Nuuk - capital of Greenland
After spotting minke whales, caribou, and polar bears; hiking Canadian Arctic and Inuit Territory locations like Resolution Island and Douglas Harbour; and learning about topics like marine mammals, arctic geology, climate change, and Inuit culture from experts, we finally made it to our last two adventure days on board the Ocean Endeavour on the Heart of the Arctic Expedition with Adventure Canada.
What a dream, to wake up upon the waters of Kalaallit Nunaat, or Greenland, where we anchored on the banks of the capital—Nuuk. We were greeted by the friendly, colorful houses that scattered across the landscape like blots of paint across a palette. It was a sparkling summer day, and the locals were shedding their coats in celebration of such warmth in a consistently chilly city.
Greenland has around 56,000 inhabitants, with about one-third of the total population residing in Nuuk and 22% in Denmark—as it is currently still a part of the Kingdom of Denmark. The Sermitsiaq mountain majestically stands as an exalted backdrop, hanging protectively over this capital.
A group of our Expedition Team leaders beelined to the harbor within the old colonial area, adjacent to the famous Sedna statue, where they took a plunge into the ocean to take advantage of the unusually tepid temperature. As each day heads toward night, the tide rises, and this statue is submerged by the water—apt for the Inuit Goddess of the Sea.
In the video below, you can see Sedna proudly perched on the slippery stones, with the old red, blue, and yellow homes sitting peacefully in the background and in contrast to the more modern apartment buildings resurrected behind them.
The National Museum of Greenland resides in this area of town, modest on the outside, but packed with Greenlandic historical and cultural items that take you on a maze through space and time. You can easily spend a few hours reading the comprehensive information in each exhibit and studying the artifacts. Everything from traditional clothing and tools, mummies, qajaqs, and more are on display.
The small city center has a beautiful community gathering space, as well as a string of shops, including Dooit Design, a glass work shop, and Qiviut, where they sell products made from musk ox wool. One of my favorite stops was a tiny art store, where I had to squeeze through tight walkways and up a narrow staircase to navigate through the Greenlandic paintings stacked and hung by the hundreds.
Musk ox are large mammals, native to the Arctic regions. Based on their appearance, you might assume they are related to bison; however, being a part of the Bovidae family, they are actually more closely related to sheep and goats.
It was lovely to walk along the docks, watching the seabirds skim the bright blue waves, sunbathing just like the residents on this fine afternoon. I treated myself to a qiviut scarf, bought a handmade glass ornament for my parents, and enjoyed wandering the winding streets of this beautiful arctic city.
That evening, Former Premier of Greenland, Aleqa Hammond, joined us on the Ocean Endeavour for a presentation and sailed overnight to Evighedsfjorden with us…
Our final day was just around the corner.