The Colours of Another Sky

“There are a few moments in your life when you are truly and completely happy, and you remember to give thanks. Even as it happens you are nostalgic for the moment, you are tucking it away in your scrapbook.”

- David Benioff, When the Nines Roll Over: And Other Stories

I've fallen in love with sunrises - they signal the beginning of a new day with the colours of a new sky. But sunsets are great too, with colours so vivid and intense that they seem to bleed. 

Sometimes their beauty just hits you in the gut, and leaves you breathless. 

This is a photo project I've been working on - to capture the colours of other skies.

Starting from the top, left hand corner (L-R)

1. Sunset in downtown Lund, Sweden

2. Sunset at Delphi, Lund, Sweden

3. Sunset in Krakow, Poland

4. Sunrise at the Spanish Steps, Rome, Italy

5. Sunset/Moonrise in Narvik, Norway

6. Sunrise in La Défense, Paris, France

7. Sunrise at Lund Centralen, Sweden

8. Sunset in Kiruna, Sweden

9. Sunset at the Sacre Coeur, Paris, France

Stories from the Arctic: The Moonrise

Impossibly beautiful.

We could already see the sun beginning to set as we drove into Narvik, Norway; the sky was awash with purples and pinks and blues. I don't think anyone really expected the view we got when we reached the coastline though. The colours got more saturated, more pink, more purple, and the ebbing arctic waters reflected the dying day. We were so lucky to see the moon peek out behind the mountains and we waited and just watched it rise in the sky. The photos don't do it justice, it felt a bit like an out of body experience - the scene was just unreal. Look at the mountains, those beauts.

Narvik was also the place I dropped my DSLR. Ouch. Luckily, I just dented the exterior and the lens is a-ok. thank you, thank you, thank you. Scariest moment of the trip, for sure! hahah.

More on Narvik here

Stories from the Arctic: Narvik, Norway

Meeting a local wearing just a t-shirt. Also, look at the view from their backyard! No big deal.

We really lucked out in the cozy town of Narvik. Perfect weather conditions, perfect timing - just as the sun set behind the mountains. It's 220 km inside the Arctic circle and one of the most northerly cities in the world. It's actually connected to Kiruna and Abisko by train, but we took the bus. Amazing views either way. And thus continues my love affair with Norway, still going strong. 

Also where I saw this. Still blows my mind.

Stories from the Arctic: Sparklers and bonfires

On our last night, we went to the lake and lit some sparklers

"Lights of the North, come forth!"
"Okay, they're not here."

One of our many, many bonfires.

Stories from the Arctic: The Northern Lights

Overlooking Abisko and Torneträsk lake with no tripod, and numb & trembling fingers
For reference, the black figure in the middle is a person.

They say the best place to see the Northern Lights is at the Aurora Sky Station in Abisko, between 8pm and midnight. So, we bundled up like crazy and took the 20 minute, uncovered (!) wooden chair lift up the mountain to see them.

Unfortunately, the promisingly clear day turned into a foggy night, and our best bet was to climb up the mountain, past the sky station. Feeling like pioneers, we were guided by sheer will and the glow of the moon, making fresh tracks as our feet sunk well into the snow. No one had decided to hike up yet, so we were alone and it was amazing.

But as the Rolling Stones liked to say "You can't get what you want, but you get what you need."

We never did get to see the Northern lights this night, or any other night, but I like to think luck was still on our side.

Because on the peak of a snow covered mountain, we laid down and watched the moon and stars pierce through the darkness of the night. And in the stillness, we had only cookies, rum, and our thoughts for company. We ate, we drank, we dreamed.

Stories from the Arctic: Kiruna Ice Hotel & Reindeer Farm

Ice Hotel and Ice Bar. Nifty to see but I'd never stay there. One room did have a slide though, which was awesome! And you go soo fast!

Kiruna, Sweden. Walked around at night. Small town, with babies stuffed into snowsuits walking around like penguins. They also have lots of sweet all-terrain prams (strollers).

Reindeer! Only the Sami people are allowed to own reindeer in Lapland. We got to pet them and give them food. Antlers are kind of terrifying, especially when they start to jog around.

This last picture is from inside one of the churches.

Stories from the Arctic: The Sauna

The sauna sat at the edge of Torneträsk Lake

There was only one item on my Swedish Bucket List, and it was this one.

The traditional wood heated sauna was about 15 minutes from our cabin and we had to hike it in the dark wearing our swimsuits under full snow gear. We went back twice and both times we made the trek we found no fires burning, and the sauna almost pitch black. We had to re-start the fire and wait an impossibly long time for it to heat up again.

