William and Kate visit Canada's far north

YELLOWKNIFE, Canada — Prince William and new bride Catherine landed in Canada's far north Tuesday to meet aboriginal groups who still refer affectionately to his ancestor Queen Victoria as "grandmother."Under drizzle and overcast skies in Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories, the indigenous Dene people prepared to greet Britain's royal couple with dancing and singing to the beat of caribou skin drums.After the performance, honoring both aboriginal and Christian prayers, William and Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge, were to be treated to an afternoon of Arctic sports and lessons in tribal governing by consensus.Area aboriginals signed the British monarchy's first Arctic treaty 112 years ago at the height of the Klondike Gold Rush with William's great-great-great-grandmother, Queen Victoria. A century later, she is still affectionately referred to as "grandmother" by locals.William and Catherine were to meet Canadian Rangers, who patrol the far reaches of Canada's Arctic, as well as aboriginal elders, and observe aboriginal games described as "tests of strength, agility and endurance," key to living off the land in this harsh environment.They will also be taught aboriginal hand games, historically played to gamble for bullets, furs, dogs, toboggans or match sticks -- these involve using elaborate hand gestures, and the hiding and guessing of objects.They will also have an opportunity to stickhandle a ball (in lieu of a puck), during a game of street hockey in the birthplace of ice hockey.Street hockey or "shiny" is a popular summer substitute for Canada's winter pastime, and is similar to field hockey.The political highlight of the stopover will be an opportunity to see in action the territory's unique form of government, which combines aboriginal traditions with Westminster's parliamentary system.There are no political parties in the Northwest Territories assembly. Rather, its 19 members meet after elections to choose a speaker, a premier and six cabinet ministers from among themselves, and govern b

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