Taking It Easy in Nuuk
The purpose of this trip wasn’t to visit famous tourist attractions or join organized tours.
I simply wanted to escape the European heatwave and spend some time doing absolutely nothing.
So every day, I would look around on Google Maps and take a walk to places that caught my attention. It was an incredibly luxurious way to spend my time.
Here are links to the other articles in my Nuuk travel series!
Part 1 (Departure–CPH), Part 2 (Arrival in Nuuk), Part 3 (Exploring Nuuk), and Final Part (Returning from Nuuk)
（当ブログの記事をまとめたポータルページはここです）
（オンラインショップを始めてみました。是非こちらからご覧になってください。）
Amazon.co.jp
あなたと一緒に作る海外旅行【トラベル・スタンダード・ジャパン】
My Favorite Spots in Nuuk
After walking around the city, there were two places that particularly stood out to me.
The first was the viewpoint at the end of Isaajap Aqqutaa.
From here, you can see the colorful Nordic-style houses, the mountains stretching out beyond them, and the sea all at once.
The hill is also wonderfully windy, and with temperatures below 10°C, it was comfortable even while wearing a fleece.
It was so pleasant that I actually ended up taking a nap on the grass.
Coming from a world where temperatures had reached 37°C in Europe, this felt like heaven.
Looking out toward the sea, I could also see small pieces of ice slowly drifting in the water.
“I’m really in Greenland.”
It was one of those places that made me realize that again and again.
Another favorite of mine was the viewpoint at the end of C. E. Janssensvej.
On the way there, you walk through terrain that feels almost like a small valley.
With exposed rock formations and cold winds blowing through, it makes for a very pleasant hiking route.
It may not be a spectacular tourist attraction, but perhaps these ordinary landscapes are exactly what makes Nuuk so appealing.
You Can See Icebergs Even in Summer
When people hear “Greenland,” many probably imagine enormous icebergs covering the sea.
However, you won’t see scenery quite like that in Nuuk during summer.
What you can see from the city are smaller pieces of ice scattered across the sea, some of which eventually wash up along the shore.
Of course, it was still incredibly impressive.
As I watched the sea, I could see large chunks of ice slowly drifting by.
They were more than impressive enough to photograph.
For Spectacular Icebergs, Visit Ilulissat
According to travelers I met locally, Ilulissat is the place to go if you want to see truly spectacular icebergs.
They even showed me some photos they had taken there, and the sight of enormous icebergs filling the sea was absolutely breathtaking.
However, the cities in Greenland are not connected by railways or roads.
Travel between cities is primarily by air.
And because small propeller planes are commonly used, cancellations and delays caused by bad weather are a regular occurrence.
The locals I spoke with had a very casual attitude toward it:
“If the flight leaves as scheduled, that’s lucky.”
Since I had just experienced an equipment problem in Copenhagen myself, I decided not to push my luck by traveling farther and instead spent my time relaxing in Nuuk.
Visiting the Greenland National Museum
While in Nuuk, I also visited the Greenland National Museum.
Here, you can learn about Greenland’s history and culture, as well as the traditional way of life of the Indigenous Inuit people.
The main exhibits include:
- Kayaks used by the Inuit
- Clothing made from seal skin
- Hunting equipment
- Models recreating traditional homes
and more.
The exhibit that impressed me most was the recreation of a traditional home.
Mattak was laid out on the dining table, and the recreation was so realistic that I almost felt like someone was about to eat it.
An Exhibit I Found Particularly Interesting
One exhibit I personally found fascinating was about two airports that were once used as gateways to Greenland:
- Narsarsuaq Airport
- Kangerlussuaq Airport
Although their roles have changed with the expansion of Nuuk Airport, these airports originally have a history connected to military use.
Greenland is also home to regions with relatively stable weather, and the exhibit was particularly interesting from the perspective of the history of air routes in Greenland.
If you’re an aviation enthusiast, I definitely recommend checking it out.
