In the Bleak Midwinter

They say the best way to get through an Alaska winter is to keep busy and get out of the house whenever possible. Our weekend consisted of:

Saturday morning: Skiing lesson at Hilltop, Anchorage's ski resort. We learned how to push along a flat trail on skis, how to stop, and how to take gentle slopes. Next week, we learn how to do turns, so it was been straight lines only so far.

Then tennis at the local indoor courts for Alan. He is hoping to get some regular games with players who are not going to wipe the floor with him.

Then the works Christmas Party (has to be called the 'Winter Wonderland Party' so as not to offend the jews and moslems and other quirky religions who object to USA celebrating one faith's holy day but not theirs). See us below in our finest going-out gear.

Then the annual cookie bake with a couple we have got to know. We all turned up and made various cookies, using baking, deep frying, and toasting techniques to cook them. Great way to get to know some nice people and have something to do with the hands while you natter. The lady on the right in the picture is Dana, the hostess. She made 20lbs of cookie dough the day before and everyone lent a hand to create and cook them, we then took home as many cookies as we could carry. We had one each for tea with a dollop of American Ice Cream. Very nice.

We have had some amazing frosts this month, and the trees are coated in a way you normally only see on Christmas cards.

This is a local evergreen tree that is coated with hoar frost. The cause of the weather is a centre of high pressure which was kept the winds down and the snow away, but retained a layer of fog which refuses to shift. This is Anchorage last week from the air:


More next week.

Alan

Learning to Ski!

This weekend we went out with a friend from work to learn the basics of nordic skiing. The idea is you ski along a trail on the flat, and learn how to propel yourself along using the poles and a gliding action from one foot to the other. In the falling down stakes, the score over 3 trips is:

Alan 6 Sylvia 0.

(I have the bruises to prove it.)

This is a photo of Judy, who took the time to give us some tips and hints on what to do. She can ski all day and was amazed when we said we couldn't go any further after only half an hour, as beginners waste so much energy, and we were really tired. I keep hoping it will be like riding a bike - after a while you don't need to think about staying upright. Must keep practising.

Judy also invited us round for Thanksgiving dinner and we were introduced to her friend and her 2 teenage sons. The boys are avid ice hockey players and after 2 matches earlier in the day, they soon demolished an excellent turkey dinner. We rounded it off with pumpkin pie, which we are adding to our favourites list. We had a nice evening and learnt a lot about Thanksgiving, which is almost a bigger deal than Christmas in the USA. It started when the Pilgrim Fathers celebrated their first year in the New World.

After recovering from skiing today, we went to Kincaid park, which is on the eastern point of Anchorage looking out over Turnagain Arm. We watched some children sledding and saw a ski lesson going on. There is a visitor centre there, so a chance for a quick warm before going back. The photo shows Sylvia against the Chugach mountains on one of the observation points. The wind was really chilly with no protection, so we were glad to get back to the car.


The Anchorage Daily News has some fascinating photos which it publishes in the local rag. This one is of winter scenes in Anchorage:

And this is the day they switched on the Xmas lights in Downtown:


Alan