Polar Night in the Northernmost Town
smithsonianmag.com
smithsonianmag.com
For one thing, “day” felt less like “day” in the sense that the sun never fully rose, it just peeked above the horizon for a few hours.
And for another, it was harder than I expected. For the first time in my life, I _felt_ a need for sunshine.
In the north of Sweden the winter is very nice as the snow reflects the light well and makes it a lot brighter, although as you say it's currently dark without snow, which sucks.
But in the south you don't have as much snow, so the winter is mostly a very dark (and wet). The joke goes that there are only two seasons in the south: summer and autumn.
I loved the articles about their daily life at the Pole, it feels surreal to see an almost regular building with kitchens, showers and other amenities on the South Pole.
All of them bring a sense of calm, even when being outdoors. Snow literally makes being outside quieter.
I’ve often felt like a weirdo for liking these three, but I don’t care. E.g. I also like DST causing the night to start earlier.
To be clear, though, I also like other seasons, and while I don’t enjoy losing an hour at the start of Standard Time, by then I’m ready for the instant extra hour of sun before bedtime — much like I’m sure the people of Longyearbyen are ready for the end of polar night.
Um, DST causes night/sunset to happen later.