Oh, and then there is what we missed. "Did you see the reindeer this morning down on the lake?" says Nils." "No!" we said beyond frustrated and somewhat embarrassed as Nils went on to describe that about 1000 head of reindeer were herded right below our window, literally-and we missed it! We were sitting at the offices for the Sámediggi or Sametinget, the Swedish Sámi Parliament which is located in Kiruna. This year is the 15th anniversary for the Sámidiggi which was established by the Swedish Parliament to recognize the Sámi people and their voice. The Swedish government does not grant the Sámi living in Sweden the same powers, as for example the Norweigian government today has, to the Sámi living in Norway, but the Sámidiggi must for example be asked about anything that relates to Sámi culture such as language and schools.

"Yes," Nils continued, "they crossed right there on the lake, three young men on snowmobiles driving the herd." That is a big herd indeed, but then Nils is use to herds of 3000 reindeer with just him alone on his skis with his dog! Nils Anders Bild works at the Sámidiggi and was born on the land. Nils grew up spending most of his time with the reindeer north of Narvik in Norway, though his father would bring the animals across the border to graze in the woods of Sweden  during the harsh winters. "My Dad lost his entire herd in 1963. He had more than 600 heads, but they all starved and we were left with just six reindeer." tells Nils. "That is when my Mom asked that we give up, and we moved to Kiruna here in Sweden." In 1963 was when the Swedish and the Norweigians could not agree to uphold the law that the Sámi can travel freely across the border to follow the ancient rhythm and grazing routes. The reindeer could not find enough lichen to survive on the mountain tundra above Narvik and ran to the sea where they starved. Nils grew up at a boarding school speaking five languages because Sámi was not to be spoken at any of the schools he attended.  He grew up to be a reindeer herder! It is an honor for us to be speaking with Nils, who is quite the legend. 

While Nils was showing us the library at the Sámidiggi, Mille saw an impressive photo of a Sámi on his snowmobile with a herd of reindeer ahead of him. "Don't you miss it Nils?" said Mille. Nils became very serious looking ahead, "Yes, not being with the herd is the greatest sorrow of my life." he stated, "But my back can't handle the machine anymore." Nils has driven a flabbergasting 700,000 kilometers (about 435,000 miles) on his snowmobiles! With a bit of a humble smile on his face, Nils went on to explain how, "Yes, I made the change happen, my doing, I brought the machine to the reindeer." Nils found out about the snowmobile and the motor bike and he brought them to the region and most people laughed at him - to begin with. But then, to round up the herd of 3000 reindeer it use to take Nils and his dog 48 hours of skiing with no stopping to eat or sleep. With the machines, Nils could now do it in less than 6 hours! That was convincing, and soon everyone used machines, and the reindeer became less used to human hands, voice and the herding dogs. 

Today, Nils' son carries on the reindeer herding tradition while Nils lives in Kiruna. A place with more than twenty thousand people, you can find pretty much everything in Kiruna we figure (everything but the white gas we burn in the stove in the tent that is). We had some busy days getting the last detail lined up for the expedition ahead, from mailing out our re-supplies to Finland and Norway, arranging for dog food to be shipped out, talking to locals about the route ahead, assembling the sleds that were taken apart to be transported on the plane, storing dog boxes, testing the new stoves because we were not allowed to do so before loading it on the plane, buying the last food that we had not been able to bring into Sweden, attaching the bindings on the skis that otherwise could have broken in transport - yes, lots to do. One of our favorite moments was when we came running around the corner to the local 'everything reindeer store' to find a reindeer on wheels advertising what was inside! Got us! And then we received lots of delicious dried reindeer meat for the trail to give us some calories. 

The 'spark' is pretty much the bike of the wintertime for people around here. 'Spark' means to kick, and it is basically a little sled with a seat to put something or someone that you move forward by kicking while the long sharp runners make it glide easily on the hard surface of a road. 

