Tromsø, Norway—Summer in the Arctic circle. The air and water are unimaginably pure. The sunsets last for hours. Around midnight, the sun barely sets, and already it rises again. The weather is warm and sultry. The locals sit out late on their decks and porches. We fall asleep to the sound of their laughter and the shrilling of Arctic terns. We hear the seabirds 21 hours a day. They are everywhere. They settle down during the brief hours of darkness.
The landscape is vast and sculpted by glaciers. We see reindeer twice, right on the roads. We feast on smoked salmon, which is more like lox, from a famous market where they smoke it themselves.
Stands of blooming lupines line the roads. Brightly colored wildflowers are abundant . The coast of northern Norway is a profusion of islands, an archipelago. Here, life is all about the sea. Tromsø is known as the place to go in winter for viewing the Northern Lights, and as the gateway city for Arctic expeditions.
On our first full day there, we are taken on a fjord tour by car and visit Sommarøy, an island known for its white sand beaches.
All Day Fjord Tour to Sommarøy
The next few days we spent exploring the city of Tromsø. Highlights were a Werner birthday celebration at the Art Cafe, a cable car ride overlooking Tromsø, as well as a few other surprises shared in the video below.