Then we ran into the lake at 4 in the morning, in -15 degree weather, and wind so cold I thought my skin would peel.

Flushed with adrenaline and our skin whipped by the blistering, arctic wind, we scrambled back to the sauna, laughing and catching our breath. What a rush, what a feeling!

Running barefoot in the snow made my toes feel like they were going to break off. At one point I even slipped and slid down part of the hill. And boy, getting back into the sauna is like heaven.

Stories from the Arctic: Dog vs. Machine

200 km North of the Arctic Circle.

Lapland, Sweden.

One of the best places I've visited. For serious.

Dog sledding, and snow mobiling. 

Almost driving into a tree...

Cold hands, cold feet, cold noses.

Sipping coffee in plastic cups, sitting in a Saami tent.

Sunset at 11am.

Kids waddling around in snow onesies.

Cute husky puppies.

Not a bad first day.

Krakow eats

1. The Polish Plate for 11 people, consisting of every type of meat, perogie, and sausage you desire

2. The great Zapiekanka, a kind of open faced sandwich sold everywhere, but which we bought in the Jewish Quarter

On Sunday, we ended up hanging out with a group of English guys staying in the room beside ours. Krakow was SO much fun. Great, vibrant city and an amazing group of friends. 

• "I speak the Queen's English"
• The vodka wielding waitress "More? More!"
• Sarah and I running down the streets of Krakow, jumping onto lamp posts while yelling "Parkour!!" and then Sam gets fed up of us ragging on his favourite activity and flips off the side of a building.
• Sasha. Enough said.
• The saddest Sunday dance floor
• Dancing the jive in the middle of the city square
• The Polish girl who brought both her parents to meet one of the English guys - who she just met the day before. Crazy alert.
• The bartender who let us win at foosball.. and then destroyed us during the final match. He later points to the standings, and he is #1 in the bar. 
• The drunk, angry Polish guy who kept yelling Polish slurs and pointing at one of the guys. Actually a little scary!
• "You stepped on my hat toque!"
• "Killer swans"
• "It's because we come from the New World"

Krakow, drinks: here

Krakow, design: here

Krakow design

Krakow is a really cool place - I really loved it. It felt very trendy and hip, with lots of art, lots of creativity floating around (especially in the Jewish Quarter, where we spent most of our time). Their coffee shop/bar scene is pretty spectacular, too. Hipster alert!

The craziest church ever. It made no sense, inside or out. It was like they just kept adding parts of the building, in the style that was popular at that specific time. A cacophony of design, if you will. The inside of the churches here are extremely elaborate, to the point where it just freaks me out.

It was my first time in Poland, and Eastern Europe and I had a great time! What I first noticed about Krakow is how stately the buildings are, and how dark the city gets at night. There's just not a lot of artificial light around - at least, not the amount I'm used to. It makes even the biggest street seem like a shady back alley. The night life is vibrant, and people are always milling about but it's just dim!

For more posts...

Krakow, drinks: here

Krakow, eats: here

Krakow drinks

Polish hot chocolate is rich, sweet and very, very thick. Served with a healthy dollop of fresh whipped cream, you can drink it plain, or with fruit, or with coffee. I think I've tried every combination. Surprisingly, it's offered at almost all bars, any time of night.

Finka is a trendy vodka bar in the Jewish Quarter that also makes unique coffee drinks in the afternoon ("We drink vodka at night"). They infuse their own vodka with everything from vanilla to black pepper! A really interesting taste/smell experience! We loved it so much that we went back here the night before we left (3am wake up call = all nighter) but Monday night seemed to be when alcoholics/gentlemen and their paid lady friends roam the streets. We were surrounded by so much drama, little side stories ranging from a fellow who looked like a cartoon villain, to the drunken businessmen, to the guy who followed us from Singer bar (which has tables that house old school Singer sewing machines!), to the man who claimed to be Polish police but could only speak English. "My girlfriend will pay for my beer, she's coming here - no, she's not. She's sleeping." 

We ended up catching a taxi instead of walking the 20 mins back to the hostel/old town thanks to the help of our trusty bartender - who seemed like he hated his life that night. Well worth the $3 it cost us.

For more posts...

