St. Patrick's Day in the Arctic

I am not religious by any means (if I had to be classified as some religion, I'd probably go under "agnostic"), however, Niall is catholic and wanted to go to mass today.  So Ashley and I tagged along.  Mass started at 11 AM and lasted 1 hour 20 minutes.  We were told that the priest was not in town (so someone else was running the show) and they would be more than happy to have everyone stay, which was the only message delivered in English.  They spoke to the mass a bit, however, it was mostly hymns and sung prayers in Inuktitut.  Everyone brought their own bible and the pews were simple benches (no backs).  There were a lot of children there; maybe more children than adults.

Outside the church, just after mass ended.

After mass, we went back to the inn for breakfast.  We had a standard breakfast (eggs, bacon, hash browns  and toast) at a not-so-standard price of $14.  Most things around here are very expensive.  For example, a 355 mL can of pop at the restaurant costs $5.25.  Why is it so high?  Items that are not brought up on the barge (that comes through once or twice in the summer) have to be flown in.  Cargo fees are dependent on weight and volume.  Therefore, potato chips, while pretty much weightless, are still fairly expensive.  The worst part about living up here being so expensive?  In 2011, half of Nunavut's tax-filers made less than $26,005--slightly more than my wage as a student.  Imagine living off a student's income with a family to support and increased prices for your daily needs.  I can't.  But I am going to avoid turning this blog into a rant about injustices.  If you are interested, a good place to start is the Nunavut News/North newspaper.  One article that really spoke to me was "Third world problems" from the March 11th issue of the editorial section.

After breakfast, we went for a walk around the town.  There are a couple other churches: one is going to be the new Catholic church, but is not open yet and the other looks even older than the one we visited.

The new Catholic Church, still under construction.

An old church.  I do not know what religion it is.

Walking down the coast, I simply cannot get used to how white everything is: the sky, the ground, the ice.  All white.  I think I'm even starting to see different shades of white.  It lightly snowed all day too--just to add more white to the scenery.

Looking out to sea.

Huskies are chained (with a long chain) out on the ice and many people have huskies (like the one below) by their house.  Don't feel sorry for the pups for being in the cold--they like this weather--but if they are used for the same purposes as in Resolute Bay, NU, feel sorry for them for another reason.  (If you love dogs and don't want to read anything sad, skip ahead to the cute puppy picture, then continue reading.)  I was told one of the fellows in town has a dog sled, which are super fun to drive.  But I'm not sure if that's the only reason for the dogs up here.  In Resolute Bay, the huskies on the ice are used as a polar bear warning signal: any polar bears coming across the ice will be attracted to the barking, growling dogs before the people in the town.  I completely understand it, but as someone who treats their pets as part of their family (even my fish), I don't think I could put a dog out on the ice for that purpose.

Cute husky.

At the top of the hill in town there is (what we have been referring to as) a UFO building.  Niall said it's a research centre, but we don't know what type of research they do or if the centre is still operational.

From down the hill you can only see the saucer-like
section of this building, floating above the houses.

Igloolik from the UFO building.

While walking around, I managed to sneak some photos of women wearing an amauti; a hooded parka with a pouch on the back for a baby/child to sit in.  When the hood is down, the child can have its entire torso outside or snuggle straight down until they can't be seen.  If the hood is up, it completely covers the baby and mom.

A woman carrying a child in an amauti
with the hood down (facing slightly
away, in light pink and another in
dark green, facing the camera).

A woman carrying a child in an amauti
with the hood on (walking away, in purple).

 During mass, I observed many ways of getting kids out of the pouch.  Some mothers were quite gentle, asking a neighbour to pick the child up out of the garment, while one literally flicked her blanket-wrapped baby out of the amauti and into her arms.  Others, with older children, grabbed their child's hands and had the kid walk up their back and out of the pouch.  However, the most common way to get the child out was to lean forward and flip them over your shoulder.

After our walk and taking a St. Patrick's Day photo for Niall (he's Irish), I checked the weather (seems strange to check the weather after coming inside...).  It was -16 °C with winds around 24 km/h.  Overnight it is supposed to drop to -28 °C!

Niall holding a Guinness Irish flag.

We talked about our lesson plan and experiments for tomorrow.  I am really excited about the temperature experiment I get to do with the kids!!!  But I don't want to tell you about it just yet; I may be able to have Niall or Ashley video tape it.  Trust me, it would be a lot cooler to see than to hear about!

And since this post had a sombre start, here is a colourful ending: the Igloolik Radio building.

The Igloolik Radio building.