78°55’30”N 11°55’20”E
Svalbard
The Arctic
So, can you name the northernmost civilian settlement in the world?
Here’s a hint:
A research town in Oscar II Land on the island of Spitsbergen in Svalbard, Norway. It is situated on the Brøgger peninsula (Brøggerhalvøya) and on the shore of the bay of Kongsfjorden.
At Sea
Aboard the MS Nordstjernen
Svalbard
August 8, 2015
My friends,
Here are a few facts about Svalbard:
Svalbard formerly known by its Dutch name Spitsbergen is a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. Situated north of mainland Europe, it is about midway between continental Norway and the North Pole.
Svalbard is the northernmost settlement in the world with a permanent civilian population.
On Board
MS Nordstjernen
The Greenland Sea
August 9, 2015
Hello,
Even the experienced guides had never seen such a sight!
A dead walrus? Sure. They had seen one before. They had seen a polar bear feasting on the carcass. They had seen a polar bear and her cub feasting at the scene.
But never before had they seen such a sight!
Longyearbyen
Svalbard (Spitsbergen)
August 7, 2015
Sawatdee krop,
I arrive at the airport in Longyearbyen.
It’s 10:00pm.
The evening sky is overcast. The clouds are bright.
A young guide greets me at the airport.
“When does it get dark?” I ask him.
He smiles and responds, “This is as dark as it gets.”
“Wow! I know my geography. I am above the Arctic Circle!”
Kåseberga
Sweden
August 1, 2015
Hello,
In the south of Sweden, on the bus from Ysad, I met a young man who told me to get off at Kåseberga, three more stops. From there I would be able to walk to Ales Stener.
The young man said he was also going to see Ales Stener so I was puzzled when he got off the bus well before the stop he suggested to me. When I asked him why, he said, “I am flying there.”
Flying there? It’s only a few kilometers!