It is not often one comes across such a large city above the Arctic Circle. Beginning around 1900, it came to be because of iron! On each side of Kiruna are two large mountains that, translated from Sámi language, are named the Salmon Mountain and the Ptarmigan Mountain. In each of these mountains are the Malmberget mine and the Kiruna Mine. The ore body in the Kiruna Mine is about 2.5 miles long (4 km) and about 1.25 miles deep (2 km). Right now, the main levels where the blasting is taken place, are about the same in the two mines. However, the Kiruna Mine is a wee bit deeper at about 1100 feet (1045 meters) below earth's surface. That makes this the deepest iron mine in the world! 

The first thing you receive when entering the mine is a hard hat and it is carefully explained that it must be worn at all times in case the mine caves in. We are not sure that hard hat would make much of a difference! That said, the mine is actually caving in. Going so far underground at an angle underneath the city of Kiruna, the city itself would collapse into the mine! The brochure from the mine reads, "...The deformation zone is approaching the urban area and will first affect the local infrastructure, such as the railway and roads and, within a few years, even residential properties." So, the plan is to move the entire city of Kiruna! Now, Kiruna would likely not be the large Arctic city that it is today without the mine, but locals that were here before the mine, on the other hand, might say that the mine and the development of a large city here, has not all been a blessing to the area. To the Sámi, well, even though the mine is in Sápmi and they already knew of the iron in their mountains before any miners came around, they were never asked. 'Being asked' is today part of what the Sámi are working towards with the Samediggi.

More than 30 different mineral products are being made from the mines. In particular, magnetite which is used to make iron, steel and concrete. Some 40 million tons of crude ore is mined here every year and to-date, more than one billion tons have been mined total. "It is sort of a wild thought standing more than 1500 hundred feet (500 meters) inside of the earth's crust! It is blasted out of the rock and not only transported above ground to be made into things we all use everyday, but that this happens though the very pellets that are sent out into the world reaching far away places such as Africa and the Middle East!" says Paul with awe. And, it is not only the iron that 'goes global.' Making more than 1 million Swedish Kroner (about $200,000) an hour, the LKAB Company that owns the mine employs 3,700 people in 15 different countries around the world from Sweden and Thailand to the United States. 

'Global' is indeed the buzzword in this region. .Just outside of Kiruna in the community of Jükkasjärvi is the Icehotel, Sweden's best known 'building.' This is today the most googled word about Sweden, even more than the globally established car company Volvo! More than 40 percent of all tourists to Sweden travel here making it the most popular tourist attraction. And it melts away every year! Yes, melts away. Sitting on the banks of the Torne River across from the Fjellborg Kennels where we have been staying, it is literally a hotel made from ice! Well, really, just like an igloo, it is actually made of snow. 

Every year, large forms are sprayed with manmade snow. The forms are then removed and the huge snow structures formed one after the other make up the Icehotel! A large area of ice on the Torne River, maybe 300 by 300 feet (100 by 100 meters), is kept clean of snow by large snowplows so the clear ice can freeze as thick as possible. For the following year's construction, gigantic blocks of ice are then cut out and kept frozen. Pillars, furniture, chandeliers, art, pictures, toilets!, windows, and even walls are made from this ice. 

All guests to the hotel sleep on beds made of ice covered with reindeer skins. Then there are the 'art bedrooms.' From around the world, Artists come to sculp entire rooms, creating some incredible funky wild beds, walls and furniture that express their thoughts on water, snow and ice. "I like icebergs," says Paul with a grin, "and the imagination going into these creations are pretty cool."  There are many cultures under one roof! 

A little culture - an igloo and an art show was actually the simple beginning of this multi-million dollar idea. The founder of the Icehotel, Yngve Bergqvist, was part of hosting an art event and came up with the idea to display the art in an igloo to attract some attention. A friend was bringing a group of people to see the exhibit and with no hotel rooms in town, he asked if maybe they group could sleep in the igloo. And that was the beginning of the Icehotel! The first real Icehotel was built in the winter of 1992. Every year the Icehotel melts away and a new Icehotel is built in the same location the next winter - no two Icehotels alike. 

