Rambling Rosa: An Arctic Tale

I just wrote this for the newsletter of the Moscow American Women's Organization so I thought I'd post it here too.

Think Rudolph, Russian eskimos and midnight sun and you will have an idea of what my trip to Russia’s north – I mean FAR north – was like. My husband David and I flew earlier this month to Murmansk, the world’s largest Arctic city, a full 250 miles above the Arctic Circle. I have no hesitation calling this adventure travel. I only recommend the trip if you are feeling particularly daring or if you, like me, have some bizarre curiosity about what the Arctic Circle entails. The impetus for the trip was David’s work. I tagged along to see a whole different part of Russia.

Murmansk itself is industrial and will strike you as quite gritty. It has a huge port where a great deal of Russia’s trade with Europe still occurs. The port is also home to a number of Russia’s nuclear ice breakers -- huge boats that run on atomic energy. They make long winter trips along Russia’s northern coast. This is how you get to the North Pole. In fact, for around $15,000, you can take a North Pole cruise on a boat like this -- who knew? (I didn’t). Besides atomic-powered boats, Murmansk boasts a towering World War II memorial and a decent local history museum with English tours. The best hotel as far as I could tell is the Park Inn. The restaurants all sell reindeer steak, a local delicacy I could not bring myself to eat. They also have a lot of great fish since the Peninsula borders the Barents Sea.

We didn’t actually spend much time in the city, focusing instead on surrounding villages, including Lovozero. The hotel will book a driver to get you there. It is a 2 1/2 hour drive over mainly unpaved, rugged roads. Try to request a large car. Stay away from the Ladas, or you’ll end up nauseous the whole time. Trust me. Lovozero village is the capital of the Russian Saami nation, an indigenous tribe that spans from northern Russia into Scandinavia. Like the Native Americans in the U.S., the Saami can claim to be some of this country’s first inhabitants. There is a cultural center, Saami museum and lots of charming little wooden houses in the village. We were entertained by Saami singers and I managed to buy a $60 pair of reindeer slippers that I’ll never wear. I kept telling myself it was all in support of the local economy.

An hour drive in the opposite direction from Murmansk, and you can find yourself on a reindeer farm. There are a number of small Saami groups scattered around Murmansk Oblast on the Kola Peninsula. We found a group of three families who run a farm and keep about an acre of land in their traditional native style, complete with a tee pee and dirt hut. They don’t live in the dwellings but keep them around for community meetings and visitors. A Saami spiritual leader built a fire for us, served tea and sang a traditional song. She nearly had me convinced to join their tribe - it was really interesting!

For better or for worse, the Russians have not developed these rural communities, nor do they encourage tourism. So if you want to visit the Saami, you have to do the legwork. But honestly, it is worth it. These places are a world away from Moscow, the people are friendly, you learn a lot and the air is crisp and clean. Plus, if you go in the summer, the sun won’t set - it is really a strange and beautiful thing. Sunlight at 2am! Then again, it was in the low 50’s our first day and didn’t warm up until right before we left – nearly breaking 70.