Northward - Northern Lights in Tromsø

How it all began
For years, 'admiring the Northern Lights' has been on my bucket list (which is a list of things you want to do before you die). Since it is winter right now and I happen to be in Norway, about three weeks ago I asked other volunteers if they wanted to spend an extended weekend in Tromsø with me.
After some back and forth, we booked the flights. When I told the principal of my school what I was planning, she put me in touch with her old college friend who lives there. After a few messages, she immediately said we were welcome in her house and she would even pick us up from the airport.

The journey
After having two cafeteria days in a row (there was a medical emergency and I was asked to fill in), and on the last day students came who were presenting their universities, I was absolutely ready to escape Dale.

So on Friday evening, I packed my suitcase and backpack and walked to the bus stop. My first bus had a slight delay, but luckily the communication between the bus drivers worked this time and I managed to catch the night bus to Oslo. After noisy teenagers who wanted to go home from parties and took the bus, and a little sleep, I arrived at the airport at 5 a.m. I got some more sleep at the gate, then the other volunteers, Marion and Manuel, arrived. We were all overexcited as we were sleep deprived, and then we boarded the overbooked plane, but luckily we had our seats, even next to each other!

After a technical problem and a delay of 20 minutes, we took off. Marion and Manuel, the volunteers, slept for most of the time, while I had the chance to admire the sunrise in Oslo and later some snow-covered mountains.
But I also dozed off at times. And in the end, condensation water even dripped on us.

Arrival in Tromsø
9 minutes before we landed, the panorama was so beautiful that pictures were no longer enough and I had to film. Snow-covered mountains merged into a clear blue ocean, steep fjords contrasted with the soft mountaintops. And then there was Tromsø, an island in this landscape.

At the airport, we recognized Hildegunn, the college friend, and she took us out into the cold and finally to her warm home. There we were greeted by Walter, her husband, who, by the way, comes from Ulm.
After a brief settling in and dinner at midnight, we spent an endless evening (due to our lack of sleep and the altered daylight we perceived everything as evening) first in the city.
First, we visited the tourist information to get more tips for the Northern Lights, then we admired the Hurtigruten, the famous postal ships that navigate between Bergen and Kirkenes on the Russian border and stop twice a day in Tromsø.

Then followed a small aimless city stroll through the alleys of Tromsø and that's how we found a Roald Amundsen statue and a snow mountain in another square that we of course had to climb.

After a little shopping for our nightly adventure, we returned to our base, the apartment.

Hildegunn and Walter were so kind to lend us their car for the evening (in exchange for a full tank of gas). So we started our hunt for the Northern Lights. First, we went to Kvaløya (Eng. whale island), where we followed a road to the mountain of the island. Just when Manuel was telling a story about almost hitting a moose in Vinstra, a moose ran across the road. Fortunately, at a safe distance, so we could see it well and there was no danger. So I had now seen my first moose.

We continued to another well-known spot. We waited there from 6 pm to 9 pm and were about to change locations as we still hadn't seen anything. But we also dozed off from time to time or the windows were fogged up. Occasionally we went outside (temperatures ranged from single to double-digit minus degrees), but all we saw was a very clear starry sky and sometimes shooting stars. And then there was a British car completely covered in snow.
Around 9 or 10 pm, we were back in the car, chatting, when a woman knocked on the car and said the Northern Lights were there. A man took some photos with his camera, which showed a very green streak stretching across the sky, but for us, the Northern Lights looked like a greenish colored cloud. Nonetheless, it was breathtaking!

But we wanted to see the Northern Lights more intensively, so we went to another spot, the Ersfjordbotn. Together with two Belgian girls we had met at the first spot, we trudged through the snow. Five minutes later, a green light shot up vertically into the sky. Still not as intense as you see in the pictures, but intense enough to be able to take decent photos. If you only see black in the picture, you should increase the brightness of the screen.
A short time later, another light could be seen descending the mountain.

This wonderful event was followed by another adventure: driving on the streets of Tromsø. The streets had been cleared, but there was still a layer of snow on the road. Since the car had neither all-wheel drive nor spikes, we drifted around some curves and couldn't make it up a mountain, so we had to roll back down and take an alternative route back to the starting point. There, at 1 am, we had a small meal, frozen pizza. After thanking for everything, we finally went to bed.

Sunday
After a hearty breakfast, Marion wanted to sleep some more since she was cold. So Manuel and I took a little walk. Our destination was Prestvannet, a lake in the middle of the island. Well, we had a good conversation and at some point, we were just outside the airport, having crossed the island. We hardly noticed because the path was marked with cross-country ski tracks and led through a 'forest'. Well, we didn't reach the lake, but we got these views instead:

Back at the house, we picked up Marion and then took the bus to the Ishavskatetral, the Arctic Cathedral. On the forecourt, more people took pictures of the bridge than of the cathedral itself... 

