Second Week & Sealift

Even though the second week of school was the first full week (5 days) of teaching, its pace was nevertheless faster than the previous week.  At least, that's what it felt like for me.  The landscape was still without snow but the weather began to feel like autumn.  Coupled with the start of the school year made me think it was already September, not August.  As for transportation, All Terrain Vehicles (ATVs) are still the favoured mode for residents.  They're quick and fun to ride.  As for me, I just have my two feet.

            

Every morning on my walk to school, I would be 'greeted' by the sight of the Canadian Coast Guard Ship Des Groseilliers anchored in the bay.  With only one anchor deployed, the cold Arctic waters would slowly spin the vessel from left to right.  Looking at the ship made me wonder what it would be like to live and work on a vessel that size.  That question was answered on August 22 when the staff of Inuujaq School were given a tour of the ship.  (More on this in a future post).  Before the Des Groseilliers departed on August 23, several crew members had come ashore to buy things at the Northern Store and Co-op.  It was easy to spot them because of their heavy French-Quebec accents.

            

By the end of the first week, my Grade 10 Social Studies students had finished the first section of the Identity unit.  We continued with the second section of the unit by looking at regionalism and alienation in its basic understanding.  To demonstrate what an individual or group can do when they feel alienated, we looked at the Idle No More Movement and the protests that were held across Canada and in the United States just last year.

            

For Grade 11 Social Studies, my students looked at the feudal system of France in the 1700s and how this form of governance led to calls for radical changes to society.  This of course eventually led to the Revolution of 1789.  Nationalism and national identity played important roles during this tumultuous period, and the ideas of democracy & equality it spawned are still practiced in many countries around the world.

            

My musicians learned drum maintenance, how to set up the equipment, basic drum rudiments, and beginner warm-up exercises that teach drummers to play in unison and with the same sticking.  They may not see it but from the audience's perspective, a uniform drum line looks very impressive.              

            

My Grade 12 Social Studies students were deep into the first unit of the course: Choices.  The first unit is about what it means to be a responsible citizen and the important choices that comes with it.  The textbook is detailed and contains many good ideas, but there are quite a lot of big & complex words that need to be simplified & explained.  Thankfully, my students have me.

            

August 23 felt like an early Christmas because the local movers arrived to deliver the 10 large boxes I shipped from Ottawa on August 1.  The cost of airlifting them was covered by the Nunavut Government.  I was glad to see that everything had arrived in one piece and I spent the entire evening unpacking and organizing.

            

The first snowfall 'after summer' occurred on Saturday, August 24.  Dark grey overcast clouds had rolled into town and sprinkled snow on the top halves of the surrounding mountains.  King George V Mountain appeared to be equally divided into two parts: the top in white and the bottom in brown.  The sight made me think of a cake with icing on top.

            

MV Umiavut

It was Christmas in August for Arctic Bay residents when the first sealift vessel arrived on the 25th.  The MV Umiavut, a multi-purpose container ship owned by NEAS, dropped anchor in the bay, bringing with it many shipping containers and vehicles that had been ordered by Arctic Bay residents.  The town was the ship's third stop in its annual milk run to the northern communities.  From early August to mid-September, the Umiavut will deliver supplies to 13 northern communities.  Due to a lack of a deep sea port, the containers and vehicles had to be lowered onto barges and then pulled to shore by small tugboats.  There, large loaders would lift the containers off the barges and place them on the ground.  The process was repeated several times. 

            

This first sealift is locally known as the Northern Sealift because a large portion of the delivered supplies were ordered by the Northern Store.  The area around the Northern Store was crowded by coloured shipping containers, oil drums, and loaders.  It appeared as if a small commercial port had magically sprung from the ground.  Many locals (including students) jumped at the chance to help offload and stack the Northern's goods in its warehouse because they would get paid for their labour.  Human chains were a common sight.  Later, the empty containers were loaded onto the barges and dragged back to the Umiavut. 

            

Inuujaq School's sealift order also arrived on the Northern Sealift.  A blue shipping container and three very large wooden boxes were delivered to the front of the school.  On Monday, the high school students emptied their contents and brought everything inside.  The school's main hallway was stacked with boxes of various sizes.  They contained anything and everything that a school needs to function.

            

Anna Desgagnes

The 'Christmas' festivities continued on August 27th with the arrival of the MV Anna Desgagnés, a multi-purpose vessel owned by Transport Desgagnés Inc.  This sealift is locally known as the Co-op Sealift because the majority of the delivered supplies were for the town's Co-op store.  Once again, there was a lot of activity in front of the Northern Store as shipping containers were unloaded, emptying, and then loaded back onto the barges.  Several of my students chose to miss class and help out with the sealift because the Co-op also paid for manual labour.  Receiving cash for work is a strong incentive due to the lack of jobs in town.