Exploring the Supermarkets in Nuuk
Whenever I travel abroad, I always make a point of visiting supermarkets.
That’s because I think they’re one of the best places to see what everyday life is really like in a particular country.
In Nuuk, you’ll find supermarkets such as:
- Pilersuisoq
- Brugseni
- SPAR
Of these, I used Brugseni the most.
There are also SPAR stores, but they felt more like convenience stores in Japan, with many of the locations being relatively small.
How Expensive Is Greenland?
The Nordic countries are famous for their high prices, but Greenland takes things even further.
For reference, these were some of the prices I saw:
- Milk (1L): around 19 DKK (about ¥430)
- Juice: around 30 DKK (about ¥680)
- Potato chips: around 30 DKK (about ¥680)
- Pasta (1kg): around 22 DKK (about ¥500)
- Tomato sauce: around 16 DKK (about ¥360)
*Exchange rate: approximately 1 DKK = ¥22–23.
They certainly aren’t cheap, but it’s not quite as extreme as “everything costs three times as much as in Japan.”
If you cook for yourself, you can significantly reduce your travel expenses.
I Bought Some Mattak
Since I had come all the way to Greenland, I wanted to try something that was truly local.
That’s when I found mattak (Mattak) at a supermarket.
Mattak is a traditional food made from the skin and underlying layer of fat of whales. It has traditionally been an important source of nutrients for the Inuit people.
It is also rich in vitamin C, making it an important food source in the Arctic, where fresh vegetables can be scarce.
At the supermarket, I found several varieties, including fresh and smoked versions.
I decided to buy the smoked type.
Then, at the checkout, a local person who told me they liked Japanese came over and started talking to me.
“You bought that?”
“Yes.”
“But that’s smoked, you know? We don’t usually eat it like that.”
……
Wait, what?
I thought I had bought the recommended local specialty, but apparently I had picked something a little more niche. Haha.
By the way, the appearance of mattak also varies depending on the species of whale used.
It is commonly made from narwhal, beluga, bowhead whale, and minke whale, each of which can have slightly different colors and textures in the skin and fat.
Trying Mattak for the First Time!
Back at the accommodation, it was finally time to try it.
The first thing that surprised me was how hard it was.
The skin in particular was extremely tough, and it was difficult to cut even with a regular steak knife.
In the end, I had to use a kitchen knife to cut it into smaller pieces.
The fat, on the other hand, started releasing oil almost immediately as I cut it.
And when I finally tasted it…
It was surprisingly delicious.
The smoky flavor was strong, and the longer I chewed, the more savory flavor came through.
The fat was also incredibly rich and slightly sweet.
The only problem was the skin, which I simply couldn’t chew through.
In the end, I had to spit that part out.
Do locals really eat the skin like that?
That remained a mystery to me.
The price was around 300 DKK per kilogram (about ¥6,800), making it quite a luxury food. However, even around 50g was more than enough for one serving.
The supermarkets also sold whale meat sausages.
A Danish traveler staying at the same hostel had bought a large quantity of these sausages, which made me think, “I guess these are pretty popular too.”
Nuuk’s Largest Shopping Center
Nuuk is also home to the city’s largest shopping center.
It’s nowhere near as large as a major shopping mall in Japan, but it has souvenir shops, supermarkets, stores selling everyday necessities, and more, so you can find most of what you need during your trip.
The Brugseni I mentioned earlier is also located inside the shopping center, making it a convenient place to combine souvenir shopping with grocery shopping.
And yet, I couldn’t resist the temptation and ended up buying a 30 DKK cream cake.
As for the taste… well, it tasted about as good as a supermarket cake in Japan. Haha.
I guess when traveling, it’s always better to choose something that you can only find locally.
（当ブログの記事をまとめたポータルページはここです）
（オンラインショップを始めてみました。是非こちらからご覧になってください。）
Amazon.co.jp
あなたと一緒に作る海外旅行【トラベル・スタンダード・ジャパン】
コメント