Advent calendar 2020 – 24: Nuuk, Greenland

Nuuk feels like the end of the world, but no, it’s a booming town of 18 000 people and the capital of Greenland, an autonomous territory of Denmark adjacent to Canada.

Greenland was traditionally settled by Inuit and Thule peoples; the first Europeans to arrive were the Icelandic settlers in 986. Norse settlements disappeared in the 15th century with colder global temperature which caused the settlers to either starve to death or abandon the settlement. Denmark resettled the island in the 18th century. Godthåb (Nuuk) is from this resettlement.

However, if you do complete the following virtual tour, you will come to the “end of the world”, nickname for the scenic spot that is the end of the road out from Nuuk across the bay. There are no roads between most settlements in Greenland.