            

Barges, tugboats, and loaders are used in all northern communities for sealift deliveries because none have a deep sea commercial port.  There have been talks about building deep sea ports in Iqaluit and other communities but when that will happen is anyone's guess.

            

The sealift orders of private citizens came on both vessels.  To offload any freight costs, people sometimes order as a group.  They just need to be ready to sort through everything when the sealift arrives.              

            

With the sealift complete, the price of pop (soft drinks) has dropped significantly.  To clarify what I wrote in a previous post, newer, fresher pop was being sold at higher prices while the prices for the older stocks were much lower.  The Northern & Co-op stores were trying to get rid of their older stocks and make way for the 'new pop'.  The consumption of pop must have spiked several days before the arrival of the sealift ships.

             

And finally, the days of 24-hour daylight are no more.  Night has made a slow but steady return.  When the sun disappears behind the mountains, it sinks further than the day before.   

School Begins

The first day of school for teachers began on Monday, August 12.  Staff were given the morning to put their classrooms in order and to prepare lessons.  It was nice to see all the familiar faces again.  After lunch there was a staff meeting where the principal welcomed everyone back from summer, introduced two new teachers, and laid out the schedule for the first week and month of school.  Teachers also received their timetables and class lists.  Before heading back home, I made sure the correct number of course outlines and handouts had been printed for all four of my classes.  This semester I would be teaching Grades 10, 11, & 12 Social Studies, and Music 10.    

            

The morning of August 13 started really early for Inuujaq School staff because the gym and food needed to be prepared for the 'Welcome Back Breakfast' for students, parents, elders, and invited guests.  Fruit, bread, hardboiled eggs, crackers, cheese, juice, tea, and coffee were on the menu.  As I helped out with the preparations, feelings of the 'First Day Jitters' surfaced.  Yes, even teachers get those feelings.  Despite having everything set up, questions still swirled in my mind.  What kind of students will I have?  How will they react to my teaching style?  Will they like what I have prepared for them?  Did I forget something?  I think I forgot something.  I did my best to ignore those thoughts and carry on as if nothing was bothering me.

            

The first school bell of the 2013-14 year rang at 8:40am.  Students streamed inside, taking off their outdoor shoes, and hanging up their coats.  My first class in the morning was Grade 10 Social Studies and it would be the largest.  Standing in front of a crowd of fifteen to twenty students, I introduced myself and welcomed them to my classroom.  I went over the course outline in detail and let them choose the colour of their folders.  By that time, everyone was called down to the gym for breakfast.  It was 9:30am.  I would have to wait until the next day to start the first unit: Identity. 

            

The gym was packed with people.  School staff were wearing blue Inuujaq School t-shirts.  The festivities started with an opening prayer in Inuktitut.  Following the introductory speech by the principal, the food was served by teachers, beginning with the kindergarten class and elders.  Parents and visiting guests followed after the high school students.  While everyone munched on their meals, teachers were individually called up to the front to introduce themselves.  I didn't have trouble making up a speech 'on the spot' - (I made it up while walking up to the microphone) - but I still found it odd to hear my amplified voice coming from the speakers.    

            

After the school wide breakfast, teachers & students returned to class for the remainder of second period. Second period would be my Grade 11 Social Studies class.  I had taught several of the students last semester.  Going through the course outline took less time than I thought, so I took the risk and jumped straight into the first unit: Nationalism.  I wasn't surprised by their tired looks; when I was a student, I too never liked doing work on the first day.  Regardless, they got through the material until the bell rang for lunch. 

            

Yamaha Quads

Yamaha Bass Drum.

After lunch came Music 10.  For this semester, the music course would centre around marching percussion.  Before the summer, the principal & I talked about how to expand the music program.  When I mentioned that I had experience playing percussion in concert bands, orchestras, and in cadets, we decided to start a drumming class.  With the budget I was given, I was able to purchase five Yamaha marching drums, practice pads, sticks, and hardware stands to hold the drums.  I also received complementary music folders and tuning keys from St. John's Music.  Even though all the equipment was still at the post office, I still had my personal sticks and drum pad to show to my five students.  I also showed them several drum videos for inspiration.  For the first week, I would teach them holding the sticks, maintaining proper posture, basic rudiments, and taking care of the equipment.  

