John Thompson
Northern News Services

Iglulik (June 27/05) - Maybe it was the trip to the zoo that compelled Alex Arnatsiaq to dangle like a monkey from the trees.

Beatrice Irgnaut from Iglulik poses in one of the parks of Midland, Ont., while visiting in late May with other Grade 9 students. - photo courtesy of Rob Belliveau

Whatever the motivation, when he and 20 other Grade 9 students from Iglulik recently visited Midland, Ont., and toured parks in the area, he decided to get a better view from the branches above.

"It was hard at first," he said of climbing the tree. After getting over a few branches, he got the hang of it.

Students from Midland had visited Iglulik earlier in the year as part of an exchange program.

Other highlights included a trip to Paramount Canada's Wonderland, where Arnatsiaq felt his stomach leap into his throat while diving through the air on rides like the Drop Zone and the Nightmare.

One thing Arnatsiaq missed about home was the cooler weather.

"It was pretty warm down there at night," he said. "I had to keep my window open."

Neither did he enjoy smelling barnyard odours when he visited a farm and learned how to milk a cow with his own hands. It was the first trip south for fellow student Beatrice Irgnaut, who was taken aback by some animals she saw in the zoo, particularly the giraffe.

"It was huge. I'd never seen a giraffe," she said.

She also experienced a meaningful cultural exchange during a visit to the Christian Island native reserve, where she watched and listened to aboriginal drumming and dance.

Afterwards, she helped demonstrate traditional Inuit throatsinging and sports like the high kick.

"It was awesome," she said.