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Special Places - Part 4
A cold hotel, an old station,
and a tall
building |
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The Ice Hotel
(Sweden)
I have a good
friend, Hendrik Fjällström, living in a town called Vilhelmina,
situated in the region of Sweden that he fondly calls Norrlande,
commonly known as Lapland, the most northernly part of the
country. Since my wife and I previously only visited the southern
region of Sweden, from Stockholm to Karlstad and Göteborg (Guthenburg),
Hendrik promised during a visit to us, that on our return-visit he
would take us to places and show us sights “that few South Africans
ever had the privilege to experience” - like the Ice Hotel,
near the age-old village called Jukkasjärvi.
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Lapland
stretches from about 64 º N up to about 69 º N, a distance of
more or less 600 km. as the crow flies. This arctic area of
Scandinavia (including the northern part of Norway, as well as
the Kola Peninsula of Russia), the so-called Land of the
Midnight Sun, is the region where the indigenous people of
Scandinavia, the Sami, lived since prehistoric times. Here an
estimated number of 50 000 - 70 000 Sami today still proudly
maintains a strong ethnic identity, with quite a large number of
them still making a living by fishing, hunting and by
domesticated reindeer herding.
To reach the
Ice Hotel by road from Vilhelmina (approximately 64½ º N) you
have to drive 550 km up to the town Kiruna, through what is
regarded as the last remaining expanse of wilderness in northern
Europe, with forests, mountains and unspoiled rivers. (By the
way, there is an airport at Kiruna, connected to the
international airports in Stockholm, Göteborg and Malmö, should
you wish to fly up there). From Kiruna another 27 km brings you
to Jukkasjärvi, about 200 km north of the Arctic Circle, on the
banks of the Torne River with its pure and crystal clear water! |
Photo: Lacey Johnson -
www.scantours.com |
The Ice Hotel is
built from scratch every year, with new designs, new suites and a
new reception area. Since everything is built from ice and snow, it
annually gradually melts down during April and May, returning the
water to the Torne, thereby completing a magical cycle. As soon as
it gets cold enough again, 10 000 tons of blocks of ice are cut out
of the meter thick ice layer covering the Torne during winter, and
stored away until the construction of the hotel starts during
October of each year. This is supplemented by 30 000 tons of pure
snow sprayed into hand-made molds, which are removed once the snow
has set.
Covering more than 30 000 square feet, the hotel sleeps over 100
people in bedrooms which are each uniquely decorated with ice art
and sculptures. Apart from the reception area, there are also an ice
art exhibition hall, a cinema, an Ice Chapel and the world
famous Absolute Ice Bar. On arrival full jumpsuits made of
beaver nylon are issued to guests.
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Photo: Lacey Johnson -
www.scantours.com |
The beds are
sculpted out of ice and snow, covered with thick reindeer skins.
(I’m the proud owner of one, as well as that of a European lynx
which hunts on the reindeer, which Hendrik once - I think,
illegally! - sent me as a Christmas present). The thick, dense
wool of the skin insulates one from the ice, but to keep warm,
you have to sleep in a thermal sleeping bag, made of material
first developed for astronauts walking on the moon. In the
morning you are awakened with a cup of hot lingonberry juice at
your bedside. But should you want to be part of the action, but
not part of the cold, you can be accommodated in the nearby
Aurora House Cabins or Chalet Cabins (not built out of ice),
both with two bedrooms and a sitting room with kitchenette and
other amenities. The rooms have a ceiling skylight for a view of
the midnight sun or aurora borealis (northern lights). |
The world famous
Absolute Ice Bar, skillfully created by artists and craftsmen,
ensures a unique experience. You drink your Vodka cocktails
specially created for this bar, and distilled and mixed from pure
raw materials derived from local sources, like winter wheat from
surrounding farms and pure water from a private well, out of glasses
sculpted from the crystal clear ice of the Torne River. With each
sip your lips leave their impression! And since the glasses
eventually break, you will surely make new friends from the
cosmopolitan crowd intermingling there.
