Greenland PDF - Egypt Panorama Tours

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Greenland is the largest island in the world. Although it has an area of
2.2 million square km, only 410,000 square km is not ice-covered. ln
fact, the Greenland ice sheet is the second largest in the world. The
average ice thickness is 1,500 meters, and the ice sheet constitutes
10o/o of the world's fresh water: lf Greenland's ice cap were to melt, sea
level would rise by seven meters!
By TED COOKSON
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reenlond's first Stone Age
his expedition, his orrivol ushered in
j:",t
q coloniol ero thot losted some two
il
y?' " "x,"TJ:.';"..
5,000 yeors ogo. The Thule, who
were closely reloled to the lnuit,
qrrived loter in qbout 900 A. D.,
ond lnuit migrotion continued until
the lote nineteenth century. Norse
settlemenis were begun in 985 A.
D. ond losied until the middle of the
fifteenth century.
Europeon
wholers visiied Greenlond from the
sixteenth century onword,
ond
Norwegion priest settled ihere
1721.
Becouse
the priest
o
in
hod
received officiol Donish support {or
ond o hol{ ceniuries. A 1953
constitution gronted Greenlond
home
ru
le
u
nder
Do
n
ish
sovereignty. Essentiolly Greenlond
then become o province
of
Denmork.
Approximoiely 56,000 people
live in Greenlond. Of this totol,
some 49,000 were born there.
Over 75% of the populotion lives in
towns, of which Nuuk
on
Greenlond's west coost is the
lorgest. The cenirol portion o{
western Greenlond is ihe most
50
densely populoted. There 60% of
the people swell in ihe six lorgest
iowns. The remoinder lives o rurol
exisience in obout 120 troding
posts ond sheep stotions.
Sheep {orming is procticed in the
South.
Fishing, however, is the
moior industry; ond the cold-woier
prown is the most imporlont fishing
product. Greenlond holibut is olso
signi{icont. Prowns constitute 64%
o{ Greenlond's exports. Holibut,
crob ond cod moke up most o{ the
remoinder.
ln Augusi 2003 I soiled
on
Hollond Americo Lines' MS squore.
Rotterdom {rom Rotterdom the
New York Ciiy vio Greenlond. The
Rotterdom soiled through beoutiful
Prins Chrisiion Sund
(Prince
Christion Sound) ond then colled ot
the lown of Qoqortoq on
Greenlond's soulhwest coost.
ln southern Greenlond there is o
neiwork of chonnels ond {iords
streiching 450 km. Prins Christion
Sund, one
o{ ihese chonnels,
is
ABOUT TED COOKSON:
Egypt's most widely-troveled trovel
ogenl, Ted hos been 1o every country in ihe worldl He hos olso visited
gOZ of the 317 destinotions on the list of the Trovelers'Century Club
(visit www.epiours.com ond refer to World Trovel Club). A trovel ogent in
o fulltoiro since I986, Ted monoges EGYPT PANORAMA TOURS,
.l0,
the
neor
9
ond
(between
Roods
service irovel ogency, ot 4 Rood 79
"El Moqdi" metro stotion) in Moodi.
Coniocl Egypt Ponorqmo Tours (open 7 doys o week 9 AM-5 PM)
ot: Tels. 359-0200, 358-5880, 359-l 30.l. Fox 359-l I 99'
E-moil: [email protected]. Web siie: www.eptours.com'
(Possword {or residents: epicool)
novigoble only {rom the middle o{
summer until lote outumn. This
remote oreo o{fers spectoculor
scenery. G lo cie rs, wote rf o lls,
'l
400-meter-high groniie peoks ond
icebergs cqn oll be seen. Prins
Christion Sund is 58 km long ond
only 480 meters wide ot its
norrowest point. By comPorison,
the length o{ ihe Rotterdom is 237
meters.
Qoqortog, lhe lorgesi town
southern Greenlond with
is
o
populotion of 3,600, is situoted in
the oreo where Norsemen settled in
ihe tenth century. ls is uncleor why
Norse setilement
in
Greenlond
foiled by the fifteenth
century.
However, Norse ruins con siill be
seen todoy 15 km from town. A
Norwegion troder founded
Qoqorioq in 1775. The town wos
originolly nomed Junionehob ofter
Donish Queen Juliono Morie.
Julionehob become
the
lorgest
troding post in southern Greenlond,
ond it mointoins thot distinction
iodoy. The oldest stonding house
wos built in 1797
.
As is the cose with oll towns in
Greenlond, Qoqortoq hos no rood
conneciions with ony other citY.
cenier of Qoqortoq where severol
wooden ond stone houses dote
bock to the nineteenth century. A
ogo l8 Scondinovion
sculptors creoted works of ort on
solid rock {oces ond on boulders
lying oround town. Iodoy 24
sculptures exist. Too, Qoqorloq
boosts Greenlond's only fountoin.
.l928,
this sits in o town
Built in
squore. Finolly, there is o smoll
decode
museum.
lnsteod, the inhobitonts o{
Qoqortoq use {erries ond
helicopters
public
for
tronsportotion. Becouse the
horbor in Qoqortoq is smoll, the
Rotterdom sot ot onchor ond
possengers were token oshore by
ihe ship's tenders.
Qoqortoq is on ocodemic center,
with both o vocotionol school ond o
commerciol college which
interestingly, offers
o
course in
tourism. ln oddition, o
neorby
ogriculturol reseorch stotion troins
sheep {ormers ond operotes on
experimentol form.
h wos interesting to wolk in the
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