More Alaska memories.

My journey northwards started in my mind in 2004. At that time I owned a gallery called "Starry Starry Arts"... cute name eh?! I had made several angels for a customer of mine, she was going to give them to her coworkers. When I asked her what the special occasion was, she answered, she and her husband were taking an extended leave and were going to ride their motorcycle to Alaska. My mouth dropped open. Drive to Alaska?! I gasped. Yes, she calmly replied, this was not the first time they had driven either. This would be their third trek. I have to admit, I didn't know you could drive to Alaska from here. For some reason I thought there was a large body of water between us and Alaska, like there is between us and Hawaii! She assured me there was a road which was called the Al-Can hi way. I was hooked. I needed more information, I thought if she and her husband can ride the motorcycle to Alaska, surely I too can drive there. My love of driving is only superseded by my love for Coca Cola. 

My customer, Linda came back from her summer sojourn to Alaska and stopped in to see me. I was ready with a multitude of questions. I knew one day I will make that trek northwards, I had already made up my mind. At that time in my life taking off for six weeks was not a possibility. My gallery took up all of my time and it is true, good full time help is really hard to find. I bated my time and finally, summer of 2008 afforded me the opportunity to make the fabled trek. My mission was to get there, I really didn't know what I would do once I got there. For me it was the actual act of driving over five thousand miles to get there. It was all about the journey, not the destination. And, what a journey it was! I was amazed by the pristine conditions I found myself in. Brooks bubbling along on the side of the road with crystal clear water. Buffalo sitting in the middle of the road. I just waited until they decided to move. I didn't want to interrupt their afternoon siesta! Baby black bears on the side of the road horse playing, too cute!

My daughter, Reina joined me in Alaska, this was our mother daughter trip. We went to see the glaciers. Again, words fail me here. The absolute beauty we witnessed is beyond description. Pristine, clean, clear are some of the words that come to mind when describing all things Alaskan. The days were long and the nights felt more like dusk. It never really gets pitch dark. That was hard to get used to.

Reina and I had countless hours in the car. We reminisced about the trips of days gone by. My two children and I have been going on road trips since she was three and my son was five. They have touched fresh ash from Mt. Saint Helens, to seeing the devastation caused by the gigantic fire which consumed a major portion of Yellowstone, to driving the hi-way to the sun in Glacier National Park, to name a few places. Now it's fun to have them accompany me because they can be my lowly navigator. Since I don't like navigating--just driving.

Leaving Alaska was akin to leaving India. A part of my soul stayed behind. I will return to both those places and I hope to do so... soon.