tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-40044048340555982732024-03-13T10:32:47.552-07:00AvannaaExpedition Avannaa is a 4,000 km journey in a small open boat to the world’s northernmost settlements in Avannaa (Thule Land). It observes and thoroughly records life that exists here today. Its main goal is to make sure that the voices of the northernmost inhabitants are heard.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02534447694005553727noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4004404834055598273.post-80466317463464786512012-09-29T04:36:00.000-07:002013-04-19T13:27:36.725-07:00Qaanaaq Magnifique<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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And now the sea is flat. Baby waves noiselessly caress the shore. They look like nothing to a traveler from afar. But to a local hunter they are a sure sign that a big storm is again on its way to Etah.
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When we were caught by bad weather in Neqip Akia on a beautiful sunny afternoon, the storm also came “out of nowhere.” The emerald land turned black, and the sapphire bergs turned into a skyline of grey frightening fortresses ready for war. Everything changed in a moment. But that’s what happens in Avannaa. Here you can’t assume. You can’t have expectations. You can’t really plan, because a plan has been already made for you.
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The 6 day long storm has severely beaten our boat and damaged our bodies, but that is nothing to us: we know that we have been lucky again. As we are trying to repair the mechanics and heal our wounds on shore, I will use this moment of “doing-nothing” (or what it may seem to be from aside) to tell you more about the great town of Qaanaaq.
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Greenland is changing today, and I am sometimes surprised that despite all odds it still has a place like Qaanaaq. Here one can still see love and mutual assistance; they actually still live here. Like in the old days before “Progress”, people come out and help without asking for anything in return. The community, like in the old days, still matters. Take a look at our boat: it is getting a helping hand from so many people all at once!
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Greenland has many faces today, but Qaanaaq may be the one that represents it best. Not too many people outside of Greenland know this face. I wish more would. Spend a summer in Qaanaaq and you will go through a personal transformation after which you will never be the same.
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Just a few days ago when we almost lost our boat again due to the bad weather, Tuku Oshima, the daughter of a great Japanese polar explorer who 40 years ago went on an expedition and instead chose to settle down in Siorapaluk and become a hunter, spotted us from her window.
She was watching us for a while before she came out and saved us. Tuku is a great hunter – maybe the only female great hunter in the region. Tuku is stronger than any man I know in person. If she wanted she could literally lift up our tiny boat with all of us inside and carry all of us on her shoulders to a safer spot – or at least that’s how it feels. But don’t mess up with Tuku – you will be injured or dead.
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By the way, I forgot to mention that Tuku not only is a great hunter, but also an electrician, a researcher and a writer. Here is her newest book, The Meaning of Ice, although it is not released yet; look for it in the stores maybe a year from now. In The Meaning of Ice she talks about the peculiarities of ice and I can assure you that she is the best connossieur of it.
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So, such is Tuku. And then there Inge Qaavigaq. Every time I run up or down Qaanaaq’s Broadway she is always there, at her “Arctic Café” – a hot spot one can’t miss. Confined to her wheelchair in Qaanaaq, she emanates more joy of life than any person I know in my highrise on Upper East Side in New York. She knows how to celebrate her day, and there is place in her big heart for everyone – including such a hopeless person as myself. But in the country of understatements she will never accept this type of a compliment. Instead, she would just shout, “Come you, come and have some coffee!” And her coffee, I swear, is the best!
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So, we have so many friends here. We spend our hours walking from home to home and socializing. After a week of hunger and thirst we are lucky again to have all the pleasures of life.
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And the eternal polar day gives us all the time we need. One feast is not over yet, but another kaffemik is awaiting for us just around the corner.
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And kaffemiks in Qaanaaq are not just any tea party. A kaffemik in Qaanaaq is always a journey into the past.
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Qaannaq a place where so many famous expeditions have started and where they have returned after a success or a failure. But of course, the border between a success and a failure in Avannaa is so permeable. In these days I am thinking constantly of Admiral Robert Peary: about his so many failed attempts to reach the North Pole and about his eight amputated toes that he lost on the way to Qalaserssuaq. He had the highest commitment, but also – very importantly - the highest tolerance for failure.
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I could only compare Peary’s failed attempts to reach Qalaserssuaq (Big Navel) to the Mars Ranger missions’ attempts to land on the Martian landscape. There were also 7. On the Avannaa Expedition we faced a much simplier, but in a way a similar mission. And yes, we too failed so many times. But the secret is to tolerate the failure and to keep going despite all odds.
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Qaanaaq is a place of great proud history that is - unlike in so many other places - still alive. Qaanaaq may be one of very few places on Earth where the Pearies and the Hensons still talk to each other. Actually, you can see this happening every single day in Pillersuisoq (local store) while you are standing in line to get the groceries.
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Peary got a son in 1906 here and Henson did too. Left behind by their fathers, two half-Eskimo boys grew up, turned into the great hunters, established the families that eventually intermarried.
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We were lucky to spend much time with Anaukaq’s (Mathew Henson’s and Akatingwah’s son) children and grandchildren who still live in Qaanaaq. In 1906 Matthew Henson left Greenland and his Eskimo family behind. He never saw them gain. After Henson returned to New York, he married a girl named Lucy Ross. They lived together for 49 years, but had no children. So, Qaanaaq may be one of the very few places where one can find “real” Hensons.
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And then, there is Peary’s family. Peary and Ahlikahsingwah had two sons, Anaukaq and Kale. In 1950 Jean Malaurie reported about Kale's existence to the outside world. Left by his father in 1909 Kale was brought up by several step-fathers who taught him about ancient ways of life. Kale had several sons and daughters, Paulina being the oldest.
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I was lucky to have several talks with her and with the grandson Aleqatsiaq (Peter) Peary.
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Peter’s father and Paulina’s son, Robert Peary Jr. has been a good friend of ours; we went with him on a few ice trips in Uummannaq Bay. Excellent drum-singer and storyteller, Robert, or Hivshu Ua how he calls himself now, does a lot to save the old Avannaa traditions, language and culture.
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Paulina who will turn 78 in a month lives in this humble house. Some 65 years ago she used to live in Uummannaq, Thule, with her father Kale. By the age of 10 she was an experienced dog-sledder. In those days it was not really customary for women to drive the dogs, but she was the oldest among her father’s children while his son was still too young.
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When she turned 13, and had to go for confirmation, her father asked her to have her own dog team. Pauline was crying: “Father, but women don’t do it!” But he told her that she had to carry meat for the people who were hungry. He said it was not good to be hungry. “When I arrived for my confirmation I was very ashamed, says Paulina.- I was a woman on dog sled by myself! But then we stopped by every house and gave people meat. This was a happy moment. And by Christmas I received more presents than I ever did before.”
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And this is Qulutanguaq – the old man in the “Old People’s Home” – a hunter and a drumdancer and maybe the oldest man in Qaanaaq. He recently turned 90. Qulutanguaq still drums and watches life outside of the “Old People’s Home” through his binoculars that are always ready at his window.
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We roam from room to room in the “Old People’s Home” and we meet more and more people who still remember how the life was before the arrival of the “Progress” and “Civilization”.
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And finally, comes Uusaqqaq Qujaakitsoq – the big grand man of Qaanaaq.
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One could write a book about him, or two, but for now I will just say a word about his great film “Aulahuliat” which literally means “moving images”.
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Uusaqqaq started to shoot when he was only 15 – that’s when he got his first camera – and eventually was able to document the tragic history of displacement of people of Uummannaq, Thule from their homeland in Uummannaq to Qaanaaq when the American military had chosen Uummannaq as the site for the Thule Air Force Base and a Ballistic Missile Early Warning radar in 1951. “Aulahuliat” is a rare film and may be the best film about Avanersuaq that I have ever watched in my life.
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In other words, Qaanaaq is a storytelling place. Even rocks here will tell you their story. “Ujarak” means “a stone” in Kalaallisut. And then there is “Ujarappassuit “ which means “lots of stones”. And then there is “Ujarapparparparparsuit” which means “lots, and lots, and lots, a whole universe of stones”. And a “Qerrut” is a “Rockfall”! So, you can imagine how many stories there are here, and each one is worthwhile to be told. And this is what really Qaanaaq is about.
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</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02534447694005553727noreply@blogger.com0Qaasuitsup, Greenland77.48262 -69.34513177.3717 -69.976845 77.59353999999999 -68.713416999999993tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4004404834055598273.post-23177908698466720062012-09-13T14:30:00.001-07:002013-04-05T13:25:42.002-07:00The Stolen Moments<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="text-align: left;">Only from the water and only through returning from a trip
where one may have been lost, one can see how big Qaanaaq is!</span></div>
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Qaanaaq is a truly metropolitan place, but unlike other big
places that are self-absorbent, even narcissistic, and therefore looking
inward, Qaanaaq looks outward. Every single window in Qaanaaq is a fortified
observation post well equipped with tripods, binoculars and other surveillance
gadgets. <o:p></o:p></div>
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completely empty at this time of a night, we know that we have been already
noticed by our friends and soon they
will show up to give us a warm welcome
back.</div>
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Our return from Neqip Akia has been brutal. It might have
been the toughest part of our journey so far. We spent another night on
turbulent sea, the third one out of five. When one is squeezed into a narrow
open boat that happens to be narrower than most beds in the tiniest of the
Manhattan studios, even one hour seems to be an eternity. You can’t really move
at all – you stay motionless and you sometimes freeze to death.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Hunger, cold, a leaking boat and a growing confusion took a
toll even on Aalibarti – usually the unbreakable one. He spent all five nights
at sea and had to be alert all the time – day and night. He was able to save
both boats, but now it seems that he is simply burnt out.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Constant thirst may have added up to that. The “water” we
collected and drank in these days has been really “heavy”. Comprised of sand,
stones and rare metals – maybe exactly the ones that are being extensively
searched for in Greenland by international consortiums, and mixed with the
arctic birds’ excrements that nurture the beautiful green lichen fields that
make this part of Greenland really green, but that are too loaded with metals such as cadmium and mercury, aluminum
and zinc, this “power drink” has been
filling our systems to the top for the last 5 days.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I am taking samples
with me and am anxious to run the tests to find out what exactly we consumed
during these 6 days at sea in Neqip Akia – a place that seems to be so far away from pollution by
industrial and agricultural contaminants such as mercury, PCBs and DDT.<o:p></o:p></div>
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At 10 pm the wind was still raising, but – miraculously, the
barometer was rising too. This gave us a slight hope that we could sneak into a
narrow corridor of a fair weather opening to make a safe return trip to
Qaanaaq. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p> </o:p>
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bfJB8rjqacw/UFJNVI2CgEI/AAAAAAAAFE8/2nl6qM6kIto/s1600/IMG_3989.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bfJB8rjqacw/UFJNVI2CgEI/AAAAAAAAFE8/2nl6qM6kIto/s1600/IMG_3989.jpg" /></a></div>
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We started at 2 am in the morning, the quietest hour at sea,
and rushed south at full speed.<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GPbs7EN_ijU/UFJNiDboUAI/AAAAAAAAFFE/NMpzQUadsWQ/s1600/IMG_3931+-+Version+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GPbs7EN_ijU/UFJNiDboUAI/AAAAAAAAFFE/NMpzQUadsWQ/s1600/IMG_3931+-+Version+2.jpg" /></a><br />
The
waters of Neqip Akia Fjord were almost flat, but as soon as we turned the corner,
we embraced a turbulent white capped sea and a cold south-east
wind. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Now we are in the middle of the tormented sea again. And
every quarter hour it increases its fury. The horizon is dark. Our small open
boat seems to be too small and too open for these steep arousals and descents.
