Globe Corner Blogs

Lonely Planet Greenland & The Arctic

**The GCB recently coerced Santa (with the help of cookies and plenty of egg nog) to write a guest post for our blog**

In less than a week, I will be loading up my sleigh for my annual trip around the globe. Millions of little minds all over the world are wondering not only, “what will I get this year?!” but also, “how does he do it?” Well, my tiny tots, there is no GPS system in Santa’s ride. All year long I pore over world maps, country maps, city street maps until I’m sure I have the best route down. This is not to say I don’t keep a few in the mitten compartment. (Always make a wrong turn at Albuquerque…) Of course, the magic reindeer help out too.

Now, I come visit each of you once a year–it’s time for you to come visit me up in the North Pole! Maybe this year I’ll leave some brightly wrapped books on the Arctic region under your Christmas tree. Or perhaps I’ll just leave you a guide to the Arctic–or how about a guide to the animals here? It’s not just reindeer and snowmen, you know; there are even polar bears up here!

Things are pretty busy in the ol’ workshop these days, though, so hold off on your trip till after Christmas – and after Santa’s winter vacation in Cancun… As for now, just snuggle up in your PJs with some hot cocoa and make sure the grown-ups clean out the chimney.

The Last Polar Bear --by Steven Kazlowski

Last week Steven Kazlowski, author of The Last Polar Bear, visited our store and gave a slide presentation about his latest photographic journey into the Alaskan arctic. Some images left the audience cooing (myself most definitely included) at adorable polar bear cubs playfully tugging at the ear of their mother. But, Kazlowski also showed startling maps demonstrating the growing presence of human industry in the region and the diminishing range of sea ice, which is essential to how polar bears and other animals hunt and survive the extreme environment. Kazlowski’s intimate photographs of the harsh yet stunning arctic habitat elicit an emotional response that will easily prompt viewers to think and to read about the more serious subject behind his images: the warming of the arctic that threatens the delicate ecological balance that allows the polar bears (not to mention the Inupiat people, beluga whales, walruses, and arctic foxes) to thrive.
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