ᒥᕐᖑᐃᖅᓯᕐᕕᒃ - mirnguiqsirvik - park

Yesterday Josh had his first day off, so we hiked through the Sylvia Grinnell Territorial Park. It is about a 15 minute walk outside of Iqaluit. The walk took us through town, in between the airport and the Bay, by some sled dogs and then into the middle of nowhere! We lucked out to have a warm (by Iqaluit standards) and more importantly, wind free day. This park is where the Sylvia Grinnell River runs into the Frobisher Bay. In the summer it rises and falls with the tide. Right now, everything is frozen solid and we discovered a silent, sparkling, winter wonderland. We found some real igloos, hiked to the top of the tallest hill, explored along the riverbank and enjoyed the natural beauty of God's creation. The snow is so hard packed from the howling winds that we were able to walk right on top of it. In the places where it wasn't as solid, it has the same texture as walking along a sandy beach.It is pretty hard to believe that in a few months this frozen river valley will be full of teeny wild flowers, arctic grasses, nesting birds and hundreds of fish. We're excited to see that transformation. 

The thing about this environment is that at first glance all you see is glaring, bright snow for miles and miles. But as you start walking and looking more closely, you begin to see more specific, unique features of the land...

Bright orange lichen. 
Sparkley flecks in the black rock. 
Mini frozen flowers tufts. 
Footprints from a raven or hare. 
Blue reflections between the mounds of ice. 
Silent inukshuks that watch you from afar. 

Sled dogs on the edge of town

Our walk took us right under the approach path for the airport

Entrance to Sylvia Grinnell Park

A real igloo

Picnic lunch in the Arctic

Wind packed snow drifts

Inukshuk

Josh at a lookout point

Joc overlooking the river

Nanook of the North

Tonight we watched a 1920s silent film about "Nanook." He was an Eskimo that worked with Robert Flaherty during his 1910-1916 explorations of the Arctic. Flaherty felt compelled to share his regard for Nanook and his culture. The film was black and white, but very well done for the 1920s. It had slides with text that described what was going on. These people's primal instinct was for food and shelter. The men wore seal skin jackets and polar bear pants. The women's amouti were made out of caribou fur, I think. They all wore seal skin boots that had to be chewed on in the morning so they would soften up. I'm sure glad I don't have to chew on Josh's boots in the morning before he puts them on! 

From snatching a white fox out of its hole, to spearing fish while lying on an ice floe, to sneaking up on a herd of walrus, Nanook's entire world depended on the food he could catch for his family. Sadly, he died of starvation while hunting for deer. This shows how dependent the first Inuit were on the land. A quick trip to the local Northmart was out of the question! We were impressed by the effectiveness of the tools they used: walrus ivory knives that cut through seal skin and hard packed snow, caribou bone and seal skin for the sled, polar bear fur for pants and stone for a pot. We also watched how they built igloos, complete with an ice window to let in the light. This film showed the raw struggle of human against animal in the fight to survive. It brought to life some of what Josh and I have been learning about the old Inuit culture. You can watch it too, on youtube at: Nanook of the North - Robert Flaherty The first three pictures below are ones that I found that are directly from the film. The fourth picture is the sunset we enjoyed as we looked over the bay.

I should also share the we ate our first caribou and arctic char while watching the movie. It was our first Arctic food from 'the land.' It was very tasty and I'm hoping there will be another open air meat market soon so we can buy some from the hunters here.

The movie poster.

Nanook's wife, Nyla. She carries her baby everywhere in her amouti.

Nanook and his men harpooned a 2 ton walrus and are fighting to pull the huge animal to shore, using the waves to help roll it in. A walrus are ferocious in water but helpless on land. This walrus didn't get to the water fast enough when the hunters struck. Walrus are a sign of good fortune.

ᓯᕿᓂᖅ ᓂᐱᔪᖅ

Sunset

                    ᓯᕿᓂᖅ ᓂᐱᔪᖅ

Sunset

ᐃᖃᓗᒻᒥᐅᑕᐅᔪᖓ - Iqalummiutaujunga - I'm from Iqaluit.

Now, I don't know if this is a true statement, but I found this fact on another blog and it made me laugh.

"It’s Iqaluit not Iqualuit. This is something you better learn and learn well because both spellings have entirely different meanings. Iqaluit (pronounced Eee-cal-oh-wee) means “place of many fish”. Iqualuit roughly means “unwashed buttocks.” So be very conscious of how how you spell the capital city if you intend to send any packages here. You could very well be insulting someone if you misspell it." Source
                 
                             ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---

I was going to go for another walk this afternoon to explore more of Iqaluit, but the wind has reached speeds of 60-70 km an hour now and I don't really feel up to fighting against that force. Instead, I'll work on a blog summing up what I have been learning the past couple of days. 

