ST. PAUL, Minn. — Crystal Kennedy, who serves on the Anchorage School Board, knows what to expect when she tells people that she lives in Alaska.

"First, it's oooh, Alaska. The initial reaction is usually one of surprise. There's a lot of mystery about Alaska because it's so far away," said Kennedy, a delegate to the Republican National Convention from Eagle River.

"But people do have a lot of preconceived notions, like we live in igloos and have polar bears in the yard. I think the biggest misconception is that we have penguins."

With the surprise choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as the GOP's vice presidential candidate, the remote state has been pulled into national politics, and delegates here are being hit with questions about their governor and their home.

As in Hawai'i, where U.S. Sen. Barack Obama — the Democratic presidential nominee — was born and went to high school, Alaska has been the subject of some stereotypes as the nation studies U.S. Sen. John McCain's pick for running mate.

Alaska and Hawai'i — the last two states admitted into the union, in 1959 — have had a kinship and political connection because, while geographically so different, the states have so much in common. Both states are concerned about rural development and native rights, both have strategic military bases, and both market breathtaking natural beauty to attract tourists essential to economic growth.

"I think what people need to know is, to an extent, we're really like everybody else," Kennedy said. "We're just people up there trying to make a living, raising our kids, and obviously enjoying God's gorgeous creation.

"For the most part, we have a lot of the same issues. People are struggling with the cost of fuel right now and everything else."

Alaska, like Hawai'i, has relied on federal money to develop infrastructure and has grown through the help of a partnership between U.S. Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, and U.S. Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, D-Hawai'i.

Many Alaska Republicans have high regard for Inouye, who has campaigned for Stevens this year even though Stevens is under federal indictment for allegedly filing false financial disclosure statements.

Stevens and Inouye have been successful at extracting federal money for local projects through what are known as "earmarks."

"The fact is we are a developing state. We don't have all the roads and infrastructure," said Steve Colligan, vice chair of the Alaska Republican Party, who owns a technology company and lives in Wasilla. "People badmouth earmarks, but that is a way to get money directly to a particular project."

Kim Skipper, a state legislative aide who lives in Eagle River, said she hopes the national attention on Palin will help inform people in what she refers to as the "Lower 48."

Skipper, who serves on the state party's central committee, said she believes most Alaskans are conservationists who want to protect the state's beauty while also improving the economy through development.

She said she doubts most Americans realize how large the state is — more than 586,000 square miles, the nation's largest — and that areas like the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge targeted for oil drilling are relatively small. National environmentalists — and even McCain — have opposed drilling in the reserve and the U.S. Congress has declined to lift a ban.

"You can drill and you can explore and you can develop the resources without doing harm to the environment," Skipper said.

Wasilla, a suburb about 45 miles north of Anchorage where Palin was once mayor and beauty queen, has also been in the spotlight over the past few days.

The city of about 9,800 people, headquarters of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, is known for its fishing, swimming and boating but has also been among the fastest growing in the state.

Palin's parents, Sally and Chuck Heath, live there and people have been buzzing over her selection. "It's a small Alaska town, but it has national amenities such as a Target, a slew of fast-food restaurants and a Lowe's and Home Depot. Of course, we have a super Wal-Mart, too," said Michael Rovito, a reporter for the Wasilla Frontiersman, the local newspaper.

"It seems like a lot of TV news outlets are branding the town as a 'Northern Exposure'-type location."

To get an idea of the flavor, on the same day Rovito wrote about Palin's parents going to the convention, he also had a story about a "diminutive" 79-pound cabbage that won the popular "Giant Cabbage Weigh-Off." Last year's winning cabbage had come in at more than 87 pounds.

Palin, a mother of five who was born in Idaho but grew up in Alaska, had to overcome doubts about her experience two years ago when she challenged the party's establishment and beat incumbent governor Frank Murkowski in the primary.

Colligan said Palin has executive experience that the other candidates lack but also has unique qualities as a person that prepare her for national office.

"You'll find her as a woman of courage, when it comes to politics, when it comes to sports, when it comes to personality," he said. "She's dynamic. She's aggressive."

Kennedy called her "a breath of fresh air."

"It's just exciting to be able to share with people the fact that she has lived up to her word that it's not politics as usual for her," she said of Palin's push for more government transparency. "She really is attempting to get some things done in Alaska."

Dave Lewis, a delegate from Eagle River who moved to Alaska 14 years ago from Maryland, said people he talks with on the Mainland seem to have "a great interest in who we are and what we are and what we do.

"The more that people from outside visit Alaska and know about us, the more they understand us, just like the more folks that visit Hawai'i understand that it's not just all beaches and sunshine."