My computer bag is now floating amidst the gasoline tanks along with other
hard-wired essentials. No matter how often I use a “qallut” – a bailing scoop –
the water is rapidly filling the boat.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I am clinging to the
rope as hard as I can but I still fly in the air and the heavy canisters with
pink gasoline do too. Should we have stayed and waited for a better moment? We
were again too impatient and too anxious ahead of time? <o:p></o:p></div>
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-906O58g7cYw/UFJOA5tHgqI/AAAAAAAAFFU/Hxc9fy5an7k/s1600/IMG_8360+-+Version+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-906O58g7cYw/UFJOA5tHgqI/AAAAAAAAFFU/Hxc9fy5an7k/s1600/IMG_8360+-+Version+2.jpg" /></a><br />
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Our life in a small open boat is an enigma to many. “What
can you possibly do there?” our friends from New York and London ask. “And why
don’t you get a bigger boat? And why don’t you get efficient pumps? And a solid
roof?” But this is a “Greenlandic way”;
we have what we have, we take what comes. We take our beating and try to adapt.
<o:p></o:p></div>
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And yes, on some 4 square meters of space 80% of which is
covered by canisters with gasoline, we are living on top of each other, the old
communal style. There is no room for privacy.
Our “sleeping place” is on top of our “living room” that is in turn on
top of our “kitchen” whilst the entire structure is partially submerged in the
freezing water. But don’t people in Manhattan live the same way – on top of
each other, like Arctic birds on the cliff?
They are happy about their life style, so why can’t we be? Especially when we have this immense and
unobstructed world in front of our “window” – a landscape in which the
frontiers between myth and reality simply transcend. <o:p></o:p></div>
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For some reason, I am constantly thinking of Uisaakassak,
Sallutoorsuaq - The Big Liar, one of the
six Eskimos Robert Peary took with him in 1897 from Avannaa to New York for an
exhibition at the Museum of Natural
History. Out of six, Minik and
Uisaakassak were the only ones to have survived. In 1898 Uisaakassak was
able to return to his people in Uummannaq, Thule District. When he told his
people about his experiences in Manhattan – about houses tall as icebergs, about people living in the them
like little auks on the cliffs, and about streetcars that could move without
dogs, they called The Sallutoorsuaq, The Big Liar. An excellent hunter,
Uisaakassak had to flee Uummannaq and
find a refuge at Uisaakassaap Nunaa, not far from Tuttulissuaq, now an
uninhabited place. We passed it on our way from Kullorsuaq to Savissivik. <o:p></o:p></div>
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The spirit of Uisaakassak (which actually means “Restless”)
who eventually had been killed by his fellow compatriots because he kept
“lying” will never leave us. It travels
with us in the moments of storm and in the times of stillness. I think of him
as the fifth one in our boat. Expedition
Avanna has many faces, and the face of Uisaakassak is definitely one of them. I
guess, when we return to Uummannaq – if we return safely, some people will also
call us The Big Liars too. Imaqa.<o:p></o:p></div>
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After so many misfortunes, we are lucky again. We are soaked
to our bones, but that is nothing to the Inuit (=human beings) returning to
Qaanaaq. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7rLONLx2D4s/UFJOfgad41I/AAAAAAAAFF8/2AZLAmK05aI/s1600/IMG_4284.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7rLONLx2D4s/UFJOfgad41I/AAAAAAAAFF8/2AZLAmK05aI/s1600/IMG_4284.jpg" /></a></div>
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Landing in Qaanaaq employs a special procedure which may
seem to some as almost theatrical. But for people living in Qaanaaq low and
high tides are an everyday reality, so they see nothing special about it.<o:p></o:p></div>
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God is great. And mattaq is too.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Clothes are washed and hung to dry.</div>
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From our friends we have learned all the news we had missed
in the days passed. We learned that a big storm had hit Qaanaaq. It tunred out
that the weather had been bad for all not only for us. In Uummannaq for example
a big tsunami caused by a collapse of a nearby iceberg caused a lot of damage
and even moved the part of one house a few meters away. <a href="http://sermitsiaq.ag/node/133558">http://sermitsiaq.ag/node/133558</a><o:p></o:p></div>
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In the days of our journey from Qaanaaq to Neqip akia we
lived through the moments of a great chaos but also of a great order – a higher
order of nature. Wind, waves, cold, and
constant rain reminded us again about the fragility of a human body and the
limits of a human mind. Our hands got swollen, and wounds on them got infected.
At a certain point I had to open them with a knife and clean them with urine
and blubber that happens to be a natural
antibiotic. Our minds had been
travelling on their own too, and it was not an easy journey either.</div>
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And now finally to
“lessons learned”. Did we learn anything if at all on the way North? I hope we
did. Was our failed trip to Etah one of the saddest stories in the world? I
hope it was not. What some people may call the drama of disillusionment, we
simply call <i>life</i>. In the last six days when our boat was
sinking and when our hearts’ ligaments
were stretched to their breaking point, we felt that we were just paying
a fair price for the moments of <i>living</i>, for the moments that no one can take away from us.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2RQhRxiRH84/UFJPPN1FWnI/AAAAAAAAFGs/jN6zsC6G4Rs/s1600/IMG_4103.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2RQhRxiRH84/UFJPPN1FWnI/AAAAAAAAFGs/jN6zsC6G4Rs/s1600/IMG_4103.jpg" /></a></div>
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We live through these <i>stolen</i>
moments of infinite beauty that does not exist in our everyday world. We live
through them, and then all of a sudden our normal, routine world retreats,
diminishes and finally disappears entirely, and the new, infinite world takes its place. And we call it <i>life</i>!<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/8082778576/" title="Puikkarneq = A Mirage by Galya Morrell (ColdArtist), on Flickr"><img src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8054/8082778576_4ddf457715_c.jpg" width="800" height="534" alt="Puikkarneq = A Mirage"></a>
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Sometime after midnight, on the day of our arrival to
Qaanaaq, the low midnight sun has finally broken through the clouds and
illuminated everything around. And this was the moment we lived for. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nmpg4JBIi_k/UFJPceRxxwI/AAAAAAAAFG8/yUdJ4t3gT5E/s1600/IMG_4448+-+Version+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Nmpg4JBIi_k/UFJPceRxxwI/AAAAAAAAFG8/yUdJ4t3gT5E/s1600/IMG_4448+-+Version+2.jpg" /></a></div>
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</div>Sergehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02725591470030464612noreply@blogger.com0Qaasuitsup, Greenland77.5 -69.233333377.0600695 -71.7601888 77.9399305 -66.7064778tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4004404834055598273.post-82540126954117626782012-08-28T21:36:00.000-07:002012-08-29T08:16:11.125-07:00In The Red Sea. A Difficult Decision.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<div class="p1">
It used to never rain here. Ot at least, that’s what the elders in Qaanaaq have told us. It used to be a desert, an Arctic one. But now we are in the seventh day of rain, and it seems to not surprise anyone anymore. June was rainy, and July was too. The rain goes on and off, almost like a tropical one, in the rain forest, except for the fact that it is still no forest here. </div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/74737433@N02/7885024136/" title="Untitled by sjmorrell, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="600" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8288/7885024136_8d4595d9a0_b.jpg" width="900" /></a>
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<span class="s2">Rain is not an anomality here now. It has become a norm. This morning we were lucky enough to receive an sms with a weather forecast from Searoute – a small French company that specializes on detailed weather forecasts for expeditions. Thanks to Searoute we were able to find out everything we need to know e.g. wind, waves height, but we also learned that it will be rain, rain and more rain in the days to come. </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/74737433@N02/7885026402/" title="Untitled by sjmorrell, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="600" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8438/7885026402_731931b459_b.jpg" width="900" /></a>
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<span class="s2">Aalibarti is still at sea. He tried to hunt a narwhale this morning, following him all the way along the fjord, but he did not succeed to kill him after all. And now is trying to tell us something, but his voice sinks in the roar of waves and moving rocks. </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/74737433@N02/7885028546/" title="Untitled by sjmorrell, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="600" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8295/7885028546_190cb16605_b.jpg" width="900" /></a>
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<span class="s2">Now we are seriously concerned about our Irridium Extreme. If the Sun does not come up, the battery will be gone in a day. At the same time we are anxious to receive a message from Uummannaq, but each time we check the inbox we find only emptiness inside.</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/74737433@N02/7885023322/" title="Untitled by sjmorrell, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="600" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8042/7885023322_b5be614f58_b.jpg" width="900" /></a>
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<span class="s2">So, in the absence of news, we are anxiously looking towards horizon as if we could see someone or somewhat that could define our fate. </span></div>
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/74737433@N02/7885025930/" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;" title="Untitled by sjmorrell, on Flickr"><img alt="Untitled" height="600" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8170/7885025930_125c58e28e_b.jpg" width="900" /></a>
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<span class="s2">The only thing we can see now is that the storm intersifies. And so does the rain.</span></div>
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<span class="s2">And this is how quantity turns into quality. Yesterday we still could drink water from the stream running from the mountain. Even though it had sand and little rocks in it, it it was usable. But today as we wake up we find no water. Instread, there is a souplike mesh of mud and dirt mixed with rain. We are filling the bottle – a sample for further analysis since through this water we can learn so much about this land and all the treasures hidden in it. Greenland’s water should be the purest on Earth and its source should be endless, but here and now we experience thirst again. This is what rain does to us.</span></div>
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<span class="s2">Fog, rain and storm, and no news from home – this is our reality now. Do you hear us, Ann? We miss you and we love you!</span></div>
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<span class="s2">Another day and another night go by. Aalibarti is still at sea while we are still on land. He was not able to find a seal or a norwhale, but the rain and storm were so hard last night that we almost lost our boat to the waves. Miracolously Aalibarti woke up in the middle of the night and save the boat. I say “miraculously” because in the middle of the night Else – Aalibarti’s wife has come to him (in his dream) and woke him up. “Wake up Aalibarti, she said. The boat is sinking.” And sinking it was. Aalibarti worked the rest of thei night taking the water out of i. When we finally met he choose to tell us nothing about it. We found out about by accident. But again, this is a purely Greenlandic way to deal with this type of issues.</span></div>
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<span class="s2">We don’t have an alarm clock. Aalibarti’s gun is our alarm clock, and also the main means of communication. Whenever he needs to talk to us, he reaches us by a gunshot. But not only. Once as we are out in the field collecting data for the future research he spots several polar foxes trying to penetrate our tent and steal our scarce food. He tries to scare them away and after few shots they not very willingly disappear on the other side of the slope.</span></div>
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<span class="s2">Aalibarti is exhausted. And the boats are too. It seems that one of the engines is slightly damaged by a rough landing attempt. And the other boat is leaking. So, we are about to take a difficult decision: instead of going to Etah, return to Siorapaluk and recover while the Sila is still showing her temper. </span></div>
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<span class="s2">We are back on sea. We are leaving our paradise behind not knowing whether we have a chance to return here again. But it really does not matter. We have been here, we have lived these moments through, and they will stay with us no matter what comes next. We own them, through the paperless ownership, the “Greenlandic way”. </span></div>
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<span class="s2">As we about to leave for Siorapaluk, the sun comes up after 7 days of rain. And everything again changes in a moment. The sea turns dark red; it now seems that we are floating in narwhale’s blood. </span></div>
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<span class="s2">Red, blue and green – these are the colors Neqip Akia Fjord is saluting us with as we are leaving it after five days on water and land. And these are the colors of Avannaa as we know it now.</span></div>
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<span class="s2">As we are heading to the corner the wind intesifies again. And the waves are getting bigger than they were just couple hours ago. Will we make it?</span></div>
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<span class="s2">Aalibarti and Ole Jorgen are thoroughly scanning the horizon. Can they read what I can’t read? Can they see is awaiting for us on the way? </span></div>
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<span class="s2">Firece splashes cover our boats again. The Red Sea is boiling. And we are in the middle of it. Now we can’t land anymore even if we wanted to.</span></div>
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<span class="s2">There is only one option – to go forward. And we will follow this way no matter how hard it can be. We say a final good-bye to Neqip Akia and thank it for its hospitality. Siorapaluk is ahead. Please, wish us luck!</span></div>
