Final Thoughts About Alaska

As we fly home, I want to jot down some impressions while they’re still fresh. #joysofaging There is a what I see as a unique mindset among Alaskan natives (distinguished from Alaskan Native Americans); it is a very different way of thinking and approach to life which manifests itself in a variety of ways. I did not, however, find anything that could explain Sarah Palin. Neither could Alaskans.

I’m including a small few of my favorite pictures throughout this article, but I promise they have absolutely no connection to the words themselves and the order is, more or less, random. Almost all were posted elsewhere on Facebook, so feel free to look my page up if you want a more comprehensive collection.

The Alaskan lifestyle is active and outdoorsy, incorporating constant interaction with nature. It seems most everyone spends their leisure time hiking, climbing, boating, fishing, hunting…. I’m pretty sure that the 49th state is waaaay down on the American obesity charts. My observation: if you see someone overweight in Alaska, odds are strong you’re looking at a tourist. It is not a lifestyle that I would find enticing, but I certainly have a lot of respect for those who do.

The people we met were universally friendly and welcoming, proud of their state and happy to share its beauty. At the same time, they are also, and this may seem somewhat paradoxical, kind of a solitary lot. Lots of small towns, almost villages, really, with isolated, or at most small pods houses, kind of like the whales and eagles we saw in abundance. No McMansions here (someone is actually living in this old mining office). There is a definite pioneer sense, an embracing of self-sufficiency, fitting for a state that bills itself, accurately in my view, The Last Frontier.

The landscape is equal parts breath-taking and forbidding. It is not for the faint of heart, mind or body. Recycling and repurposing is not an environmental fad as much a piece of their “waste not, want not,” almost Spartan, culture. The native peoples and their contributions to the story of Alaska also seem to be respected, even honored and celebrated by the non-indigenous denizens. I certainly didn’t get into depth enough to know whether some of the problems faced by Native Americans in the lower 48 are more problematical (although I suspect so), but Alaska has just so much space that there seems to be less competition and less pressure to conform. It struck me that there is a definite blending of the non-native and native cultures and ways of life.

As I peruse the pictures I took on this trip, I am struck by how much it reminds of the South Pacific, except, you know, Alaska being 30-40 degrees colder, although only slightly less humid, and significantly less sunny. Both locales, however, are incredibly green with awe-inspiring vistas: from the islands floating in variegated water in the South Pacific to the snow-capped peaks in Alaska. As we traveled in the former last Spring, it got to the point of one picture following another of lush, tropical views. In Alaska last week it was picture after picture of mountains and forests and icy streams, almost magnetically captivating, to be sure, but not all that different from the day before.

I would be more than happy to revisit this vast magnificent land; even from a tourist perspective, there are many more places to explore. But for any number of reasons, I cannot imagine actually living in Alaska, even as a seasonal employee. Too grey, (I need the sun creating a shine from my head to my toes.) too isolated, too rustic, too “uncivilized.” I may be an introvert but have no desire to become a hermit. I need my cultural and my creature comforts. Well, maybe I don’t need them, but I want them and have no desire to live without them. By Alaskan standards I am, no doubt, soft. And while I have no illusions about surviving the Zombie or some other apocalypse, I’m not at all concerned for the perpetuation of the species as long as we have Alaskans.

Cruise Diary 2014: Day 8, Costa Rica

Costa Rica is clearly several steps ahead of its Central American neighbors. It is a stable democracy with a higher standard of living than any we have seen. Free public education, K-12, is probably the backbone of its progress. Spanish and English are the required languages in school.

Let me digress here for a minute. I confess that the constant drumbeat of negativity towards education and teachers in the U.S. has discouraged me. But I’m starting to wonder where the symphony is coming from, because I have yet to meet, on these cruises, and we’re not talking the hoi polloi, or in my interactions with parents in any school with which I’ve been associated over the last 40+ years, almost anyone who has less than respect and admiration for teachers. Who are the politicians playing, to, exactly, besides themselves and a few well-heeled anti-public education donors? The election results on Proposition 3, which carried exactly zero (0, none, zilch, nada, etc.) counties across the state, indicate at least widespread general support for schools and teachers. Stand tall, my colleagues who continue the battle, and don’t get believe the negative propaganda.

Costa Rica was, and still is, way ahead of the curve on environmental issues. Recycling containers are everywhere, the country generates no carbon-based electricity, they work to protect their environment, and the people seem committed to the process. Who figured this out so far in advance of the rest deserves a medal.

They are proud of the fact that they abolished their army in 1948. I’m guessing they’re counting on us to defend them should someone get frisky, but that cost would almost certainly be less than what we’ve spent on some of the other hot spots in Central America over the past decades.

Costa Ricans also brag about their socialized medicine. If you’re sick, if you need medical attention, you get it. Built into those costs are a pension system. Now I have not done a lot of research, don’t know if it’s sustainable, but it seems as if the country is happy with its direction, and has probably generated fewer protests and riots than even our own.

Their taxes are not low, exactly, but seemingly are lower than Europe and perhaps even ours, in some places. If the information was accurate, you don’t pay income tax until you hit $70,000, and the minimum wage is based on two-weeks wages, about $600, not an hourly minimum. Our guide was stunned when I shared with him McDonald’s advice to its full-time employees: “You’re going to need another job to make a living wage.” Oh, and Wal-Mart is definitely here, but in disguise, running stores under different names.

Draw your own conclusions. I’m not suggesting a utopia – most of the houses, even those that are obviously less than affluent, have bars on the windows and doors to keep out thieves and robbers. But that, at least according to our guide, is generally the extent of crime in the country.

Our excursion was to an active volcano. There are nine of them in Costa Rica, all interconnected as part of the Ring of Fire (not the Johnny Cash song). Only one is conical; not the one we saw. These volcanoes don’t spew lava, like Hawaii and other places, but do emit gasses and even stones when they erupt. Geothermal energy provides about 10% of Costa Rica’s electricity. Lots of earthquakes and tremors, about 500 per year, on average. But a beautiful country.

The last couple pictures show the creativity of their wood-carving artisans. The first is the world’s largest oxcart, beautifully painted and decorated. The last, well, just whimsy on their part and mine.