Our position is 58:23:01N 134:38:92W
Being the capital does not make it a big place. It is more like a
series of villages. It has a small downtown somewhat reminiscent of a
small west cost town in Norway. It is famous for rain, but for us it
offers sunshine, of course. The sunshine gives credit to a stunning
scenery with glaciers coming almost down to the city. Not only
glaciers come down to the city. So too, do the bears.
When writing I am quite alone. Eva is on her way to Oslo - to see our
first grandchild Theodore (Theo). Theo was a little early, so there
has been a rush to find tickets. When the message came we were between
Elfin and Hoonah. Not big places, and somewhat short of Internet.
Fortunately people here are extremely helpful. At nine pm Lisa opened
the community center in Hoonah so that we could order the tickets.
Lisa is Swedish (with a Norwegian boyfriend) so Scandinavians may get
special service. This part of Alaska is the home of the Tlingit, but
they have to a large extent mixed with Scandinavians, most of them
Norwegian. I doubt that people back home are aware to what extent
Norwegian fishermen have populated the best fishing grounds in the
world.
Not only fishermen either. Yesterday, while Eva was still here, a man
knocked on the boat and told us that his mother came from this little
Norwegian town called Kristiansund. Well, so does Eva. A reunion was
set up immediately. If two people come from a small town they can
discuss "who is who" indefinitely. Eva, of course, had to leave for
Norway, but I got invited to a family bbq. The victim was a wonderful
king salmon and the company was good. I may be on my own, but I cannot
really complain. Even though I would have liked to go and see Theo as
well. That, however, will have to wait a few weeks.
Jan Fr.
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