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Sergehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02725591470030464612noreply@blogger.com1Thule, Greenland77.48262 -69.34513177.480899499999992 -69.3550015 77.4843405 -69.33526049999999tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4004404834055598273.post-73009402338974766782012-08-27T09:00:00.000-07:002012-08-29T07:05:28.306-07:00In Neqip Akia. Split By The Sea.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Thirty four hours later, we are still at sea, swinging on the waves that are just too big for our small, open and heavily loaded boat. During the night time were dragged by the wind and currents back and forth across our hiding enclave in Nekip Akia Fjord. </div>
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<span class="s2">In the morning, when Sila offered us a shot break from storm, wind and rain, we succeeded to send an sms over our Irridium Extreme to those who may (or may not) still care for us, but we have not heard back from them. They may have not received our message, but we have used our chance, and we do not have the second one. Now we have to save our battery that is quickly melting down. The only way we can charge it is through a solar panel which in the absence of the sun is just a piece of extra weight. We have not seen sun for a long time, and we don’t know when we see it next.</span></div>
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<span class="s2">There are many disadvantages of life on the shaky surface of an icy soup fiercely boiling under the gusts of 25-30 knots Arctic wind. But there are also advantages. All of a sudden, you stop worrying. You stop assuming or getting mad when your assumptions fail. You stop making predictions. You stop playing god. Eventually, you turn into a human being, an Inuit. Your eyes open, you ears suddenly start to hear. </span></div>
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<span class="s2">Soaked to our bones, thirsty and sleepless, we are now ready to accept and adopt. But of course, we can’t give up on dreaming. And the time passes our dreams get wilder and wilder and sometimes the border between a dream and a reality simply disappears.</span></div>
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<span class="s2">Dreams in the cold may be laconic and unpretentious but they are very colorful. All the beautiful things we once saw in life, now come back to us. </span></div>
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<span class="s2">And then suddenly, after 5 o’clock “tea”, Sila gives us a break. The storm miraculously calms down and we decide to take a chance and land. </span></div>
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<span class="s2">It is decided that Bertrand – as the youngest and fittest of us all – will carry us one by one from the boat to the shore. If this mission turns out to be successful we will put up a tent on the beach where we will spend time till the storm fades out. </span></div>
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<span class="s2">Bertrand succeeds to transport all our valuable and not so valuable possessions on shore and then takes me onto his shoulders. He has to act quickly. This shuttling technique, no matter how simple it may look from aside, involves several dangers for the boat since the surface underneath the water constitutes the barricades of sharp stones. </span></div>
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<span class="s2">One big wave, one wrong calculation, one misstep, and things may go completely wrong. </span></div>
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<span class="s2">A big wave arrives unexpectedly and knocks down Bertrand. He collapses like a Chinese doll and pulls down his rider ( Ole Jorgen ). They are both in the water. A moment later they appear on the surface. It are trying to get on their feet while even bigger waves are coming.</span></div>
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<span class="s2">The cold sea bath is just another experince that has been planned for us from above. Waders filled with freezing water are heavier than led and one must be trained as a circus acrobat to know how to get rid of them in a moment.</span></div>
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<span class="s2">Beaten and visibly shaken both Bertrand and Ole Jorgen make it to the shore. Aalibarti laughs at their misfortune; this is a typical Greenlandic way to confront a disasaster, not even talking about a small confusion like this one. Of course, you can complain. Of course, you can scream, you can curse and be mad at yourself and your circumstances. But getting mad will not make things easier. Aalibarti, who 40 years ago had spent many days adrift on a floe of ice alone in the darkest days of the polar night and was officially prounounced dead, knows it better than the most. And that’s why he now laughs so happily. We can hear his voice from afar through the roar of the wind. </span></div>
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<span class="s2">While Aalibarti keeps laughing, we discover the land. And it feels so good! We are anxious to explore the shore that looked so hospitable from our shaky boat. But at first, we need to dry our cloths.</span></div>
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<span class="s2">But how to dry our completely soaked cloths under an almost non-stopping rain? We need to learn to do it “the Greenlandic way”. Ole Jorgen secures the rope between 4 humangous boulders and by thus creates a giant drying machine that works better than any dryer in my building in Manhattan. In an hour or so, if the 25 m per second wind persists, everything will be dry. </span></div>
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<span class="s2">This is the world’s northernmost laundermaut. It is purely ecological. And here for the first time in two days we finally relax and think of the essentials. Drying the laundry is just another way to confront both one’s own greatness and insignificance. Life is good, Greenland is green, and somehow after a 36 hour torture we were able to find our paradise.</span></div>
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<span class="s2">We don’t know for sure whether humans have ever landed here before us. But we know that polar bears are around, which means that we have to be on alert round o’clock.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0xdwFI8Y02g/UD2TzRnCL6I/AAAAAAAABvs/Zx000VhFsNE/s1600/IMG_3510.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0xdwFI8Y02g/UD2TzRnCL6I/AAAAAAAABvs/Zx000VhFsNE/s1600/IMG_3510.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span class="s2">This is how our new little home looks from the sea. One may not even notice a little green dot on otherwise barren shore and may not ever know that there is life here too.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-andrIiSr0iE/UD2T5oRNdqI/AAAAAAAABv0/vHDb9nLHOks/s1600/IMG_3677.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-andrIiSr0iE/UD2T5oRNdqI/AAAAAAAABv0/vHDb9nLHOks/s1600/IMG_3677.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span class="s2">Time to botanize. It does not take us long to discover plenty of mushrooms, berries and seductively smelling herbs in our nearest “back-yard”. Most of them as we know can be eaten raw. The soil is soft and fertile; walking on it is similar to walking on a Persian carpet. We are thankful to the birds – the sole creators of this wonderful Green Land; tons of shit they leave behind after each season of nesting on these cliffs give us a possibility to survive the storm and enjoy life to its fullest. </span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NtXPXdAjlGA/UD2UAGoqZ7I/AAAAAAAABv8/bszTufYbe60/s1600/IMG_3618.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NtXPXdAjlGA/UD2UAGoqZ7I/AAAAAAAABv8/bszTufYbe60/s1600/IMG_3618.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span class="s2">This is a vew from our window, and we feel that we are paying a fair price for enjoying it.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_Q3hwTYy-jQ/UD2UHM0mkdI/AAAAAAAABwE/iCzjLAki1Og/s1600/IMG_3465.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_Q3hwTYy-jQ/UD2UHM0mkdI/AAAAAAAABwE/iCzjLAki1Og/s1600/IMG_3465.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span class="s2">Some time after midnight we are saying good night to Aalibarti. He will be staying at sea with the boats, hopeful to hunt a narwhale somtime into the “dawn”, while three of us will share the tent. Separated by sea, we know that long night lies ahead of us. </span></div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02534447694005553727noreply@blogger.com1Thule, Greenland77.48262 -69.34513177.480899499999992 -69.3550015 77.4843405 -69.33526049999999tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4004404834055598273.post-40058061924501469452012-08-24T09:12:00.002-07:002012-08-24T09:39:51.441-07:00Etah-mut. Misilitsinneq. (The Test).<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Today, after 6 days of rains and storms, we are heading to Avannaa-mut
(North) again. The rain stopped after midnight and we are anxious to
slide into the narrow corridor of smooth seas before the nasty weather returns.
On a clear day like ours the journey to Etah should not take any longer than 5-7 hours.
Or so we thought.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jUcP77b7jbQ/UDeVslrTNUI/AAAAAAAABps/gO4GND9X8uU/s1600/IMG_2596.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jUcP77b7jbQ/UDeVslrTNUI/AAAAAAAABps/gO4GND9X8uU/s1600/IMG_2596.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">We descended to the shore quietly, and yet – as it always happens in
Qaanaaq where everyone is watching everyone</span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">– we received a warm welcome from a big crowd: our old and
new friends despite the early hour came down to the shore to see us off.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wgIbk-lQhT4/UDeWbX71oGI/AAAAAAAABp0/RXRFbQUE3qQ/s1600/IMG_3374.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wgIbk-lQhT4/UDeWbX71oGI/AAAAAAAABp0/RXRFbQUE3qQ/s640/IMG_3374.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Today is an emotional day for Avannaa. For the first time since
Uummannaq our paths will split. Jaaku, Inuunnguaq and Else will stay in Qaanaaq
while Ole Jorgen, Aalibarti, Bertrand and myself will be heading North. We don’t
know what is awaiting us and neither do those who are staying on shore. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CIRCxvDrasY/UDeXGbFVSmI/AAAAAAAABp8/Czsb138iev8/s1600/IMG_3376.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CIRCxvDrasY/UDeXGbFVSmI/AAAAAAAABp8/Czsb138iev8/s640/IMG_3376.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Yesterday as we shared out last supper Aalibarti said a prayer asking
Sila for protection and humility.
We talked about many things, but mainly about wisdom. Wisdom in the High
Arctic is a special matter. Here a single nanometer separates life from death,
and one often has to make a judgment based on a hunter’s gut feelings and
inner instincts rather than on conventional logic.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z6j1bHnqMVk/UDeXJvn1IMI/AAAAAAAABqE/wOMiRVR43lA/s1600/IMG_3355.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z6j1bHnqMVk/UDeXJvn1IMI/AAAAAAAABqE/wOMiRVR43lA/s640/IMG_3355.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">On the shore Else bursts into tears. Its harder for her to part with
Aalibarti than most may think. Yes, he has been a lucky man being able
to have returned from the world the
others could not. But again, in
the Arctic you can’t take god luck for granted. Two summers ago Else and
Aalibarti have lost a son to the sea. It happened just 500 meters from the shore,
on a good day, on an almost smooth surface. His body has never been recovered.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5CykzMuFuVE/UDeb-FPfEUI/AAAAAAAABsY/_YQUB5XnF4k/s1600/IMG_2571.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5CykzMuFuVE/UDeb-FPfEUI/AAAAAAAABsY/_YQUB5XnF4k/s640/IMG_2571.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">As we leave Qaanaaq, the sea shows all its summer colors. Summer is here, summer is now and we hope that it won’t abandon
us on the way to Etah. </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">In an hour and a half we pass Siorapaluk – the worlds’ northernmost permanently
inhabited settlement. Some of our dear friends live here. Like in Qaanaaq, they manage to keep the
ancient ways of life alive, still using kayaks and harpoons to hunt the
narwhal. We are planning to visit
them upon our return from the North.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0NLPeYtIKNs/UDeX3IB1eRI/AAAAAAAABqc/NW1C4COzHYY/s1600/IMG_3377.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0NLPeYtIKNs/UDeX3IB1eRI/AAAAAAAABqc/NW1C4COzHYY/s640/IMG_3377.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">A few minutes later Siorapraluk dissapears from our view; the boat runs
fast, and we don’t know yet that
just behind the corner another world is already waiting for us. In a blink of an eye the sea gets rocky and soon the boat is flying on the waves like a hopeless
splinter. You have to be really fit to survive such a ride. There is nothing to
hold on to; and you bounce around like a tennis ball in an empty shoe box. </span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PpbTEUBnzF4/UDeX7xJL33I/AAAAAAAABqo/aBtJ0SgOvUI/s1600/IMG_9787.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PpbTEUBnzF4/UDeX7xJL33I/AAAAAAAABqo/aBtJ0SgOvUI/s640/IMG_9787.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">We are carrying around 600 liters of gasoline with us – the load that
makes our task just that much harder. As the world around us darkens, the bright pink of
gasoline stays the only colorful color in the midst of a quickly approaching
grey mist.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gGltz5fP5xM/UDeYBeVJOrI/AAAAAAAABqw/IMinG1kokbw/s1600/IMG_9813.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gGltz5fP5xM/UDeYBeVJOrI/AAAAAAAABqw/IMinG1kokbw/s640/IMG_9813.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Some 2 hours since our departure from Qaanaaq our progress slows down as the storm nears our boat. </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Fierce waves quickly fill our boat with water; no matter how fast we
are emptying it, it seems like we are taking a cold bath and a freezing shower
simultaneously under a piercing Arctic wind. And there is no escape from this
purely Greenlandic spa.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VsY6mBI0y8k/UDeZdkqV_bI/AAAAAAAABq4/pwmGhbdRmf4/s1600/IMG_3407.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-VsY6mBI0y8k/UDeZdkqV_bI/AAAAAAAABq4/pwmGhbdRmf4/s640/IMG_3407.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Helvetica; mso-bidi-font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;"> </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">The wind intensifies up to 25 knots; and we get closer to our breaking point.</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KMDNcWebhbs/UDeZipSjPEI/AAAAAAAABrA/aMNOzfyiIU0/s1600/IMG_3427.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KMDNcWebhbs/UDeZipSjPEI/AAAAAAAABrA/aMNOzfyiIU0/s640/IMG_3427.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Three and a half hours into the trip Aalibarti calls for a “conference”.
