Today, we added a new country to our list. In fact, I learned that it is considered a North American country. Although working toward gaining their independence, they are currently a territory of Denmark. Greenland is amazingly beautiful! Once again, I was reminded of Alaska. In fact, the native inhabitants of Qaqortoq are Inuit, which is the same group of people that are more commonly (although not so politically correct) referred to as Eskimos, which are also found in Alaska. This town is the 4th largest in Greenland, with a population of 3500. Most people who live here, don’t have cars, as there’s only about 10 miles of roads. The town actually stretches no more than 2 miles in any direction.
Holland America had no organized tours today; it was more a time to just enjoy strolling around the pleasant town and interact with the people. We got a taxi for about 30 minutes to drive us around town, including the three roads that go to viewpoints up on the hill. The taxi driver spoke limited English, but the views we nice, and we got a quick overview of the town. At 11:00, my mother and I took a walking tour of the town with a guide. The highlights were the town fountain (the only fountain in Greenland), the local open-air market (where they sell things from turnips to seal meat), the church (Lutheran), and the “Stone and Man” art carvings that are in various locations around town. After that, we met back up with my dad and took tour of “Great Greenland,” a tannery that prepares mass amounts of seal skins, which are mainly exported to China for use in clothing and accessories. That was interesting.
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