Friday, Sept.20, 2019 – Qaqortoq, Greenland

We walked near a couple of old Cemeteries here in town. We like to visit cemeteries and read the inscriptions. It makes me wonder about these people who have passed on.

It was interesting to me that all the graves are marked with white, wooden crosses. Why not headstones instead. This place is a giant rock for heavens sake. No stone carver? Perhaps that might be a job opportunity here. Do you know the difference between a graveyard and a cemetery, by the way?

Greenland is the largest island in the world and belongs to Denmark, for the moment. It is rich in heavy metals by the way, which might be why you know who wants to buy it. We have little heavy metals in the United States.

I was about to use the word America. Think about that word for a moment. Everyone who lives in North, Central, and South America are Americans. Just a thought.

There is a large stone bluff or cliff behind part of the town. It is nicely carved with scenes of whales, fish and Narwhales.

The “Love Bench” sits across the street and up the hill to the right a little. It is carved with three seats and human forms around the edges. Don’t be fooled by the bench up and to the left of the tourist center like we were.

I was a pretty good provider by the way, but one wife at a time is plenty for me. Thank you very much.

By the way, the traditional woman’s attire and hair wrapping color here told others of her marital status in the distant and murky past.

We saw a few cute, pudgy babies on our walk here. They were so sweet looking, bundled up against the cold. My wife loves to take pictures of the children we see on our travels.

The “Tupilak” is a mentally created creature that is or was created to go out and attack one’s enemies. It had no form, but a shaman’s carvings showed it to be an amalgam of several animals put together as one.

That is how it is seen today by the local wood carvers. We now have one to hang with several other carvings and masks in our small place. These carvings almost look like some African art.

I can see that this little place could be a paradise for maritime artists with it’s working fishing boats, old battered equipment, wharves and brightly colored buildings. As long as the weather remains nice as it is today, it might be a charming place to stay for awhile and paint. It is cold, but we are dressed for the weather and feel fine.

I am glad that we got to come here and meet the people and see this small wonderful place. I will remember it always.