The Most Beautiful Winter
After a couple of very foggy February days in Syöte, northern Finland, the sun was finally shining from a clear blue sky. It was the kind of weather you would order if if it was possible. Only a few minus degrees Celsius and no wind. Lots of snow and a sun that tortured your eyes if you didn’t wear sunglasses.
Sun on a snowy landscape is the strongest light conditions you can face. The light is more intense than on a sunny day on a white beach.
The snow and the blue sky made the whole scenery two-colored: blue and white, like the Finnish flag. How suitable!
I took my camera on a downhill ride to capture the beauty around me. Downhill skiing is a lot of fun, but these days I enjoy being outside in the fresh air and enjoying the beauty around me just as much as the skiing itself.
Man, what a scenery! I couldn’t get enough of it. I can’t imagine winter being more beautiful than this. At least that’s what it felt like. I felt so thankful for all the beauty, and I had gladly stayed on that mountain top a lot longer, but my company were on our way to another place.
So I just shot like crazy as I passed by all these snow covered spruces. Some call the snowy popcorn trees and that’s indeed what they look like. The snow is frozen on those trees and it becomes very heavy. But for some reason the trees don’t break. I guess they are used to the treatment.
I had enjoyed the beauty of these trees the days before, too, but then everything looked different.
There is something special about going north. We were only 120 kilometers south from the Arctic Circle. On our last day i Syöte we took the two hour drive up to Rovaniemi, the capital of Finnish Lapland. The Arctic Circle goes just north of the city so, of course, we had to pay a visit to the imaginary circle.
Above is a series of photos taken in Santa Claus Village near Rovaniemi city. The houses look very special and the giant snowman is authentic (made from real snow). You can meet Santa and have your picture taken with him. I was happy with a selfie outside the photo booth.
The Arctic Circle is where sun stay up all night for one night in the summer (the midnight sun at summer solstice) and does not rise above the horizon on the day of winter solstice. The further north you then go, the more nights with midnight sun you will have. And more days with no sun in the winter. That in itself is something to see. I haven’t yet seen it.
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