Sweden in February - Part 2

What do adventure seekers and dog lovers do in Sweden in February?  Research ethical dog sledding and book a flight to the arctic circle for some K-9 fun in the sun -and- snow.  Jukkasjårvi, Sweden, the Northern Sami area, at 68 degrees north latitude is where we got to know a few teams of huskies and a different kind of life.  This trip, I believe, will officially be the farthest north pin on our map.

First, the obligatory side trip to the Ice Hotel.  The construction of the hotel truly is an art form.  (I was reminded of placing in an ice sculpting contest in high school...good times.)

So, the insulated arctic fashion was a bit over-sized, but really very warm.  Those onesies made it feel like summer.

One of the best parts of this excursion was getting to know our husky teams and learning how to command and interact with them.  It took a balance of alpha dog authority and compassionate trust just like with our domesticated fur-babies, I guess.  These huskies are much closer genetically to wolves than our Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.  They LIVE for running on trails in the snow and obeying sledding commands (in Swedish, language barrier!).  This is Wilma who, along with Souran, led my team around the frozen lakes and pine forests of the area.  Oh, the eyes...

Unbelievable how they are able to sleep/lounge outside in below freezing temps completely unaffected.  Here, they are behaving stoically while Cayle chopped up their dinner with an axe because it was frozen of course.

Add this to some of the most amazing things we have ever experienced.  Dogs, beautiful frozen tundra, and thankfully a husband who doesn't hesitate when you suggest dog sledding in the arctic circle in the cold of winter.

More pictures and stories...

The huskies are a mix of Siberian and Alaskan.  Larger huskies pull heavier weights and smaller huskies pull lighter weights.  The order of sleds and huskies are typically picked based on predicted speed.  Because I was thought to have slower huskies (the smallest team), I was behind Cayle.  This would have been a good plan except we experienced what was called by locals as a warm spell of just less than freezing.  The larger dogs had a harder time with the "heat" while the smaller dogs (my team) were unaffected and speedy.  This only caused a few minor situations =)  Clearly, running into the power line wasn't a very serious situation.  I am a good driver, I swear! =)

Lunch break

No loss of evening entertainment.  The Northern Lights were very active during our visit.

Camera used: Sony Nex 5n

Sweden Part 1: Our New Volvo and Stockholm

Not really wanting to spend our money on a new car instead of travel, we found a way to get both. Using the Volvo Overseas Delivery program, Volvo paid for a trip to Sweden to pick up our new C30. We picked up our car at the Volvo factory in Gothenburg and spent the next 2 weeks exploring Scandinavia. Due to an unanticipated need for a new car this winter, we ended up going on this trip in Feb/March.  At first we were worried about the notoriously freezing temperatures this time of year but instead of trying to avoid the frigid Northern European winter, we decided to embrace it and head even further north to the arctic circle during the second leg of our trip. To start though, we headed east across the width of Sweden to Stockholm:

Here it is! Our wonderful little Volvo C30 being very patriotic.

Stockholm is an extremely charming European city, and in the winter its charm is quite icy. With 30% of the city made up of waterways, all of Stockholm seemed to either be in, on or around the water. (click on the photo to enlarge)

The waterways of Stockholm were a unique mixture of ice-flows and waterfowl.

In this photo you can see the charming old buildings in Gamla Stan (the oldest part of Stockholm). What you cannot see is the crisp, bitter cold that sucks all the heat out, right through your down jacket. FYI: you can also see Tracy with her snack and two coffees.

One evening while Tracy was studying, I walked over to a small castle(called Kastellet). It sits on a small island connected to another not quite so small island(Skeppsholmen) where our wonderful and highly recommended hotel sits. Much of Stockholm is made up of these little islands giving the city a unique feel of islands, waterways, parks, bridges and ferries.

The Vasamuseet is a wonderfully little museum in Stockholm consisting of basically one exhibit: The Vasa. The Vasa is the worlds only fully intact 17th century ship. A huge and beautiful warship built by the King of Sweden in the early 1600's which, due to some comically poor engineering, sank on its maiden voyage without even making it 1 nautical mile. If you are making a trip to Stockholm, be sure to find this museum. It is quick, fascinating and very memorable.

We continue to add to our collection of wonderful sunset photos. This one is looking across the water from Skeppsholmen island to Gamla Stan which is Stockholm's Old Town built between 1300 and 1800.

