Back in the south

This time I actually managed to make it out of Ottawa airport! I left Igloolik yesterday morning which was still sheathed in the low cloud or fog which started on Monday. When we landed in Iqaluit the sun was above the horizon! I was surprised by quite how excited I was by that, after all, I had only been in Igloolik for just over a week - imagine how it would be if I hadn't seen the sun since November? Arriving in Iqaluit also brought home to me how small Igloolik really was. After the last few days of community celebrations it felt strange to be queuing in a line of predominantly white people for my flight to Ottawa. I've been privileged to go somewhere and experience somethng very special. Like many aspects of life I think I will probably appreciate it differently in retrospect and at the moment the comparisons with the southern world I have come back to are adding a new dimension to my memories. This morning I woke up at 7 and it was light! The sun is above the treetops in the neighbouring garden as I write... sun...and trees! (I have to confess however that I rather like barren treeless landscapes - maybe that has something to do with growing up in Scotland.) I even took a shower without guiltily feeling that I was wasting someone else's water supply. Every couple of days water is supplied and sewage removed from each house in Igloolik by truck (obviously two different trucks!) So if one uses too much water then one just has to wait till the next delivery. There is a more serious problem this year in that a pump is broken and the town's reservoir is running dangerously low. It looks as though the town will run out of water before the spring and if that happens there are only two options: either the government has to evacuate the entire community or it will have to pay for water to be flown in on a daily basis.

I feel very much that this is a new beginning. Tomorrow I have a lift from Ottawa to Ste-Agathes-des-Monts in Quebec. From there I will be driven by minibus to Cochrane, Ontario where we will catch a train north to Moosonee. Then we'll begin 5 days of cross country skiing allied with demonstrations of traditional Cree methods of survival, hunting and cooking. I imagine it will be a complete contrast to my experience in Igloolik - I certainly hope so! Being out in the backcountry means that the blog will be silent for a week or so...but by the time it returns I'll have loads to write about!