We can hardly hear each other because of the roaring wind. But it’s not a good
moment for speeches. We unanimously decide that we will try to land and wait
for better weather onshore. </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">But is there a way to land?</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-l-V4P_iQqEQ/UDeZ8PPqwgI/AAAAAAAABrI/wB307kG53pY/s1600/IMG_3428.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-l-V4P_iQqEQ/UDeZ8PPqwgI/AAAAAAAABrI/wB307kG53pY/s640/IMG_3428.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">We venture into a little harbor in Neqip Akia fjord to see if we can find a good spot.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e14PLlSqfjA/UDeaNTryqjI/AAAAAAAABrQ/E7Epmd5yGZU/s1600/IMG_3482.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-e14PLlSqfjA/UDeaNTryqjI/AAAAAAAABrQ/E7Epmd5yGZU/s640/IMG_3482.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">We make several approaches, but nothing seems to work. The waves are far too large</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WpGa0Z7D9sA/UDeaXb-CsHI/AAAAAAAABrY/VeJfhziH6wc/s1600/IMG_3431.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WpGa0Z7D9sA/UDeaXb-CsHI/AAAAAAAABrY/VeJfhziH6wc/s640/IMG_3431.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">What to do? Aalibarti bursts into laughter. Greenlanders always
resort to such expressions instead of making a dramatic scene. We can’t really change anything, so
it means that we are ready
to adapt again. We turn our "failed” landing mission into a seal searching mission.
We are cold, wet and hungry, and a nice seal – if found - would lift
our spirits and help us stay afloat.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wJEwyfzlOM0/UDeabLYRYRI/AAAAAAAABrg/pw75QgqLsQ8/s1600/IMG_3438.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-wJEwyfzlOM0/UDeabLYRYRI/AAAAAAAABrg/pw75QgqLsQ8/s640/IMG_3438.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">We spend an hour or so, scanning the ice, but to no avail. In
such nasty weather even seals retreat</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OHvCmfK1I20/UDeafNuJwrI/AAAAAAAABro/wiwPiNEnjg8/s1600/IMG_3486.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OHvCmfK1I20/UDeafNuJwrI/AAAAAAAABro/wiwPiNEnjg8/s640/IMG_3486.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">And then, in addition to the storm a heavy rain begins. Now we have
another task: to turn our
completely open boat into a shelter where we can survive the storm.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pZcc6EgzlCQ/UDea0oMJKNI/AAAAAAAABrw/aDUVVfDhIis/s1600/IMG_9844.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pZcc6EgzlCQ/UDea0oMJKNI/AAAAAAAABrw/aDUVVfDhIis/s640/IMG_9844.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Building the roof takes only 10 minutes. With some other small
adjustments we now have a brand
new mobile home on the waves where we will be staying for hours and maybe even
days to come. Immaqa.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ttRhyQez-Zo/UDebEMSu2XI/AAAAAAAABr4/cqN47DbJWQs/s1600/IMG_9835.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ttRhyQez-Zo/UDebEMSu2XI/AAAAAAAABr4/cqN47DbJWQs/s640/IMG_9835.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Having the roof in the midst of the roaring sea seems to be a paradise.
We are so lucky! We hope that despite intensifying gusts it will stay in place
during the night time.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-A_iLTWUGYsI/UDebIEUB-OI/AAAAAAAABsA/40FZNE_1npk/s1600/IMG_9864.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-A_iLTWUGYsI/UDebIEUB-OI/AAAAAAAABsA/40FZNE_1npk/s640/IMG_9864.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Now it’s story telling time. We will miss a seal blubber lamp, of
course, but the night is still white for us. We have many stories to share, enough
food to last, but almost no water. There are streams on the shore just some
hundreds of meters away from us, but there is no way we can access it.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eODvJ1rPEtU/UDebK0n0QbI/AAAAAAAABsI/WoS6qG8FXq4/s1600/IMG_9882.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eODvJ1rPEtU/UDebK0n0QbI/AAAAAAAABsI/WoS6qG8FXq4/s640/IMG_9882.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Thirsty in the middle of
the roaring sea, I dream of a can of Coke I had recently on the flight from
Kangerlussuaq. With this colorful and pleasant dream I fall asleep half
submerged in the cold salty water. We will be having a long night ahead.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kg60RiTrt0w/UDebNfcTwTI/AAAAAAAABsQ/EE6QNd65ySg/s1600/IMG_9911.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-kg60RiTrt0w/UDebNfcTwTI/AAAAAAAABsQ/EE6QNd65ySg/s640/IMG_9911.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-b3t-PBLODA8/UDenzyumAWI/AAAAAAAABtI/r-PjttEUI6A/s1600/Qaanaaq.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-b3t-PBLODA8/UDenzyumAWI/AAAAAAAABtI/r-PjttEUI6A/s1600/Qaanaaq.png" /></a></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02534447694005553727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4004404834055598273.post-11924163627131792132012-08-13T19:58:00.001-07:002012-08-15T05:25:40.186-07:00In the Meteorite Country<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 17.0pt;">After four days on
the rocky sea and many heart stopping adventures we
have finally arrived to Avanersuaq – the Thule District. </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Times; mso-bidi-font-size: 16.0pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-p3C0lu6QL8w/UCm0D3zQD-I/AAAAAAAABlI/JqucViXqjLM/s1600/IMG_1120.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-p3C0lu6QL8w/UCm0D3zQD-I/AAAAAAAABlI/JqucViXqjLM/s1600/IMG_1120.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">It is a place that stirred the minds of the white explorers and nurtured the
myths and legends for centuries. In these legends Avanersuaq has often been portrayed as paradise island made out of black rock.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CuWKvoZf5Ko/UCm0G2wD4RI/AAAAAAAABlQ/jvG4tdPrW_w/s1600/IMG_1101.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CuWKvoZf5Ko/UCm0G2wD4RI/AAAAAAAABlQ/jvG4tdPrW_w/s640/IMG_1101.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">It’s a place that few Greenlanders have been to. On our Avannaa extended team only two people
out of seven have managed to come here before: Ole Jorgen Hammeken and Alberth
Lukassen. Even such experienced travelers as Else and Jaakuaraq are coming to
Avanersuaq for the first time in their lives. Needless to say, that this is a
very emotional moment for them.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tgm5CPoQUqI/UCm0K_WEyGI/AAAAAAAABlY/XMMDh4RIIys/s1600/IMG_1537.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tgm5CPoQUqI/UCm0K_WEyGI/AAAAAAAABlY/XMMDh4RIIys/s640/IMG_1537.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">There is no final
knowledge why this place has been called “Thule”; there are several competing hypotheses. The history goes back to 1910 when Knut Rasmussen founded the
northernmost trading post at the old Inughuit site of Uummannaq and named it ‘Thule”.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yCTdPfVRqck/UCm0oLd7fkI/AAAAAAAABls/tNM3A7eezNI/s1600/IMG_2178.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="494" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yCTdPfVRqck/UCm0oLd7fkI/AAAAAAAABls/tNM3A7eezNI/s640/IMG_2178.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Our journey in
Avanersuaq has started with our arrival to Nallortoq (Cape Melville)</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nwKwZ52ExuM/UCm0sI8LRxI/AAAAAAAABl0/dpj5cgckObA/s1600/IMG_1585.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="386" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nwKwZ52ExuM/UCm0sI8LRxI/AAAAAAAABl0/dpj5cgckObA/s640/IMG_1585.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">And to the port of Savissivik – the
first settlement in the Polar Bear country. Here the Kings of the Arctic are
ever-present. Frequently they even show up downtown wandering the settlement in
search of food or just out of curiosity.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-waCZ5QSezSk/UCm0wF6rUXI/AAAAAAAABl8/nNsapfIUDpU/s1600/IMG_1186.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-waCZ5QSezSk/UCm0wF6rUXI/AAAAAAAABl8/nNsapfIUDpU/s640/IMG_1186.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Someplace not far
from here lies Ullorissat Anai – the Meteorite Country. In translation from
Kalaalissut it literally means the “Shit of the Stars”.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zm7TphMB5zU/UCm00DOjPuI/AAAAAAAABmE/RbykqrnP2kY/s1600/IMG_1462.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zm7TphMB5zU/UCm00DOjPuI/AAAAAAAABmE/RbykqrnP2kY/s640/IMG_1462.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Meteorites are the
sacred stones the Polar Eskimo had worshipped and made tools from, such as
knives and harpoons - the best ones in Greenland at the time. Compared to the
Southern tools made out of Kalliaq, the meteorite tools of the North were
absolutely superior.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ow9dALy11pc/UCm05deTidI/AAAAAAAABmM/XiKNLKTUkFc/s1600/IMG_1396.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Ow9dALy11pc/UCm05deTidI/AAAAAAAABmM/XiKNLKTUkFc/s640/IMG_1396.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">One should travel to
Qaanaaq with a history book in hand; so many significant things had happened
along this route.</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0jUaHWPwQqI/UCm0-kXXB-I/AAAAAAAABmU/aKUWbaWj8uE/s1600/IMG_1532.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0jUaHWPwQqI/UCm0-kXXB-I/AAAAAAAABmU/aKUWbaWj8uE/s640/IMG_1532.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14pt;">This is a Robert
Peary monument that his widow Josephine has erected in the end of the 1930's</span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 14pt;">. The letter “P” for Peary is visible from the sea.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BmGkhNJhN-k/UCm1LyeI-bI/AAAAAAAABmk/L9M8cTaVZFg/s1600/IMG_1635.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BmGkhNJhN-k/UCm1LyeI-bI/AAAAAAAABmk/L9M8cTaVZFg/s640/IMG_1635.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">From Innaanganeq we
followed the “feared” Sanerarsuaq – the coastal way where one would not find
shelter for almost 200 km. There is literally no place to land here; so if the
storm strikes, bad things may happen.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-x8WJkS8Pq8c/UCm1Qtc0DJI/AAAAAAAABms/kVNT3l5eP_I/s1600/IMG_1577+-+Version+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="364" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-x8WJkS8Pq8c/UCm1Qtc0DJI/AAAAAAAABms/kVNT3l5eP_I/s640/IMG_1577+-+Version+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Like everyone else, we too were fearful
of this stretch and we did not know what to expect. The weather in Sanerarsuaq
can change in a matter of minutes; there is absolutely no way to forecast
things.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HE1Ws-8jMXo/UCm1VCTtqqI/AAAAAAAABm0/3HmbxWYcK4c/s1600/IMG_1666.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HE1Ws-8jMXo/UCm1VCTtqqI/AAAAAAAABm0/3HmbxWYcK4c/s640/IMG_1666.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">In the previous days
we heard from many in Savissivik that they had tried to go up this
stretch in the last 2 weeks but had no luck. Of course, passing Sanerarsuaq is
not a big deal for a big boat, but Greenlanders do not travel in big boats.
