Christoffer Petersen

Authentic Arctic Thrillers

greenland

Biting off far more than I could chew!

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I’m not sure how I got through the month of May in 2010. It was hectic! We were leaving for Qaanaaq, and had to pack everything down so it could be shipped north. I also had a couple of exams for my Masters, was finishing up at school, and I was due to leave on a solo kayak trip in June.

Crazy.

The kitchen slowly filled with packing boxes, pushing me and my thesis closer to the kitchen counter, while the kayak gear spilled off the top of the boxes until it was just … yeah, it was everywhere.

More on most of that, later.

Chris

P.S. Yep, I’m still digging through the hard drive!

Exams – Greenland style!

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It’s close to exam time in Greenland and Denmark. While teaching in Greenland I was often sent out as an external examiner (that sounds awful). I could be sent all over Greenland, and enjoyed several visits to Upernavik – fantastic town even if the fog often means you can’t leave for a day, a week, sometimes longer. Getting to the schools always involved flying, and it’s fun for me to remember flying in to be an examiner at a tiny school on a small island, for example.

One April I took the “big” helicopter from Upernavik (above) to Kullorsuaq (below).

It was also fun to be a part of the exams.

The education system in Greenland struggles in many ways and for many reasons, and it is always the kids who suffer from the challenges of teaching in the Arctic. I won’t go into that here, not today. But I do want to share a short anecdote plucked from an exam as it highlights the cultural differences between Greenland and Europe, for example.

One of the classes I was examining had the topic Fast Food. One fifteen year old in the English exam was doing her best but struggling. To keep things going I asked her if she had ever been in Denmark.

She had.

I asked if she had been to McDonald’s.

She nodded, but then frowned as she remembered the experience. She had a Big Mac.

“How was it?” I asked.

“Not good,” the girl said.

“Why not?”

She shrugged, and said, “I don’t like vegetarian food.”

A few questions more revealed that the salad and tomato in the Big Mac were just too much! Sure, something was lost in translation, but for a teenager growing up in a hunting community (and with sporadic English lessons) she was telling it like she knew it. Salad in a burger is akin to vegetarian meals.

And… there are no McDonald’s in Greenland!

Chris

The dogs … year 1

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It doesn’t get much better – glorious sunshine, balmy temperatures, sea ice, dogs, and sharing all of it with the one you love! The dogs, from left to right, are Simba, Kaassassuk (named after a Greenlandic myth) , and Vitus (named by me after Vitus Bering!) We’re on the sea ice with the island of Uummannaq out of shot to the left and behind us.

Idyllic. Right?

Yeah, if you’re not drenched in sweat running alongside the sledge teaching the dogs to pull it! There’s a reason I could take this blurry photo, and I ain’t proud of it!

If you’ve followed this blog, you’ll know that I am proud of the photos of the dogs seen with the toes of my big boots in the bottom of the photo. Those are the photos I am proud of, but these photos are from the first year with the dogs. The younger me couldn’t know he would eventually take such photos. Instead, he figured this (see below) was as good as it was ever going to get!

It’s blurred, of course, because we were booking it – kind of – so much so Jane couldn’t keep the camera steady. Or, perhaps it was so cold she was shivering.

I wouldn’t know, of course.

I was too busy sweating!

I’ll leave the rest to your imagination, including the choice words I had regarding Jane’s grand plan to have sledge dogs. Yeah, it was Jane’s idea!

Chris

Starting small

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This is one of those posts that really doesn’t need any words. However, one April these two fellas became a big part of our lives in Greenland. The dark furred fella is Hidalgo, and his white and grey spotted brother is Balto, named by the young daughter of a friend in Denmark.

The mother is Simba, named by her previous owners. Simba ran with the team and despite her small size she kept the boys in order.

When I discovered Simba was pregnant, I kind of panicked. There’s no vet on the island. The closest vet was in Ilulissat and seldom visited Uummannaq. So if there was any health or other issues it was up to me to find someone to help or to learn what to do.

I ordered what must be one of the biggest, thickest books I’ve ever bought. It’s on the bookshelf somewhere, but when we had dogs it wasn’t far from my hand. I can’t remember how many times I read the chapters on puppies and whelping, and then, all of a sudden, Simba presented us with two fat and healthy pups.

I should have known she could take care of herself.

She gave birth inside her doghouse. This was a new one. She ate the one I built with scavenged wood. (When I find the video of her eating the roof, the walls … everything, I’ll post it.) The temperature during that period was in the minus twenties. I did my bit, making sure she had plenty of food, water, seal blubber, and bedding etc. Simba took care of the rest.

You can expect more photos of these guys later. 😉

Chris