Taking Olinka to Akiachak

This is the fun part of having a blog…sometimes you can go completely off topic and share something that catches your fancy.

My friend Mary works with early childhood education programs in the Northwest and recently got an opportunity to go to Alaska to meet with a program in the town of Bethel in the Northwestern part of that state. Since she's nobody's fool and has always wanted to go out into the hinterlands, she jumped at the chance. Particularly since part of the trip involved taking one of the staff members home via truck up the frozen Kuskokwim river to Akiachak where the families in the tiny village welcomed them with a traditional dinner (top photo).

Flying into Bethel, Alaska.

The potluck feast featured a musk ox that had been shot by one of the men and then cut up with an ulu, a traditional knife with a handle set above a curved blade. She said the meat was rich, rather like lamb, and was served with smoked fish and berries. Dessert was ice cream made with lard.

What an amazing experience…good going, my dear!