Wednesday, July 6, 2016
Ittoqqortoormiit, Greenland
I never allowed myself to hope that the Explorer would make it into Scoresbysund– to this isolated part of Greenland. But thanks (?) to this year’s warmer temperatures, the Captain managed to navigate around and through the ice at the mouth of Scoresbysund. Many of us stood glued to the bow, watching the slow and steady work toward the village. By mid-afternoon, we arrived in Ittoqqortoormiit, (“Big-House Dwellers” in the Eastern Greenlandic dialect of Kalaallisut), a remote Inuit village in eastern Greenland, population about 450.
Remembering how it felt to step onto their beach from our Zodiac and see the children waving, dispensing maps, and sharing their names, still moves me to tears as I think about it now.
Following my map, I headed straight up the steep dirt road to the school and peered in. I saw white plastic clogs tumbled off the shoe rack by the front door, stacks of desks, and lots of Danish textbooks, because Greenland is officially part of Denmark. There were three small campfire rings of painted stones in front of the school. Grace wondered what they’d burn, with no trees on the tundra. Beneath the school was an enormous sliding hill packed with snow several meters thick, which must be very popular during most of the year.
The elementary school, all closed for summer vacation
The sliding hill in early July
These Greenlandic Husky sled dogs (and puppies in training) captured everyone’s hearts. Nearby was a new sports hall with a shiny multipurpose gym where friendly teens were playing. They took a break from their table tennis game to give me a tour and show off their trophies.
The law requires polar bear hunting to be done with sled dogs, and the cargo sled helps the hunters carry a heavy load.
Gleamingly bright sun requires sunglasses. Here is Marcella swinging with two friends.
These indigenous children spoke an Eastern Greenlandic dialect, but their social interactions will look familiar to Park students when they see my playground video clips.
Education past elementary school is a problem that the local citizens are working to solve together. In the craft shop/museum, we learned about an arts training project for teens, to give them valuable traditional Inuit skills such as carving, so that they can make something of their lives if they drop out before graduating high school.There was no high school in sight.
I was eager to know more about their colorful homes, clothing and fresh meat hanging out to dry (seal? walrus?), their ATVs and bicycles, what they were learning in school, and the Lutheran church and cemetery with crosses and heaped stones marking each grave. But I didn’t want to intrude.
I wonder how the people of this village fit into Greenlandic society and what the future holds for their youth. What effects will global warming have on this group of people? What is their impact on the wildlife population of eastern Greenland now, and in the next 20-30 years? There is a lot to think and learn about.