Tell me about this place: Iqaluit

[unclepercy]

Has anyone on this forum been to this place? I have googled it,
read a bit on it, seen a few of the inhabitants, and basically all I see are dirt roads, trailers, and a big satellite dish.

This is the capital of a province? Tell me about this place. I have never seen anything like it.

Uncle

 

[Jo Canadian]

Has anyone on this forum been to this place? I have googled it,
read a bit on it, seen a few of the inhabitants, and basically all I see are dirt roads, trailers, and a big satellite dish.

This is the capital of a province? Tell me about this place. I have never seen anything like it.

Uncle

I have never been there per se, I'm from Kugluktuk & Cambridge bay out west. A few of my friends live there now, or travel there on Gov't business. Iqaluit is a capital, but of a territory, and not a province...and compared to every other community in Nunavut it's considered a city, but not like the cities you'd find down south. There are dirt roads but it's more practical for a couple of reasons. First the roads would disintigrate about 3x a year due to the environment, and second, only businessess use trucks, everybody else uses 4 wheelers or skidoos, so there aren't many Big vehicles there.

You could find it with Google maps or google earth.

http://www.city.iqaluit.nu.ca/

 

[unclepercy]

I did google it, and I have tried to find the photo I ran across, but it's like looking for a needle in a haystack. I think it must have been taken about 10 years old.

Look at that school! What is that architecture? No windows? Wow. It is so strange looking. You probably don't think so, but when you are from the southwest US, it is unimaginable. And $44.00 for a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken? I'm in shock.

Thanks for finding a few more recent photos, but this is so fascinating....I must look up your area. BTW, what is the difference between a province and a territory? Is that like Puerto Rico is to the US? Now I have a new project!

Uncle

 

[Jo Canadian]

what is the difference between a province and a territory

One difference that I know of is that a province has a gov't that handles the revenues for the province and distributes it accordingly and sends a percentage off to the federal gov't. A territory has the Federal Gov't handle it's revenue, and the Feds then send off a percentage for the territory to distribute it accordingly. there is more but I'm not too familiar on it meself.

As far as prices go, it's always been expensive up there, but that's what you get when you have to fly everything up there. Lessee, from what I remember 2L of milk was around 7.25, a can of pop was 2.50 (1.90 at the Bay)...As far as fast food goes, yeah it is expensive, and it's only a recent luxury. If you went there 10 years ago the only way you could get K-fry or Mcdonalds was to give someone money who was going to Yellowknife and bring it back....that still happens with booze too, unless you freight it into town.

:lol: 9 years ago gas was 1.00/l in Cambridge bay, Ironically it's actually still around the same price, cheaper than what I'm paying here in PEI.

 

[no1important]

RE: Tell me about this pl

Frobisher Bay was the former name when it was still part of the North West Territories.

Frobisher Bay was also the name of a town on the bay. It used to be the administrative centre of the former District of Franklin of the Northwest Territories.

Its name was changed in 1987 to Iqaluit, meaning "place of fish" in Inuktitut. When the territory of Nunavut was created in 1999, Iqaluit became its capital. See Iqaluit, Nunavut.

 

[Reverend Blair]

Look at that school! What is that architecture? No windows?

Windows loose a lot of heat.

BTW, what is the difference between a province and a territory? Is that like Puerto Rico is to the US?

Not like Puerto Rico. Probably the closest analogy in American history would be what used to be called the Indian Territory before there were states out west. The administration and government relationships are a lot more complex, but that's as close as I can think of.

The next time you hear somebody say that Canada is the same as the US, remember Iqaluit, Uncle.

 

[unclepercy]

Jo -
If everyone uses skidoos and 4-wheelers, how do you keep warm while driving from one place to the other? It seems to me that if you went very far, you'd end up a popcicle.

I'm afraid we have the opposite problem - people leave their babies in the car in the summer, forget them, and they end up baked.

Uncle

 

[Hank C Cheyenne]

lol baked babies.....I wish I would be able to check out Canada's north, but seeing as how southern Canada is a freezer, when the time comes for a Vacation we usually head to Mexico or Florida..... but maybe someday.

 

[Reverend Blair]

If everyone uses skidoos and 4-wheelers, how do you keep warm while driving from one place to the other?

We wear toques. Sometimes we put on a sweater. :wink:

 

[Twila]

RE: Tell me about this pl

It seems to me that if you went very far, you'd end up a popcicle.

A friend of mine is from the Yukon. She's told me that you don't shower before work incase your car dies on the road. You'll freeze to death.