Stockholm is a very pleasant, if expensive, place to visit. It was quite nice even in the winter and is most likely spectacular in the summer, although I am sure crowds of tourists will descend on Stockholm in the nicer weather. I am really enjoying our several recent trips to major European cities, however I am increasingly wishing that I could visit them 50, 100 or 200 years ago when they were each truly culturally unique places, unblemished by American influence or tourists like me.

Motor Scooters in Jamaica - a little adventure on a relaxing trip

Unable to spend an entire vacation just relaxing with our books/drinks by the ocean, Tracy and I rented motor scooters and picked a spot on a map. We set off on a mission to explore a little of a less visited corner of western Jamaica. So much fun and so memorable, motor scooters might just find a place in some of our future vacation plans.

Feeling awesome and looking ridiculous.

I am not sure our vehicles were quite built for the terrain we took them on, but they performed admirably. We survived dirt roads, sand, potholes, some brief off-roading and the dodging trucks into bushes all in one day trip.

Just as I had hoped for, we easily found our own little private beaches as picturesque as you could imagine.

Time for a snack out of the sun in a perfect little beach spot.

Happy to be off adventuring again. Jamaica, we like you.

We've arrived at the destination that we picked off of a random map...Little Bay Jamaica.  First order of business was to stop at this little fisherman's bar on the beach and secure lunch and a drink. These gentleman were already through a couple bottles of liquor by lunchtime, however I think we caught them during a very friendly stage of inebriation.

We found a couple of fisherman who were more than willing to sell us a fish caught that morning and even prepare it as a little lunch for a few dollars. The "kitchen" may have been primitive but the food was delicious.

Tracy befriended this little local puppy which she named "Chef". He was so amazingly cute and friendly that we temporarily suspended our no touching stray animals rule for travel. He was worth the risks.

This man is building fish traps by hand just like he's been doing on this same beach for over 50 years. Nice guy and amazing to think he was here doing the same work back when my parents were driving around Jamaica on their honeymoon.

We kept thinking that Jamaica seemed quite like Africa. Both are lands of simple beauty, friendly people, infectious culture and heart-breaking poverty.

Little Bay, Jamaica is still known primarily for being a beach that Bob Marley used to visit to get away from the pressures of Kingston.  We could understand why he came, it was quiet and pretty and seemingly stuck in time.

This day trip was another reminder that is can be both easy and safe to get away from the well traveled tourist areas of any country and experience a little of the true culture and beauty so often missed in a world dominated by all-inclusive resort compounds.

Morning to night in Negril, Jamaica - cliffs, ocean and the Rockhouse Hotel

Between two winter European trips and coming home to cold, gray mid-western weather, we decided at the last minute to go warm up and relax mid-February.  Relaxing on vacation is not something we regularly do because there are too many new things to experience.  But once in awhile, like when you realize you haven't finished a book in too many months or when you have forgotten what the sun feels like, it is necessary to unplug somewhere away from the looming thesis and ever present work to bask in the sun while slimed up with SPF.  

Enter Rockhouse, Negril, Jamaica.
Tracy originally found this resort in 2004 when we were planning our destination wedding.  It didn't  appear in our story then, but eight years later was most welcomed into the plot.  Five days of amazing sunsets, rocky cliffs, clear ocean, yoga and exercise, meeting wonderful people, and great food...Oh and we each finished two books and started a third.

This artist has been in the same spot on the beach creating amazing wooden sculptures for decades.  

Do you see how "perched" our room was on cliffs?  Our bed was surrounded by windows showcasing the magnificent, meandering coves of the Caribbean...all of which we could climb ladders down to and swim in.

Every night during happy hour, the Rockhouse guests filled the pool patios taking in the picture perfect sunsets.  The location on the island puts the horizon at due west.

Here I am (It's Tracy) getting ready for another sunset while cooling off in the pool.  The days were long and lovely reading under umbrellas, doing morning yoga together with Fanette Johnson, swimming in the ocean, cooling off in the pool, reading lots of books, and talking for hours.  I can see why most every guest at Rockhouse is on their 7th or 8th year returning.  A very comfortable, pristine place that wills you to relax and take deep breaths.

Does it get much better than this?  A near perfect sailboat and sunset moment. We have strikingly similar sunset photos from a trip in 2008 near St. Barth's...but every experience is special and a separate memory that slows time for bit.

Do you see why we hardly left the resort?  (so unlike us, too!) 

Rockhouse Hotel at night as seen from the restaurant...with a very very long shutter speed.

An even longer shutter speed was needed to capture the stars over the Rockhouse pool at night. Warm nights, beautiful views, great food and a relaxed atmosphere make the cliffs south of the Negril a wonderful little corner of Jamaica.