            

The last class of the day was Grade 12 Social Studies.  Of course, I introduced myself, went over the course outline, but most importantly, explained the social studies project.  Instead of a final written exam, students are required to complete a project as a final assessment.  The project is completed during the semester and is worth 30% of a student's final mark.  Since there was still plenty of time left in the period, I started the first unit: Choices.  Eventually, the bell rang and my senior students vacated my classroom.  I had made it through the first day.

            

I sat down behind my desk and breathed a sigh of relief.  The first day is always the slowest day of the year.  And then I realized there was many more school days left.  I stayed late, planning detailed lessons/activities and making lots of photocopies.  Since I still didn't have a clear picture of the pace, and likes & dislikes of my students, I over-prepared so that I had many options to choose from.       

            

The next day (August 14), Arctic Bay was visited by HMCS Summerside, a minesweeper of the Royal Canadian Navy.  As a treat, the cadets of 3045 Army were excused from afternoon classes and given a tour of the vessel.  They were driven to and from the vessel in a dinghy.  Unfortunately, I had to stay behind and teach.  However, I did manage to snap some photos of the ship from my classroom window.  From what I heard, the cadets had a really good time.  HMCS Summerside left Arctic Bay the same day.

            

After school, I walked over to the post office to see if I could just take the box containing the drum pads and sticks.  The drums and hardware were too heavy for me to carry and I needed a truck.  Frank, the town's mayor, happened to be in the store and offered to ferry all the boxes in his truck if I could find any helpers to load everything.  It took less than a minute to find an army of volunteers; everyone helps everyone up here.  I hopped in the back of the truck and held on until we arrived at the school.  The students hanging around the school's new swing set were eager to help me carry everything inside.  New 'things' attract a lot of attention.  I removed the practice pads, sticks, and music folders from the boxes and placed them in my classroom.  I waited until the weekend before inspecting all the hardware and tuning all the drums.  This semester was going to be loud & rhythmic.

            

A different vessel came to visit Arctic Bay on August 15: the CCGS Des Groseilliers.  CCGS stands for Canadian Coast Guard Ship.  Des Groseilliers is a T1200 Class Medium Arctic Icebreaker and was built in 1982.  The Coast Guard visits Arctic Bay every summer just before the arrival of the sealift.  Des Groseilliers would be anchored in the bay for a week.      

            

Like the first day, the first week of school is the slowest week of the year.  This is because the familiar routine has yet to be established.  There were times when I thought the first week would never end.  When the weekend finally arrived, I made sure to have some time to myself before preparing lessons for the second week.  I now had a better idea of what to expect in each of my classes and could plan accordingly.  With the first week completed and the routine established, it was safe to assume that the pace would pick up and the following days would go by faster.

Revisiting King George

Road to Nanisivik.

On Saturday, August 10, I decided to take a break from preparing for the first day of school by hiking up King George V Mountain (KGVM).  Again.  The first time was back in May when there was still plenty of snow on the ground (click to read Part 1 & Part 2).  There were several reasons behind my decision to climb the mountain before the start of the academic year.  First, I assumed that with a full load of 4 classes to teach, I would barely have any time to do the hike during the school year.  Secondly, I wanted to show everyone down south what the Arctic landscape looks like without the presence of snow.  And with that in mind, my third reason was to complete the hike before the weather started to get cold.

            

I left my residence at 10am, carrying a backpack that included sunscreen, gloves, hat, digital camera, several apples, and candy.  The sun was out and the sky was blue.  There weren't that many people outside and the town was mostly quiet.  I was greeted by several people as I passed the Northern Store, school, and power station.  To get to King George, I followed the road to Nanisivik, passing through the town's industrial area that is locally known as the 'Gas Station'.  Here residents fill up their vehicles, ATVs, and skidoos from one of the four large oil tanks.  The Gas Station is located less than a kilometre from the town proper and is also home to Arctic Bay's heavy utility vehicles. 

            

After passing the Gas Station, the imposing mountain that King George is came into full view.  "Guess who's back?" I asked out loud.  I took several pictures of the surrounding area as I walked along the main road.  There was a lot of green flora on the ground, most likely fed by all the melted snow and runoff water from the mountain.  The pyramid-looking mountain across from KGVM reflected clearly off the blue water in the bay. 

            

I moved over to the right at the sound of an approaching truck.  The truck stopped next to me, revealing the driver to be the town's mayor.  After explaining my reason for being out past the Gas Station, Frank wished me good luck in climbing King George, and continued driving.  His truck left a lingering trail of dust in the air.  I turned off the main road and walked towards the secluded landfill.  Naturally, the mounds of garbage were being picked apart by loud seagulls and ravens. 

