Ilulissat is the fourth largest town in Greenland, with 5000 inhabitants. This is Ilulissat seen from the Southeast, looking towards Northwest. The harbor is just to the right of the picture, to the North.
When you arrive to Ilulissat by boat, your are greeted by a very colorful view. Nature is not very colorful in this region, so the inhabitants do their best to liven things up.
The town church, Zions Church, was built in 1782, and was paid in full by a collection among the locals. Behind the church to the right, just out of sight, is the Knud Rasmussen Museum.
Ilulissat Harbor is known to be closed due to ice during the winter season. However, in the recent years it has remained ice free, and if this global warming trend continues, Ilulissat will replace Sisimiut as the Northernmost ice free harbor on the West coast.
On this picture you have the town administration in the bottom right corner, on the road going up from the harbor into town. The road going across the picture to bottom left is the road to Hotel Arctic and the airport. The large pipes coming out of the blue house just right of the small fiord behind the harbor and splitting into pipes running left and right is the main water supply. Most of the water comes from the lake just left of the picture as surface water. This presents some problems as dog sleighs cross the lake in winter time, and when the ice on the lake melts in Summer, whatever the dogs left behind during the winter crossings get into the lake water, requiring it to be extensively cleaned before it can be used as drinking water.
The Southern quay is the commercial one. Royal Greenland operates a fish processing plant here. The large grey building is the town warehouse, allowing the inhabitants to buy large quantities of whatever they need, and store it in the warehouse during the winter season, when ice prevents ships from entering the harbor.
Just after 2000, the town began laying central heating pipes around town. In Greenland this presents some problems, as the ground is almost completely made up of rock. One of the local plumbers has a sign saying: "Vi sprænger dine rør!", translated to English "We blow up your pipes!". What is meant that he offers laying of pipes in the "ground" using dynamite.
Streetsigns are adapted to local conditions. Here you need to beware of dog sleighs. This is a seasonal thing, of course. All Summer the dogs are tied up in one location with a chain, and fed there. They sleep most of the time - or howl in concert during the bright nights in the midnight sun.
Next page - The Ilulissat Glacier, Sermeq Kujalleq
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