Celebrating Passover In Alaska!

Hi, Everyone:

Sorry for the delay in writing, but there hasn't been much to report . . . until now!  For those of you who don't know, this past week was Passover!

We went to two official seders.  The first was at one of the synagogue congregant's home.  It was beautiful and we really appreciated the invite.  The second was a community seder at the synagogue (note: Steve wants to keep writing Shul, but Tammy gets mad at him because she says it sounds too much like a disgusting word in hebrew).  Anyway, the seder was alright . . . although a bit less warm.  We ate and then pretty much booked it.

A number of Steve's co-clerks had mentioned that they had never been to a seder before and wanted to give it a go.  So we decided to try to fit everyone into our small 2-bedroom apartment for our own seder.  

Unbelievably, it worked amazingly.  We put tables together in an "L" shape and we were able to fit 20 people in for a great seder.  Here are some pictures of the set-up and everyone around the tables:

 We take particular pride in our finding "Pepsi Throwback" up here.  As you may imagine, the Jewish community is small in Alaska (although we do belong to a synagogue: frozenchosen.org).  With such a small community, there is not a lot of need for Passover food.  We were both raised in a highly-Jewish area with tons of passover-safe options, but here you have to sort of make do.  So we do the typical grocery shopping, making sure that everything we pick up is high-fructose corn syrup free (because we can't eat corn on passover).

Pepsi recently started making "Pepsi Throwback" which is sugar-based Pepsi.  It is delicious.  And, though not officially so, kosher for passover :)

We also did a full on afikomen hunt.  Our friend, Elena, found it and won the dollar.

To get into the festivities, Elena also made wine bottle covers.  I cannot describe how amazing these were, so we thought a picture was necessary.  These are simply incredible and Elena should go into crafts or event planning or something immediately.  We still cannot get over how cool these are:

Anyway, that's all for now!  Passover ends tomorrow night and then it's back to Mooses Tooth pizza and beer for us!  Although it's been difficult celebrating in Alaska, we did it and are proud to have made it through!  Next year in Jerusalem (but more likely Washington DC).

Backcountry Skiing!

Here's an Alaska post that has nothing to do with us, but that we thought you might enjoy:

Two of Steve's co-clerks, Rebecca and Henry, love to go backcountry skiing.  You may remember them as the folks we hiked with in the fall in Eagle River:

Anyway, backcountry skiing is pretty much what it sounds like.  You put these special things on your skis that allow you to hike/slide up the mountain.  Once you get up a bit, you ski down.  Then you go up some more, ski down.  Etc.  Or at least this is what we hear it is like.  We've never done it because Tammy prefers to have life take her up the mountain, and Steve prefers to ski on flat land.

Rebecca and Henry went out skiing last week and Rebecca got an awesome video showing the views you can get when you get off the beaten path and forge your own trail.  Steve begged her for it, and now we have it to share with all of you!



So there you have it, real Alaska beauty from a place unchartered.

We're hoping to hike this weekend!  Keep your fingers crossed for warm weather!

Steve's Parents (Were) In Town!

Hi, All!

As promised last night, here's the story of the last few days.  Steve's parents flew into Anchorage on Tuesday for a few day adventure through Alaska.  Although the weather was expected to be rainy/snowy and cold, it turned out to be quite beautiful and warm almost the entire time they were here.

We started our adventures with a drive back to Talkeetna (which you may remember we visited in November/October).  Steve's dad is a big "Northern Exposure" fan, so he enjoyed getting to see a town that is extremely similar to that small-town, moose crossing the road, feel.

As we drove in to Talkeetna, some clouds started to cover Mt. McKinley (Denali).  Steve thought that meant any views of the mountain would be difficult, but he called the local flightseeing operation anyway.  They said the cloud cover was low, and that the views of the mountain were actually gorgeous from above, so we quickly drove to the airstrip for a ride.

The company wasn't lying.  The views were even more amazing than when we went a few months ago.  The sky was totally clear and you could see Denali's summit.

It also looked totally different in the glacier valley surrounding the mountain than when we went before:

The next day the weather was a bit harsher: there were storm warnings in and around Anchorage.  So we spent the morning at the Anchorage Museum, which is a neat collection of Alaska-based science, history, culture, and art.  

The next day the clouds had lifted a bit so we took a quick drive up to the trailhead for Mt. Baldy so that Steve's parents could look out over Anchorage and Eagle River.

Tammy didn't work on Saturday, so we headed down along the Turnagain Arm for Portage Glacier, Alyeska, and the Wildlife Conservation Center.  Saturday was an amazingly beautiful day, so we stopped a few times along the way to take some pictures of the mountains and ocean.

Then we spent some time at the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center.  This center focuses on taking orphaned and threatened species and rehabilitating them.  They have a lot of animals, including moose, elk, bison, and more.  Here's the local porcupine:

They also have 2 new bear cubs that they are training to be taken to Sweden (we think).  The bears were the cutest things ever.  The first bear cub had learned to sit (just like a dog!) upon hearing the word "stationary."  The second bear (seen here) help up its paw every time the trainer said "Ok."

Of course, being in Alaska they have a bald eagle.  Although these can be seen everywhere in the state, this one was found in 1995-96 with its wing shot (which is illegal to do in Alaska, but 2000 or so every year are still shot).  A really beautiful bird.

There was also the cutest young muskox, whose mother had been killed by a grizzly bear.  This thing was amazing.  It ran around and acted just like a 3-year old child.

The best part of the center, though, are the grizzly/brown bears they have.  There are 3 of them, all of whom made a showing for our viewing pleasure.  It was eating time, so they got to enjoy some cantaloupe that was donated by Costco.

Finally, following the conservation center we headed to the local ski resort: Alyeska.  One of the best parts of Alyeska is the tram that goes up the North Face of the mountain.  This tram is used by skiiers and snowboarders looking to go to the top, but it is also used by tourists looking for some amazing views.

This is the view from the top.  You can see the skiiers getting ready to go down.  It is amazingly beautiful and the day was perfect for skiing.  In fact, we ran into Steve's co-clerks Rebecca and Henry at the bottom of the mountain.

Here's the view looking up the mountain to the final chair lift.

And here we are on the observation deck.

It was an awesome 4-day visit and we really loved eating, exploring, and hanging out with Steve's family.  We really enjoy having visitors, so if you want your own unique Alaska experience, let us know asap so we can figure out vacation plans!  Hooray!

A Parental Visit

We have a surprise post coming up sometime in the next few days, but here's some pictures of the last few days' events to get you excited.  And yes, we took all of these pictures:

Mt. McKinley (Denali) from 6 miles away.

Moose hanging out by a nearby apartment.

The bears have woken from their slumber.

The views of Turnagain Arm from above.

Warm skiing at Alyeska resort.

Stay tuned for further explanations!