Krakow, design: here

Krakow, eats: here

Paris: Shop, Eat, Sleep

Shop

Shopping in Paris is pretty stellar. Way cheaper than Sweden (but most places are) with really interesting pieces and classic clothing. Unfortunately, I'm still on the hunt for the perfect camel cape, but I did manage to snag an awesome leather envelope-ish bag from the flea market (huzzah, bargaining en français) and a sweet moose-adorned wool poncho. I wasn't so sure about the latter but an old, stylish French lady came into the store, saw me debating, and told me I should get it and that it looks good on me! Who am I to debate the Parisian eye for style?

 I could talk for hours about the greatness that is Shakespeare and Company, an English bookstore across from the Notre Dame. Ah-mazing. Quick history: the first iteration of the store is famous because it was where those in the literary world stationed in Paris, writers like Hemingway, Fitzgerald and James Joyce, gathered to discuss writing and life and to share ideas with each other. The current store is now on Paris' Left Bank and it's still awesome. Messy shelves adorned with lots and lots of books - such a dream. The upstairs is a library, and it has a piano and a typewriter station. Coolest part is that one can actually stay the night inside the bookstore - the place is still open for struggling writers and the like to be housed for free in exchange for helping out at the store!! Turns out some of the display cases and sofas double as beds. Trop cool, indeed. By the way, this was a stealth photo, can you tell?

Eat

 Best. meal. ever. It was some sort of baked brie salad with a delicious dressing, topped with potato slices and roasted garlic. drool. I should also note that the Dad sitting beside us was wearing a Voldemort shirt!  Also, "I saw an avocado and thought it was a nacho!" Sometimes my mouth can't keep up with my brain.

One can imagine the endless croissants, pains au chocolats, and tartelettes we devoured. I think the record was 3 patisserie visits in half an hour. It was our last day and we were getting desperate. Also, we had the best hot chocolate I've ever tasted. So rich, and creamy, and slightly bitter. 

This section is full of superlatives - rightly earned. 

Sleep

We stayed in the business district, La Défense. It isn't in the city proper, but it was pretty easy to get to the places we wanted to go with the metro. Plus, we got lucky since it was Bastille Day (stat holiday) when we arrived so we could buy the passe jeune day pass for most of the days we were there. Cheap! 

Did I mention we stayed in a 4-star hotel, paying less than we would have at a hostel? Yeah, baby. One cannot over emphasis the wonders of your own bathroom.

Paris, the big sights: here

Paris: the big sights

I love Paris. 

Yes, I really do.

Of course, like any good tourist we had to hit up the big tourist spots. Most of these didn't end up being my favourite parts of Paris, but they were still pretty sweet to see.

The Louvre

Oh, the Louvre. We were debating on going here but the line wasn't very long (if you go through the underground entrance) and we decided we might as well. When in Paris, and all that jazz. The Mona Lisa was as underwhelming as expected, and Napoleon's Apartments were indeed impressive and overly ornate. I'm not a fan of this style, nor the money involved to create it, but it sure does leave an impression. Also leaving an impression - of a different sort - was the teenaged couple shoving their tongues down each other's throats in between the oil paintings.

The Eiffel Tower

Another Parisian landmark, another line (although no comparison to the summer ones!). The tower is actually a brown/tan colour and not grey, like I had assumed. It's really pretty at night, and there are little blue lights along the structure that make it sparkle just so. One really needs to see the Eiffel Tower from a distance - it is much more impressive. We were pretty fortunate that we stayed for a few days in Paris because the first couple of days were really foggy. We lucked out on choosing the day to go up though - clear, blue skies for as far as the eye can see. The 360° views are magnificent. I should also remark that it's really interesting to people watch in Paris. Of course there are the overly amorous locals, but it seems that tourists also tend to pick up their mannerisms. Love is in the air, it seems.

L'Arc de Triomphe

Actually, not much to say. It's pretty, as is the walk along the Champs Élysées to get here.

The Notre Dame

The Notre Dame is really beautiful inside. I've seen a lot of churches since I've been in Europe, and most of them tend to blend together, but the Notre Dame does leave a mark. Although, I will say that I'm not a fan of the commercialism found in many tourist-friendly churches. I understand the cost of upkeep, and the belief in offering, but I do not appreciate the souvenir selling inside the church. I especially hate those pressing coin machines that feature an image of the church (or other landmark). If you are going to go that route to raise money, do it outside the walls!

The Sacre Coeur and Montmartre

What more could words express that these pictures couldn't? This is one of my favourite memories of Paris: the atmosphere, the picnics, the colours, the view - a sunset over the City of Light. 

Sometimes, it just hits you that life is pretty grand.

Paris, part 2: here