What you hear when you move to Alaska

Post author:Nicole Mölders
Reading time:4 mins read

My First Time Seeing an Alaska Airlines Plane

When I saw an Alaska Airlines plane at the Sacramento (California) airport for the first time in my life, I wondered

Who on Earth lives in Alaska? #travel #Alaskalife Click To Tweet

“Seattle airport” by valdosilasol is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0 View on an Alaska Airline plane at the Seattle Tacoma airport

Fashion and cold climate, does that work?

When you are reading my blog for a while you know that my love for fashion and dressing up started already in my childhood. When I told my family, friends, neighbors, and colleagues in summer of 2000 that we would move to Alaska I got a lot of questions and comments. Here is just a sample to illustrate the perceptions about living in Alaska, and well, fashion in Alaska.

#fashionover40 Alaskan woman in winter casual work outfit — Orvis Irish blazer with I.N.C. leather pants, navy dyed sweater, statement belt (all own)

My sis:

Can’t you move to a warm place where I would like to spend a vacation?

My dad:

Make sure you stay in America.

My mom:

But come back.

One of my sisters-in-law:

We will come visit in 2003.

One of my brothers-in-law:

I once wanted to immigrate to Canada in the late 50s, but then I didn’t as my friend who did was eaten by a wolf on his way home from a bar.

Another brother-in-law:

You will have to unlearn to eat chicken wings with a knife and a fork.

A friend:

For such a low salary I would not even lift a pencil, not to mention moving into the cold.

Another friend:

I would have never thought that someone who complains about being cold all the time would move to Alaska!

Our neighbors:

We would never do that. We even did not consider to make it to West-Germany before the wall fell. And we would never leave Leipzig. We hope you can take your cat with you, can you?

My best female friend:

You are not an outdoor gal. You won’t like it there. You can’t just work.

An American friend from Colorado:

Alaska? That’s dangerous. There are all the out-laws they can’t find.

A colleague:

Will your husband move with you into the ice box?

Another colleague:

Wow, a position at the famous Geophysical Institute! Congrats.

A mentor:

You will either leave within two years or catch the Arctic virus and stay forever.

My boss:

Who wrote you the reference letters?

An officer at the city office building:

You are the second green card case. The first one was Kurt Masur.

Someone I didn’t know called:

Hi, I am XYZ (add name here). I am moving to Fairbanks and ABC (add another name here) told me he knows someone else moving there and gave me your number. Have you already organized your move and can you give me some tips…..

My bff:

Fashion and cold climate that doesn’t fit together. You will hate it.

#Alaska #travel Woman telling on the blog what people say when you move to Alaska — Orvis Irish blazer with I.N.C. leather pants, navy dyed sweater, statement belt (all own). Showing details of the belt

Further reads on Alaska all with outfit inspirations

A while ago, I wrote a post on why I love living in Alaska. You may also enjoy reading dumpster diving at the transfer station.

Would you move to Alaska? What would you say when a family member, one of your friends, neighbor or colleagues would announce to move to Alaska? Let me know, I am curious.

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Photos: G. Kramm