            

My previous climb had taught me that unless I had climbing equipment, it was best to ascend the mountain from the sides.  I decided to head over to where the skidoo trail would be during the winter, between KGVM and a smaller mountain with a bright red crown.  The crevasse between these two mountains was also covered with grass and small plants.  There was also a stream of clean water.  All the water had made the ground in this area very soft, forming around my hiking boots with every step.  About halfway up, I stopped at a nearby rock for a short break and to eat an apple.  Behind me was a clear view of Victor Bay.

            

"Marble Cake Mountains"

Upon reaching the base of the mountain with the red crown, the ground had turned into an endless collection of rocks.  Many were loose but many were also half buried in the ground.  I treaded carefully, judging every step.  There were still scattered patches of grass, but up here, the rocks dominate the landscape.  After some time, I made it to the slope I slid down back in May.  Back then, it was covered with a smooth layer of snow, but on this day it was nothing but rocks.  After photographing some very large rocks, I proceeded up a grass covered incline to my left, the same one I ventured up some three months ago.  The view at the top was different than my first ascent.  The mountains to the north were a mixture of many colours: yellow, red, brown, beige, green, and white.  For some reason, the colours made me think of marble cake. 

            

I walked over to the familiar odd looking red rock formation with the strange white top and found a way to climb up to a protruding ledge.  From here I closely photographed the white top before sitting down to enjoy the views of Arctic Bay & Victor Bay.  A commercial plane, most likely coming from Europe, soared high above me, its two engines emitting a long contrail.  After several minutes, I continued my hike towards King George. 

            

Mountains next to Victor Bay.

The views from where the
Inukshuk stands are
breathtaking.

As mentioned in my previous posts, the summit of King George V is a plateau covered with beige rocks.  And I mean a lot of rocks.  The way the rocks lay on the ground made me think of the landfill down below.  Standing next to a large, tall, and circular inukshuk of beige rocks, I filmed a 360 panoramic view of the summit and photographed the Greater Arctic Bay Area down below.  I then walked down to a smaller inukshuk that stood on a protruding red ledge and sat down next to it.  I ate some candy as a way of celebrating my climb to the top and observed the area through my binoculars.  The water in the bay and beyond was smooth and reflective, like a brand-new mirror.

            

Arctic Bay

Arctic Bay Airport.

I headed over to the left side of King George and photographed the airport.  The gravel runway could clearly be seen.  Further to my left, I photographed the area that Inuujaq School used for its spring camp back in May.  With enough pictures of the summit and the surrounding area, I decided to try something new by making my descent towards the airport.  I wanted to test the level of difficulty. 

            

The mound of jagged rocks.

The first part of the descent had me walking through a line of red rocks that stretched for several kilometres to my left.  This proved to be the easy part.  The real challenge began after I cleared the line.  Rather than aim for the airport terminal building, I chose to descend along the side of King George.  Doing so led me to a large mound of jagged rocks.  Stepping on a few convinced me that the majority of them were loose.  Taking my time, I slowly descended down the mound, one step at a time.  I was glad I was wearing my hiking boots.  After clearing the rocks, patches of green foliage appeared.  I hopped from one to the other and made it safely down to the main road.  A group of dogs, obviously part of a dog team, eyed me curiously as I began my walk back to Arctic Bay. 

            

I took several more photographs of the town, trying to capture its reflection in the bay.  I walked by two more dog teams before taking one last photo of KGVM.  A few minutes after passing the gas station, the sound of a truck instinctively made me move over to the right.  The truck slowed down and stopped next to me.  It was Frank.  "Would you like a ride into town?"

            

"Sure," I replied.  "Just drop me off at the Co-op.  I have to do some shopping."

My excursion to King George had taken me just six hours to complete.  

King George V Mountain. Elevation: 492 metres (1,620 feet). Source: Google Earth

   

The Move Back To Arctic Bay

The movers came to pick up a number of large items at the beginning of August.  I didn't want to take the large boxes with me because I would have paid a small fortune to check them all in as luggage.  After signing the documents, the movers explained that it would take up to three weeks for all the boxes to arrive.  They were surprised to hear that I was travelling so far north, some 3,120 kilometres.  With the heavy stuff out of the way, I focused on packing my suitcase and resource box.  The resource box contained textbooks, games, and office stationary for my classroom.

