Lapland and Festivities

Midday in Kiruna - Sweden's northernmost town

As the end of the semester approached, it was time for the must-do thing for anyone studying abroad in Sweden: Lapland! Now, having already been living in the Gothenburg winter for quite some time, I found it hard to imagine it could be much colder up there. I found out – after 22 hours on a bus to Sweden’s northernmost town, Kiruna – that it really is much colder. But thankfully I brought my entire wardrobe with me.  And so, after climbing into thermals, 3 t-shirts, 2 jumpers, a fleece, a pullover, tracksuit, jeans, 3 pairs of socks, 2 pairs of gloves, jacket, coat, hat, scarf, and a thermal suit to go on top of it all, I was ready to hit the snow. First, dog sledding. For about an hour, 12 husky dogs (by far the sweetest animals I’ve ever come across) took 4 of us gliding through the Lapland snow as we watched the sun rise, as much as it can be called a sun rise (the sun doesn’t rise above the horizon at all, instead it looks like a permanent sun set for the four hours a day it is out).

Dogsledding, then a change of transportation to a snow mobile

After a day in Kiruna, it was time to leave for the Abisko National Park, with a stop first at the world-renowned Ice Hotel, still in construction. The unique design of each room is truly amazing, and even better, any person with an idea and who is handy with a pick axe can apply to build a room! Onward to Abisko, where a barbeque in a Sami tent was followed by some northern lights chasing. Luckily, they appeared both nights we were up there! No amount of pictures can make up for witnessing them live. I could watch them for hours and completely forget I was outdoors standing still in subarctic temperatures!

Inside the Ice Hotel

Back in Gothenburg, they were getting in the full festive mood. A Christmas market or a glögg (mulled wine) stand seemed to appear on every major street. Also, the Christmas period coincides with Sweden’s ‘festival of light’, which means literally every building is lit up in some way by mid-December, making the lack of sunlight a lot more tolerable! After a lovely Christmas at home, I’m now back in Sweden with less than two weeks to go (trying not to think about it). 

Posing at the Arctic Circle

Gothenburg in full Christmas mode!