Today began with boarding another bus. Before this morning, all we were told is that we were going on a day long excursion. Some of us thought we might be looking for wolves. We knew that Kjell Westerdahl, a teacher at the folk high school and a previous guest instructor at Gustavus would be leading the adventure and he has done much work and observation of wolves in the area and all over the world. This was not to be, however, and this morning, we learned that we were just going to explore some more of Dalarna. (Though Cassandra and I did see a moose from the bus window.) It was so fun to drive through all the little villages which look oh so Scandinavian. Each village around Lake Siljan wants to be unique and have special things about them that are widely known. Example- Mora is known for the Vasaloppet. There was one village we drove through (sadly I can not remember the name) which has a mountain the inhabitants claim is the home of Santa Claus. We did not pile off the bus to check.
Our first stop was at a museum. We got out and got to learn about meteor activity in the area. I spent some time looking at diagrams of the solar system and "the Big Bang." Coming from a very small and pretty conservative high school, I was always taught that the Big Bang and evolution were theories that might have happened. Everything I read today definitively told readers that this event happened.
This is Sweden, where nothing comes in the way of fika time. We went out to the bus where there were air pots of coffee and a portable table with rolls and pepparkakor for us to have outside the bus. (and yet again- Gustavus please take note.)
We continued on to Lake Siljan where we crossed the still frozen lake to have an outdoor picnic and fire. The theme was "vikings" so we had bacon and vegetables cooked over an open fire. (Evidently bacon and veggies were eaten by the Vikings?...) We then cleaned the pot with snow and then put apple slices, hazelnuts and honey over the fire to have "apple pie" as dessert- so very delicious. I can't believe that even after 13 years of Girl Scouts, I had never heard of such a wonderful camp treat.
After our great lunch, it was time to get back on the bus and continue on our way. We stopped at a sort of wildlife preserve. We got to spend some time walking around learning about different species of wildlife in Dalarna. Example, Dalarna has more carnivores than any other area in Sweden.
I got the chance to revisit the Sami people a bit today. It was a happy reunion. Evidently, the Sami have their southern most grazing areas in Northern Dalarna. There was a section of the preserve dedicated to them. Instead of wandering around and looking at the exhibits, all I wanted to do was read the books about about Sami clothing and Nils- Aslak Valkapää's collection of Sami artwork and poems, "Trekways of the Wind." Evidently, a month later, I don't seem to have quite left the far north.
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