Winter Has Come to Scandinavia!
All of the indicators of a true Scandinavian winter, like snow, freezing temperatures, and ice forming on the Baltic Sea have finally manifested themselves.
Helsinki has come alive because the long wait for snow in Northern Europe and all the benefits it brings is finally over. I can hardly believe that I am happy about that!
Regular readers will be familiar with my…comments…musings…complaining?…on the unusually mild winter weather and dreary grey skies. Well, all of that has changed. Last week, the temperatures have dipped below the freezing mark in Helsinki and snow has been falling almost every day. Stockholm, Oslo, and most of the Swedish/Norwegian/Finnish peninsula are experiencing the same thing. Excited children have dug out their plastic disks and sleds to take to the hills of Helsinki parks. Hard-core cyclists have changed their tires from regular to snow tires, complete with chains. Everyone is sporting their snow boots and their warmest winter coats. Finally, conditions are ripe for Nordic skiing, snowshoeing, and other winter activities.
Besides being able to enjoy the winter wonderland outside, people crave a white covering of snow on the ground to brighten up the world around them, literally. As of January 26, it still stays dark until 8:45 in the morning and the sun sets around 4:00. We have about7.5 hours of real daylight. The days are getting longer by less than five minutes per day, so that means it will be another 3 weeks or so before we get another hour of daylight. Any bit of brightening helps a lot.
The topic of conversation lately has been whether or not the Baltic Sea will become cold enough to completely freeze. Normally, by this time of year, the sea is totally frozen and people are strolling across the sea to the islands surrounding Helsinki, or cross country skiing on the perfectly flat, snowy surface a frozen sea offers. I have even heard of people driving their cars on the frozen sea in winters past. There are a few precarious ice blocks floating on the sea, but by watching the pigeons stand on these little floating ice disks, it doesn’t appear that they could support the weight of any heavier life forms.
Growing up in the northeastern corner of the US, I used to dream of tropical beach vacations during the cold, dreary months of January and February. I never thought I’d rejoice over blustery winter weather, but I guess I’ve been living in Northern Europe long enough to change my tune. Bring on the snow!