They travel in small open boats, exactly like ours in Expedition Avannaa. </span><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">The unpredictable
moods of Sanerarsuaq partially explain why Savissivik is one of the most
isolated communities in the North. Two obstacles seperate Savissivik from the rest of the world - Sanerarsuaq to the north and Melville Bay to the south.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PLLO9vkdCoI/UCm1iOdYtpI/AAAAAAAABnE/QYdAGX87gTE/s1600/IMG_1312.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PLLO9vkdCoI/UCm1iOdYtpI/AAAAAAAABnE/QYdAGX87gTE/s640/IMG_1312.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">But now we can say
that we were really blessed. We were obviously blessed by Sila that helped us
to make this absolutely uncertain journey in a matter of a few hours. And of
course, we are thankful.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-r94D_MSKIWw/UCm1mrNSg4I/AAAAAAAABnM/687YMcuuS5E/s1600/IMG_0740.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-r94D_MSKIWw/UCm1mrNSg4I/AAAAAAAABnM/687YMcuuS5E/s640/IMG_0740.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Soon after passing
Sanerarsuaq we reached the waters of the North Star Bay. Someplace here in 1968 a B-52 bomber on a reconnaissance mission crashed here not far from the American Thule Air Base. 130 tons of fuel,
conventional weapons and 4 nuclear bombs ended up in the sea ice of North Star
Bay. One bomb went down through the ice and rumor has it that it still lies here on
the sea bed someplace underneath of our feet.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BQoVirdWYK0/UCm1qtGT5mI/AAAAAAAABnU/GgtiiZ9dMgA/s1600/IMG_1793.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BQoVirdWYK0/UCm1qtGT5mI/AAAAAAAABnU/GgtiiZ9dMgA/s640/IMG_1793.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Soon we could
spot Uummannaq – the famous mountain of the Thule Land. There are many
Uummannaqs in Greenland further South, but this one is unlike any other.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z5XhleNrst4/UCm1vNMynsI/AAAAAAAABnc/AW9SKS67nz4/s1600/IMG_1789.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z5XhleNrst4/UCm1vNMynsI/AAAAAAAABnc/AW9SKS67nz4/s640/IMG_1789.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Back in 1951
Uummannaq was probably the most quiet corner of the world. Only 300 people
lived here. And then the quietude was abruptly disrupted by the arrival of 120
American ships that have come here to build the Pituffik Thule Air Base
that could host 10,000 soldiers. At the time it was the most expensive US air
base outside of the country.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UmsPt3iB1Jc/UCm12PAzrHI/AAAAAAAABnk/wFit5b-VSSI/s1600/IMG_2179.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="524" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-UmsPt3iB1Jc/UCm12PAzrHI/AAAAAAAABnk/wFit5b-VSSI/s640/IMG_2179.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Uummannaq was the
main village of Inughuit; people were coming here both from the north and from
the south to get together. It was the epicenter of Inughuit life. So when the
American government displaced these people in order to clear the grounds for
its new base it caused a big loss for the Inughuit community and an absolute
tragedy for the residents who have never been compensated for their loss. </span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7fByliCJ1hM/UCm17kjhGDI/AAAAAAAABns/aHXFKT7gzDI/s1600/IMG_2135.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7fByliCJ1hM/UCm17kjhGDI/AAAAAAAABns/aHXFKT7gzDI/s640/IMG_2135.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">In 1953 Inughuit were moved to New Thule, to Qaanaaq. They were given only 3 days to pack.
Qaanaaq was not a good place for hunting but that could not have bothered the American government who was after the flat land that ideally fit the construction criteria of a major runway for strategic bombers and other heavy planes.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-keysQ5a-EBA/UCm2CHtu-9I/AAAAAAAABn0/XAHlLHGXUEk/s1600/IMG_2181.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="204" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-keysQ5a-EBA/UCm2CHtu-9I/AAAAAAAABn0/XAHlLHGXUEk/s640/IMG_2181.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Eventually, the
Americans built the new houses in Qaanaaq for the misplaced Inughuit, but as
most of us know material goods do not necessarily mean happiness. Happiness as
Inughuit knew before has been lost forever.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h1u-uaPSR1k/UCm2HyjW-PI/AAAAAAAABn8/9UoaJMf76N0/s1600/IMG_1905.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-h1u-uaPSR1k/UCm2HyjW-PI/AAAAAAAABn8/9UoaJMf76N0/s640/IMG_1905.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">But no matter how sad
their history was, Qaanaaq is now a reality and it is a home to many
fantastic people who welcomed us here upon our arrival.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PRSbdfugOfo/UCm2Lx6sQ5I/AAAAAAAABoE/el62cHP_MG8/s1600/IMG_1952.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-PRSbdfugOfo/UCm2Lx6sQ5I/AAAAAAAABoE/el62cHP_MG8/s640/IMG_1952.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Children and hunters
have spotted us from afar when we were approaching the shore.</span></div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0gjBBnenU7I/UCm2Qy4HyMI/AAAAAAAABoM/kUxr-Voohvg/s1600/IMG_1967.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0gjBBnenU7I/UCm2Qy4HyMI/AAAAAAAABoM/kUxr-Voohvg/s640/IMG_1967.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">The waters are
shallow here and there was no way for us to land. Amidst our confusion, people
on the shore have disappeared and then five minutes later re-appeared carrying
a light boat in their hands.</span></div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-asOXDMcFwB8/UCm2UioRcZI/AAAAAAAABoU/H1RN6p5gJh0/s1600/IMG_1987.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-asOXDMcFwB8/UCm2UioRcZI/AAAAAAAABoU/H1RN6p5gJh0/s640/IMG_1987.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Here you can see our
captain, Ole Jorgen Hammeken, tirelessly moving our crew from the Avannaa boat
ashore.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-p-vHYf8pHNg/UCm2gF-SuPI/AAAAAAAABok/TmD3JkT5GGw/s1600/IMG_2054.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-p-vHYf8pHNg/UCm2gF-SuPI/AAAAAAAABok/TmD3JkT5GGw/s640/IMG_2054.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">Dan Normann, a young
school master, generously let us stay on his ground for the night and in the
morning Ole Mathiasen – a leader of the community administration in the town of
Qaannaaq helped us to find a more permanent shelter.</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bov2q51hu9g/UCm2sPIxc7I/AAAAAAAABo0/4c5eS0RVeZU/s1600/IMG_2192.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bov2q51hu9g/UCm2sPIxc7I/AAAAAAAABo0/4c5eS0RVeZU/s640/IMG_2192.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">We are grateful to
the people of Qaanaaq, a center of the Avanarsuaq, who welcomed us into their
life. We did not tell them about our arrival; they new nothing about our
journey and yet they made everything possible that we would feel at home here. “Welcome
to Qaannaaq!” they said offering us food and blessings.</span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Er7CVqPuqng/UCm23hdJOfI/AAAAAAAABo8/e5I9JRPWFS0/s1600/IMG_2156.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Er7CVqPuqng/UCm23hdJOfI/AAAAAAAABo8/e5I9JRPWFS0/s640/IMG_2156.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">I would like to
finish our report with insights of our captain, Ole Jorgen Hammeken who
summarized the latest advance of Expedition Avannna:</span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ldDq4LFusCY/UCm28YeG97I/AAAAAAAABpE/hfhEhq2IapU/s1600/IMG_1819.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ldDq4LFusCY/UCm28YeG97I/AAAAAAAABpE/hfhEhq2IapU/s640/IMG_1819.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 14pt;">“What should have
been a 2-3 day expedition transformed into a 6 day cultural journey through
the settlements of Upernavik District. And this is a good example of why we
call Avannaa a “purely” Greenlandic Expedition. It is not about speed, but about
bringing people together. We were lucky to visit the people in Aappipattoq,
Tassiusaq, Nuussuaq, Kullorsuaq and the town of Upernavik itself. And the
weather related delay did not become a disadvantage to our further advance into
Nares Straight since the sea ice in Cane Basin has just broke up. So, now we
are in an even better position to continue with our journey and we hope to reach
Hans Island in the days to come."</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02534447694005553727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4004404834055598273.post-66423833633636868212012-08-12T21:20:00.003-07:002012-08-13T13:41:28.477-07:00At Home in Kullorsuaq<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
As we are traveling up North along the west coast of Greenland, we are chasing the tail of the polar day. Two weeks ago, back in Uummannaq, we witnessed the first night since April (even though it lasted for only a few minutes). But here, in Kullorsuaq, in the Devil’s Thumb, the polar day still reigns.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3WTPN-d1zW0/UCh-tup-32I/AAAAAAAABjw/vUpT0b4x7h8/s1600/IMG_0593.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3WTPN-d1zW0/UCh-tup-32I/AAAAAAAABjw/vUpT0b4x7h8/s1600/IMG_0593.jpg" /></a></div>
Kullorsuaq has two close neighbors: Nuussuaq to the south, only 53 km from here, and Savissivik to the north, at the other end of Melville Bay. The 274 km long road there may be tricky. Savissivik will be our next destination, but for now we are enjoying the sunshine and the quiet time in Kullorsuaq along with its residents.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vpuOAW3jESs/UCh-59BftwI/AAAAAAAABj4/cMzxpSGyPVY/s1600/IMG_0457.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vpuOAW3jESs/UCh-59BftwI/AAAAAAAABj4/cMzxpSGyPVY/s640/IMG_0457.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Lars Jensen, a son of the famous Nikolai Jensen, is a kayaker, hunter, artist and singer. He offered us many gifts during our stay in Kullorsuaq and eventually invited us over for a narwhale feast.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DnHAYaroEGw/UCh-8w_UVlI/AAAAAAAABkA/0iweqxJbNEI/s1600/IMG_0462.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DnHAYaroEGw/UCh-8w_UVlI/AAAAAAAABkA/0iweqxJbNEI/s640/IMG_0462.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
The one and a half year old grandson of Lars is staying at home with Jaakuaraq and the women. Jaakuaraq was unfortunately injured during the recent storm awaiting for the hunters to return with a narwhale.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5LjWo_gnt24/UCh_BZfftxI/AAAAAAAABkI/9swz6fkpO5E/s1600/IMG_0453.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5LjWo_gnt24/UCh_BZfftxI/AAAAAAAABkI/9swz6fkpO5E/s640/IMG_0453.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Children are the kings of Greenland. They rise above others and they are completely aware of their royal status.<br />
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Family stories and legends are being shared; in the humble light of this home they come to life again.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DaiPiv9kv34/UCh_PJlCncI/AAAAAAAABkg/EUEPZS6WpF0/s1600/IMG_0616.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DaiPiv9kv34/UCh_PJlCncI/AAAAAAAABkg/EUEPZS6WpF0/s640/IMG_0616.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
In the morning Lars says good-bye to us as we leave Kullorsuaq and head further north again. Our next stop is Savissivik - the most isolated settlement of the North.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02534447694005553727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4004404834055598273.post-40217499491159520212012-08-11T15:52:00.000-07:002012-08-12T08:17:30.169-07:00Devil's Thumb<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I hear from far away what some people are saying of us:
“Losers. In five days they have not even managed to reach the Devil’s Thumb - a simple trip that with proper planning should not have taken more than two days. But instead of planning properly, they bragged about their “special way” of doing things. And fortunately our “way” could not have led us further from our goal”<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dCcNOH3A9os/UCbXq6ZNFRI/AAAAAAAABiY/qUW4-Kys0QA/s1600/IMG_0090.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dCcNOH3A9os/UCbXq6ZNFRI/AAAAAAAABiY/qUW4-Kys0QA/s1600/IMG_0090.jpg" /></a></div>
So let me explain. Of course, someone far away may call us a total failure, but one should keep in mind that people in the North look at failure very differently than people in Manhattan, Copenhagen or in Paris. Failure here in the High Arctic may be as or even more important than a victory.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ndqRgOG09d4/UCZvNHn0EcI/AAAAAAAABfM/fxqov3rBGzM/s1600/IMG_9975.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ndqRgOG09d4/UCZvNHn0EcI/AAAAAAAABfM/fxqov3rBGzM/s640/IMG_9975.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
And indeed, it took us four days to get to Kullorsuaq. We made many stops on our way most of which have been unplanned. We were making a zigzag journey instead of following a straight line. We chose the longest route instead of calculating and implementing the shortest. But did we waste our time? By no means we did. All the important things we learned on our way we would have never learned had we gone on the straight line.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tXpZuR6Xk44/UCZveQmeSPI/AAAAAAAABfU/flmaE8z8RMQ/s1600/IMG_9650.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-tXpZuR6Xk44/UCZveQmeSPI/AAAAAAAABfU/flmaE8z8RMQ/s640/IMG_9650.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Had we not been zigzagging we would have never met a stranger on an empty shore in Nuussuaq at 1 am in the morning when we were cold, wet and hungry. We would have never got to spend the night at his house and would have never seen a miracle being born out of nothing.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sZl38tjVFQs/UCZvv1dEN9I/AAAAAAAABfc/p0rBZlxQ4Xw/s1600/IMG_9712.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sZl38tjVFQs/UCZvv1dEN9I/AAAAAAAABfc/p0rBZlxQ4Xw/s640/IMG_9712.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
No matter what anybody says in someplace far away, I believe that our expedition Avannaa is like Nikolai Kristensen’s bead dresses. When you look at his room, you see all these little beads spread chaotically around the house. They actually look like dust – small, meaningless, and even boring. They are not even beautiful. But then something happens, then they get together, one by one, and miraculously turn into a masterpiece that one can neither understand nor analyze.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P3o9lNRcbwc/UCZvzS5TeMI/AAAAAAAABfk/cKhy-ptfZ5c/s1600/IMG_9753.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-P3o9lNRcbwc/UCZvzS5TeMI/AAAAAAAABfk/cKhy-ptfZ5c/s640/IMG_9753.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
And neither he nor we plan. Nikolai Kristensen does not make plans, designs, or outlines. He makes his dresses out of cheap little beads and out of pure love of his heart. The same with Expedition Avannaa. All these small moments of life that we witness along the way are probably not really exciting, or unusual. They are rather boring, routine and sometimes non-appealing. But then of course, something happens, and all of a sudden all these individual moments – boring as dust – quickly get woven into a cosmic fabric of our strange Expedition. Then we witness something really beautiful and really unusual.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-A7_rMUnKfSQ/UCZv13L05qI/AAAAAAAABfs/wkK37nudzac/s1600/IMG_9149.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-A7_rMUnKfSQ/UCZv13L05qI/AAAAAAAABfs/wkK37nudzac/s640/IMG_9149.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
We are not afraid to make stops. We are not afraid to be late. Because our expedition is not only about speed. It is about making connections that otherwise would have never been made. It is about overcoming isolation that in the times of climate change separates lands and people.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6gAPi6b4Ja8/UCbYGptS3NI/AAAAAAAABig/RZuszy-7P34/s1600/IMG_1364.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6gAPi6b4Ja8/UCbYGptS3NI/AAAAAAAABig/RZuszy-7P34/s640/IMG_1364.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