I spent an afternoon at the Visitor Information Center watching a man build a qamutik (a sled). He is one of the rangers here. He is also involved with the justice system, a hunter, fisherman and a little of everything, it seemed. He worked at a slow, steady, exacting pace being very careful to ensure that the rope was tight and the crossboards were even. The design is geniously simple and the use of rope allows the crossboards to move and shift as needed over the rough surface of the ice and snow. He pointed out the importance of carving off the sharp edges to ensure the wood could not cut through the rope. I also learned that braided rope was best because it is not slippery. In the olden days, they would use strips of seal skin for rope and caribou legs for cross bars. Today, these sleds are pulled by snowmobiles or dog teams. Some of them can be twenty feet long and have room for eight people to sleep. Most are eight to twelve feet long. As this Inuit hunter said, the sled's ultimate purpose is to "carry stuff." It was interesting to listen to this gentleman speak with pride about his father and his heritage. It was encouraging to see him interact lovingly with his children and grandbaby and teach them what a qamutik is. The Inuit language sounds so awesome from the mouth of a two year old! Before coming here, I had been told a lot of negatives about the Inuits here - the drugs, alcohol, abuse, unemployment - and I found it refreshing to meet a hardworking man who is involved in his community and family like his father and his father's father. It took that negative stereotype I'd heard so much about and gave a fresh perspective.

ᖃᒧᑏᒃ - qamutik

Showing us the "lacing" technique that he learned from his father as a young boy

It is important to build this right the first time, as you don't want to be out on the land and have the qamituk break on you. The rope must be tight and the wood edges smooth and rounded.

                                    ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---

Josh and I spent some time in the Visitors Information Center together reading about the history of the Inuit people. It is a beautiful culture and history. A lot of it is familiar to Josh from elementary school, but it is all new to me. I learned about the African tribes and Bushmen, instead of the Eskimos and Inuit. Here is a tidbit that we read...for your interest sake.

ᑐᓗᒐᖅ - tulugaq - raven

In the beginning there was only Raven and the falling snowflakes. Raven sailed through the universe that stretched endlessly around him. Once, Raven caught some snowflakes on his wings that trickled down to his wingtip and made a  little snowball. With a great sweep of his wing Raven hurled the snowball through the air. Raven landed on the great snowball which he called earth. Once Raven kicked away snow from the earth and saw red clay. He rolled the clay into little balls that because seeds. One seed grew into a plant that grew and jiggled until man came out. Raven plucked some of his feathers and made man a parka. He made animals out of clay so man would have food to eat. 


What I like about this story is that Raven created a parka at the same time he created man. It shows the basic survival need for warmth that the first people here had to deal with. The ravens up north are unlike any raven or crow I have ever seen. First of all, they are huge. And secondly, they make the most unbird-like noises you have ever heard in your life! They sound more like a junior high percussion band with the pop, crackles, knocks, barks, woots, screeches and hollow screams that they make. It is rather unnerving. I have also heard that some are aggressive, but have yet to be dive bombed by one ... knock on wood. 

---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---

ᓯᕿᓐᓂᖅᑐᖅ- siqinniqtuq

- it's sunny

      ᓯᕿᓐᓂᖅᑐᖅ- siqinniqtuq

- it's sunny

 This are the original 'sunglasses' that people used to combat the glaring bright reflection of the snow. Brilliant, absolutely brilliant.
 
                                 ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---


We went to the Iqaluit Pentecostal Church on Sunday. It was a multicultural congregation of people from all over the world, well at least everyone's ethnic backgrounds are international. The church building reminded me of the church I grew up going to in Botswana. The windows on either side of the church let you look out during the service. But instead of seeing barefoot black kids running in the dust, you see hooded parka wearing people walking in the snow. We were able to meet a lot of people and look forward to going back and getting to know some folks better. Going to church is such a great way to meet people when you're new in the community. I especially like hearing about what  others have learned about this town - neat things to do or interesting spots to check out. I need to carry a notebook to right them down, however, because my brain has a tough time remembering the Inukitut words.

