Looking back, being on the road with Peter Mulvey and Anaïs Mitchell unfolded like a play.

From the huis clos of the car to the live performances across Alaska, what a fantastic journey it has been, still is.

Thank you Peter for being such a wonderful human being.

We have uploaded a selection of photos from the various acts in Fairbanks, Tok, Talkeetna, Anchorage, Palmer, Kodiak to help you set the décor and immerse yourself in the play.

Now fill your lungs with icy cold Arctic air and picture the main characters: the hero with an old fashioned hat, the lady with lynx muffs and two Europeans on the loose. Add wild life and other creatures: four moose, two caribous, a dozen bald eagles, a mob of crying ravens, a couple of mermaids, a snow monkey and a bear. The cast is set.

We’d like to thank some of the great people we met on the road:

Jennifer at the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and everyone at the College CoffeeHouse in Fairbanks.
Budd, Heather and Cole in Tok for their warm welcome, and the lady who came bearing muffs for Anaïs.
Esther and Jim at Whole Wheat Radio and Hobbs & Tom at the Fireweed Station Inn in Talkeetna.
Mike, Katy and Bill at the Whistling Swan Productions in Anchorage.
Everyone at the Snow Goose Theatre in Anchorage and the Vagabond Blues Coffee Shop in Palmer, with special thanks to Rick on sound.
And finally Mike at KMXT 100.1 FM on Kodiak Island, with special thanks to Laurie.

Please forgive us if we forgot anyone!

Nathalie and I are joining Peter Mulvey on the frozen roads of Alaska once more for what seems to be becoming an annual event.

We’ll be meeting with Peter in Anchorage airport on December 1st, before flying on together to Fairbanks for the first show of this Letters from a flying machine CD release tour.

The mood in the U.S. at that time was one of fear. Every news channel seemed to carry nothing but stories detailing something or other that the viewer needed to fear, “We bring you important and terrifying news of … [insert your favourite sensationalist threat here]”

The reason I mention this now is because in the last few days things here have changed. Somebody called Barack Obama was elected president. I don’t know much about him, but apparently a lot of people consider his victory a good thing.

Ok, I’m kidding. Of course I know who he is. In the run up to the election the question foremost in the minds of everyone we met was, “What will we do if Obama doesn’t win?”. A lot of people were preparing to emigrate to Canada. Well, we now know that needn’t have been a concern. Obama won. And the mood here is one of optimism and a promise for a better future.

And on that note, l’m gonna raise my glass of “La fin du monde” and toast the beginning of the new world.