Helicopter tour of Ward Inlet, and interview with Coraline!

So much is happening! We only have a couple of weeks left until we leave to go back to Thunder Bay. I've started sorting things for the move (we have professional packers coming in so actually putting things in boxes is off my shoulders). I've had the kids try on basically everything they own, and whatever doesn't fit is being donated to the women's shelter here in town (a large building where abused women can live with their children until they get back on their feet).  Of course, in the midst of the sorting, trying on, donating and list making, JJ decided that we still haven't seen enough of Nunavut. We've been dogsledding many times, and flown up to Pond Inlet and Arctic Bay, but we hadn't actually been in a helicopter..... more on that later this post. We'll start first with Coraline's thoughts on the past year.

*****

Coraline has had a humdinger of a year in Iqaluit. Right off the bat, she started middle school-- a huge change for someone who has only attended one small community school in her lifetime. In September she was voted into student government as a member of the Aqsarniit student council, representing her homeroom. She has had a great time planning dances and events, helping to work the concession stand, and being involved in fundraising.

Ready for a school dance.

In addition to all the normal stuff like math, social studies, etc., Coraline has been taking Inuktitut language and Inuit culture, along with French language lessons. Coraline has also enjoyed the freedom that came with living in a small, close-knit neighbourhood, but she's realized there are pluses and minuses that come with this. (Free-range kids can do pretty-much whatever they please, including destroying the fort you've spent days building as soon as you go inside for dinner.)  It's been a year of firsts: she's gone to her first dance, eaten caribou for the first time, and had her hair dyed (for what I'm sure is the first of many times). 

Academically she has thrived, and by the end of the year she had won awards for attendance, literacy, artistic ability, the Principal's Award, and the Inuit Qaujimajatuqanginnik Award (I have absolutely no idea what this last one is for, but neither does she, so it's all good).

Update: I know what that crazy-long-word award is now!  JJ says normally the phrase is shortened to "I.Q." He learned about it through work.  "Inuit Qaujimajatuqanginnik" means, in a nutshell, Inuit values/knowledge. These include respect, serving your community, working together, being resourceful, and caring for the land. 

Coraline won two "end of year" awards. This one was
for being the most artistic student in her class.

And here is she walking away with her prize for the attendance
award (I wasn't fast enough with the camera).

So, what does a 10 (now 11 year-old) think of living in the north? I'll let her tell you.

Hi Coraline!

Hi Mommy!

What have you enjoyed most about living in Iqaluit?

What I enjoyed most about living in Iqaluit was that lots of my friends live super close. This means I can walk down to my friend's house (for example Lilith) and see if she wants to come over or play outside. (I do it all the time.)

Coraline and Lilith.

What have you wished was different?

What I wished was different up here in Iqaluit is that my friend down in Thunder Bay (her name is Z) would move up here and stay with us 'til we left. I also wish we could bring our house in Thunder Bay up here and back again when we leave.

Tell me how going to school here is different than going to school in Ontario.

School is different up here than Thunder Bay because me and my brother don't go to the same school. This is because up here you start middle school in grade 6 while in Thunder Bay middle school starts in grade 7.

What have you learned about the Inuit?

What I have learned about the Inuit is that they eat some meats (seal, caribou, rabbit, etc.) raw. I also learned in the olden days (1900's) they used something called a kudliik (pronounced kood-lick) to keep warm.

Kudliik (also known as a Qulliq)
(source)

Tell me how the kids here are different than they are in Ontario. Do they dress differently? Speak differently?

What's different about the kids up here is they are more brown than white (skin) and they stay up very VERY late playing outside. The kids up here also like to eat raw meat and like to hunt. :(

Coraline. 

Do you have a favorite restaurant in Iqaluit?

Uuuh....what do you think? I'm a kid so.......YES! My favourite restaurant is the Discovery (fancy-pants restaurant). Why? Because I like their noodles with bacon and ham mixed in.

Is there a food or restaurant you miss from back home?

I miss two restaurants from back home. No wait, three. These are Mongo's, Swiss Chalet, and of course like all kids McDonald's.

Hanging out on the tundra.