	---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---   ---

Today I hiked to the top of the hill that overlooks the whole town of Iqaluit. From a distance it didn't seemed to be too bad of a hike, but once I started out I realized how slippery it is! Under the snow was a thin layer of smooth ice. In the areas that weren't snow covered, it looked like a stream of water had frozen in motion over the black rocks and orange lichen. It was beautiful. Once I got to the top, I found a wooden cross that overlooks the whole town. The view was stunning. The cloud ceiling was at a mere 1800 feet and the sky overcast today. So, instead of a horizon, all you can see is white as the snow covered ground touches the cloudy sky. I got the feeling that I was at the top of the world, so high that even the clouds were below me. It's a shame that it is so expensive to fly here. The scenery is absolutely incredible and unlike anything I have ever seen before. It would be awesome if you could come visit us and see for yourself.

ᖃᐃᖅᓱᒑᖅ - qaiqsugaag

-

rocky ground

ᖃᐃᖅᓱᒑᖅ - qaiqsugaag

-

rocky ground

ᑐᑦᓯᐊᕐᕕᒃ - tutsiarvik - church

          ᑐᑦᓯᐊᕐᕕᒃ - tutsiarvik - church

ᐊᕐᓇᖅ - arnaq -

woman

            ᐊᕐᓇᖅ - arnaq -

woman

ᓄᕗᔭ - nuvuja -

cloud

             ᓄᕗᔭ - nuvuja -

cloud

But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  Romans 5:8

ᐊᓄᕌᖅᑐᖅ - anuraaqtuq - It's windy!

We just found out that an apartment building burnt to the ground on Wednesday night. You can read more about it atTownie Bastard - The Fire or Iqaluit Fire. That building housed six or seven nurses from the hospital. No one was hurt, but everything is gone. This news made me reflect on the sovereignty of God. If I had a already been hired and had all the paperwork in place for my nursing job...like I had been planning and working towards in Edmonton, Josh and I likely would have been at that apartment building on Wednesday night. We could have lost everything in that fire. God is good. I’m so thankful for His control over our lives and that He knows best….even when I’m impatient and frustrated with how slow things seemed to be coming together. He saved us from a very dangerous situation.

This afternoon, the weather was a bright and sunny -21C with winds at 60km/hr, causing a wind chill of -40C. Josh and I braved the wind and went for a walk on the Frobisher Bay. It was hard to believe that it a couple months the place we were walking would be open water. We had watched a jeep and two snowmobiles drive out onto it, so we figured we were safe to do so as well. I was surprised at how smooth and slippery the ice was in certain spots and how tall the ice tide made the ice formations. We could also see the cracks in the ice that result from the tide. We took some photographs and sacrificed our finger tips in doing so. I wish I was a photographer…these photos definitely do not give our surroundings justice. They’re just from my ‘point and shoot’ camera. But they give an idea of the terrain and environment.

ᖁᓕᑦᑕᐅᔭᖅ - qulittaujag - parka

The RCMP plane on final descent

ᓯᑯ - siku - ice

Cracks in the ice due to the tide

Ice 'waves' are over six feet tall

ᕿᐅᙱᑦᑐᖓ -qiunngittunga – I am not cold

ᐊᖁᐊ - aqua - boat

ᐊᐃᔪᖅ

Did you know that English, French and Inuktitut are the official languages in Nunavut? Almost everything has three translations on it. I can't read the Inuktitut though, because it is written in syllabics.The word written as the title for this blog means "goes home." 

Home...this is what I was thinking about as my flight descended through the clouds 90 km south of Iqaluit. The rolling hills and valleys are completely covered with white. The word barren takes on a whole new meaning. You know what it's like to stand at the ocean's shore and be overwhelmed with how vast and wide and big the roaring ocean is? I got that same feeling looking out over the tundra. Miles and miles of white snow and ice lying in stark contrast to the bright blue sky above.  Trying to wrap my mind around the fact that this is my new home was almost impossible....until I ran into the arms of my husband. That was all that it took for me to feel 100% okay to be living on this arctic ice cube of Baffin Island. Oh it is so good to see him!

 First Arctic picture...complete with a polar bear

The town itself looks like a random gathering of funny little houses that are square, colorful and above ground. There are snowmobiles and trucks and boats parked haphazardly everywhere. The snowmobiles seem to have their own roadway to avoid stopsigns and 'busy' intersections. I put busy in quotation marks because Josh informs me that nothing is ever busy here. The town is very hilly and all the buildings are wedged into the slant of the hills. We went for a drive to Apex (the nicer end of town) and found the original Hudsons Bay buildings right on the shore of Frobisher Bay. We'll have to go back in the day time and take some pictures.



