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Kulusuk, Ammassalik, Greenland |
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A town with only
310 people living in it, Kulusuk may seem a strange portal to the world's
largest non-continental island. However, the traditional fishing village of
Kulusk happens to be just that for many travelers and tourists coming into East
Greenland. As Tunu's administrative capital, Tasilaq is bereft of the required
flat space, Kulusuk is in fact home to East Greenland's busiest international
airport. Air Iceland sells packages from Reykjavik, including 1-3 day tours.
The tiny airport terminal is by no means fit to handle the amounts traffic of
day it gets during peak season.
The village of Kulusuk is located about
15 minutes walk from the airport. It is a small and simple place with a
population of just over 300. While there isn't a whole lot to see or do in the
town itself, Kulusk is located on at the banks of a bay merging out into the
iceberg infested north Atlantic Ocean. For most visitors, Kulusuk is nothing
more than a stop-and-go place en route to Tasilaq. However, the scenery is
simply mesmerizing and if its your first visit this part of the world, as it
was mine - than its definitely worth the effort to spend at least a night.
Fortunately I bumped into local resident Icelander Johann Brandsson, who
conveniently owns the Kulusuk Youth Hostel and was able to do just that. For
the day tripping tourists, the locals do sometimes put on a traditional dance
and kayak hunting show. |
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| Getting to Tasilaq from Kulusuk can be an
adventure in itself. The traditional method is by helicopter. However, I
managed to get a local fisherman to take me along in his fishing boat. It was
quite a boat ride, zooming through icebergs that looked like skyscrapers in our
tiny boat. A whale even surfaced right in front of the boat - another thing
you'd only see in Greenland! |
This was outside my hotel window one morning |
The village of Kulusuk |
Flying into Greenland |
Shots from the air |
Traditional Greenlandic dress |
Kayak-hunting demonstration |
Above: seals
are part of the staple diet |
Below: Polar bear at the Kulusuk
airport |
My host family |
the
fisherman who gave me a ride to Tasilaq |
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