September 8 - Sunday
Sisimiut (pop 5520) is the second largest city in Greenland. A bit north of the Arctic Circle, it is the northernmost ice-free port on the island, which enables its principal industry, fishing. Sisimiut is home to Royal Greenland’s largest fish processing plant, and sells over 20,000 tons of shrimp annually.
We arrived on a sparkling afternoon, a perfect day to explore the hilly town.
Throughout Greenland, the bright primary building colors were selected for a reason. Originally, red was for schools, commercial and government buildings, and churches. Yellow was for hospitals, health services and homes of medical personnel, blue for fish factories, green for telecommunications and black for police stations. Now, however, there is more freedom is color selection.
Although the website said that the town museum was closed on Sundays it was open for us until 4 pm. The museum is a small collection of original and reconstructed buildings, including homes, a forge and an original 1775 church.
The original Bethel Church is small and plain inside. We were entertained by interactive videos on either side of the nave. One was a young, overly-eager 18th century priest in a large ruffled collar, and the other a bare chested, necklace draped shaman. They had recorded answers to identical questions, such as “What happens when we die?” and “What if my wife doesn’t get pregnant?” You can speculate as to who leaned pragmatic and who was idealistic.
A cultural walking tour took us through the main areas of town.
Artistic graffiti of fishing prey. The humpback’s eye is especially fine
The 160 km (100 mile) Greenland’s Arctic Circle Race, the world’s toughest cross-country ski race, starts at this lake. The fastest racers complete it in under 11 hours. You can also choose to hike the route over several days.
I found a pair of earrings carved from caribou bone in an Inuit handicraft center. The carver spoke no English and only took cash, which precipitated a search up and down the steep hills for a working ATM. Mark came to the rescue.
A butcher shop storefront illustrates some of the meats for sale. Hunting still supplements store-bought food for many in these remote locations.
Families can keep up to four dogs in town. Well outside the residential area are dog lawns like we saw in Ilulissat, where larger groups of sled dogs are kept.
To maintain the purity of the breed, only Greenlandic Sled Dogs are permitted above the Arctic Circle and in East Greenland. They were bred not for companionship, but for strength, stamina and hardiness. They’ve been used for hunting and transportation for thousands of years.
When puppies are born, they are allowed to run around and play for their first five months. After that, they are chained and begin training for their big dog jobs.
A trio of murals
Sisimiut has more of a Scandinavian feel to it than Ilulissat. There are more grocery stores and amenities in town as well as a couple of banks. Roads are paved. There are many large multi-storied housing units. Denmark, Greenland, or the fishing factory must have invested more in infrastructure.
Still signs of quiet, idyllic times.
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