We saw our first Arctic northern lights. They were very pale green. I'd dare say the stars were brighter than them, but they were the aurora. I'll be keeping my eyes peeled to the sky every night in hopes of seeing more. The stars are so sparkly here too once you get out of the town. We sure miss out on the beauty of the night sky in big urban cities. Somehow the halogen glow of a thousand street lights doesn't match the twinkle of a little star on a cold night. 

All bundled up for an Arctic walk about

The first thing I noticed since coming here is that all of a sudden I miss jet skiing! Ha ha. The snowmobiles are racing by all the time and they sound exactly like the jet skis at the lake. The sound brings to mind the smell of neoprene, 2 stroke engine oil and gasoline.


Another thing I want to learn more about is frozen water. Apparently they have 'ice tide.' We're surrounded by the ocean. So, even though the bay looks like it's covered solid in ice, it's always moving with the tide. Up and down. In and out. These leads to some phenomenal piles of ice as it grinds together and raises up on itself. I'll take some pictures when I go exploring this afternoon. And I think I'll stay off the ice until I learn more and am sure it's stable and safe to walk on. I'd hate to fall in. 

Goofy looking Skyvan

Josh showed me around the hangar yesterday as well. The Skyvan was there, what a goofy looking airplane! It is well suited to fly cargo, but I sure would be nervous if I had to be a passenger in that contraption. Interestingly, it is made by the Irish. The other plane that Summit Air flies is the Dornier,a German made plane. Both of these nationalities make up Joshua's ethnic heritage.

22 hours

This is just a brief note to say that in 22 hours, I will be on a plane flying across northern Canada to meet Josh in Iqaluit. Wow, where did the time go!? To say I'm excited would be an understatement. My job interview is today in three hours and then I will finish up some last minute packing and away I go. 

For the first time at Hannah and Lance's wedding, I realized that I would soon be leaving the family and friends that I love here in Edmonton. I will miss you, as I know Josh does. But I miss my husband more. And I'm so happy and relieved that soon I will be with him. Living life together again, like it's supposed to be.

The Count Down is On!!

The past month has been a impatient 3 weeks of learning the importance of patience and trusting God. I have been a very unwilling participant in this lesson as I have tried to rush head, plan every detail and know every possible option in order for me to get to Iqaluit as soon as possible. With my wanting to get there ASAP has come a lot of doubt and even fear about the uncertainty of my future. Josh and friends have told me "be patient, just trust that the Lord has it all figured out and rest in His timing." Easier said than done. 

However, I have been making a conscious effort this past week to really let go of my worries and trust that God has a plan to get me to Iqaluit. It has been a daily struggle of letting go, but a freeing one at that, and God has been showing me how He is faithful to His promise in Jeremiah.

Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future" 

Since finally surrendering "my" plans, things have been slowly but methodically falling into place for my departure from Edmonton. Not surprisingly, it is one thing at a time, just like God arranged for Josh's job at Summit. How soon I forget who is in control of my life. However, God is faithful in reminding me time and time again.  

 

Waiting

Josh at work

Life has settled into a bit of a routine now after all the hectic moving and packing. I'm now counting down the days to my interview, when I'm hoping they'll say, " Are you a registered nurse? You're hired. Come tomorrow." 
I know that is incredibly unrealistic, but I'm still hoping. My interview has been pushed back a few times due to circumstances in Iqaluit, but currently I'm scheduled for Tuesday March 15. Here's a hope and a prayer that this will work out. I have already sent off my registration forms to be licensed up north, so hopefully everything will just fall into place. 
This waiting business is something I'm having a hard time with. Josh is better with being patient. I want to know everything now! But I have no choice but to wait and see how everything unfolds. In the meantime, still have a few things on the go here, with working, Hannah and Lance's wedding (March 19!) and I'm starting to think about gear that I'll need when I get up there. That means more shopping. Woohoo!

As for Josh, he's settled into his work routine as well. He packed up a Dornier and sent the pilots off for 10 days, so he's alone in Iqaluit getting the hangar and crew houses up to speed in preparation for the busy summer that is coming. The most common question I've heard about him being north is "how cold is it there?" Ironically, it has been colder in Edmonton this week that Iqaluit, but I'm sure that is destined to change soon. Here are some pictures of what he's up too. 

The crew house where Josh is living

He gets to use his parka!

Winter boots rated to -100C

The airport terminal

A Dornier - the plane Josh will be flying

Icy cool sunset

Iqaulit is situated on the Frobisher Bay

The Dornier and Skyvan warming in preparation for take off

The hospital where I am hoping to work