Return to an Old Friend

 

Because QAQORTOQ is located in the southern part of Greenland, it is visited by many cruise ships on their transatlantic itineraries. The very friendly people who live in Qaqortoq make one feel so welcome, you want to return.

 

The colorful view of Qaqortoq approaching from sea.

Goodbye to Aappilattoq, All Our Best

 

Aappilattoq, Greenland

When you live next to the Prins Christian Sund, close to the steep walls of the fjord, there is no need to own a car. At the very top of the mountain, there is a lake. Access at the lower level is strictly by boat (or in an emergency, helicopter). This is the norm for most villages in Greenland. In the winter, when everything freezes over, other forms of transportation come into play. We have been told that dog sleds are required to be kept above the Arctic Circle in Greenland.

 

 

We were surrounded by many boats of this type in 2007 when we visited the village.

 

They were sitting on shore, watching the ship go by. We stopped in front of the village, then the Captain turned his "Beautiful White Lady" 360 degrees to the pleasure of all on board and ashore.

Nearing Aappilattoq

Beautiful, majestic fjord views.

 

 

 

 

We're almost there! The first sign of life!

Prins Christian Sund

I first went through this area on the Grand Princess in 2007. I love fjords anyway and have been in most of the Norwegian fjords. This one is very majestic, narrow (as fjords usually are), deep, fascinating, etc. But, the really big surprise for us was when we rounded a curve in the fjord and found a whole host of friendly Greenlanders waiting for us in their smallboats. The Grand Princess sounded it's massive horn, slowed down, and came to a complete stop. The smallboats completely circled the big ship, and the occupants shouted greetings of welcome to us. It was a most wonderful several minutes. Then the horn sounded again, and the boats scurried away, back to the small village. The population of the village, Aappilattoq, has been dwindling over the years. I believe the latest count is approximately 132, and most of them were there to greet us. Now, when we enter Prins Christian Sund, I eagerly anticipate arriving at Aappilattoq.(**) (Click on the map to increase the size.)

 

Prince Christian Sund, continued

This is an area where the glaciers emerging from Greenland (which has approximately 90% permanent ice cover), calve icebergs. The scenery is quite spectacular. The iceberg you see below is the first of many we saw in the Greenland area. (Click on the photo twice to get a closer view.)

 

 

 

 

Prince Christian Sund

Prince Christian Sund is always one of our favorite parts of this North Atlantic crossing. We would be traveling from east to west. Danish helicopters preceeded us, so that we would have last minute information about iceberg activity. The ship cannot always transverse this area, but we were once again fortunate and headed into the sound.