In addition to that I need to say that time was on our side. Of course, we could have been sitting already in Etah and waiting for the ice to dissipate; instead we moved from settlement to settlement and encountered life in the remotest places of Greenland.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I1QXcndKvk8/UCbaHRjXqfI/AAAAAAAABio/4pluQ4g9dOE/s1600/IMG_9229+-+Version+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I1QXcndKvk8/UCbaHRjXqfI/AAAAAAAABio/4pluQ4g9dOE/s640/IMG_9229+-+Version+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
And even though Kullorsuaq, the Devil’s Thumb, is only 2 hours away from us, when I ask Alberth about when we are going to be there he answers, “Nalluara. I don’t know.” Because one should not assume.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-y6nuSuCVvYI/UCZxUOoHDNI/AAAAAAAABf0/FMEgoB3RYCU/s1600/IMG_9900.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="425" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-y6nuSuCVvYI/UCZxUOoHDNI/AAAAAAAABf0/FMEgoB3RYCU/s640/IMG_9900.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
And again the fog settles on and off the sea, and we see more floating ice than before. To pass these icy fields, which can be lengthy, we have to slow down.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_8TdZy_LgQo/UCZxhwoa15I/AAAAAAAABf8/qx0X_7cK0PM/s1600/IMG_0156.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_8TdZy_LgQo/UCZxhwoa15I/AAAAAAAABf8/qx0X_7cK0PM/s640/IMG_0156.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
But then as we leave them we speed up and rush forward at an amazing speed to our new Horizon.<br />
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"There is another side to exploration in terms of discovering Nature’s real timetable,” says our captain, Ole Jorgen Hammeken. As we go onwards, we discover that we actually are not behind schedule as some may have thought. As we are getting closer to our ultimate goal our time of horizon gets clearer too. And suddenly we understand that we are not late, we are not behind, and we are right on schedule.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4FJymv89qao/UCZx9sE-D6I/AAAAAAAABgU/h7SiawbUup4/s1600/IMG_0221.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4FJymv89qao/UCZx9sE-D6I/AAAAAAAABgU/h7SiawbUup4/s640/IMG_0221.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
And again, the weather here changes every single moment.<br />
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From the bright sun back to the thick fog.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x-oxxfinq2U/UCZyNo_7z9I/AAAAAAAABgk/aPb7D1MpCl4/s1600/IMG_0276.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-x-oxxfinq2U/UCZyNo_7z9I/AAAAAAAABgk/aPb7D1MpCl4/s640/IMG_0276.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
And then somehow at a certain moment in time we know that our destination is close.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-t2t97XiSeM8/UCbd0YGuYFI/AAAAAAAABjI/2Kb3ixopdK4/s1600/IMG_0129.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-t2t97XiSeM8/UCbd0YGuYFI/AAAAAAAABjI/2Kb3ixopdK4/s640/IMG_0129.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
Here is what we have been waiting for, for such a long time! The first sighting of Kullorusaq, the Devil’s Thumb.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nVG7Ne3h4vI/UCZyst4Q6iI/AAAAAAAABg4/X-khKaGUv_s/s1600/IMG_0215.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nVG7Ne3h4vI/UCZyst4Q6iI/AAAAAAAABg4/X-khKaGUv_s/s640/IMG_0215.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
And the iceberg floating nearby reflects it almost identically.<br />
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Now we are ready to race at full speed.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3lOPchQE93o/UCZy9fIxWmI/AAAAAAAABhI/cN9Akvmq8b8/s1600/IMG_0284.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3lOPchQE93o/UCZy9fIxWmI/AAAAAAAABhI/cN9Akvmq8b8/s640/IMG_0284.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
to see the outlines of a settlement that has seen so much - Kullorsuaq.<br />
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And of course, kids are already waiting for us on the shore, they spotted us from afar.<br />
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It’s a town of hidden magic, of real purity<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4gvFIwkT930/UCZzY7DYswI/AAAAAAAABhg/--9JjbSLfgs/s1600/IMG_0307.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4gvFIwkT930/UCZzY7DYswI/AAAAAAAABhg/--9JjbSLfgs/s640/IMG_0307.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
and of people.<br />
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And their houses that seem to be made of the same unearthly matter<br />
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They are welcoming us to Kullorsuaq – the point of our destination on the road up North.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02534447694005553727noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4004404834055598273.post-71159127615615969082012-08-09T18:54:00.000-07:002013-05-04T04:48:42.548-07:00The "Greenlandic Way"<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
We make plans, but Sila decides. By 2 pm our boat was finally fixed and the big fog has dissipated. We left Upernavik hopeful to reach Kullorsuaq – the Devil’s Thumb - by the end of the day. Instead we ended up in a thick fog yet again and in two settlements that initially were not on our road map. Our plan has been changed again, but we do not regret about this weather related detour.
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<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7776220080/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell (ColdArtist), on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="533" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8445/7776220080_2c007c970e_c.jpg" width="800" /></a>
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<br />
The fog has arrived, but not before Sila gave us all the pleasures of the summer time on sea. Our boat glided on the smooth surface of the bay, by skyscraper-sized icebergs of different shapes, colors and textures.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7776217762/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell (ColdArtist), on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="533" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8281/7776217762_9340223e76_c.jpg" width="800" /></a>
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<br />
Alberth was maneuvering between them better than a cabdriver in Manhattan.
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7776218794/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell (ColdArtist), on Flickr"><img src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7279/7776218794_7bd9a1b9d1_c.jpg" width="800" height="533" alt="Aappilattoq"></a>
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These humangous structures – just like New York skyscrapers – block the sun, so it’s cold in the shade.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748946032/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7748946032_f73581289f_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
They seem to be lifeless, but in reality they are homes to billions of tiny and not so tiny creatures, from iron bacteria to snow algae.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7776218262/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell (ColdArtist), on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="489" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8422/7776218262_0771bf568c_c.jpg" width="800" /></a>
The sun was bright but the fog was already on its way<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/8024124715/" title="IMG_8656 by Galya Morrell (ColdArtist), on Flickr"><img alt="IMG_8656" height="534" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8173/8024124715_635ed8f39b_c.jpg" width="800" /></a>
It was approaching fast and the sea was getting stormier<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7776218116/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell (ColdArtist), on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="513" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8439/7776218116_3b2900dcff_c.jpg" width="800" /></a>
Soon everything again disappeared in the white mist<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748946706/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8438/7748946706_8f08ed5420_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
We have a modern gps on our boat but whom to believe in the moments of confusion?<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748942906/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8442/7748942906_879fc472b0_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
Alberth is sure that his inner instincts overrule the ones of the GPS<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748942752/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7257/7748942752_fdd03c373e_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
And we follow his instincts<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748943154/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8286/7748943154_916053f541_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
And of course, he happens to be right – as always<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748944546/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8438/7748944546_f3f0edfec1_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
The road brings us to Tasiusaq – a little settlement of ….in Upernavik district<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748943300/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8296/7748943300_1a59be0c1d_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
And it is sunny here again<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748943438/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8446/7748943438_2f499112bb_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
But as soon as we leave … we get back into the fog<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748946846/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="410" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7127/7748946846_9fcb7ef305_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
It is midnight and Kullorsuaq is still out of reach<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748943042/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7131/7748943042_79ae9ee0cf_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
We decide to land at Nuussuaq.
Hungry and wet, we sit down on the sled – the first steady surface after 10 hours on the rocky waves<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748942666/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7109/7748942666_97b89fe28a_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
Where to go and what do to? There is not a single person on the shore.
And then out of nowhere appears a man. We don’t know him, but upon seeing our misery he invited us to his house. Now we have shelter, food and a hot tea which we desperately need.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748942322/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7266/7748942322_b6e0c06890_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
This man happens to be Nikolai Kristensen. He is a local artist who lives with his young grandson in a house that has so many treasures that one could spend days observing them and still not see them all.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748942530/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7106/7748942530_f3a5afacc1_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
Thousands of little bids come together as lamp shades, purses, shoes, earings, carpets, kitchen utensils and dresses.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748951068/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8435/7748951068_c136d7b252_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
He says he never knows what a new dress will look like. He does not make plans. He does not draw the outline. He just puts things together – the Greenlandic way – and sees what happens in the end.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748949934/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8433/7748949934_0636534712_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
His house is full of beads. They are everywhere – on the table, on the window shelves and on the floor. In the dim light they look like dust. But then out of this very “dust”, of simple “northingness” all these marvels are being born – how? He tells us that they are born from love.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748949832/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8425/7748949832_74e046756d_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
In the morning we see hi’s collection in full light.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748950110/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8294/7748950110_9484b82760_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
What does he do with his masterpieces? Does he sell them? Does he show them to anyone? It turns out that he makes them for his grandchildren and all these … are actually a wearable pieces of art.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748950480/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8282/7748950480_124bd04244_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
All the colors of the Greenland summer are in it.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748949330/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7137/7748949330_179877e347_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
The local garbage woman stops by to take a look.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748948748/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8287/7748948748_f7c0ddf408_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
She too will look fantastic in one of these dresses. Maybe he will do one for her?<br />
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748948922/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8426/7748948922_2770d7133f_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
After breakfast we say goodbye to Nuussuaq and our new friends here to continue our trip to the North.<br />
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<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748949060/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7246/7748949060_3ddfca0d46_z.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />
There are many unknowns ahead, but the uncertainty does not scare us. We know that we will make it – one way of the other. We will make it the Greenlandic Way. </div>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/galyamorrell/7748948312/" title="Aappilattoq by Galya Morrell. ColdArtist, on Flickr"><img alt="Aappilattoq" height="427" src="http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7107/7748948312_774808f4d8_z.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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</div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02534447694005553727noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4004404834055598273.post-74500670533406407342012-08-04T19:00:00.000-07:002012-08-05T06:10:42.336-07:00Into the Fog<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Early in the morning we left the hospitable Aappilatoq and our old and
new friends in this settlement. We know that we will see them soon
again, upon our return.<br />
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The weather changed abruptly only minutes after our departure from the
sunny Aappilattoq. Thick fog fell on the water. What was bright and
visible only moments ago disappeared in the grey mist.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I4o0wyc_7FI/UB3OF524l9I/AAAAAAAABbw/rxd-35lmxYU/s1600/7705414140_f663e31f3e_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I4o0wyc_7FI/UB3OF524l9I/AAAAAAAABbw/rxd-35lmxYU/s640/7705414140_f663e31f3e_o.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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We could not see Upernavik’s shoreline as we were entering the harbor.
