Qaqortoq means "the white". The town was founded in 1775 and today, with more than 3,500 inhabitants, it is the largest town in South Greenland. 3,200 of the inhabitants live in the town itself, while the rest live in the three surrounding settlements, either at the two reindeer farms or at the thirteen sheep farms. The town has several fair-sized companies. The town's shipyard builds small fiberglass cutters. Great Greenland purchases sealskins, which they tan and sew into some of the world's most coveted furs. And Royal Greenland keeps supermarket freezers stocked with shrimps. The town square with Greenland's oldest fountain is situated close to the harbor where the fishermen arrive every day to sell the day's catch on "brættet". The square is encircled by some of the most well-preserved buildings from the colonial era, the oldest of which was built over 200 years ago. Several of these buildings still play an important role in the town's daily life where the old and new prosper side by side. Throughout Qaqortoq you meet examples of the unique art project 'Stone and Man'. Scandinavian sculptors have contributed pieces of art in chiseled granite, which transforms the town into one big sculpture park. Hotel Qaqortoq is the town's only hotel, but you can also spend the night at the Seamen's Home, the folk high school or the youth hostel, and dine at restaurants, cafeterias and other establishments.

Many different excursions can originate in Qaqortoq. You can sail to the hot springs to the south where you can bathe without feeling cold, even though you are at the 61° parallel. You can also sail to the glaciers north-west of Narsaq, to the Upenaviarsuk agricultural research station or to the well-preserved Hvalsø church ruin from the 14th century. Lastly, the beautiful area surrounding Qaqortoq abounds with hiking tours, both long and short in duration.

A visit to South Greenland will inevitably improve your sense of ice. You will discover that frozen water can be one of the most impressive sights in the world. And that the South Greenland landscape offers more vari-eties than a well-stocked Italian ice cream parlour

The South Greenland icebergs are nothing short of gigantic works of art created by nature in the most fantastic shapes and colours. This natural art museum can be reached from most towns and settlements by boat. If you åre lucky, you will see whales playing on the sur-face along the way.

the green turf is abruptly replaced by a gigantic ice-covered landscape with deep glacial clefts, huge caves and a chalk-white horizon shining as brightly as the sun. A scene of incomprehensible splendour.

The silence is perhaps the most overwhelming aspect of the ice, however. A quietness that delves deep into your soul and gives you an inde-scribable feeling of inner peace. People who love Greenland appreciate this fusion with nature more than anything else. The tranquillity beck-ons them back to Greenland. Again and again

Field ice is totally different. It consists of large saltwater floes formed in the Arctic Ocean north of Greenland. From here the ice drifts with the current more than 3000 kilometres down along the east coast around Cape Farewell and up along the west coast. Occasionally the ice packs åre so dense that sea traffic is discontinued and supplies must be flown in by helicopter. The advent of the field ice tells the hunters that the hunt for hooded seal can begin.
Lastly, there is the inland ice cap that resem-bles a giant sea of ice covering most of Greenland. You can both sail and hike up to it and see how.