Vilks's Nimis

Summer almost at its penultimate stage for this year. The days are sometimes cold and crisp while some are sunny and very inviting. Just today I saw some tanning afficionados bathing in the sunlight before it all goes away till spring. I thought I shall write about whatever little I could make of the summer this year- especially this visit to a special place, north west of Skane.

A man who almost drowned in the sea once thought he ll make a landmark out of it. Some believe it was to mark his glory over the attempting murderer- the sea. The gentlemans name was Lars Vilks who had begun construction of his artistic endeavour using driftwood and nails of the size used to crucify Christ himself! To jump in an describe the artifact is quite puzzling. A formation of planks randomly, yet strongly nailed to each other make passageways, towers, vantage platforms and even bridges linking them to each other.

  The hike itself was demanding as the day was warm and humid. The drive was even more interesting as I had never been there before and it was unchartered territory.                                                        

A very sweaty me!

 The network.

 The view through the tightly spaced passages.

 From a vantage point

 Every plank, I thought was connected to the previous creation forming one huge network of a mesh. That was until I saw this formation (Picture <--). This was the closest to the sea, almost 10 metres high.

 I had to climb it. The danger was actually the nails sticking out. Remember my description of the size of them?

 I had to climb in and out.

 Some ruins nearby.

 View from the top.

 View from bottom-up!

The walk back was gruesome! To read more about the landmark, wikipedia it. I cannot guarantee its credibility but this is what is left standing still.

Excited for Valborg

Its Spring in Uppsala and soon it will be Valborg. The time when everyone is outdoors rejoicing the long sunny hours to come till Fall. But, will the weather clear from gloomy to dry and sunny?

These days the weather has been funny compared to the same last year. Its been awfully damp and cloudy. The snow hasnt cleared yet, and, people are worried about what it will be like in two weeks. Many in the student community are booking tickets at their favourite of the "nations". As tradition goes, they start with a champagne breakfast and stay outdoors all day.

Its quite an important day in Uppsala. Lund has similar celebrations held every four years. In preparation for Valborg, the student housing agency has already started circulating information leaflets on how to prepare for Valborg, and more importantly, how to steer clear of indulging in vandalism as it happened last year- students had made a bonfire from kindling that quickly escalated to buring bicycles lying around and mattresses. In other housing establishments there were acts of burglary.

Other than weather being the biggest of concerns, people have planned to go on  boat cruises that enables them to get their hands on duty free shopping. And by shopping, I mean alcohol.

My friends and I are planning to host a Valborg themed breakfast ourselves. We are keeping an eye out for deals on pickled herring and other ideas that make it fit for a viking. We are also thinking of having honey mead along with it. If not available, we are thinking of using this recipe to make our own!  For those who have a tingling taste buds-
http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-make-Mead-Honey-Wine/

This event should give me plenty more to write about in the near future. Bye for now. 

Northern lights in Uppsala

A few weeks ago, as Spring was fighting its way into Uppsala despite occasional snowing, was a monday when there ware strong sightings of the Aurora borealis from the rooftops of student buildings in Flogsta, Uppsala.

Thanks to a network of forums that are connected to almost all students living in Flogsta buildings, people were informed of the northern lights as they were seen by those on rooftops. I was cooking my dinner that time when it happened. My corridor mate just came out of her room exclaiming, " we can see the lights from here, guys!!". So, I went to the balcony to see a bunch on the rooftop of the adjacent building, gaping at the northern skies. There it was again, the dark green plankton like fog over the horizon. The fifth floor gave us a great vantage point to the lights. As our roof top was blocked due to an act of vandalism few months ago, I can only think of pictures that were posted on the facebook forum.

 This vibrance can only be seen using slower shutter speeds during exposure.

 The view from a roof top of a Flogsta building.

 One of the stronger formations that everyone wanted to take a picture with.

This is closer to the real time view, probably shot with faster shutter speed.










People have seen the lights from Upplands Vasby area as well, which is north of Stockholm, but, from people who had narrated it to me, this was the longest formation seen in Uppsala for a long time. One could say it was a special night- the air was still and the sky as clear as it could be with sub zero temperature.

Kiruna

This blog has been in the making since my arrival in Sweden. Most have it on their 'Bucket list' but few know how lucky you have to be to actually get to view it- Aurora Borealis. A wave of scintillating protons due to the magnetic field of Earth most likely visible to the very northern settlers in Scandinavia (Kiruna, Lapland area of Finland). The plan to take a chance at viewing it was in the making since I reached Sweden but only managed to get it done in style at the start of 2013.

My colleague, her partner, a friend and I had planned to visit the very north of Sweden during the very end of last year to celebrate the eve of New years in Kiruna and then go on to see the Aurora magic. It went according to play. An overnight train journey took us to Kiruna from Uppsala. A fairly long journey delayed by galloping reindeers around the railway. Back then, it was irregularly snowing in Uppsala, but up north, it was all covered in white. I could see why Lapland was chosed to be Santa Claus's abode. I had kept an eye out to catch a glimpse of Rudy the reindeer but I was asking for too much.

