ARRIVING IN BARROW 1ST DAY OCT 10, 2012
I think someone is stuck on the ice outside my apartment window this morning. The sound of spinning wheels is alerting me to the new environment I find myself in. It must be around 3 am as it’s very dark outside, but no, it’s 9. I haven’t checked the temperature yet, but hope it is at least cold enough to be blog-worthy. I arrived to snow-covered twilight; flying into Barrow last night was magical. I walked, only because it was too slippery to jog, across the tarmac and into the hustle of people in big jackets, laughing children in parkas, and hugging couples in the small terminal to find Darlene Lord, the Director of Public Health. She greeted me warmly with her characteristic smile and jokes about the number of bags I brought on the plane. Did it seem like a lot, I asked? No, she brought twice that amount with her, enlisting her sister, a community health aid flying in for training to host two of her large and heavy tubs. I’m staying in a nicely furnished three bedroom a...
I have reservations about taking photos of the Inupiat people...it seems as though it would be intrusive. I think as I get to know them, I'll be able to ask and will enjoy posting them. I see a lot of young mothers with traditional parkas with infants being carried in their hoods, many beautiful fur ruffs on many hoods here to help protect from the strong winds and cold. Many, many smiling adults and laughing children. The men seem as involved in the childrens' lives as the women.
ReplyDelete...this is all to say that the photos to Atqusak don't reflect seeing the people living there, only prior to take off to and during the flight back. Next Friday I'll be flying in a similar plane to Nuiqsut. Will get more photos of the village, if not the people.
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