After a short warming ride to the next stop, our feet were not really warm, but we still took the funicular up to Fjellheisen. It was stormy up there and it felt like minus 20 degrees. So first we walked to the viewpoint, took some pictures, and when we couldn't feel our fingers anymore, we went back to the mountain station for a short time. The second time, we had already covered our mouths and noses a bit, so we could stay outside longer. Marion wanted to go back to the warmth earlier, but Manuel and I went a little further than the viewpoint, and there may have been a Northern Light in the last streaks of the setting sun.

Completely frozen, we then started the return trip in the warm bus, and in the house, we finally had the northernmost cheesy spaetzle I have ever eaten. That evening we went to bed earlier.

Museum Monday
In Tromsø, there are several museums, so we decided to explore the rest of the cultural offerings on Monday. First, we went to another Northern Lights spot, Telegrafbukta. From there we had a unique view of the surrounding islands and their mountains. 

Then we went to the university museum. First, we visited an exhibition about the geology of the north, in a second exhibition, it was about evolution and the animals of the Arctic. Among other things, there were a stuffed wolf, bear, polar bear, lynx, reindeer, and in the middle, there was a whale skeleton. A third exhibition was about the Sami people and their fight against oppression, and a fourth exhibition showed a church and its interior. Surprisingly many carvings came from Germany.

Afterwards, we took the bus to the city center, I went to the Polar Museum while the others attended the seal feeding at Polaria. In the Polar Museum, it was mainly about the hunting of whales, seals, and walruses, but also about Arctic expeditions and hunters in Svalbard and Greenland. All in all, it was a very detailed and vivid exhibition.

We met up at the tourist information, but I had entered Hurtigruten into Google Maps because the tourist information is right next to the Hurtigruten pier. So it happened that I ended up at the Hurtigruten office and got a bit lost. But the view of the modern library building was worth it.

Together, we decided to go to the ice bar, where we met two French girls and talked to them. The ice bar itself had a temperature of -5°C, so warmer than outside. Inside, some typical Arctic motifs, such as Roald Amundsen, were carved into the ice, and it was quite nice to look at. Some of the glasses were also made of ice.

For our last dinner, we took the bus back to the apartment, and there we had cod and potatoes. After thanking for everything, we went back to the city center. We started our little tour at Skansen, the oldest house in the city, and the destination was Ølhallen, the northernmost brewery until a few years ago. But there were still about 40 different types of beer, some of which had original names, and the pub itself was rustic and a bit reminiscent of old times. Even the Polar Bear King Henry Rudi was commemorated with a stuffed polar bear standing next to the table where he used to sit.

Afterwards, we returned to the base. Marion wanted to go to sleep, but Manuel and I wanted to try our luck one more time. We wanted to go to Prestvannet and see the Northern Lights. We managed the first, but we didn't spot the Northern Lights. Nevertheless, it was great to just sit in the snow, look up at the sky, and listen to the sounds of the surroundings.

The departure or an extended trip to Dale

My plane to Oslo departed at 6:25 a.m., which meant I had about 3.5 hours of sleep to quickly pack my suitcase, have breakfast, and get into the car. Hildegunn had gotten up early for us and then drove us to the airport. The line for the security check was relatively long. Marion and I passed the check without any problems, but Manuel had a random explosive check performed on his backpack. Just as he finished the check, the boarding for my flight started, and they went to their flight, which started only 5 minutes later. In Oslo, I saw their plane as it went to the gate. Although I had no turbulence on this route, Marion and Manuel had some on their flight, but I also experienced some turbulence on the way to Bergen. But I also had an awesome view of the fjords around Bergen. A woman sitting next to me took pictures of it, although she lives in Bergen and has flown several times.

Arriving in Bergen, I made my way to Klara, another volunteer. Since she still had to work, I visited her at the kindergarten. The children liked me right away, so I played a little with them, they hopped on me and jumped into my arms. When it was time for her to leave, she showed me a bit more of Bergen, including a very picturesque street, a submarine in the harbor, and the oldest street in the city. Then we went to a very cozy café where I had a typical Norwegian cake.

Finally, it was time for the boat, which showed some waves in the end, making it relatively difficult to stand. Together with another woman who also had to get off in Rysjedalsvika, I held onto a chair and we both laughed at ourselves. From there, we took the bus to Dale, where I snuggled into my warm bed and caught up on the sleep I had missed.

Fun Facts:
• When we arrived, the sun shone for the first time in the new year.
• It is common to ride to work or anywhere with cross-country skis. Without spikes on the car tires or shoes, the roads can be quite slippery.