Greenland

Located right between the fringes of Canada and the frozen landscapes of Iceland, Greenland is literally on top of the world.

It is a land of jagged mountain peaks forever covered in ice, majestic fjords with a carpet of flowers blooming in summer, and polar nights, sun dogs, and enchanting auroras. It is a place where people hardly venture inland and roads disappear at the town’s end.

Greenland is regarded as the largest island in the world, and its population of approximately 58,000 in 2011 is one of the least dense among nations. Most of the inhabitants are the Inuit, who have been living on this land for more than 4,000 years.

Greenland is a dependent of Denmark and receives all the goods and services of the modern world from the European kingdom. The island is also represented by the Danes in world affairs. Nonetheless, home rule was granted to the Greenlanders in 1979, and self-government was implemented in 2009.

The official language is Kalaallisut, or Greenlandic, and most Greenlanders speak Danish. Basic English is also spoken in big towns and tourist places. Greenlanders practice Christianity as their faith, and most of them belong to the Lutheran Church of Denmark.

While Greenland is widely considered as an expensive destination, the reward far outweighs the cost. Visitors get a firsthand experience of the land’s remote wilderness: polar bears hunting for fish in ice holes, caribou herds grazing on a patch of frozen grass, and birds guarding their nests in crags near the coast.

The Greenlanders have always been hardy and independent people whose pioneering spirit rubs off on those who keep their company, even as tourists.