When I looked outside the living-room window today, I could see big groups of people standing close to shore. What were they all looking at? I felt thrilled while I reached for camera and binoculars, and spotted this beautiful polar bear passing by on the ice just outside of Ittoqqortoormiit.

Walking and jumping from one piece of ice to the other, standing still and sniffing once in a while, the bear didn´t seem to care too much about the sounds and smells of dogs and people.
Eventually he was out of my sight, and I decided to go outside, although I had hardly left the house for the last few days because of a twisted ankle. By the time I had walked to the closet viewpoint, the bear was heading away from town, and a few minutes later everything went back to normal – people returning to their workplaces or going home.

The bear wasn´t shot, since polar bear hunting is over now, starting again in january 2014.
Most hunters have been on and off narwhal hunting for the last couple of weeks, but just a single whale has been shot so far. I´ve been home alone for more than 14 days by now, while Ingkasi is staying at hunting places south of Kap Brewster (in Romerfjord, and, right now, at Steward Ø) waiting for narwhals. I am thankful to live in an age of satellite phones!
Meantime, I enjoy the view from my living room window, a view that is in constant change. This is how it looked last night:

I have actually felt a little frustrated by being stuck inside, having to rest my ankle, this week. ”But, you have a pretty good view from your house” a friend commented on my Facebook status when I complained about my little accident. I agreed. And today, I have stopped complaining. 🙂 I feel privileged to live in a place where I can watch polar bears passing by outside of the window, while I´m sitting on my couch!

P.S. I can´t post videos on this blog right now, but if you want to see a short video-clip of todays polar bear, let me know, and I´ll send it to your by e-mail!