I arrived in Svea, Svalbard this morning. It's absolutely beautiful here. My camera has been working overtime, and I have way too many pictures of fjords and snowy mountains already.

Going over Svalbard by plane was surprising. I expected it to be white all over, but it's mainly brown - at least in the southern part. I could see beaches and lagoon-like colors around them. If I didn't for a fact what the temperatures are like, I would have been tempted to go for a swim. There's much less snow than I expected so far.

It was strange yesterday evening to be in Longyearbyen, and see what was happening half a world away, in Canada. Activists stopped the tar sands yet again. When you know the effect industrial projects like these have on the climate, and on the Arctic region where I am right now, it is good to know that people are stepping up and taking action.

I started to be sea sick about 30 seconds after we set off last night. Looking at a computer isn't the best way to fight off nausea. An hour later, I was just hoping to be sick and get over it. I went to bed very early - not much you can do once you're at sea, with no internet, sea-sick, and tired.

I woke up in yet another beautiful place. We were still on our way to Svea. The sea was very calm - so much that when I first awoke, I thought we were already anchored. We did anchor, around 11, near Svea. We're in the middle of a fjord. It's been snowing lately, so the mountains around us are white.

Everything looks (and is) so pristine around here. I don't think I've ever been to a place with such a low population density - there are more polar bears than humans in Svalbard. It shows. No houses, no road, no human traces, besides the ship - and the place where we arrived today.

There's a coal mine about 100 meters away from me. As we arrived, we met a coal ship that had just left the mine, and from what the mining company told us, there's another one arriving tonight. During the summer season, there's always ships arriving and leaving. It's much harder for them to make it through the fjord when it's icy, and in the dead of the winter, it's simply impossible. That makes Svea quite active in the summer for such a small settlement.

Next to the coal mine is a polar bear trail. It represents very well the paradox of Svalbard: the incredible nature, and devastating coal activities. There is actually enough tourism and scientific activity to keep the economy going here. Coal used to be essential - now, it is becoming a side activity. The main reason the Norwegian and Russian governments keep mining here is to prove their sovereignty and their rights. As two of the countries at the frontline of the Arctic Meltdown, they should definitively know better.

As I started this blog, Dima from Greenpeace Russia walked in and said he saw a white whale in the distance. I pretty much jumped from my seat and ran outside. I managed to see its back for half a second, but unfortunately, Mr Beluga was shy, so that's all I got. I'm crossing fingers to see another one.

More later,

Juliette

Despite what the blog says, this entry was not written by Dave