Lights and Ice

We drove back from the Ice Show listening to music and rolling around in the back of a van, then we were greeted with a Light Show upon our return to the hostel! What an amazing sight to see those lights and that sky in person. Pictures do it justice but the overall experience of standing below them, and looking up, is truly magical. They are unworldly. I felt as if I was standing on another planet or in space. The way the auroras moved and glided through the sky like a river flowing and carving out a canyon, it was breathtaking. On that night we were blessed with green and yellow lights. After staring at them for quite a while, we decided to go back to Billie‘s, grab our cameras, and try to capture the moment. By the time we got back, the lights were very light and fuzzy so we decided to head into town and go to the local bar. We drank, we danced, and we talked all night. Then we walked back to the hostel and enjoyed each other’s company.

The next day, my cousins came back, and I told them about the show.. We all decided to go that night because they wanted to experience it. I thought it would be the same as the night before, and I was wrong. All the sculptures were there that I saw before, but something amazing happened! When the sun fell, and the night came on, the head of the ice show and the workers lit a bonfire inside a giant ice cube. It was such an amazing sight to see. I loved watching the people stand around, looking like shadow figures and the light of the fire going up into the night sky. There were no aurora borealis on this night so this was a whole other light experience. Basically, Alaska was just an experience of lights. Between the aurora borealis, the ice show, and the bonfire we were treated to amazing wonders all around.

My cousins and I walked around and found a little house made out of ice that we sat in and talked for a while at the little table that the artist made. We sat in a ice car and pretended to drive it around. My cousin threw a snowball at her husband. Then they both put their tongues on ice and stared into each others eyes, and we were all grateful that their tongues didn’t get stuck to it like in a Christmas story! Hindsight… Super glad they didn’t get stuck. My cousin did grow up in Utah, in the snow, and took survival training when she was a young girl in high school, so she knows a lot about snow and ice. She wasn’t worried. Then we just walked around and talked and had a great time and that was when the sun was still in the sky. As I said, when the night fell on, the bonfire got lit, we just stood there and stared at it in awe of where we were. Forever grateful for this life and those experiences. Thank you for reading and have a wonderful Wednesday! I have an ornament collection this year inspired by our Alaska trip. Also, if anyone would like to show support, I have joined ”buy me a coffee” recently where viewers can contribute. This small act of kindness helps keep me motivated and is much appreciated. Here is the link, and Thank you!

-Karen Hilliard

Here are the Christmas Ornaments for 2023! These have motivated me to write about my trip to Alaska, and I hope you enjoy the journey. The link to all my Tundra Collection is HERE!!