The storm of last night had blown itself out by this morning, so it was crisp, clear, and very cold, but not windy. The actual temperature was around -25, but with the windchill it was about -42. Calling the weather information number to find out how cold it is, is quite a regular pass-time here!

Walked to the hospital for a meeting, then did two cases: A finger tip injury repair from a skating accident, and a colonoscopy. The hospital has 34 beds, one operating room and one procedure room, and is the only hospital in Nunavut, so it serves about 20% of the land area of Canada. This creates a lot of problems, For example, women havinf babies have to come to Iqaluit weeks before they are due, in case they need a Caesarean section to deliver the baby.

Finished work at 11:30, had lunch, then set out for a brisk walk to make the most of the sunshine. Walked down to the breakwater, took a lot of photos. There were some Canadian Inuit dogs on the ice, barking away. It was beautiful, looking out over the frozen ice of the bay, watching as the sun set, at about 3:00 pm.

This is me, dressed up in my Arctic gear.
The red balaclava is the most useful item.
Even with it and a scarf, it is hard to keep your face warm
if there is a cold wind blowing.

Now I am back in my hotel room, sorting through the 90 digital pictures I took today. The place is so different from anywhere else I have ever been, and the combination of the white snow, black rock, and colourful buildings makes taking a photograph almost every minute hard to resist.

Tonight will be the first clear night since I have been here, so I have to steal myself to go outside about 11 pm to see if I can see the Northern Lights. Fortunately, it does not seem to get much cold during the day than it is at night!