the sky dances with more grace than i ever will

My adventures here in Bodø have not been grand or of any great consequence thus far, which is fine with me. i have a funny feeling that adventures of that sort only need to really come along every once in a great while. Two nights ago i ventured into the falling snow for a walk down the skiing trails behind the student living area, contentedly accompanied by only the footprints of one other individual. The trail is quite well used on a normal basis, some of us have nearly collided with skiiers, who then became rather disgruntled. In the 6pm dark and falling snow, however; it was quite still. i followed the path of my unseen companion, flanked by evergreens heavy with night under their branches. It was a pleasant, if slippery, walk as we turned left and away from the ambient city light

i've noticed that days pass rather quietly when you have so much darkness and when the weather is more condusive to being indoors. Lately, the trails have been quite iced over, making all walks to the woods a bit of an undertaking and a hazard for ankles. Brad, an American who has been here for a semester and lives in my building (Høglimyra) has lead us on a few nice treks. i, unfortunately, forgot my camera on the way to the best view i have seen yet. i know i am a plains person at heart, but i think i am going to sorely miss the mountains and the ice-cold sea when i return to the midwest.

Last night allowed me to cross one more thing off my bucket list. We had been informed that the sky had put on a great show and we had missed as no one had thought to let us know. We were a bit upset, but hung around outside to watch the faintly wavering strips of green that remained overhead. Happily, the solar wind was thoughtful enough to stir up the coals of it's last display and colors began to dance around the Big Dipper and Orion with indescribable grace. Students who have been here for years must have thought we were ridiculous as members of our little crowd (well, me at least) would jump around excitedly every time a new ripple of color branched out to expand the flowing and continuous pattern. How odd to be so used to something so beautiful that you no longer need to run out to see it!

It's really hard to describe the way the lights move. Though i'm sure most have seen it on tv at some point, to have seen them with my own eyes was astounding. Have you ever seen a curtain ripple from one side to the other from a quiet breeze? That is the best way i can think to describe their motion. This night's show was primarily green, but faint pinks and purples would ripple through the green curtain, and light would spill from one part of the pattern to paint an unlit portion of the sky. We watched until clouds blocked our view. i wasn't able to capture a good shot, but a friend did. i'm going to see if she will let me borrow it for this post...so hopefully it will come later!

A group is headed to the climbing wall soon...so i will have to cut this post short, hopefully only to post again soon. i'm a bit bad at this internet thing, but i'm trying! My goal is to have pictures from a tour around the little area of Bodø online tonight. Happy day! :)