Bethel, Alaska

As the saying goes - "time flies when you're having fun"... little did I realize how correct this age-old statement is until I came here to Bethel. I cannot believe that I have been in Alaska for almost two months now. When I first stepped off the plane onto the tarmac seven weeks ago, I thought I knew what to expect in Alaska. However, I have been very pleasantly surprised... especially since some of the "myths" I had been told before arriving have not quite held true.

While Bethel may not be pretty picturesque peaks like those you would see in Fairbanks, the area is by no means ugly. Bethel is "just flat tundra," nevertheless, the beauty is in the landscape's simplicity. Since the land is completely flat in every direction, the sky appears as if it goes on forever and the clouds look as if a white blanket lying directly over you. The Alaskan terrain is extremely diverse, and you need only go upriver a few hours to find mountains and trees lining the horizon. Beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder.
Secondly, Alaska is not boring.While there may not be movie theaters or bars or shopping malls on every street corner, there are winding rivers and salmon and berries... moose and caribou and seal... nature is alive and kicking out here. The wondrous part of my adventure up here in "the bush" is that superficial glamour and materialistic nature of American dream disappear faster than the morning fog. As my host mother says - 'Bethel will smack the peacock out of any woman!'

I am so grateful for the opportunity to complete my Capstone here... nowhere else could I have seen first-hand a patient with ACTIVE TUBERCULOSIS... witnessed authentic Native Yu'pik culture... tasted walrus soup... or met a famous Russian explorer during a village trip (I dare you to google Misha Malakhov... so cool!!). I cannot wait to see what the rest of my time in Bethel has in store for me :) Til next time....