Social Distancing - Summer in the Arctic: Lapland

We finally made it: Lapland and the Arctic Circle. Inland and north of 66.5 degrees north things felt different. The trees shortened, the marshes began, and gentle hills known as fjells dotted the otherwise flat landscape. Most importantly, however, the heritage of the Sami people, the nomadic reindeer herders that continue to live in Lapland across the north of Finland, Sweden and Norway, can be found everywhere in this region. Despite historic struggles, the Sami culture continues to thrive and be celebrated in the north and the abundance of museums and cultural centers in Lapland allowed us to get to know a great deal about the Sami. We began in Rovaniemi, where we visited the Arktikum Museum and, of course, Santa Claus' Village. From there, we went way north, visiting the Siida Museum in Inari, up to Utsojki  in the far, far north of Finland, before following the Teno River highway to Karigasniemi. The next day, we were in Norway, visiting the important Sami villages of Karasjok and Kautokeino with Juhls Silver Gallery being a highlight of our time in Lapland.