Some Iqaluit Trivia

Questions:

Walking towards Iqaluit from Apex

1. What does Iqaluit mean?

2. In the 1940s which country built an air force base on the land that is now the City of Iqaluit?

3. Although Iqaluit was the original Inuktitut name for the area, the community was also known as ________ until being officially renamed in 1987 (Hint: the name that appears on my parents' old atlas).

4. How many official languages are there in Nunavut?

5. Name the official languages (4 pointer!)

The Legion: Bonus question

6. In which year was the Territory of Nunavut official formed?

7. What is a utilidor?
a) Iqaluit's sub-terrainian mass-transit system
b) a door to your food storage area
c) a corridor between buildings to avoid the cold
d) an above-ground pipe for water and sewage

View from our window: kids playing on sealift crates.

Bonus: Explain the rationale  behind the order of the flags in front of the legion





Answers:

1. A place of many fish

2. United States

3. Frobisher Bay

4. four

5. Inuktitut, English, French, Inuinnaqtun

6. 1999

7. d

Bonus: Good for you!

9-10 points: You factster!
8 or under: Keep learning along with me

I am learning

Iqaluit on Koojoosee Inlet
Our apartment is somewhere on the right hand side of the photo

The past two weeks as a newcomer to Iqaluit has been a journey of learning. Learning inside and outside: about my new surroundings and my ever-swirling thoughts and feelings. My intention is to record my thoughts and observations as they shift and grow in an environment that is new to me.

Visiting friends and family before moving to Nunavut I often found myself sharing what I had already learned: basic geography about the territory, information from conversations with friends who had lived here in the recent past. I quickly realized the limit of my knowledge as well as the curiosity I shared with others to know more.

Over the past two weeks, my questions continue to overflow. I feel like a four-year old again. Why? Why? Why? I find some answers but I am working on sitting with not-knowing, an invitation to being open to the complexities of life in the North. So, I am slowly exploring the city and mainly walking the edges where I am awed by the expansive beauty of the tundra and the freshness of the ocean.