Derek Neary
Northern News Services
Monday, April 02, 2007

IQALUIT - Their uniforms are different. Their rank structure is different.

And doing high kicks? That's something else entirely new to army cadets from the Fort Garry regiment in Winnipeg. They visited their air cadet counterparts in Iqaluit March 24-28.

The two units toured the city and the legislative assembly together, planned to go flying, went sliding and took a snowmobile trip to Tar Inlet.

Zachary Cousins, a 14-year-old corporal with the Iqaluit air cadets, was clearly amused by having witnessed the Winnipeg newcomers adjust to their first bumpy ride in a qamutiik.

"And we made a couple of iglus, which was pretty cool," Cousins said. "It was their first time."

There was also a chance for the southern cadets to try Inuit games, including the one-foot and two-foot high kicks.

"A bunch of people found it really hard to do," said Flight Sgt. Barbara Akoak of Iqaluit, who added that the ones who could meet cadet fitness standards performed the feat best.

Winnipeg cadet Robert Gale, 14, said he's starting to get the hang of the high kick.

"It's hard to do if you're not taught it from birth, or doing it in gym," he admitted.

Some of the visitors were also interested in learning Inuktitut, Akoak noted.

Sixteen-year-old Sgt. Richard Monzon, of the Fort Garry regiment, spoke in grateful terms for the opportunity to experience a place so different from his bustling city of more than 600,000 residents.

"It's kind of like culture shock to me. It's so much different than Winnipeg," he said. "I think it's cool how people in Nunavut know each other. They are all so friendly."

The aforementioned cadets all agreed that making new friends was what stood out amongst all the activities.

"As soon as we first met everyone just clinged to everyone," said Akoak, 18.

Akoak, who has been in cadets for six years, has travelled to Whitehorse for biathlon and summer training on a few occasions and the program has landed her in Yellowknife, too. She said she's looking forward to travelling again next year as the Iqaluit squadron ventures south as part of the same exchange program that brought the cadets from Winnipeg to the North.