Settling In

Well, we are finally settled here in Barrow, Alaska. You can read about this place all you want, but it’s nothing without actually visiting here. We were fairly busy today, and had a lot of things to accomplish before day’s end. Some went to an Easter Sunday service this morning, and eventually we all met up for an Easter brunch that was put on by host Ilisagvik College. It was really interesting seeing all the different families coming in to join for brunch. Every one seemed to know one another, and it was just an overall happy atmosphere. Here’s a funny story for the readers: There was an Easter egg hunt (mainly for children) that was happening after brunch. Justin and I being young at heart, we wanted in on the action. Justin of course gets the cool football egg filled with a ton of candy. As we were walking out, I found a small egg on the ground and pocketed it for safekeeping. I took a peek inside to count my ransom, not expecting much. Little did I know, I pocketed the “golden egg” that had a ticket for $10 inside. Obviously, I am instantly filled with guilt. A 23 year old that had no business participating in the egg hunt comes away with the grand prize. Why wouldn’t this happen to me? I decide to make things right by finding a little girl that was eating brunch, and gave her the egg. I didn’t tell her what was inside, but just wished her a happy Easter and went on my way. Lesson of the day: act your age, not your shoe size.

After brunch, Steve Culbertson our Site Advisor here at Barrow, took us on a tour of Barrow. We went around and got a lot of brief history on how things work here. There were a numerous amount of questions from us about Barrow and their whaling. The official whaling season starts this Thursday, and the town is preparing in many ways. We also took tours of Eben Hopson Middle School, as well as Fred Ipalook Elementary School. Some of us got to meet our teachers, while others got to visit our classrooms. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday of this upcoming week is Barrow’s Standardized Testing dates. Not an ideal time for many students, but it will be a nice transition for us to become more comfortable with the school, the students, and the culture.

We ended our day by joining in on the Spaghetti Dinner held here at the College. We got our first experience of the local cuisine by eating caribou. For those curious, our consensus was that is was similar to roast beef for the most part. It was nice to interact with the staff and students that reside here in the dorms though. A lot of them have relatives in Minnesota, or know of friends that have been there. A lot of them ask how we found out about Barrow, or what it was that interested us in coming here. The locals are very easy to talk to, and are very open with sharing their heritage. It has been a real learning curve and a lot to take in thus far, but it is all very interesting and eye opening. I cannot wait to see what is in store for us the rest of this trip. I cannot emphasize the anxiousness we have to emerge ourselves into their culture.

Our first day of teaching starts tomorrow, and you can tell everybody is looking forward to it. There is obviously not a whole lot to do here in your free time, so it will be nice to stay busy for majority of the day. We are looking forward to learning from the people of Barrow, but hopefully even sharing with them our culture and where we have come from. I hope you all had a Happy Easter. Take care.

Best,

Travis