Reaching the station early evening, the sky was crimson-lilac and very little population except for the tourists like us. Checking into the hotel we did, we were told it had the only operating club that night in all of Kiruna. We were in luck. There was also a balcony on the 7th floor offering a great view to the Iron ore mines nearby with smoking allowed. There was also a very classy sauna a level above it with a fire place inside. We got into party mood soon after. Everything from then on till morning was a blur (thanks to exotic vodka imported by my colleagues partner).

We had another tourist attraction on our list that is world renowned - The Ice hotel at Jukkasjarvi. A hotel constructed purely from ice, from a bar to suites. What is unique is that the site invites ice sculptors from all over the world to create ambiences for suite with their native aesthetics- for example, a bunch of Mongolians had created this marvellous suite with the theme of Dragon.  I ll let the pictures speak for themselves.

The entrance.

I went straight to the suites!

In case someone brought it loads of napalm to obliterate the establishment, one should press this button.

Some other luxury suits would give you a feelign of being digested by a  whale.

While others were if Spock from star trek designed it.

 The Mongolian touch.

 'Beam me up' was the name of this suite

 Snug as a bug on a rug.

My favourite!

 Wheres theres Will, there a bar.

The construction was ongoing.

 Where the magic begins. From its source by the river Torne.

 A chapel where weddings happen.

 Exhibition room with pictures of sculptors laid out in holes on the wall.

 That evening concluded with a warm hot chocolate and a tip to Tipsy, the local reindeer.

The following days in Kiruna were spent looking at the mines. We couldnt go to the tour as they need atleast 15 persons to work out the costs. The town in itself is not very big. A map from the tourist station gives you plenty of ideas to get busy with if you can walk around in the cold. We met a bunch of Americans that were travelling around with the same quest all over the north of Sweden-Norway at a bar. We left the bar together and Natalie from the bunch asked us if we wanted to join them to see the northern lights (20 minutes away from where we were). One of them in the bunch was an environmentalist who turned out to be a walking-talking encyclopedia on Aurora Borealis. He knew web resources that relayed pictures of the sky (at the point we were walking to).

Upon reaching the hillock we noticed it was a direct view to the mines facing the north. We saw a horde of a gathering. Many seemed oriental in origin. Many seemed to speak a language that I thought was Japanese. Some were resting on the ground on padded shiny insulators. The snow was knee deep. The sky was clear and air was crisp and still. And then, we saw it.

For those who have only seen pictures on the internet, its not that at all when you are actually looking at it. After thinking a lot on how to decribe it, I ve come up with this. It is like a stream of plankton in the sky glowing green (not vibrant green). The outline of the stream have a misty feel to it and that, upon very slow exposure from a SLR, gives you the picture that you see on the net.

A very interesting this happened. Thanks to the horde that was glued to the sky, we heard a whimpering in unison. There was a formation right over our standing position. The only difference was this was a quicker moving stream that was glowing bright white and with shades of pink. This lasted for only about 2 minutes. The presentation was so beautiful, that we starting clapping and wooing. The sky made cracking sounds with the form it took.

This is a marvel of nature and has to be seen. Pictures only do so much justice to it. You have to be in the moment to get the holistic experience- the crispy cold still air, the clear sky and the lights. A very spiritual moment, indeed.

Bite sized Irony

Livetsord is a charitable institution run by a church. The churchs of this organistation are established all over the globe. They had a 5 day camp set in the Ribbengeback site just outside of Uppsala that I happened to attend. Their idea is to make people aware of Jesus Christ and his mission towards mankind ( or the likes of it). 

My previous blogs might show the boredom that a two month long summer interlude can have on students staying back here. I wanted to see what the church had in mind for the camp. Me and two good friends of mine from India were a part of it. Reached the site last monday and were allocated rooms with bunk beds. The day plan was like this- wake up, attend to personal ablution, breakfast, meeting in the church, indulge in physical activities(sports- both indoor or outdoor), lunch, back to sports, visit to a local lake for a dip and volleyball match, get back to the site for coffee and titbits, prayer and religious gathering and then dinner. A movie with a rich moral message was played on day 1- Remember the Titans, a movie that portrayed the perils an football coach of African descent had to deal with. Day 2 was 'Passion of the Christ', just to show the ordeal that ficitious individual had supposedly undergone. 'Excruciating' was the word that is derived of a person undergoing 'Crucification'. This is where the first dose of Irony was served to us, I thought. A man with strong anti-semitic belief made the movie who was convicted of beating in young fiance in America.  His name is Mel Colm-Cille Gerard Gibson, or Mel Gibson. The idea was to get the attendies curious enough to ask questions about the fiction and "accept" Christianity. 

