I have a package on the way from China via Courier.

It arrived in Anchorage Alaska on the 11th, then went to Memphis Tennesee (via Edmonton Alberta ) for a few hours and finally arrived in Calgary this morning.

Only about a 6000 mile detour

That would presumably be a Fedex shipment?

Fedex's North American hub is in Memphis, TN. Certainly all international shipments go through there. So from Europe for example, a shipment for us here in NL would be routed, UK-Memphis-Montreal (For Canada customs clearance)-St John's. That Fedex manage to do this in two days for international priority shipments is still amazing!

Yep - it is. I still find it amusing though (doesn't take much - your 'dress' for example).

Why on earth does it arrive in Alaska if it has to go through Memphis? Why not just straight there, or somewhere closer. As it's coming from China to Canada, why does it have to go anywhere near the US at all?

Some things are just plain silly.

Because, as the cross-dresser has explained, that is the Fedex hub. I often get courier packages from the UK and I track them to make sure I'm home. It is quite remarkable how quickly they get from Memphis, to Hamilton, to Ottawa, to my place. A few hours is all it takes.