Dos

Well I would have to say all the excitement I didn't feel yesterday or the weeks leading up to this expedition came full force today. I went for a walk this morning at about 10... right when the sun was coming up. As I was walking I could see more and more of the "village" (there are actually 6,000 people that live here, but they still refer to it as a village). It has such character. If I had to describe it in three words I would say Bold, 1950's & Desolate. I love it. Only two buildings are built in such a way that they would be commonplace in the lower 48's. Those are the hospital, a brand new building that serves the entire region (which is the size of Ohio) and Napa Auto Parts- a typical blue aluminum sided building. Everything else is on stilts to prevent pipes from freezing. Some "houses" are only about the size of a luxurious fish house. I'm guessing some of the houses aren't as nice as those fish houses either... But really, I love it. I have always thought that we are too needy as a society and that simple is much better. The place I am living in is about the size of a trailer house. Four small bedrooms, 1 1/2 bathrooms, a small kitchen and living room. I also visited my classroom today... More on that tomorrow. And now, a few pictures. The first one is the road by my house. The pucker brush on the sides of the road is actually as tall as anything gets around here. No big pines or oaks or anything due to the frozen tundra. The second picture is the family clinic across the street from my house.