots of bike trails (actually, you’d be hard pressed to find a place in Anchorage without bike trails). It’s on the west side next to the coast. It’s on the first floor of a house with a huge back yard and a duck pond. It’s also perfectly Lee Ann-sized. This means that many carpets and pieces of art will be rolled up and/or leaning against the wall in a storage corner. That’s ok…it’ll give me a chance to mix it up every so often and feel like I’m in a whole new place. I absolutely love my landlord, Bob. He’s been so welcoming and kind.
I’m totally moved in now. Bags are unpacked…both luggage and new shopping bags. Bed and sofa have been delivered. Little kitchen table and chairs have been brought home and put together. I’m really going to like living here.
Yesterday I bought a mountain bike for the trails around town. The guy that sold it to me was a bit disappointed to discover that I know virtually nothing about bikes. I guess it’s some kind of high end Italian racing bike. I’m sure he totally cringed when I nearly fell over trying to get my left foot into the little foot-shaped pedal thingy. Today it decided to be just cloudy rather than raining (the great weather I’ve had all summer stopped when I got to Anchorage…it has rained just about every day I’ve been here!), so I went for a bike ride on my snazzy new Italian bike. Great fun!
Tomorrow summer ends, and actually I’m ready for the new school year. Tomorrow is the all-day new-teacher orientation meeting. Those things are always super-fun and super-informative. I can’t wait! ;-p On Tuesday I get to meet Bobby, my new principal, and see (and hopefully work in) my new classroom. I am actually very excited to meet her finally. She really seemed awesome during my interview and the brief emails and phone calls since then. If I like her half as much as I think I will, it’ll be a great year. Thursday is when teachers officially go back to school. I think the kiddos start the following Wed or Thurs. I’m excited to meet my new class. A new year is always exciting and filled with great hopes and expectations.
On the social front, Kliff, who lives in Fairbanks but knows tons of people all over the state, sent out an email to friends in Anchorage to help me find an apartment. As it turns out I found an apt really quickly, but a few of those folks have friended me on facebook. They’ve been telling me about fun music stuff around town and the state. I’m looking forward to bands that will be in town this week and meeting these very friendly people.
It still seems a bit surreal to finally get “North to the Future!” I suppose it was kind of the same in Damascus and Dhaka. I think I’m going to really like my northern future.
FYI…I have not met Sarah Palin, yet. I suspect that when we do, we will make a date to go salmon fishing or shoe shopping. I'll keep y'all posted.
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