I am so excited right now. One night I was eating a pizza with a friend (which happens all the time, so no biggie) and I said why don’t we go north this winter? She said let’s go. And man, I love when someone really means it.

So Martina and I are leaving tomorrow. Where to?

Swedish Lapland ladies and gentleman!

I’m so excited I feel my cheeks getting warm as I type it.

There are so many activities in our plans, and the not-so-secret hope to get to see the northern lights (again! It’s like a drug. You can never get enough).

Let me start by thanking Visit Sweden, SJ (Swedish Railways) and Lantliv Lodge for making all this possible. The official hashtag we’ll use when sharing our content during the trip is #SLT2015 (as in Swedish Lapland Trip 2015!). Follow us :)

The northern lights in Swedish Lapland. Photo © Edoardo Miola

The Itinerary and Activities

The Swedish Lapland is the northernmost region of Sweden, and home to several national parks, extensive forests, breathtaking natural shows such as the northern lights and the midnight sun, and the Sami – one of the few indigenous populations left in Europe.

After landing in Stockholm, a night train will take us up to Skelleftea, not far from the Arctic Circle. If you think we’re just going to freeze our face (cough cough) off, I am more than happy to prove you wrong!

• Edoardo Miola, a Nikon School photographer based in town, will be our guide in a few photographic workshops. I honestly can’t wait to learn everything about exposure in snowy landscapes.

Edoardo Miola

• We’re going on a safari by snowmobile, through the forests inhabited by wild elks. Hopefully we’ll get to see some!

A Wild Elk in Swedish Lapland. Photo © Edoardo Miola

• A lifetime dream of mine will come true: we’re going sled dog racing and I am so looking forward to this. I love dogs, I love huskies, I love everything about this and I cannot wait to try a new experience. Hopefully I won’t be too clumsy…

Sled dog racing – Photo © Edoardo Miola

We’ve been told a barbecue will be waiting for us when we return from the excursion, but as you know I don’t eat meat – however, luckily we are both vegetarians and the travel agency has been informed, so so we’re also curious to find what the area has to offer us in terms of food! If we find something interesting and delicious, we’ll be more than happy to share the discoveries.

• Another activity on the list is riding horses in the woods. As much as I love to picture this in my mind, I also know I can’t even climb on a horse’s back. So this should be interesting…

The setting of our activities… yes please! Photo © Edoardo Miola

• The Samis are one of the last, few indigenous populations in Europe, who still keep a strong cultural identity. Once nomadic, today they live in small towns (even if some of course have moved to the big cities, such as Stockholm!), and during our trip we are going to meet a typical Sami family in a winter farm, to learn about their culture and habits; one of the Samis’ main activities is reindeer breeding.

Sami people of Sweden. Photo © Edoardo Miola

• More excursions? Sure! And you thought winter in Lapland was boring? Snowshoeing, wildlife watching, sightseeing in Skeftellea City and the surrounding lakes, stargazing (can’t wait!), sauna with icy lake dip (oh no oh no oh no. Okay I’ll do it! *packs swimsuit*) and so on. And northern lights of course, if they show up.

Swedish Lapland: if this isn’t awesome, I don’t know what is. Photo © Edoardo Miola

No aurora? No problem!

Even if we don’t get to see the northern lights, I already know this will be an unforgettable trip. I can’t wait to step on that night train and smile, knowing that I will be waking up in a different, white world made of nature and beauty.