What is the first thing you want to do when you get back to Ontario?

The first thing I want to do is surprise my friend Z (she did not come up with us) and have a party with all my friends (that is, if Mommy and Daddy let me).

Dressed for an 80's theme birthday party.

Tell me about the things/people you are going to miss when you leave here.

I'm going to miss Lilith, Vee, Kel, Mauve (these are all my friends), Joanne (she's my teacher), our big back yard, Garbage Dog (cute little orange dog who lives tied to someone's garbage box), Big Puppy (humongous husky dog in the neighborhood), Silna (small husky puppy), Pearl (Lilith's dog), and of course Iqaluit itself.

Garbage dog at home.

He's a super friendly little guy, and Buffy's best friend.

What else can you tell me about living in the north?

It gets VERY cold during the winter (and I'm serious). Sorry, that's all.

********

Our neighbors (who are friends) hosted a small goodbye dinner for us last week. In Iqaluit, everyone leaves for the summer months, so they had to have it early. In fact, the city has become downright quiet.  Even the lunchtime traffic jam is gone! JJ was told the noon flight out the day after school ends is called the "Teacher's Express", as almost every teacher here is from elsewhere in Canada and they all head south as soon as school is out.

It can be tough having a younger brother.

Coraline and Marnie.

Coraline's Iqaluit BFF, Lilith.

*****

JJ called me from work one day last week quite excited--he had heard from a co-worker that there is a helicopter service in town that will take people around to various locations on sightseeing tours. He gave me a website to check out: https://iqaluithelicopters.com/. I was a little hesitant to try this--the last time I was in a helicopter was when I was quite young, but I've heard stories about people becoming quite nauseous while on tours. However, he was pretty determined (and so gosh-darned excited) that I shrugged off my initial hesitation and within 24 hours we had booked a tour.

Our tour was to Ward Inlet. For those of you who don't know (well, if anyone who doesn't live on Baffin Island knows anything about Ward Inlet, I'd be shocked), Wikipedia describes Ward Inlet as "a body of water in Nunavut's Qikiqtaaluk Region. It lies in eastern Frobisher Bay, forming a wedge into Baffin Island, separating Becher Peninsula from Hall Peninsula. Augustus Island lies deep into the inlet."  The area is wild, remote, and full of neat little rapids, cascades and waterfalls.

We didn't tell the kids we were doing this until we were all in front of the helicopter. Captain was...well...
you can see for yourself.

Best. Day. Ever.

Coraline, while not as impressed at CJS, had
a great time too.

And of course JJ was thrilled.

We set down briefly to explore.

Walking around during our pit stop.

The high cliffs are breathtaking, and the kids were impressed with the waterfalls
and rapids.

You would think, looking at the photos above, that the tundra is a very desolate, life-less place. At first glance this is true.  The ground is very rocky and there are no tall plants at all. The average temperature in the winter months is around -40 degrees, there is almost total darkness for much of the year, and gale force winds are frequent. However, as Dr. Ian Malcolm (played by the amazing Jeff Goldblum) in the original Jurassic Park movie says, "Life, uh, finds a way."

When we got out of the helicopter we noticed the ground we were stepping on was very spongy. Due to the permafrost, the water that melts from snow and collects from rain has nowhere to drain (the ground is always frozen). Because of this, and the rocky terrain, plants grow in shallow, spongy, clumps--or tussocks. Anything that grows in these clumps is very hearty.  You can find a lot of plant life if you are prepared to crouch down close to the ground. We found prime examples of arctic cranberries, and purple saxifrage flowers (the official flower of Nunavut). Because of these moist clumps of plant growth all over the tundra, mosquitoes are abundant.  Thankfully, it's often quite windy so they haven't bothered us too much to date.

Purple saxifrage flowers. 

Arctic cranberries.

Not all the snow has melted completely yet, as Coraline discovered.

So she made a miniature snowman.

Our July snowman. Complete with arctic cranberry eyes, and berry juice hair.

Up next: JJ says he is working on his blog post (ahem....I'll believe it when I see it). Also, the countdown is on! Only twelve days left until we fly out!