The other members in the camp were mostly asylum seeking teenagers from Afghanistan, Iran, Kyrsgistan, Iraq, Burundi, Congo. A family that is suffering from autism. Couples and families from a generation before now who escaped persecution from Iran and have now settled in Sweden and are now ardent followers of Jesus. Jesus changed their lives, many claimed, or was it a long list of donors who share their livelihood for a charitable cause. The actual list of sincere Swedes/ individuals who made the camp happen. For the evening congregation, a greater bunch had attended. I couldn't spot a single person who was in the 30s. It was either old people on wheelchairs or people in need of some spiritual healing and or physical healing. For such people, there were prayers held by the pastor. Modern medicine had failed to help them they said. To my understanding, they chose to adhere to this placebic drug called 'praying'.  Yes, there were times when they held hands outwards while praying, with a thick frown waiting to get blessed. The lady on the piano managing the background musical score was with real skill.  

The organistion of the camp was admirable.  A group of women manged the kitchen and the cleaning regime was split to shifts for all attendies in turns. My favourite past time there was mastering my skill in the Viking game called Kubb.  The Afghan kids were like a bunch of hyenas mainly, not really knowing the actual reason that the camp meant. During church talk, there were individuals who helped translate the pastors talk. Pretty nice of them. Toddlers were a handful, chirpy lil beings hard to be held at one place. 

Funny thing, this philosophy of religion. Gets people confused if its God that makes people do good things in his name or an illusion of God that makes people do the things they do. My reasons were to observe what people perceive God to be ( if theres one). The things they do in his/her name and listen to the magic that it has brought to lives. For most, it was a get away/ past time. For others it was just fun. I had a good time. I always do in such congregations. I love my dosage of Irony from time to time. 

Scandinavia and the world

For those who are from the rest of the world except Scandinavia but have lived in one of the provinces will agree that its system/principles stands out from their native. Be it in resource management and love for science and human values, there is a lot that many may have found interesting. For those who havent gotten a chance to get to know the natives of Scandinavia, heres a link which portrays their stereotype in an animated format.

http://satwcomic.com/sweden-denmark-and-norway

The reason why its worth blogging about is to share the Scandinavian celebrations and highlight their individual value system. For example, the love of beer- cheapest in Denmark, for sale only till 8PM in Norwegian supermarkets (priced in gold), only 2.8% and 3.5% versions of beer available in Swedish supermarkets (costing the same as "normal" beer). There is a cartoon for that.

Last year, Sweden had the attention of the world press for its efficiency in recycling and extracting biofuels from biological waste. It was not only had the best recycling quotient with least routed to landfill, it had a hunger for waste! Yes, it was importing waste from its neighbours. The cartoon that encompasses the pride? Here- http://satwcomic.com/trash-robber

Another favourite- their audacious love for rotten fish, the smell of which will make sewage less threatening.  http://satwcomic.com/nordics-like-fish
It hit the spot when I was celebrating Mid summer for the first time last year with my Swedish friend Jonas and his family. Its a Herculean task to stand in the same neighbourhood when a resident opens a can of Surstromming, let alone digging into it with a spoon.

I have now spent 2 and a half years in Sweden and celebrated Christmas in Norway. I can only speak for Sweden when I say there a lot more to it than blonde hair, ABBA and IKEA. The take home message from this blog should be make it a point to come to Scandinavia and have an experience of your lifetime (most probably). And the links should help prepare any Xenophobes prior to entry.

Power Failure

A very rare feeling feel crippled to a great extent today. A power failure that lasted approx. 4 hours in the student block on campus. Well worth writing a blog about considering its the second that has happened in my last two years of stay.

Everything in the house runs on electricity except the ventilation system and water supply. From the wireless modem for the internet which many people in the block are sharing with me right now, to the cooking stove (halogen filament). One couldnt get his breakfast ready, or check his email before leaving to class, take his clothes off the washing machine (stuck in mid wash cycle), dry them and have a shower in th dark. These three hours lacking power showed the block mates how dependent we are on electricity. There was chaos in the block- people knocking on each others windows to find out if they were the only ones with the cut. A number or contact that older dwellers had of the maintenance team, so that its sorted asap. Considering it was saturday, the response was quicker than quick. Thats how the Swedes are. They couldnt be in time to avoid the minifridge from defrosting the old school way- water puddle. For those who had to go to school, might have come across to their friends as a walking talking stick of deodorant (A joke).

Not a challenge for most in India who are used to long lasting power cuts. For example, my grandparents house in India has a back up power generator from heavy duty serial battery. But we do have stoves that run on LPG (Liquidised petroleum gas) and a cauldron on a furnace that uses dry twigs and flora (and pretty much anything that burns). The reason why this struck me is the contrast in lifestyle. Swedish system is prevalent on energy efficiency and continous production to maintain their high standard of living. While most parts in India even today, have it relatively crude (self sustainable in its own sense). I cant help these thoughts as I am in an agricultural university in one of the greenest countries on Earth. Plus, something new for blog readers.