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Postcards from the North

John King
Northern News Services

Inuvik (Mar 20/06) - Hung Khuu stopped drinking when he started living in Inuvik. And in a way, it was the North that helped make Khuu the man he is today.

"I was a drinker, but since Inuvik, I realize how drinking can affect your life," he said.

Not interested in giving details, Khuu took a sip of his coffee and explained what he does now instead of turning to the bottle.

"I am interested in the land and people. I had heard a lot about the North, about the daylight and the darkness," Khuu said.

"There was an attraction to the North."

It didn't take long for Khuu to start spending all his free time out on the water fishing for Northern pike, or walking along the river in the early morning during the summer months.

Khuu likes the solitude of being out on the land when he's not working as a chef at the Caribou Cafe in the Eskimo Inn.

"It's more relaxed here, not so fast-paced," he said.

Moving to Canada from China when he was 13, Khuu says this country and the North, especially, is now his home.

"Anyone can be a Northerner, you just have to come over and realize it's not so bad," Khuu said.

"They don't clue in to what it is," he said. "All they understand is the North Pole, so I tell them about the Northern Lights, the people and places."

He does this by sending postcards, so that in some way his family can understand what he's chosen, and why.