People who live in these types of extreme conditions usually have some very specific rules to follow. Such as the above. They dress for that type of cold. They don't worry about looking fashionable


I hate hearing about people leaving their kids in the vehicle. I just can't imagine leaving my child in the car alone.

 

[#juan]

Twila

One rule that is never broken(except for foreigners from the south) is that if someone is stopped on the side of the road, you always stop to give a hand or a ride. You never know, the next time it might be you who needs the help.

 

[unclepercy]

Re: RE: Tell me about this pl

It seems to me that if you went very far, you'd end up a popcicle.

A friend of mine is from the Yukon. She's told me that you don't shower before work incase your car dies on the road. You'll freeze to death.

People who live in these types of extreme conditions usually have some very specific rules to follow. Such as the above. They dress for that type of cold. They don't worry about looking fashionable


I hate hearing about people leaving their kids in the vehicle. I just can't imagine leaving my child in the car alone.[/quote]

It doesn't happen frequently, but maybe twice a year, we hear such stories. There was one about a grandmother who took care of her 8 month old grandson for her daughter while she worked.
One day she and her son got out of the car and went into the house. Each thought the other had brought the baby inside.

Since they ran a home business, the grandmother went into her home office and lost track of time. FIVE HOURS went by before she thought to check on the grandson. He was not in his bed.
If it had been me, I would have checked on him within 30 minutes if I thought my son brought him in.

The baby was dead in the car. No charges were filed. But that grandmother will probably never get over the guilt.

Uncle

 

[unclepercy]

Twila

One rule that is never broken(except for foreigners from the south) is that if someone is stopped on the side of the road, you always stop to give a hand or a ride. You never know, the next time it might be you who needs the help.

I think what you say makes a lot of good common sense. I just wanted to tell you that I have been practicing on my Canadian word pronounciation/and I have a friend who helped me learn to pronouce your city. Canada is the most fascinating subject to me. I can't leave it alone. Some of the people are a little aggravating, but I'm sure if we met in person over a cup of coffee, we would be laughing within 2 minutes.

Uncle

 

[#juan]

unclepercy

When I said "foreigners from the south", I meant anyone from below the northern provincial boundaries so that includes most Canadians.

Nanaimo? It's funny, people have trouble with that name but I can go to California and buy Nanaimo Bars.

 

[no1important]

I love Nanaimo bars. I hope Peapod can send me some for Christmas. :twisted:

 

[Jo Canadian]

Jo -
If everyone uses skidoos and 4-wheelers, how do you keep warm while driving from one place to the other? It seems to me that if you went very far, you'd end up a popcicle.

The 4 wheelers are only for the summer so travelling is a little limited to maybe 10-20 miles from the community (make your own path).

Skidoos on the other hand are used most of the year, sometimes even in the summer. :lol: You'll occasionally see an elder going around town in their skidoo with sparks flying all over. All you need is a Parka and a Hood, maybe a hat if it's colder than usual out. Some of my friends don't even wear hats. A good example would be -We'll call him Ook'Thok-. He could be bombing around on his skidoo for 5 hours out on the land with temperatures around -50 to -60 (probably colder when you're going fast on a skidoo), without his hood up and no hat, and when we stop the bastard is sweating?!?! 8O I may be used to the cold, but not to that degree! Lucky Inuk.

 

[GL Schmitt]

If I let my Google Earth search automatically, it appears to labour under the misapprehension that Nunavut is somewhere around one hundred miles west of Kansas City.

Where ever Google gets their satellite images, I don’t believe Nunavut is high on their priorities.

Manually located, Google claims that Nunavut is at Latitude 63.74, Longitude -68.55.

I still haven’t located a Nanaimo Bar.

 

[#juan]

Hi GL

I just googled Nanaimo Bar. You get quite a few hits

http://expage.com/page/nanaimobar

 

[Jo Canadian]

I use Google earth at work too. Unfortunately everything on the Nunavut map you have to find manually. It took me forever to find Sanikiluaq.

This can help you find the communities (it's a little outdated though but the places are still there)

http://uk.multimap.com/index/CA6.htm

 

[GL Schmitt]

Hi GL
I just googled Nanaimo Bar. You get quite a few hits
http://expage.com/page/nanaimobar

I wish I hadn’t read that.

Now, that I know that Nanaimo Bars might have originated from a hospital recipe cookbook, I will never be able to appreciate them as I once might have.

Over the years, I have suffered from an unwanted familiarity with hospital cuisine.

In fact, it was I who first spilled the beans by cautioning a friend to never order Shepherd’s Pie in our local hospital on a Thursday, because Wednesday afternoon is when the clean the O.R.


Oh well!

Thanks for the kind intentions, #juan, but I meant locate one physically, not virtually.