Day 11 Tromso, in which MGM gets mistaken for a homeless guy and we seethe Northern Lights

Today's event - snow mobile adventuring in the evening  (from 5pm to midnight), searching for the northern lights. So we tried to pace ourselves a bit during the day.

We went for a short walk along the pier at the front of our hotel...

 

 

 

We walked to the Polar museum, which documents the history of exploration in the arctic.

 

I went in (we had currency issues) and saw how earlyexplorers lived, sailed, etc. MGM waited outside and, seeking shelter from thewind, apparently looked a smidge pathetic. Some very kind Americans wanderedpast talking about how hard it must be to be homeless inthese conditions. They walked on rounding the corner, leaving a quietly bemusedMGM in their wake, but they must have been troubled, because one of them cameback and asked if he'd like to warm up with them over a cup of coffee in thenearby cafe. Such kindness. How well does that restore your faith in humanity. MGM had to admit that he was just waiting for his wife who had callously lethim stand outside while she used the last of their change to see themuseum...yes I was chagrined.

 

I took a pic of this gorgeous guy (the bear not the explorer) for Renae, who loves them and Pip, no scary biting from this one!

 

A quick walk up that bridge you can see in some of my earlier photos to get an almost aerial perspective on Tromso ...

 

 

 

and then we went in search of another museum, which was free so MGM could join me although, truth to tell I think he would have been happier waiting outside again. It's hard to dress here, the clothes you need for outside do not make for happy Allans inside.

 

After a nap - it is really easy to nap here we feel like we're getting our money's worth because every day feels like two days - we headed off to catch the bus to do some snow mobiling, and yes it is as exciting as it sounds. Much squealing (from both of us). You all know how much I love MGM right? well that's partly because he is totally awesome!

 

Our guide, Tor (as in the Greek God Thor) asked MGM, "ever done this before?"

MGM "nup"

Tor "ever quad-biked"

MGM "nup"

Tor "ever jet-skiied"

MGM "nup"

Tor looked like he was thinking "oh dear this is going to be a long night".

 

But of course MGM took to it like a bird to the air. After a couple of minutes Tor realised he need not worry on our account and that we could have some fun, and fun we had! Those things almost do fly when you let out the throttle...weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

 

 

We raced along ever north-ward, almost to the point where Sweden, Norway and Finland meet. I don't have enough words to describe the beauty. The pristine snow sparkles like it's been over-laid with a blanket of diamonds; the sky, so far away from ambient light pollution, is like another blanket of diamonds; the quiet was profound. It was warmer higher up - don't know why, but it was only -8 when we stopped at our first spot, driving a bit further to the edge of a 200m drop... 

 

we saw this

 

breath-taking

 

 

I thinnk we lucked out. We were the only ones on a bus of about 30 doing the snow mobiling, so it was just us and our guide who took us to the perfect spot, and he was a genius with my camera.

 

Just one of those perfect events in our lives that we will treasure for as long as we live.

 

 

 

We stood for ages just watching the lights move, so quiet, so aMAZing. Tor said they can be so much more brilliant, moving in wider arcs and sometimes even with red tints. Maybe we'll see them again but if not we're okay with that.

 

We sat on the edge of the world and watched God's creation in all it's glory and we feel very blessed.