Karen Haynes Filskov
Name
Karen Haynes Filskov
Profession
IT- & Project Manager
Where were you born?
Ilulissat, Greenland
What do you work with?
I work for a company called Destination Disko, which work with development of tourism in North Greenland. Right now we cover following towns: Kangaatsiaq, Aasiaat, Qasigiannguit, Qeqertarsuaq, Ilulissat and Uummannaq. I develop and make updates on our websites, make advertisements and brochures, go to fairs all over the world a couple of times every year to promote North Greenland.
What do you love about your job and why?
I get to work with development of tourism in an area that I love dearly. The job is really interesting, challenging and rewarding.
Where do you live and why?
I live in my hometown Ilulissat in Greenland. I grew up here and then went away to go to high school and college in Denmark and all the time, that I have been in Denmark, I have missed my family and the beautiful, beautiful nature. I live here because this is the place where I feel at home.
Where would you aspire to live?
I want to stay here in Ilulissat. I just came back 1 ½ year ago and I’m not going anywhere else for a long, long time.
Where is your favorite holiday spot in Scandinavia?
I love spending the summer here in Ilulissat and the North Greenland area. During the summer I love to go hiking and sailing. The winter is spent with dog sledding and visiting family and friends.
Where is your favorite local restaurant? What is their specialty?
My favorite local restaurant is the brasserie at the Hotel Arctic. It is cosy and the food is really good. They have today’s fish, which is really good.
What do people do in your town for entertainment?
During the summer they go fishing, hiking, seal hunting, visiting family and friends in other towns and settlements, go to festivals, spent a couple of days in a cabin. The summer entertainments usually involve a boat, which almost everybody has in Greenland. During the winter they go dog sledding, visit family and friends in the town, a lot play bingo, watch movies. Almost every Greenlandic person goes to some kind of sport; handball, soccer, badminton, inuit games, kayaking, volleyball, skiing, taekwondo.
Do you have a secret spot where you live which is like nowhere else in the world?
Yes! North Greenland is really spectacular and unique. The town I live in is situated right next to the most productive glacier in the northern hemisphere. And there are therefore gigantic icebergs right next to the town. The town Qeqertarsuaq is situated on a huge island which is of volcanic origin and it is possible to go dog sledding there during the summer on the glacier above the town. Uummannaq, Aasiaat and Kangaatsiaq are blessed with a perfect nature to go kayaking and that amongst whales. Uummannaq is also known for hosting the world championship in ice golfing, have really interesting mineral deposits and Santa Claus actually lives there. In North Greenland we have several months of midnight sun during the summer and several months of northern lights during the winter.
What is your favorite shop in your town?
It depends on what I want to buy. I usually go grocery shopping in Pisiffik, which is the biggest supermarket in town. I don’t buy that much clothes right now, because I have just moved in to a new apartment, so a spent my money on different things for my home at the time. And when I buy clothes, I usually buy it when I’m in Denmark.
What is your favorite Scandinavian purchase from the supermarket?
I usually buy Greenlandic products at the local fish and meat market, for example whale meat – it tastes really, really good and costs approx. DKK 60/ kilo or I buy halibut – the halibut tastes really good as well and costs approx. DKK 35/kilo.
What do you think represents amazing value in Scandinavia?
The amazing value of North Greenland is definitely the beautiful and unique nature.
What does Scandinavia mean to you?
When I think of Scandinavia, I think of Denmark, Sweden and Norway, but I answered these questions including Greenland as Scandinavia. Scandinavia to me is also wooden houses, trees, harmony and cosiness.
How do you celebrate Christmas?
Christmas is celebrated somewhat different in Greenland than in for example Denmark. On the first Advent everybody in Greenland put at least one Christmas stars in the window. Christmas stars are usually stars made out of paper and there is a light bulb inside of the star.
On the 24th of December the closets members of the family get together usually at the oldest person in the family’s house around 8-9 o’clock in the morning. We sing three specific hymns, dance around the Christmas tree and get gifts. Afterwards we have coffee or tea and cakes and cookies. After that we continue to the house of the next person in the family, there we dance around the Christmas tree, get gifts and have more coffee or tea and cakes. Then we continue to the house of the next person and the next and the next and this is not just to the closets family member’s house, it is also to the rest of the family in Ilulissat, which is huge. So we do this on the 24th, the 25th and the 26th, sometimes also on the 27th and the 28th.
On the 24th of December the closets family eat together in the evening at my grandmothers house and on the 26th we eat together at my mothers house and on new years eve we eat together at either my grandmothers house or one of my uncles house. We also go to church on the 24th of December. And during the Christmas days the family goes together out to the cemetery and put candles on the graves to remember and honour the dead.
Do you have a favourite recipe that you would like to share with us?
Oven baked Halibut Put vegetables on the bottom of an ovenproof tray, clean the halibut and put it on top of the vegetables, add a can of coconut milk and season with salt, pepper and paprika (you can also use curry instead of paprika). Approx. an hour in the oven at 200 degrees Celcius. Serve with potatoes or rice. Bon appetite!
What do you think is the strangest thing about Scandinavia?
I can’t think of anything strange right now. Well, in the capital of Denmark for example I don’t understand why people run after a bus that goes every 3 min.
Destination Disko
If you want some hot tips on what to do and see in this amazing part of Scandinavia, Destination Disko is the place to go.
Website: www.northgreenland.com