We held our open boat near the capital of Greenland today. I say “near”
since we were at anchor. There was a cruise ship in town, which needed
the dock space, so we ferried people out on one of our boats instead. I
was boat crew for a few hours, while Phil (outboard mechanic) drove. At
times there was a bit of swell, making it a small adventure for people
getting on and off the ship. Most of the kids seemed to enjoy the
experience, and many Greenlanders are used to being out in boats so took
it in stride. Overall, it was a great open boat day, with a constant
stream of people waiting at the dock for pick up.
Nuuk is a proper modern city. It’s got a Thai restaurant (and an
Mexican one), a civic center, a museum, government and office buildings,
public transportation and even housing projects. In fact, one percent
of the entire Greenland population lives on one block here (“blok P”).
Nuuk is also home to Santa’s mailbox – a big red thing full of hopeful
letters, visible from the ship.
Saturday, the crew got ashore for some bowling and walking around the
town. Tomorrow we’ll finish provisioning and meet with government
officials, then head out to continue the science work.
– Andrew
