August 20 Nuuk

 

Lots of redevelopment going on in Nuuk including a new International airport.
View from bus window

Today we went ashore to visit Greenland’s capital, Nuuk, the world’s northernmost capital. It lies at the mouth of its own fjord system on the mid-west coast. Once ashore we piled into a couple of buses for a tour around town and surrounds and then we were left to our own devices – Lindsay and I headed for the National Museum. 

A couple of linked buildings house the museum

Top left is Asiaq.

The displays and stories were excellent but sadly we didn’t have enough time to look at and read every display.  One quite riveting section had on display the Qilakitsoq mummified bodies of three people plus a young infant; they are believed to have lived in the later 1400s. The graves, which held more bodies (Bottom Left of pic), were literately stumbled upon by a couple of hikers in 1972. All were extremely well preserved because of the dryness of the climate and the cold temperatures. The figure in the Top left is Asiaq. In Greenland mythology Asiaq sits far out in the ice and controls wind and weather.  Fascinating. It was the kind of place you need a whole day at least to see everything.