Lapland trip, day 3

Awoke to coffee and toast with marmalade. The Australians explained the difference between jam and marmalade to me (the later has the rind in it, and is bitter).

We got up nice and early because our cabin was also the kitchen, and Pieter was already cooking for lunch. After a leisurely breakfast we headed out for cross-country skiing. The little village of course is surrounded on all sides by wilderness. We followed a path that went into the woods and past the river. It was completely gorgeous. I was surprised how much I enjoyed cc skiing. You’re outside, it’s beautiful, your getting a workout, wonderful! Sam and I (the two Americans skiing) were also the only two who didn’t fall down at every minor hill. It was about a 30-40 minute trail. After this we just kinda hung around, waiting to leave. Hindrick came with another group of sledgers. They started chopping wood while we ate lunch. This time our group ate in the bbq shack. We grilled chicken over an open fire.

Then we all started the long walk back to the dogs. I had high hopes that we wouldn’t be so cold, because we hadn’t been waiting outside for 3 hours before hand. No such luck. The sledge ride was still nigh unbearable. It’s funny how such a wonderful little trip can be bookended by such unpleasantness. We finally got back to our hotel and we just sat around drinking wine and talking.

Day 4. We rented two car because they are hella cheap. We started out early because we had a lot to pack in and didn’t want to miss our plane. I drove one car due to my experience with icy roads. We drove for multiple house northwest, towards Norway. It was nice to drive a car again. The scenery was very white and snowy. Sometimes the other passengers slept, and other times we talked. We tried car games but those failed. We ended up just singing off key together. We went through all of “Bohemian Rhapsody”, as well as a number of other songs. The little towns we passed had nothing in them. The biggest town, marked really largely on the map, had one gas station/café/restaurant, which didn’t open until 1 pm on Sundays. We passed one sign for a town and didn’t see a single building or turn off road.

The Norwegian border crossing consisted of a little building you could pull over to if you had something to declare. We didn’t even slow down. 2 hours into the journey we are at Norvick, on the Atlantic ocean (see the map, two posts ago). The fjords were awe inspiring. We crossed over the crest of a hill, looked down at the bay and just said “…..wow.” Norvick was a little city by city standards, but bigger than anything we’d passed yet. It’s was really picturesque how these colorful little houses were built right into the sides of mountains. We took a few pictures, grabbed food at a gas station, then turned around. We had a schedule to keep, after all.

Driving back most everybody fell asleep. I had a nice conversation with Dylan about all sorts of stuff. I saw a moose. The main difference between Norway and Sweden is…I don’t know, Norway seemed more rocky I guess. They are very similar. Norwegians have æ and ø instead of ä and å (they make the same sound). We got lost in the city and Sandra asked for directions. Sandra is Finnish, and speaks Swedish. The Norwegians we asked spoke only Norwegian. There was no barrier to communication.

Last stop before the airport- the Ice Hotel! It was pretty neat. It was one floor, about 2 dozen regular rooms (just a bed) and 2 dozen suites. Each suite had a unique design. The beds and chairs are covered in reindeer pelts. For sleeping they give you this thermo sleeping bag with you can seal up to your nose. I had had enough of the cold and struggled to understand why someone would pay the amounts of money this hotel charged to sleep in sub-zero temps.

There was also an Ice Bar and an Ice Church (covering both ends of the moral spectrum). The ice bar was sponsored by Absolute vodka. I got a hot lingonberry juice, which was delicious. See pic, at beginning of post.

We finally drove the car to the airport, and flew home. I finished Lolita on the plane.

THE END

-The Wandering Norseman-