The Ice Chapel
is frequently used for marriages, as well as for other religious
purposes. This serene white chapel with a life span of only a few
months contrasts starkly with the old Jukkasjärvi church dating from
1607. Another special experience in the village is to enjoy a
genuine traditional sauna in the sauna building, where a sauna
expert will introduce you to what the Swedes regard as a “noble
art”. After a deep cleansing session in the sauna, you can go
outside to relax in a large outdoor warm bath sunk into the
snow-covered ground, while gazing at the spectacular Arctic sky
above.
Should a traveller
wish to experience some of the things that have become scarce in
large parts of our world, you will find it in the winter wonderland
of Swedish Lapland - space, time, silence, tranquility, clean air,
clean water, snow, the Midnight Sun and the Northern Lights!
Victoria Station
(London)
There are many
sights to be seen in London, but one of my favourite places will not
be found in travel brochures or in lists of the ”top ten sights”.
No, Victoria Station, in the City of Westminster in the
centre of London, is a place where you can relax with a beer in your
hand at the end of a weary day of jumping onto underground trains,
and chasing around to see what every tourist wishes to see. It is
here where you can really experience what the normal working-class
Londoner daily has to cope with, and how they do it. Here you are in
the pulsing heart of this bustling and unique city. Here you get a
glimpse into the psyche of the real Englishman, especially during
the crowded hours after 5 pm on weekdays.
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Victoria
Station today has a multipurpose function: After Waterloo
Station it is London’s second busiest railway terminus serving
over 115 million passengers a year to destinations all over the
United Kingdom, the city’s busiest underground station serving
up to 80 million passengers per year, as well as the main London
coach terminal.
Although the
station is nearly 150 years old, the brick arches above W H
Smiths still separate the station into two distinct parts. Each
has been partially rebuilt over the years, giving Victoria no
fewer than four different styles of architecture! The first part
of the station (the eastern side), serving what was called the
inner circle, was opened in the 1860’s. In the 1870’s
northbound branches were added (the western side), leading to
what became known as the outer circle. |
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Today the eastern
terminus comprises platforms 1 - 8, serving the Chatham Main Line in
the direction of Kent, whilst the western terminus comprises
platforms 9 - 19, serving trains going in the direction of Surrey,
Sussex and Brighton. The Gatwick Express also departs from this
terminus. Tickets can be bought on this train; therefore eliminating
the effort of standing in long queues. Another train that has
Victoria Station as its base is the world famous luxury Orient
Express between London and Venice.
Victoria Station is
centrally located in London, with top quality hotels as well as
small hotels and B&B facilities nearby. It serves as a hub from
where you can visit any part of the city easily, and - you can even
walk to some of the most visited sites: the Houses of Parliament,
Westminster Abbey, London Eye, the Thames, Buckingham Palace, etc. I
therefore like to stay in this area when visiting London.
The station
provides a wide range of food and beverages, shopping, banking,
public telephones, Internet access. There are ATM cash machines and
foreign exchange facilities on the main concourse of the station.
Food and drink outlets selling freshly prepared coffees, baked
breads, cakes, pastries, burgers, fries, sandwiches, baquettes,
pretzels are to be found; as well as a range of gift shops selling
everything from jewellery, cosmetics, newspapers, magazines, books,
handmade chocolates, to fresh flowers! I enjoy browsing through the
latest publications at the bookshop WH Smiths. You will also find a
number of bars and restaurants here. The balcony of the restaurant
on the first floor of the main shopping mall gives you a wonderful
view of the west section of the entrance gates to the trains
departing from platforms 09 - 19. This is where I usually enjoy the
beer that I’ve mentioned above.
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But it depends
on what you want to do or see at Victoria Station! One
commentator on the internet describes it as a “commuter hell”,
with overcrowding, and advises travelers to avoid it, if they
can. But another sees it as “the sort of station that would look
superb taken by a professional photographer in black and white,
an amazingly designated station”. And this it what I’ve always
experienced when quietly observing the hurrying crowds. Most
people are dressed in black, with an attaché case and perhaps an
umbrella in one hand, and the latest edition of the daily
newspaper in the other.
