Eljest

To be a little different, of a certain kind, a bit special and not like the rest, peculiar but loveable, odd but pleasant, strange but in an appealing way. All of this is to be what we in the north of Sweden call eljest.

Abisko

The National Park has attracted hikers from all over the world for more than a century. Here begins the famous ”Kungsleden” and here is where you have the best chance of seeing the Northern Lights. If the Swedish mountains had its own capital, it would surely be Abisko.

Ensamheten

Is there any Swedish place name that evokes more immediate feelings than Ensamheten (The Loneliness)? No matter how much melancholy the name entails, Ensamheten does foster great strength and power. (Yep, two world champions in arm wrestling come from here.)

Holmnäs

The best thing about Norrland is the unpredictability. Like when fine culture moves into a sheep house. In the small village of Holmnäs outside Umeå, a well-attended opera performance is held once a year in the sheep house where the acoustics send a libretto echoing far over the meadows in the bright summer night.

Jo

There is an affirmative expression – or perhaps more of a sound – that is completely unique for northern Sweden. And no, there is no proper way to spell it. Tutorial: form your lips as to prepare to whistle, inhale swiftly but carefully. There you have it. Use it generously.

Laponia

Laponia

Lovikka

A mitten, knitted with yarn and with a significant cross pattern, was all it took for a small village far north of the Arctic Circle to make a name for itself in wide circles. But then again, those mittens are something else.

Malgomaj

The big lake outside Vilhelmina, where every year someone seems to be breaking the biggest char-record, has a name that sounds very much like a Swedish toddler trying to speak English.

Nalta

Nalta means little. In Vänsterbotten, there is a proverb laconically clarifying how nalta is best used: Harta borti harta jer brano, harta borti he, he jer nalta. (You may want to Google it, or better still, ask someone from Västerbotten).

Nalta Mellan

Nalta means little. In Vänsterbotten, there is a proverb laconically clarifying how nalta is best used: Harta borti harta jer brano, harta borti he, he jer nalta. (You may want to Google it, or better still, ask someone from Västerbotten).

Nalta Småa

Nalta means little. In Vänsterbotten, there is a proverb laconically clarifying how nalta is best used: Harta borti harta jer brano, harta borti he, he jer nalta. (You may want to Google it, or better still, ask someone from Västerbotten).

Örsten

If it is true that there are as many stars in the sky as grains on sand on earth, then let’s hope all the velvety fine grains on the sandy beach of Örsten south of Umeå were counted too.

Renskär

Today a desolate nature reserve, yesterday a gathering point for the fishermen and seal hunters of the area. To visit the island of Renskär in the Kalix archipelago and its well- preserved boulder block maze, is to make a dramatic guest play back in time.

Stenskär

We found paradise a few nautical miles outside the coast of Piteå. A vast sandy beach, a dock in the shape of a lagoon, a rich bird life and fishing to die for. Oh, and a bonus: the Västerbotten coastline tracks more hours of sun in the summer than any other pace in Sweden.