CROSSING INTO THE ARCTIC CIRCLE & INCREDIBLE NORTHERN LIGHTS | WINTER VAN LIFE SWEDEN
Stressful morning. There’s been a vlog skipper day because they woke up this morning and arrived at a campsite. Creepstopher n0n<€ lost the memory card. They had the whole van out and spent an hour sifting through snow but can’t find it. They have footage from phones and go pro but not the camera footage. Lazy is going to talk us through yesterday because they vlog for memories.
Yesterday with Lazy’s narration
They woke up in Sorsele. Lazy’s dreams came true. It was peaceful and stooooooonin. Snow safari. Beautiful place. After a peaceful morning they got on the road for the three hour drive to the Arctic Circle. There is an information centre 10km from the town they were heading to JokkMokk. Beautiful drive. Illegal driving out of windows. Ticked off wild reindeer off Lazy’s bucket list. Breathless cackling from Foghorn. More reindeer. The girls and Jace kept wanting to get out to get videos. After 2-3 hours they reached the Arctic Circle. Special moment.
tit photos. The goals of the trip have changed. Back into the van to drive 10km to JokkMokk. Decided to celebrate with pasta, pizza and chips. Food was the nicest Lazy has ever eaten. They ordered the well known Swedish pizza. JokkMokk pizza is the town’s special. They wanted to try a typical Swedish dish but it contained reindeer so they stuck with pasta. Discussion around the table about being brought up eating animals but being horrified at what animals other countries eat. They were “offered to eat Zebra” in Spain. Reindeer and cows are no different. Lazy left all her calzone as she ate the rest of Jace and Mila’s carbonara. After eating their half she was too full.
The salad was the nicest and Lazy ate a massive bowl
. Jace tripped over on the way out. Lazy has no idea how. He hit his face on the corner of a wooden table. He has a cut and Creepstopher was panicking about whether they needed to go to hospital. The inside of his mouth hurt but there was no cut in there. Checked into the most beautiful cute campsite. Magic. Felt like Christmas. Best thing was the clear sky. Could see curvature of sky. Level crossings freak Lazy out. Trillions of stars. -11 but stood outside without coat. Creepstopher went for a shower and the Aurora was out when he went back to the van. Lazy was only wearing a vest as it’s so hot in the van. Trying to get clothes on. Stood on roof of van.
Back to today
Woke up and decided not to vlog much. Have to wait to see the town they’re going to. Lazy and the girls got long showers. Failed to find memory card. Made phone calls and emails. Got Starbucks and hot cinnamon buns at the petrol station. They’re on the way to the Santa village in the north of Swedish Lapland. If they feel homesick or anyone gets sick they always turn home.
Nobody wants to stop so they’ve made a new goal that is far far far. Driving. Drone.
This is the cutest place ever. Houses look like barns. Supermarket stop. Cinnamon buns for the girls and polarbröd bread. It’s £3.60 per loaf and Scandinavia is expensive. £6.50 for chicken strips. 159kr for pork. Chicken breast is 193kr so £16. Salmon is well expensive at 399kr so £32. Lazy will do meatballs and pasta one night. Crispy bread is a breakfast and lunch staple. All the shops sell underwear and random things.
Driving. A few hours later they’re on the outskirts of Kiruna city, the only city in Lapland. 20,000 people live there. Tonight is a special night. They looked for the best place to see the aurora and the energy levels are high. All the campsites are closed and the only one that’s open has bad reviews. They’ve found a Park for the Night 17 miles from Kiruna. The car park is full of people and someone is having a fire. 40 people are stood outside with tripods and cameras apparently but it’s eerily quiet. It’s 6pm. They have the campfire ready and Creepstopher will be chopping wood with his axe. He’s a proper woodsman and has wanted to use it for ages.
Lazy is filming. It’s so nice out here. Low fog has come over. Isabelle has gone inside. She keeps swapping places with Lazy and Creepstopher. Isla has been learning about noises the northern lights make and the colours. Creepstopher has his snood over his eyes. There is another van lifer in the car park. They’re in the tourist centre car park. There is a coach in the car park and they keep turning up full of people. Photos. Creepstopher is upset about the fog.
Back in the van. It’s -10° outside. They didn’t take Mila out as it was so cold but Jace enjoyed it out there. They’re making cups of tea and hot juice. Hot juice is the thing to have in Scandinavia. Lazy has the juice instead of tea at night. Lazy and Creepstopher have been watching You on Netflix. The narration grinds on Lazy. They’re on episode 4. Tomorrow is a fun day with more information about the town. It has the biggest iron mining facility in the world but they’re having to relocate the city to two miles away because the ground is sinking due to the mining. They’re picking buildings up in their entirety and moving them. Crazy. The place does tours of the mine.
End of vlog