As I board the plane from Stockholm to Kiruna, I could not imagine the once in a lifetime opportunity that this short trip was.

I can still feel the frosty wind, hear the snow cracking under my feet, see the never-ending  sparkling velvet… How quiet and enchanting it could be: to feel so disconnected from daily life and to experience the “I am alive” and I want to yell it out kinda feeling….

To feel connected to a place… to nature, to wilderness, to space, is inebriating!

Sitting with the sami people (indigenous people of Scandinavia) under a kåta (traditional tent), eating reindeer meat, listening to stories of other times, of a different culture, of other ways of doing things and living… respecting mother nature, taking only what is needed and using it to the best of human abilities, without waste, greed or the desire to capitalise on everything.

My reindeer friends are sweet and shy animals, I have fed and patted them and they even took me for a flying lesson! I am yet to find out how they manage to fly Santa around the world in one single night!

Exploring the frozen Torn älv (Torne river) on snowmobile one passes by other “adventurous” spirits, either walking their dogs or having them pulling the sled. Oh, the excitement and happiness our husky companions seems to get out of being in charge, running on the snow covered ice, listening carefully to the demands of their best friend.

While during the day the silver sparkles enchanted, in the night the celestial dancers/ green fathoms dominated the sky! The glorious Northern Lights (aurora borealis) showed themselves and gave an incredible performance! The sami people have many legends and tales about them,they say they are spirits of their ancestors and must be treated with respect. Others… travellers, scientists, photographers, tour guides – spend their life looking for them, studying them, photographing and explaining their “reason of being”.

For someone like me, considering myself a world traveller and citizen, the Northern Lights brought back much humbleness and marvel. There is yet so much to see, to do and I will not say understand, because that is the hardest. And maybe some things are not supposed to be understood scientifically, they should be felt, sensed… taken in.

One leaves such place with gratitude, the desire to come back and the wish to continue experience the life we were given to the fullest.