It appeared at once, momentarily, with the lights of the oil
exploration platform which then lit up the silhouettes of the port.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-K0Zb96qnqJA/UB3OGSo2h2I/AAAAAAAABb4/C0q2ZZkfwhc/s1600/7705664594_149a64c87c_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-K0Zb96qnqJA/UB3OGSo2h2I/AAAAAAAABb4/C0q2ZZkfwhc/s640/7705664594_149a64c87c_o.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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We did not know how long we would stay in Upernavik. Apparently, the
mechanic who could have fixed our boat was gone till morning. So, we
just had to wait.
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-h1AnWmHprmc/UB3OK8ZnJKI/AAAAAAAABdI/LbrHvu8V4jo/s1600/7705724240_5bb3bdf1f9_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-h1AnWmHprmc/UB3OK8ZnJKI/AAAAAAAABdI/LbrHvu8V4jo/s640/7705724240_5bb3bdf1f9_o.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br />
And of course, the harbor is a meeting place – you get to see here
everyone whom you have not seen for years. It is also a great place to
observe life of a town in a time of change.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xLAFJl-PiEQ/UB3OJPIzkVI/AAAAAAAABcY/KUWqn3OPJJk/s1600/7705709056_535deba9bb_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xLAFJl-PiEQ/UB3OJPIzkVI/AAAAAAAABcY/KUWqn3OPJJk/s640/7705709056_535deba9bb_o.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Here, steps away from the oil exploration ships, the local children
have established their own playgrounds.<br />
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hb3s4lyoTn4/UB3OIWPjdfI/AAAAAAAABcI/nejGx1IokoM/s1600/7705701366_e0f200e1ef_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="448" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hb3s4lyoTn4/UB3OIWPjdfI/AAAAAAAABcI/nejGx1IokoM/s640/7705701366_e0f200e1ef_o.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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With a population of just over 1000 people, the changes in Upernavik are very apparent and they dominate the landscape; enshrouding it with a smoke screen of opposing beliefs.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9ltGky1sp18/UB3OFqmmOuI/AAAAAAAABbo/B1u2ms1Jdw8/s1600/7705404284_292a188870_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9ltGky1sp18/UB3OFqmmOuI/AAAAAAAABbo/B1u2ms1Jdw8/s640/7705404284_292a188870_o.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Perhaps we have to see beyond the fog and know that the next generation will bring true beauty, separating themselves from the pack of what a town of our time is supposed to look like.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GfC41TXwgMo/UB3OGit1rYI/AAAAAAAABcA/Rc84U-tBzmM/s1600/7705666554_f55697a7a0_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GfC41TXwgMo/UB3OGit1rYI/AAAAAAAABcA/Rc84U-tBzmM/s640/7705666554_f55697a7a0_o.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
And this man is just another proof that life in Upernavik is far from
being cliché; there is always space for a difference.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hUWrNtZbgNQ/UB3OKKaytFI/AAAAAAAABcw/ZAbq9hipuGs/s1600/7705718248_d8d0ebd273_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-hUWrNtZbgNQ/UB3OKKaytFI/AAAAAAAABcw/ZAbq9hipuGs/s640/7705718248_d8d0ebd273_o.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
And always space for happiness.<br />
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<br />
At 2 pm our mechanic appeared and went down to inspect our boat. Soon
Ole Jorgen came back with the good news.<br />
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<br />
And soon we were on the boat again.<br />
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Our expedtion Avannaa continues – please , follow the us on the road!<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" height="350" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=213408651675244798434.0004c6842f0995c4644b9&ll=71.737656,-54.20106&spn=2.110683,4.207763&t=v&output=embed" width="425"></iframe><br />
<small>View <a href="https://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=213408651675244798434.0004c6842f0995c4644b9&ll=71.737656,-54.20106&spn=2.110683,4.207763&t=v&source=embed" style="color: blue; text-align: left;">Avannaa</a> in a larger map</small></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02534447694005553727noreply@blogger.com0Stauningip Aqq, Upernavik, Greenland72.790077 -56.1533772.780682 -56.192852 72.799472 -56.113888tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4004404834055598273.post-14959396150925031792012-08-03T16:44:00.001-07:002012-08-03T19:27:45.883-07:00Aappilattoq, The Red Spot<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
At 5 am, after a stormy night on the sea, we climbed up the slippery
rocks of Aappilattoq Island, leaving our battered and for now immobile
boat behind. What now?<br />
<br />
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There was no one in sight. Soaked, cold and miserable, we were
desperate for a shelter. And a shelter there was: just few a steps and
a call away from Else’s (Aalibarti’s wife) mobile phone. Their old
friends picked up the call at this early hour, welcomed us in, even
though they were not home themselves. “Welcome to Aappilattoq”, they
said. “Feel at home”.<br />
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<br />
<br />
It was one of those fairy tale homes we happen to meet on the road in
Northern Greenland. Nets, sleds, skins, drying fish and seal meat,
polar bear and musk ox heads, puppies running lose at the entrance,
and that’s only a minor part of the fantastic exterior décor, and
then, of course, peace and warmth inside.<br />
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There is no running water in such houses, but there is a communal
bucket that makes morning a comfortable moment. In search of the
water we ventured out and soon met the great residents of Aappilattoq
which by the way means “the red“ who welcomed us into the local
service center where we finally could take a nice shower that we needed so badly and cook the food in the real kitchen.
<br />
<br />
But there was no real need for cooking: managers of Pillersuisoq, the
local store in the national chain, invited us over for exquisite
treats – dried narwhale meat, seal, fish and other delicacies. Mammaq!
<br />
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<br />
But that was only the beginning of the gifts whose stream got heavier only as the day progressed. At the local school we got a sleeping ground and
access to internet. The school itself was a piece of art. If my kids
were still youngsters, I would go to the extremes to enroll them in
such a school. It is actually a palace, not a school. Unfortunately,
only one new child will be enrolling at this school next fall, said the
principal Hansine Thomassen; the population of Aappilattoq is still
decreasing.<br />
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<br />
And then we met Piitajaraq (Peter) Aronsen – a great hunter, kayaker,
artist, hand crafter, philosopher and a special man. Peter an outsider
of a liberal kind. He still lives far away from everyone on a small
island, in absolute solitude, and has come to Appilattoq to visit his
nephew. Peter has powers of a special kind. I won’t go into the depth of the matter for the obvious lack of time, but I can say that he does a lot
of things that “normal” people can not. At the same time he is a very
sweet man who likes to grow little plants on this window and even
talks to them; the same way he talks to his dogs who understand him
from a whisper.<br />
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From Piitajaraq we received another gift – a freshly killed seal and
fish which we are planning to use on the road when the right time
comes.<br />
<br />
Little Jaaku (Marcussen) got a special gift from Piitajaraq, a pair of
polar bear gloves on lamb skin – a tribute to Jaakuaraq’s recent
victory in the national dog-sledding competition. But of course, not
only Little Jaaku, but no one has been forgotten: generous Piitajaraq
honored us with exquisite little decorations made out of we all were
beautiful flowers made out of Greenlandic bids by Peter himself No
need to say that all these fabulous things Piita has made himself.<br />
<br />
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In the evening we returned to the same house where we have started our
day. Our absent hosts were now back home. Aqqaluk Grim is a politician
and a mind-setter. He treated us with a great dinner and talked about
his community which is now at the crossroads. “Hard working people
live in Aappilatoq; they are fishermen”, he said. “They are earning
their own money – by catching Greenlandic halibut – and this way they
are independent from good gifts from the South”.<br />
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Aqqaluk is also a member of the local community board. He said that
they work on a 5 year plan which will help define the goals and
perspectives for the settlement’s development. He is quite positive
about the future, yet open about the difficulties:<br />
<br />
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“Fishing is a
sustainable industry”, says Aqqaluk. “Of course, we would rather be
hunting (we are hunting society), but with restrictions from the
South, forced by the animal rights organizations, hunting stopped to
be profitable. So, we have to adapt.”<br />
<br />
“The living conditions are harsh here. Many scientists have visited
our settlement to find out first hand how it is possible to survive in
this environment. But the reality is that unless you live here, you
will never know. "<br />
<br />
"And yes, it’s hard. But we do not we don’t complain about life. This
is the way we live and when the hard time comes it’s all about
helping each other. This is basic law of culture”.<br />
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Tomorrow we will be off to Upernavik to hopefully fix the boat and
then move further North, to Kullorsuaq – the Devil’s Thumb.<br />
<br />
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<br /></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02534447694005553727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4004404834055598273.post-11603175485772646612012-08-01T17:22:00.001-07:002012-08-02T11:08:18.962-07:00Expedition Immaqa.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
The weather in Uummannaq was beautiful when we left the area. +15C, a
real summer. Eric Brossier with his Vagabund had arrived to the
harbor only a couple hours before our departure. He came by Ole Jorgen’s
house along with his wife and two small daughters. After a long travel
on the sea, the girls were happy to see the land, poppies and the
flowers. We said a cordial good-bye to each other, and set off to
Kullorsuaq - an island in the Qaasuitsup municipality. In Greenlandic
its name means "a Devil’s thumb".<br />
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<br />
<br />
The boat was sliding on the surface like a sled; there was almost no
wind and in the first moments we felt too warm in our waterproof
multilayered suits.<br />
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<br />
<br />
This summer Uummannaq Fjord has again turned into a major dock for
icebergs of different shapes, sizes and colors.<br />
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<br />
<br />
Only three months ago we saw some of these majestic fortresses
stranded along the ice high-way as we dog-sledded between the
settlements. But the spring brought them freedom, and now these
humongous structures are moving around freely, some quite fast, at 3
knots per hour.<br />
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<br />
<br />
As they move they lose their integrity. In the last 4 days, day and
night, big blasts kept shattering the air and window glasses at
Uummannaq Polar Institute. Those of you who’ve seen “SOS Eisberg “ – a
1933 German-U.S. coproduction starring Leni Riefenstahl in Uummannaq
in her pre-filmmaking days remembers phantasmagoric collapses of
skyscraper-size icebergs in Uummannaq fjord. Back then, most of those
blasts were induced by dynamite making “SOS Eisberg” one of the most
expensive films of its time. Today icebergs in Uummannaq break up
inexpensively: it just happens, naturally.<br />
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<br />
<br />
Two days ago we had a medium size tsunami when one of the nearby
icebergs collapsed. It happened right before midnight when most people
were asleep. Several boats were damaged. We were lucky to have ours on
shore.<br />
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<br />
<br />
If we go on schedule, we will be able to make a short stop at Ubekendt
Island - Unknown Island. Here, in a village of Illorsuit, some 75
years ago lived Rockwell Kent. He came here to live, paint and get
away from it all. In 1960 being upset at the American Government,
Kent donated more than 80 paintings and
800 drawings to the Pushkin and Hermitage museums in
Moscow and St. Petersburg. After the collapse of the Soviet Union the
collection was divided between 3 independent countries, 4 museums and
several affiliates. What is the fate of these works? And will
Greenlanders or anyone else ever have a chance to see them again?<br />
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<br />
<br />
For now we are going in 2 boats: in addition to Ole Jorgen, Aalibari,
Bertrand and myself, there is Little Jaaku (our world known Jaakuaraq,
a hunter, dogsled driver champion and an actor), Inunnguaq – a 15 year
old boy from Uummannaq Children’s Home who brilliamtly played Minik
in INUK, and Aalibatri’s beautiful and smart wife Else. They will stay
in Qaanaaq, while Avannaa will boat further North.<br />
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<br />
<br />
There is no need to talk.<br />
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<br />
<br />
Yesterday night we had a long talk with Ole Jorgen about peculiarities
of Avannaa’s journey and the travel in the Arctic in general. “When
we are saying that this will be purely a Greenlandic expedition, we
mean it” – said Ole Jorgen. “In Greenland we all know that Nature
rules. It means that we need to be humble, that we need to be
respectful. It means that we should not assume and by no means should
we forget that Sila is the one who decides.”<br />
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Apparently, there are places in Greenland which have a name, but
nevertheless their names should not be said. There are rocks that are
alive. You can watch them, and you can even touch them, but God forbid you call their name. “This attitude shows a tremendous respect for the
Nature in this land”, says Ole Jorgen. “It is always “immaqa” – it is
always “may be”.”<br />
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Even on the most beautiful day, Sila’s mind can change all of a
sudden. She is really spontaneous and there is absolutely no way to
foresee her mood.<br />
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Closer to Illorsuit the wind starts to pick up.<br />
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What a sudden change in weather!<br />
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That’s not what the forecast was promising us!!!<br />
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Now we are talking about real Greenland –<br />
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Sumiippa? Where are we?<br />
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Battered by the storm, our little boat desperately needs a repair.<br />
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…at 6 am in the morning we are approaching Aappilattoq - an island in
the southern part of Upernavik Archipelago at 72°53′N 55°36′W. Its
settlement has only 180 inhabitants, but we know many of them as the
nicest people on Earth . We know that even at 6 am in the morning,
with no warning at all, with no paper work we can count on. Soaked,
cold and hungry, we are climbing up the slippery rocks. We know that
a warm shelter and nice food is awaiting us just around the
corner. Expedition continues.<br />
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<br /></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02534447694005553727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4004404834055598273.post-6416063048443172742012-07-28T19:14:00.001-07:002012-08-01T14:30:27.747-07:00Paperless Expedition<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Summer has been treating us well so far and we are grateful! At first, there was the incredible success of the <a href="http://www.inuk-film.com/" target="_blank">INUK</a> premiere on both sides of the Atlantic. Then, there was the launch of the Alfred de Quervain exhibition in Nuuk, Zurich and Uummannaq. And finally – <a href="http://uummannaqmusic.com/2012/07/greenland-week-in-kyrgyzstan/">Greenland Week in Kyrgyzstan</a> that turned into a month and a half long celebration of two nomadic cultures through which a 6,657km long virtual bridge between Central Asia and Uummannaq has been established.<br />
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So far, so good. But the summer is far from being over and much still has to be accomplished. Now, as all the INUK participants have returned from foreign lands to the home base in Uummannaq, we are ready to begin a new expedition to the Far North, which is called Avannaa.
