Top of the World

Slung from a plane out of Milan, jettisoned across Paris and Stockholm to land on the Top of the World, also known as Umea. Umeå is about 600 km north of Stockholm at 63°50′N, 20°15′E and about 400 km south of the Arctic Circle -that's what I mean - way up there....Umea could be any other small town in the American Mid-West albeit with birch trees and a lot more watery inlets. I find it difficult to believe that I am that far up north - probably the furthest any of my living relatives have ever been - could travel to Kiruna too and push the benchmark a little higher.

So what does it feel like to be here? Frankly speaking, a little daunting. They weren't joking when they said the city centre was a cross-junction between two roads. When the plane taxied down the runway, there were only trees, miles of trees, carpetful of trees i.e. birch, firs ...and where were the buildings?...Of course I'm exaggerating about the cross-road thingy. Umea is pretty developed for a little big town...but I do miss Milanese buses - at least I knew when it would arrive. Here, all that's missing were those temporal indicators at the bus stop and the buses themselves. We could wait forever in the cold and not know when one would come.

Missed too were the occasional city plans and road notices. I guess being so small, no one would need a map anyway - oh, the grocery? Take a right at the first tree, then left and follow the sun. whoo pee

Will go to sleep now - tomorrow am going to catch a fish for dinner and pick some mushrooms.....hej do!