If you want to “ WOW” your friends when they ask you where you’ ve been, say “ Alaska” ‘ cause that was what we did. Our pictures seem to be in great contrast to those sunny beaches, and bikinis. Well, I can guarantee you can’t see any sunny beaches where we were. There were sunny days though, but days can still get to as cold as -30 degrees Celsius, and the snow can easily get waist-deep, so think twice before you want to lay in the snow and make snow angels. It is likely you will not get up again.
Alaska is located on the west of Canada. It is a seven-hour flight from Chicago to where we landed, Anchorage. Safety was our biggest concern, so we took another flight to Fairbank on the second day. Driving could also be an option but the road was very slippery, so be careful if you are going to take the risk.
Food:
All you can see. No. All you can “sea”. I’m talking about lobsters, shrimps, scallops and crab legs. Boiling is the only step needed to turn them into huge hits on the dinner table.
Other than seafood, Thai food is another specialty in Alaska. You have to try the creamy Thai curry, which is usually cooked with coconut milk. YUM! We went to two Thai restaurants in Fairbanks, “ Thai House Restaurant” & “ Lemon Grass Thai Cuisine” both of them were amazingly good.
Tours
Alaska is cover with ice and snow, unsurprisingly… Take a picture with the spectacular ice sculptures. Or….
Pick up a wand and do some magic. Or….
Become wolverine. Say “Hi” to Logan ☺
If you are taking a tour to the arctic circle, make sure to stop by the Pipeline, which is one the world’s largest pipeline system. It runs more than 800 miles for oil transportation.
Keep going north from the pipeline for about 5 hours, you will be at the Arctic circle. You will even receive a certificate! How cool is that!
After taking photos with “Arctic Circle”, it is time to head back, unless you plan to keep going north to the Coldfoot. Without any doubt, the best part of the tour is seeing the northern light.
The pictures are great, but you still have to be there.
One other thing, which is my favorite, is seeing an exploding amount of cuteness in a small area. ☺ These friendly dogs would love some warm greetings and hugs from us Hoomans~~! Don’t you wanna just be with them all the time???
Even better they will take you for a ride! Be sure to dress warm though, especially cover your face. You will get snow all over you by the end of this, but you will like it I promise!
Just in case you don’t enough of these cute animals, try to visit the reindeer at the Running Reindeer Ranch. Don’t worry, Santa won’t be mad.
Don't be intimidated by their sizes. They are quite hospitable, and they have NO flight zones! Which means they will let you get close to and pet them (But DO NOT touch their antlers, they represent dignity…..) They have the softest coat!!!
There must have once been someone in Alaska who saw all the ice and snow lying around and thought, “hmm, what can we do with this?” Because there are beautifully made ice-sculptures that will blow your mind.
And for a reasonable price, you will get to see all of them in the “Ice Museum” in Fairbanks, AK.
Doesn’t it just look like the rose from Beauty and the Beast? Guess how long has the rose been there? Over Six years!
There is a treat for you if you are over 21, that is a glass or “ice” of refreshing “Appletini”. The ice cup is yours to keep.
Accommodation
We stayed at both hotels and Airbnbs in Alaska, since they each had their own advantages. Hotels, such as Holiday Inn, Sheraton, are close to the shopping centers. It is less than a 10-min walk to grocery stores like Fred Meyer. The Airbnb we stayed at was a cabin that is far from the city. We could hardly receive any signal from the cabin. But the good part is that there is little light pollution at night, which offers a perfect chance to see the northern light. So we recommend you to try both.
THE END
Don’t panic, that’s not the aliens! Just the Alaskan skies saying Hi.
Road Trip Voting
Dates:2017.4.20 - 2017.4.26
Voting Policies
1. Register a Boro account
To prevent malicious brush ticket behavior, we require every voter to use his own school email (@.edu) to register a Boro account in order to participate in voting.
2. Login everday, Vote for a team
After login, each account is allowed to vote for any ONE of the eight teams. Only ONE vote is allowed per day, but you can re-vote on the other day. (e.g. 7 votes in total are counted if you vote on 7 consecutive days.)
3. Vote and Win Travel funds
We will randomly select 10 voters to win $200’s travel funds in cash. The more you vote, the higher chance to win the rewards!
The final winning teams of the Road Trip Challenge will be decided upon both the total number of votes it gets and the total score it gets from completing the tasks
The Champion
$2,000 Cash rewards
The Runner up
$1,000 Airline Voucher