Personal thoughts - Many new experiences

On the way to the Yukon and Arctic Circle in day 12 of our voyage, I woke up at 3 am and could not get back to sleep ‘till after 4:30. In the next week we will reach Anchorage and I was thinking of the last time I was there. I flew in on a Pan Am flight from Tokyo and I was a high school student on a journey that would change my life. I was in route from the Philippines to Washington D.C. and chasing after the ‘love of my life’ who I desperately had to be with, who had moved back to the States with her parents. Anchorage was about half of the voyage then of a trip with no lay overs and all done on prop planes and my time in the Anchorage airport was only several hours between planes. None of that mattered of course since be reunited with my gal was all I wanted.

It was from that experience I came to understand and appreciate opera and the ultimate tragedy that defines opera, and especially Puccini operas. In La Boheme the writer’s woman is freezing to death in the middle of the winter and as she is more important to him than life itself her burns his novel to give her just the smallest amount of warmth before she dies. He has committed his entire existence to that love and when she dies he has nothing. So too was it with me that committing everything I know to my love was lost forever when she broke up with me the day I arrived at her house in Virginia.

Those emotions have stayed with me my whole life and can be triggered by any number of ‘chick flicks’ where love is lost or won. I become very moved and once again find myself thinking of this as I get closer to Anchorage and that fateful voyage.

“Pretty Woman,” at the end of the movies and the Puccini music that was playing as he races to “save her” so she could “…save him back..” gets to me every time no matter how many times I see it. And that of course was a very happy ending. So what I have come to get over all of these years and so, so many voyages, is that the Puccini opera music is not tragedy, but rather an eternal celebration of the capacity to love, and be passionate, and to commit all that I have to love, and to be completely bold an unafraid to express that love and let the outcome be whatever it is.

What I now realize is this ‘tragedy’ has actually been a good thing to give me a deeper appreciation of life. I now get that my ability to love is realizing no one and nothing is ‘perfect’ and it is ‘perfect’ none of us and nothing is ‘perfect’. Deep love is to accept you [and myself] just as you are, and to embrace all aspect of you. There is nothing more you need to do to be 100% okay to me. I accept you exactly as you are and exactly as you are not. This was the premise of the movie “Pretty Woman” and it is why it was not a tragedy but rather a celebration of true deep love. Lots of years have passed since my last time in Anchorage and hopefully I have gotten some better understanding of life and love and what is important in the interim. I hope so.

So what else is new? We saw 18 deer and one moose yesterday. Last night and tonight we are in Grand Prarie a short distance south of Dawson Creek the beginning of the Alaska Highway. [formally the ALCAN Highway] At the beginning of the Second World War concern about a possible invasion by Japan of Alaska led to the urgent building of a road to link Canada with Alaska. This 1,500 + mile road was built in eight months and remains today as the key road between Alaska and the “..lower 48.” We will start on that highway tomorrow if plans go as we think they will. Our friend Ralph is flying back today from his father’s funeral in Ohio. He should arrive in Edmonton around 5 pm and may then drive the 5 or so hours today to join us or if he is to tired do that drive tomorrow morning.

The last several days have been spend in the Canadian Rockies and no amount of description can adequately describe how massive and spectacular this area is. People from Switzerland we met along the way say it is bigger and more breathtaking than their country. Snow capped mountains, glaciers, endless lakes, and rivers, and streams, and white water rapids and water falls, and thick pine forest and alpine trees and abundant flowers and wild life continuously delights us every mile of the trip. We have taken countless pictures and never are they enough and never can they capture the reality of first hand experience.

White water rafting companies are everywhere and I know Marga has been chomping at the bits to relive a sport she has so loved in the past.

We have driven 2,177 miles since we left the house June 30th. Taking 12 days to do this means we may return back to L.A. by Christmans. This ‘slow dance’ time in Idaho and the Rockies has been the best however, and it is the only way to really appreciate this very special area. No doubt as early August comes creaping up on us and we feel more of an urgency to be heading south, we will realize, if we don’t already, we should have planned on a lot more time for this trip. Maybe three months….or more.

According to our GPS sunrise at our current location is 5;29 am and sunset is 10:30 pm. Considering I had perfect daylight vision at 4:20 this morning and it did not get dark last night until 11 pm, we essentially have 19 hours or so of daylight right now. Daylight will get longer as we head north. Hard to believe, but true..

Other surprises: all signs are in both English and French; distance is measured in kilometers and speeds limits are in kph’s; trailers, RV’s, motor homes, in every variety known to man are everywhere. We stay in RV parks every night for about $33 U.S. and that price is for “full hookup” meaning water, electricity, and wast [sewage] water. With a space to park without any hookups it is about $10 cheaper.

RV parks are of a very high quality with showers, convenience store, washing machines, etc. In the national park they call them “Campgrounds”. If you want to come with just a tent the rate is far less.

Cocktail hour is always special each evening. A very good beer called Moose Drool was a real treat at the Linger Longer Lounge in Spirit Lake Idaho. Also, Jim and Nance brought several bottles of Jack Daniels’ Single Barrel burbon….the best high end liquor from that part of the world. In addition, I contributed to the merriment with a Canadian “cultural experience” Crown Royal Special Reserve. All of it fabulous!!

Another surprise was to see many bridges over the highway that are designed for the wild life to get from one side to the other without being run down. Also, we leaned tunnels have been build under the highways for bears, lions and other critters that prefer a cave like way of migrating.

So much more to tell…but enough for now. We have been frustrated finding WIFI ;with high speed internet capability and our Air Card approach has also been very slow, frustrating and expensive. Over the next week it will likely be no better.