Arviat (Sep 20/06) - Fresh off the plane from her trip to Peterborough, Ont., as a part of the Northern Youth Abroad program, Amber Tagalik is already planning for her next adventure.

"I'm applying for the (Northern Youth Abroad) trip to Africa, and I'm going all the way," said Tagalik, of Arviat.

With Africa on the horizon, and visits to Montreal, Ottawa, Quebec and Alberta under her belt, she is a seasoned traveller for a 16-year-old.

"My parents are proud of me," she said. "Sometimes they miss me, but they support me."

To take the trip to Ontario, she said she had to raise $700.

"We did that through teen dances, and penny sales," said Tagalik.

All of that hard work wasn't quite enough, so while in Peterborough, she volunteered at a youth camp.

"We worked with the kids," she said. "It was the really little kids, so we'd sing songs, read books, and we went to the beach every day."

She also spent a lot of time talking about Inuit culture and country food, as many people she met were very interested in learning about Nunavut.

The only time the young beach fanatic said she felt out of place was when she got the occasional stereotypical question.

"One person actually asked me if I lived in an iglu," she said.

While Peterborough is much larger than Arviat, Tagalik said she was intimidated.