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Avannaa means “North” in Kalaalissut. You may ask – but isn’t Uummannaq itself the North? No doubt, it is. But beyond our North there is also The Ultimate North. And this is where we are intending to be going.
As usual, we do not have a script, because what kind of scenario one can have in Petermann Fjord? Or certainly, one can have a script, but then there would always be someone with a better one. At this stage only one director, the invisible one, has a say, and we all know the name. Therefore, we will stay true to the old Greenlandic principle – wander, accept and adapt. And we will be doing just that, being open to what is awaiting for us.
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So does it mean that our Expedition North is ill–prepared? Some may believe so. They believe that one can’t go Far North without wasting 135 kg of paper on spreadsheets. And since we did not do that, they called us “ignorant”. And that’s OK. Because we are ignorant. It would be stupid to deny it. But we are not afraid to publicly accept it because we believe that ignorance it is not a sin. Neither going Far North paperless is a sin. And I will add to that just this: not only are we carrying no spreadsheets with us, but even the toilet paper we are leaving behind.
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In preparation of Avannaa, we used all the Greenlandic wisdom which is plentiful. We will re-think, repair and reuse. We will not waste, neither pollute. We will try to be alert and humble. And we won’t forget to thank Sassuma Arnaa, the Mother of the Sea, for everything we get on the way. We won’t forget to ask her for forgiveness. Not for the sins, but for our ignorance.
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We have a great "Ittu" (an anchorman) – Ole Jorgen Hammeken who is a dreamer and a visionary, and a great "co-Ittu", Aalibarti, Alberth Lukassen, – “Piniartorsuaq” (a Great Hunter), who is a doer and who happens to have a third eye which helps him see things under water and ice – things that are invisible to the others. So, between them two we are in a perfect balance which will help us to overcome the shakiness of the road leading us to the unknown.
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We will travel in a small boat, an open one, with an outboard engine. Ole Jorgen has travelled on such a boat both during the Polar Passage Expedition 2000. It is small, fast, and smart - modern Greenlandic style. It is able to sneak through the narrow shore leads, and when necessary it can slide on ice like a sled. In other words, it can go forward where the other, bigger and fancier boats may get stuck.
On our way to Avannaaa we will be staying with old friends of Alberth and Ole Jorgen and we know that they will give us a helping hand when we need it. And they won’t ask us how many kilos of spreadsheets we are carrying; they will just welcome us and help.
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People should help each other – that is the core principle of the Arctic. And we were lucky enough to find people who still abide to this principle. And by the way, some of them don’t even live or work in the Arctic. They just happen to share a similar philosophy regardless of their zip code. They thought that our journey was risky, but nevertheless worthy. And they agreed to support it with different means. Their spirits will be traveling with us on the boat. One of these spirits is a little endemic bird QIWI, a symbol of <a href="http://draft.blogger.com/Letter%20of%20Support%20%20To%20whom%20it%20may%20concern:%20I%20hereby%20announce%20the%20official%20support%20of%20the%20Greenlandic%20government%20for%20the%20%E2%80%9CAvannaa%20Reconnaissance%20Boat%20Expedition%E2%80%9D%20with%20the%20following%20participants:%20Expedition%20leader%20Ole%20J%C3%B8rgen%20Hammeken,%20Uummannaq,%20GreenlandCo-expedition%20leader%20Alberth%20Lukassen,%20Uummannaq,%20GreenlandFilmmaker%20Bertrand%20Lozay,%20Bretagne,%20FranceReporter%20and%20photographer%20Galya%20Morrell,%20New%20York%20City,%20USA%20In%20case%20the%20expedition%20will%20need%20help,%20we%20would%20urge%20everyone%20that%20is%20capable%20to%20do%20so,%20to%20help%20the%20expedition%20%E2%80%9Cwith%20whatever%20means%20possible%E2%80%9D.Naalakkersuisut%20/%20The%20Greenlandic%20Government%20fully%20supports%20the%20goal%20of%20the%20expedition%20%E2%80%93%20to%20sail%20by%20boat%20farther%20North%20of%20Greenland%20than%20anyone%20has%20previously%20reached%20on%20the%20Greenlandic%20side%20of%20the%20Lincoln%20Sea%20-%20since%20success%20would%20mean%20that%20a%20Greenlandic%20expedition%20achieved%20such%20an%20important%20result.%20The%20world%E2%80%99s%20most%20famous%20explorations%20and%20expeditions%20in%20the%20polar%20regions%20have%20so%20far%20been%20carried%20out%20by%20westerners,%20albeit%20often%20with%20important%20help%20from%20the%20indigenous%20population%20in%20the%20polar%20regions.%20A%20Greenlandic%20expedition%20sailing%20farther%20North%20of%20Greenland%20than%20anyone%20by%20boat%20would%20be%20an%20honor%20and%20would%20show%20that%20Greenlanders%20of%20today%20can%20succeed%20%E2%80%9Cthemselves%E2%80%9D,%20particularly%20in%20these%20years%20where%20the%20North%20Pole%20has%20become%20%E2%80%9Can%20important%20global%20subject%E2%80%9D.%20%20Naalakkersuisut%20Siulittaasuat%20%20%20http://qiwi.com/en/">a nice company</a> with the same name whose leaders decided that we were worthy of it and that we designed a decent expedition.
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So, we have all these people on our side. Now it is important that Sila (the Weather) gets on our side too. No spreadsheets will help in this venue; we can only pray.
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Our mission is not to conquer or to proclaim superiority. Avannaa is not a conquest of any kind, neither it is a competition. And we are not the champions. The champions are the others, and they live far away from here.
Avanna is a minimalistic, reconaisance expedition to the lands that are invisible to most. We are no scientists, but rather fact-gatherers. We will talk to our old friends who live in the world’s northernmost settlements and will find out what they think about changes in hunting, cooking, shelter and ceremonials. We will observe and film rock and soil, earth and ice, water and sky, wind and currents, animals and people. But to no extent we will judge, or make conclusions or assumptions. We will leave it to others who are better fit for this type of work.
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Avannaa is a country of understatements. When a polar bear hunter kills a huge pray he says that he caught a tiny little thing, nothing really special. So, we will say that Avannaa is a unimportant expedition and that we even don’t know what we are talking about. So, wish us luck! And forgive us for our ignorance.<br />
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P.S.
Weather up in Hall Land today is looking great - just above the freezing point, and a little cloudy.
<a href="http://www.dmi.dk/dmi/index/gronland/byvejr_gl.htm?by=4207" target="_blank">The Weather Service</a><br />
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</a></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02534447694005553727noreply@blogger.com0Aqqusinersuaq, Uummannaq, Greenland70.6747222 -52.126388970.664212700000007 -52.1658709 70.6852317 -52.0869069tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4004404834055598273.post-81404580587002775832012-07-23T06:56:00.000-07:002012-07-29T06:47:43.011-07:00About Avannaa<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Uummannaq Polar Institute boat expedition will travel to the land that is invisible to most of the people. Our expedition is Avannaa. Our destination is Avannaa.
Unlike most travelers from the West, Greenlanders do not travel to win, to conquer, to make a statement or to proclaim superiority. They travel because it is their style of life. And Avannaa is no exception. From the Heart of the Arctic, Uummannaq, we will sail towards another Uummannaq in Thule Land, to Qaannaaq, Siorapaluk and Etah – exactly like we did many times in the past. The only difference is that now we will try to go further.
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There is no plot or fixed idea about the outcome of this expedition. There is no pre-approved scenario. Because what kind of scenario can one have in Bliss Bay? Or certainly, one can have a scenario, but then there would be always some one else with a better scenario for you. Instead, we will stay faithful to an old Greenlandic principle – wander, accept and adapt. And we will be doing just that – no matter what happens.
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On our way, we will observe and film rock and soil, earth and ice, water and sky, wind and currents, wildflowers and ancient lichens, polar bears and arctic butterflies, foxes and ravens, people, walruses and phytoplankton that too has to adopt to abrupt changes – often with little success. We will talk to our old friends who live in the world’s northernmost settlements and will find out what they think about changes in hunting, cooking, shelter and ceremonials. But to no extent will we judge, or make conclusions or assumptions. We will leave it those who are fit to do that type of work.
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We will do all that because we would like to make sure that the voices of the northernmost people and animals inhabiting Avannaa are heard. We invite you to join us in this journey virtually – please, feel free to connect and ask questions. Our satellite phone will work … until it stops. Qujanarujusuaq tamaasa! – Thank you, one and all!
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