Day 3 - Tromso

“You Had me at Hello”

Hello, Tromsø!

The little plane dropped through the clouds over snow capped mountains, to an enchanting city on the edge of the sea, with pink & purple light dusting the landscape. Tromsø had me at hello.

Tromsø lies in Northern Norway, 200 miles north of the Arctic circle.  A tiny island, roughly the size of Manhattan, it’s population is about 70,000 people, making it the 2nd largest urban area North of the Arctic circle.  Tromso experiences extreme light variations during the year & by the time we arrived, the sun had officially quit rising.  This “Polar night” lasts from November through January, and come May the sun doesn’t set again until July.  Every morning, from about 10am-12:30pm, we experience the suggestion of light, in a landscape brushed in blue.

I spent part of the day at a lovely coffee shop, catching up on emails & trying to acclimate to the absence of sunlight.  I’m impressed by the efforts made to create inviting spaces in this little town, where darkness reigns for months of the year - candles burning in glass lanterns, nestled together on steps outside of shops & filling the rooms inside.  I was surprised at how comfortable I could be made to feel in the dark - Norwegian Hygge is real.   

With most of the team arriving tomorrow, I scouted a dinner for our abbreviated group of 8 & settled on Kitchen & Table - a Marcus Samuelsson restaurant in a hotel near the water.  We got acquainted & enjoyed a meal & I immediately felt a kinship, despite my nerves.  Each woman was as amazing as the next, with a completely unique story.  I felt almost immediately to have found a tribe. Afterwards a few of us went to the famous “Ice Bar” - a bar made completely of ice, with ice walls & spaces & sculptures.  Though largely a tourist operation, it was an interesting place to see & drink a cocktail from glass made of ice, on a bench made of ice, at tables made of ice.  Tomorrow was a full day at leisure in Tromso, before the official start of a 3-day Leadership conference.