homer

"Welcome to winnipeg" it said above the terminal entrance. At 8.p.m. wednesday 23rd, I arrived here. it's been an interesting trip all the way around...Arctic blizzard or not, I would not have traded this adventure for most things in this world.

Number one day in town, at the health centre, I had gazooks of people welcoming me to Rankin Inlet. On day 20 while getting ready to leave, having to go back to the health centre to print documents for flights leaving rankin inlet, I can only say it was like leaving friends I had known for years. There were no tears. Here, people move in and out like a merry go round.

The airport has three gates, not two as first reported here. They also have a sprinkler system. I have become somewhat of an expert in sprinkler systems and -37 degree temperatures. "Get the bucket" is the most appropriate response. I felt quite at home amid the fluid running along the baseboards and across the terminal floor. I missed it "by that much" as they used to say on Get Smart. Needless to say my early arrival at the airport allowed me to miss an encore presentation of fluid delight as the sprinkler head was replaced in the xray room. No pictures are available, unfortunately. The score was tied until near the end. The sprinkler heads won in a shoot out.

At the airport, in the space of 3/4 hour we had three 737's land and at least four maybe five fixed wing propellers planes fly in and out. Such was the backlog of people and goods needed to move and keep the economy of the north moving. The ground crew was amazing given the logistics of what had to be moved and what needed loading and unloading. Half the town arrived or left today, I think.

The sun was shining. People were smiling, except those expecting relatives from other settlements (remember, you can choose your friends). The airport crew were busy removing snow piles and trying to open the main entrance. Fifteen to twenty foot drifts blocked the main road and we all had to go along another airport access road to enter. Four hours later, the "cats" were still working to open the access.

At the airport, I saw many people I knew. I finally met the CEO of the health centre. On Monday, he was on the flight that went to within 50 feet of the runway and then aborted the landing and returned to Thompson-Winnipeg. I told him if he had paid full fare he would not have had the Rankin aerial tour but an actual ground tour of the town. We both laughed. I'll see how long it takes before my paycheque arrives.

Some of my first patients were there. I recognized them. I'm sure they recognized me. We chatted and one had been waiting six days to get back to town. It was the first time I could say "Welcome Back to Rankin Inlet". In hindshight, a more appropriate greting would have been "Welcome Home".

Today marks three weeks since I left Niagara Falls. I don't know where the time has gone. Almost 50 posts and over 450 viewers from england, scotland, spain, besides the North American continent have shown me there is interest in the Canadian North. The area is huge. The problems are also, but there is a constant effort to improve services to those living there.

If I were to thank anyone in particular, I would be missing someone. So, let me say it this way.

Thank you, Rankin Inlet.

NOTE: There are no photos tonight. It's been a long day. I'll make up for it soon with more posts with photos. Thanks for stopping by. This has been a great experience and another yet as good just telling it. The blog desk closes friday!