Arctic #9

Arctic #9
Well, yesterday wasn't much fun. We spent a day and a half crossing Davis Strait over to Greenland. It started out in the morning at 30 km winds and ended up around 80 km by evening. The swells were from 7 to 8 meters high so we were really moving around. I took four Stemetil over 24 hours so managed without getting nauseated or throwing up. But I didn't feel well so ended up sleeping most of the 24 hours. I did manage to get to two lectures plus ate a scone at 4 pm. Skipped lunch and supper, sleeping the time away. Don has a stomach of iron so went to all meals. The dining room was only partially full. Our butler felt sorry for me so brought me a plate of Ritz crackers and candied ginger. What a sweetie. It felt good to eat them. And today he delivered some more! -- anticipating tonite as we go back out into the Strait and then head north.
Today (Thurs the 5th) we landed in Nuuk which is the capital and largest city of Greenland. Population 15,000. We had a guided tour of the parliament, cultural center, city hall, church and then were left at the museum. This museum was amazing so we spent a lot of time there.The cultural center wasalso amazing. They hold many events there which are televised to the rest of the country. The city hall was also a beautiful building. They feature their art on the walls and display carvings everywhere.
Weather: raining but no wind until mid-afternoon when it started to blow again. Not very pleasant for walking around in. They had a bus going back and forth which was nice as the harbour is 2 km from town. Temperature a balmy 7 to 8 degrees.
Greenland facts: Length is equivalent to the distance from Norway to the Sahara. It is the world's largest island and is 85% covered with ice. The only habitable parts is the 15% along the coastline. 85% of the population call themselves Greenlanders (Inuit) and the remaining are mostly Danes.
We get a lot of exercise on the ship. Our room is on the 3rd floor. Meals are on the 4th floor. All lectures plus the observation lounge/library are on the 6th and the tea room is on the 5th. So we are constantly going up and down stairs.