            

I caught my flights to Arctic Bay on August 5th, a week before the start of school.  I wanted to be in town that early so that I could get my classroom & residence in order, and ease back into the community.  The morning began with a morning flight from Ottawa to Iqaluit on a First Air passenger jet.  The principal of my school happened to be on the same flights.  There were other familiar faces on the plane but I didn't know them by name.  Since I had breakfast before the flight, I chose to forgo the lunch that was being served.  Before lifting off from Ottawa, we were warned that our flight could be diverted because of fog in Iqaluit.  Thankfully, that didn't happen.  The plane safely touched down in Iqaluit, three hours after departure.

            

My connecting flight would not depart until 2:30pm so I stuck around the terminal and waited.  The building was packed with passengers.  There are plans for a $300 million dollar expansion of the airport which would include: a new larger terminal, expanded apron, repaved runway, and new lighting systems.  The construction phase is scheduled to take place between 2014 & 2017.

            

By the time 2:15 rolled around, the terminal was no longer crowded.  Since the plane was a turboprop, passengers didn't have to go through enhanced security screening.  A loading bus took us to the parked plane.  Usually, it's 'open seating' on the turboprop flights; it doesn't matter what your ticket says.  I took a seat at the front (more leg room), which actually was the middle of the plane.  The front half is reserved for the cockpit, luggage, and freight.    

        

The First Air turboprop lifted off the runway a little past its scheduled departure time but it didn't concern me.  We would be in the air for another three hours.  After touching down in Arctic Bay, the plane would continue on to Resolute.  I also chose to forgo the complementary lunch that was being served on the flight.  The passengers were mostly qallunaat (non-Inuit) than Inuit.   

            

Looking down at the land, I was in awe at how everything looked without a thick layer of white snow.  When I flew down in June, there was still snow on the ground; this time, there was none.  The colours of the rocky landscape were brown, black, beige, and red.  The melting snow had created thousands of pools of water.  The red mountains & hills made me think of Australia and the red planet Mars. 

            

Pockets of green vegetation began to appear as the plane neared Arctic Bay.  I snapped several more pictures before the plane landed on the gravel paved runway.  The waterways were completely free of ice.  As I stepped off the plane and took in the familiar surroundings, I muttered to myself, "Utiqtunga (I'm back)".

            

The principal and I got a ride into town by a local Inuit man for $20.  Unfortunately, the town's only taxi wasn't working.  After letting myself into my residence, I set about unpacking all my belongings and putting everything back the way it was before I left in June.  When that was done, I pretty much crashed on my bed.  It felt good to be back.

                              

I spent the next week carrying books and other resources to my classroom, rearranging my classroom, writing course outlines, preparing lessons, and greeting locals.  The temperature hovered between 4º & 14ºC.  I was frequently stopped by people wanting to know how my summer went and where did I spend it.  I lost count at how many times I heard the phrase, "Welcome back!"

            

My classroom in the high school wing looked exactly the way I left it in June.  I went through all the drawers and cupboards to remember what textbooks and resources I had at my disposal.  And then I checked if there was anything I could discard into the garbage.  Next came arranging the tables and chairs.  I decided to try a different setup than the one I used last semester.  I was pretty much alone in the high school wing because all the other non-Inuit staff had yet to arrive.  Most of the Inuit staff instruct K-6. 

            

Writing course outlines aren't difficult; they're just time consuming.  They give students a heads up on what they will learn in the course, how they will be marked, and what the teacher expects from them.  It's also a good way of laying out the ground rules and what will and will not be tolerated in class.

            

Since it's summer and the waterways are open, the locals are awaiting the arrival of the annual sealift.  The cargo ship is scheduled to arrive during the last week of August.  To save money and time, people living in communities across the northern territories order supplies of any kind (minus contraband) from down south and have it brought up by ship every summer.  Families and individuals order supplies and materials that will last them for the year.  The cargo vessels sail from Montreal.  Though it takes longer for orders to arrive by sea than air, the sealift is actually cheaper when ordering in bulk.  There are a number of companies that run sealift operations in the north, for example, NEAS, Sealift Express, and Desgagnés Transarctik Inc.

            

Of course, the sealift is a great way to replenish depleted stocks of supplies.  I write this because the town's Co-op is currently facing a shortage of pop.  Right now, a can of Coke costs $6 and a 2L bottle (the first I've seen in the north) costs $28.99.  Forget drugs and alcohol; looks like a lot of money can be made from 'bootlegging' pop.  I'm not saying you should because that's not what the people of the north need right now.  What they need are more healthy food options at affordable prices.  Thankfully, the Northern Store isn't experiencing such inflated prices on pop.   

           

And lastly, when it comes to time, the Internet may say one thing, but the locals of Arctic Bay say another.  We actually follow Eastern Time, not Central.  I'm not sure why; I just roll with it.