They hurriedly
observe the regularly updated departure information, where-after
they quietly fall in at the back of the different queues, from
whereafter the silently stand staring at the rolling time-table
indicating the arrival and departure time of the different
trains. They will rarely ever speak to a stranger in the queue,
and try to maintain a personal space - just like people in an
elevator! And when the gates open, the commuters will hurry
orderly to their respective trains. |
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This ingrained
discipline, but also reservedness of the British is in stark
contrast with what you would experience in South Africa. Here most
of the people will greet one another loudly, will even shout to
someone over a distance - and there will be no discernable queues.
Whilst most of the British commuters will be in time for the trains
departing precisely on the scheduled times, in South Africa time is
often of lesser importance; socializing with one another, and taking
time to do it, is regarded as a way of life. Therefore, an hour’s
observation at Victoria Station gives you time to reflect on the
ways in which people intermingle with one another, on the impact
different cultures have on their lifestyles, to rethink your own
pre-set ideas, and to be thankful for the privileges that one enjoy
in your own country.
The Burj Dubai (UAE)
I haven’t seen the
latest man-made wonder-in-the-making myself, and have only become
aware of it through reports in the media and the internet. But it
already is such a unique accomplishment, that I thought it
interesting enough to include something about it. Therefore, I’ve
done some research, mostly through the internet, and the more I
read, the more fascinated I became. Most of the information, as well
as the photographs, can be found at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World’s_tallest_structures.
I’m speaking about the Burj Dubai (Burj = tower) in
Dubai, United Arab Emirates, currently the world’s tallest man-made
structure. On 31 September 2008 the building reached a height of
713.7 m! Construction started in September 2004, and it is expected
to be completed in September 2009. The final height is kept secret,
but some say it will rise to over 818 m, with about 180 storeys,
whilst some even expect it to soar up to 1 km! In order to fully
appreciate the present height, it can be compared to the next
highest structures. Interesting graphic illustrations are to be
found at the Burj’s official website
www.burjdubai.com, whilst another website
www.burjdubaiskyscraper.com gives the latest statistics and
photos of the structure.
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There is some
controversy about what ought to be included when speaking about
the tallest structures: buildings (meaning having both office
and residential space) and / or towers; also whether antennas
and spires should be included. However, the second tallest
building is a mere (!) 523.3 m - to the tip of its antenna -
namely the Sears Tower in Chicago (USA), followed by the
Taipei 101 in Taipei (Taiwan), which reaches 509.2 m to
the top of its spire. If towers are included, the KVLY-TV
mast in Blanchard (USA) comes second, with 628.8 m, with the
553.3 m high CN Tower in Toronto (Canada) third. Other
famous tall buildings are the Petronas Twin Towers in
Kuala Lumpur (452 m), and the Empire State Building in
New York (381 m).
Looking back in history, various structures through time held
the distinction as being the tallest. Just to name a few: the
Great Pyramid of Giza (Cairo, Egypt), dating from c. 2570 BC
was 146 m tall (now eroded to about 139 m), the Cologne
Cathedral (1248 – 1880) in Germany reaches 157 m, the
Eiffel Tower (Paris, France, 1889) is 324 m tall, and the
Chrysler Building (1931) in New York 319 m.
But what astounds most is to read about what is already proposed
to be built in the near future. Amongst them are the Shimizu
TRY Mega-City Pyramid to be constructed over Tokyo Bay in
Japan - a structure that would be 2 004 m high, and housing 750
000 people, the Mile High Tower planned for Jeddah, Saudi
Arabia, proposed to rise to 1 600 m, and the Al Burj, a 1
400 m tall skyscraper also to be built in Dubai. Let us just
hope that our future generations will not again try to build a
Tower of Babel! |
- Manie Wolvaardt |
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