Tag: Sweden

Pello, Sweden to Rovaniemi, Finland

Today when we woke up we saw a reindeer grazing in the field behind the house we were staying in. We have been told that the collars identify to whom the reindeer belongs.

Reindeer outside our window

About 11:30 we had a van pick us up to take us to Rovaniemi, Finland where we are tonight. It was raining pretty hard when we arrived. Finland is a new country for both Duke and I. It is Duke’s 69th country and my 55th.

Leaving the SBC Guesthouse in Sweden
Arriving at the Arctic Lights Hotel in Rovaniemi, Finland

Later we went out exploring a bit.

Marimekko, a Finnish store known for its iconic designs.
Reindeer, pickles, mashed potatoes and lingonberries

We had an excellent dinner in the Hotel restaurant

The waitress said my reindeer with lingonberries and pickles was a traditional Finish dish.

Pello Day 2

We had a lovely restful day today at the guest house we are staying at near Pello, Sweden on the Torne River.

This morning we went for an amazing walk in the forest around where we are staying. I have never experienced an environment such as this Lapland Forest before. The ground was like walking on pillows. Everything was covered in deep moss.

There were many many mushrooms of many many varieties. We saw blueberries and lingonberries. We learned all sorts of interesting things but the best thing about the walk was that our Finnish friends Sinikka and Pekka knew all about Finnish nature and showed us so many things we wouldn’t have seen otherwise.

Pekka with a Mushroom
Mushroom
Sinikka explaining this poison mushroom
Lingonberries

We also learned about a Nordic building called a Lavvu that is essentially an indoor fire pit. It’s too bad we didn’t have some sausages to cook for lunch.

A Lavvu
Inside the Lavvu
The 6 of us by the river

Kiruna to Pello

This morning we caught a city bus to the bus stop in the old part of Kiruna. We were right across from the church that they are in the process of moving to New Kiruna. The city bus ride was good because we got to see many of the homes in the new town.

A new Kiruna house
The old church that is being moved.

About 1:30 we boarded the bus to Pajala. It was a nice drive. The countryside reminded me of Northern Wisconsin or Minnesota. At one point we saw a reindeer cross in front of the bus.We are definitely in Lapland.

Reindeer crossing the road in front of our bus.

When we arrived in Pajala we were were met by Roger and Gayle’s friends and the lady from the house we are staying at in Pello. They drove us to the house.

The house where the 6 of us are staying
Dinner

After dinner we walked down to the river. The other side of the river is Finland.

Finland is on the other side of the river

Narvik, Norway to Kiruna, Sweden

We got off the Havila Polaris on Thursday in Finnsnes and took the bus to Narvik where we spent Thursday and Friday nights. This morning we took a train 3 hours and 20 minutes east and a bit south to Kiruna, Sweden.

Our route from the coast of Norway to Kiruna Sweden

The train ride today was beautiful and fascinating. Much of it was along the fjords and through the mountains. Before we arrived in Kiruna we came out of the mountain into pretty much flat land.

On the train
Through the mountains
More of our view from the train

Kiruna, where we are tonight is home to Europes largest iron ore mine. The town itself is being moved because the enormous mine under the old town put the town in danger of sinking into the ground. Our train arrived in old Kiruna and we took a taxi to our hotel in new Kiruna.

Kiruna train station
The view from the train station
Our hotel – Scandic Kiruna
The view from the hotel window

For dinner we walked to a nearby restaurant. The guy at the door told us it was a fast food restaurant. We ordered at the counter and picked up our food when our number came up.

Spill restaurant where we ate dinner
Inside Spill restaurant
My pasta with reindeer meat and loganberries
Duke’s seafood pasta

We are currently at latitude 68 north. You can see how far north that is in this map.

Latitude 68 north

On the way to dinner I saw this sign. I have no idea what it means.

Sign in Kiruna Sweden