Augst 13-14, 2009 My first night/day in the Village

For a journey that started in East Lansing, Michigan on August 4, it is nice to have finally arrived in Buckland, AK, my new home. Since Sunday the 9th, I've been living in a school in Kotzebue, AK. Ideally, one does not want to spend the first days of their first year teaching sleeping on the floor of a Language Arts room, eating food prepared by school cafeteria workers (actually they fed us well), and attending what seemed like endless seminars in an school library. When they notified me I would be traveling home, I was eager to jump on the flight, and move into my new apartment, but the trip home was an adventure in its own right.

While waiting in the Kotzebue Airport, the pilot who was flying our charter flight notified the 9 of us going home that none of our checked bags would be coming with us due to the weight (too heavy in warm weather = bad news). This also meant that I had only the clothes on my back for my first night. Next, we walked out to our plane, a Navajo, which holds a pilot and 9 passengers (one has to ride co-pilot, and every seat is a window seat. Before takeoff, I was informed that our pilot hailed from Rochester, MI, and went to Western Michigan University, so immediately I felt comfortable in the hands of a fellow Michigander. This flight was unlike any flight that I've ever been on. Flying at a low altitude, I was offered breathtaking views of the Baldwin Peninsula, and the Bering Sea. Unfortunately I didn't have my camera due to the fact it was in one of my bags being held back for the night. Near the end of the 30 minute flight, I could see Buckland in the distance, and I was anxiously awaiting our arrival on to the dirt covered runway. After a landing (which was well done) unlike any landing I've ever experienced before, The local VPO (Village Police Officer, that's right there's only one) was there to greet us and welcome us home.
The rest of the night was rather uneventful as I picked up my boxes of food and some other things that I've shipped up (thankfully within one of the boxes I placed some clean shirts), and unpacked them.
After waking up, it was a work day for the NWABSD (North West Arctic Borough School District aka my employers), so I began setting up my classroom, while progress has been made, it is still not anywhere near perfection, and won't be until late Sunday night probably, if ever at all.
I still have yet to go out and explore the village, and meet the kids, however the kids that I have met are filled with questions, most of them wondering why I am so short (I told them it was my moms fault!).
Over the next couple of days, I plan to get some pictures up here of the village and my classroom, but for now, it's back to work, I've got a busy week ahead!