The spell of the North
There’s something about northern territories that I can’t quite explain.
I have often asked myself whether it’s about the oblique lighting, the pure air or yet the attitude of people living in remote places. Like a magnet, I simply feel attracted to the poles.
Let's brake the ice
In Finnish mythology, the Sampo or Sammas was a magical artifact of indeterminate type constructed by Ilmarinen that brought riches and good fortune to its holder.
But my experience with Sampo was a bit different!
I once hopped on the Sampo Icebreaker cruising on the Gulf of Bothnia, right outside the city center of Kemi (Finnland). This ship has operated since 1961, first as an icebreaker for the Finnish government, and in tourism since 1988. While the huge vessel breaks ice, a vast open white field displays all around.
Nothing compares to the Lofoten Islands
There’s a place on earth that I coundn’t possibly imagine it existed.
A composition of dramatic mountains and peaks, open sea and sheltered bays, beaches and untouched lands called Lofoten (Norway).
“Dream of freedom, fragile as a dragonfly’s
wing you were, bright-blue and shimmering.
Force is the reality that’s left.
Darkness and force. But the stars are lit on high. “
Sebastian Lybeck
Let it snow
Say January. Finnish Lapland. A pair of wooden skis. Me and my soulmate. An enchanted forest. Sunset at 2pm. Sitting on reindeer furs around a camp fire. Night skiing with head torches. Now hush: let’s silence utters its best verses when they fall on our ears in twirling snow flakes.