"To stand inside this building was pretty breathtaking. One thing is the fact that it is very beautiful, just like I think the construction of an igloo built by hand and with a deep understanding of snow is amazing." says Mille, "But what I find impressive with the Icehotel, more than anything, is the idea! Some people had this idea, which I am sure most other people though to be a little out there, but they followed through and today it is this empire with even television stands and glasses of ice. And the idea didn't just change the lives of those involved, it changed this community by putting it 'on the map' with daily planes from London, England. The idea is now also being built in other places of the world. Ideas are what change the world - no two of us seem to think alike!" 

To talk about globalization - from ideas to cultures and the importance of tolerating other peoples' thoughts, customs and ideas, join this week's chat with Reverend Brad Froslee on Wednesday at 11 AM CST. Also, post your thoughts and findings in the 02: Culture Zone on bullying, language and your culture--make sure to check out the cool movie on making a four-corner hat that was posted by students! 

All this talk about snow and ice  obviously doesn't end here. On Thursday, the sleds were loaded and the Polar Huskies hitched and the GoNorth! Fennoscandia 2008 expedition was off on the trail! Good thing we are having more than terrific trails right now, because the snow is sure deep and the sleds are heavy. In the beginning we are heading for Finland, traveling through a maze of marsh lands, woods, onto small rivers and little lakes with 160 kilometers (about 100 miles) to the Finnish border. The sleds are loaded to the top of the handlebars with the loads on each sled weighing about 950 lbs. "That's heavy loads considering we are just two people right now," says Paul, "but first of all we have to carry some things that we would normally spread out on resupplies, such as all our meat, butter and cheese, because we are not allowed to ship it here. We are also carrying gear and equipment for up to four team members, tents, four bivy bags, two cooking sets and so on, because we will be more than just Mille and I for shorter sections of the trip." "Yeah, we can't wait for the rest of the team to join us - not least so we can be using all this stuff instead of carrying it." laughs Mille. 

Heavy loads and deep snow - that's a recipe for some slow moving. With a total of sixteen Polar Huskies, we admit that as we stood on the Torne River before hitching up the dogs to take off, we looked at the very tall loads wishing that we did not have to leave three of the Polar Huskies behind in the US when their tests mysteriously failed. But, as usual, the Polar Huskies are up for a challenge. Right now we run nine dogs on the front team and seven on the one that follows, because it is always easier to follow! 

This in particular is perfect stuff for this week's two Polar Husky Superstars - mad pullers and true deep-snow lovers. 

The first Polar Husky Superstar is Rubi who is the alpha female in the Polar Husky Kennel. Just like a wolf pack has a female and a male leader, so does the pack of Polar Huskies. Rubi is by no means the oldest female, but she is simply tough as nails. She can be a bit shy with people, but she is very kind and loving. However, with other Polar Huskies she simply demands respect and demands for the team to move! Rubi is a large spirited female, very heavy built and yet very athletic. When the going gets really tough, or it is time for some high speed with something exciting to chase ahead, the air often rings with Mille's call "Rrrrrrrrrrruuuuuuuuuuuubi rrruuubi rrrubi" shortly followed by some aggressive barks as Rubi will bulge her harness, throwing her powerful body wildly into the air. She not only jerks the sleds pretty much no matter where in the team she is running, but as important, she lets everyone know that it is time to get to work. And, should anyone not be listening and doing their part - she will let them know that to! 

A stern lady as well, this week's second Polar Husky Superstar: Sable is no bully and extremely respected by all. Since Sable was a tiny puppy, she had the most gorgeous silver lined coat for which she was named, but we soon realized that her tail was a little 'funny' - really without much hair! Concerned that this would be a problem for her when in really brutally cold and windy conditions, we almost gave Sable up. But, she seemed like such a spirited girl and had such an excellent thick coat on the rest of her body that we decided to give it a try anyway. And what a pulling-machine we turned out to have on our hands! Sable's technique is simply formidable. She likes it slow, she likes it steep and she likes when it gets really hard. Her gate becomes short little steps, while her head is lowered and its seems like the harness might break at the seams. As Sable has become older, she knows when it is time to work hard and when she can run along making sure everybody else is working. But hey, that's the beauty of getting older and wiser... and the true beauty of working with the Polar Huskies in the field...no two are alike.