Sunday, August 25th, 2024
Today we visited Qaqortoq, Greenland. Qaqortoq means “white” in the Greenlandic language. Cruise tourism was the main income for the town. Its population was approximately 3,000. The town sits between steep hills. It was the 4th largest town in the country.
The fog was still thick when we woke up early in Qaqortoq, Greenland. We were on the first tender off the ship. It was very difficult to see!
Today was a walking tour of the town on our own. Qaqortoq was the only town in Greenland with a fountain. It was a gathering spot for the locals.
We visited the Church of Our Savior. Inside we listened to a local who gave some history of the town. Outside the church was a memorial to the Missionary Hans Egede and his wife who came to Greenland over 300 years ago.
The town had a unique art display. It was organized by Greenland artist Aka Høegh who was born in Qaqortoq. Other Nordic artists participated in created almost 40 works of art throughout the town. The project was named “Stone and Man” with each of the works crafted in stone. Click through the slides below to see many of these unique stone pieces.
There were many colorful Nordic homes around but it was difficult to see with the fog!
The last tender back to the ship was at 1:00 PM. By the time we returned the fog had lifted over the town. The pictures below showed the colorful town of Qaqortoq from our ship docked in the bay.
Once our ship sailed from the protective bay the fog was rolling back in!
In the late afternoon as we sailed, we attended the guest lecture by Rear Admiral John Lippiett. He talked about the Mary Rose, Henry VIII’s flagship.
Before dinner we attended another guest lecture with Sue Stockdale. She discussed the Inuit people, their sled dogs and how things have changed.
Our visit in Qaqortoq was hampered by fog but we still enjoyed walking around the town.
