On Sunday, July 26, we parked offshore by the village of Nanortalik, which is a bit south of Paamiut—still on the southwestern shore of Greenland. It’s a slightly larger village, with a couple of tourist-centered souvenir shops. Dave and I tendered to shore, explored the village, and exercised our credit cards at the souvenir shops.
Since Greenland is a part of Denmark, the churches are built in a typical Nordic style. The other buildings are simple wooden structures, typically painted in bright colors. Historically, colors were used to identify buildings. For example, the doctor’s house and the clinic may have been blue, where the police station and fire station may have been red. These days, the colors are just randomly selected.
We noticed a lot of boats both in the water and onshore. It was frightening watching the local folks head out in small motorboats, without life jackets or even hats in some cases. But it’s the way they have always lived, and I admire their fortitude.
After returning to the ship, we began a new adventure. Our ship entered a fjord Holland America had never sailed before and took us to the end of the fjord to view a glacier. It was a surreal experience. We reached the glacier around 11 p.m. and it was still daylight. It amazes me how the ship can swing around in a small space so that both sides of the ship can view the glacier.
Today, Monday, July 27, we are cruising the Prince Christian Sound, where we’ve been able to view another, even larger glacier. The water is a beautiful marine blue with mountains all around. It’s just stunning. The air is clear and clean and cold. It’s in the low 40s again today.
I should mention that my favorite bite of the day (so far) was a “Forest Mushroom Crepe with Hollandaise” at breakfast. Oh my. I started breakfast with a smoothie, then the crepe, and finished it off with a mixed berry tart. It’s a good thing all my pants have elastic waistbands.
Tomorrow we are at sea all day, heading toward Iceland. Next stop: Reykjavik.