Into the Midnight Sun
Highlights and reflections from a 25-day voyage where the sun doesn’t set
Hi everyone,
I just returned from 25 days of travel in the land where the sun never sets.
(In summer that is.)
One of ways Jay and I love to mark a major milestone is to travel. Going somewhere neither of us had ever been seemed like the perfect way to celebrate our 40th anniversary.
And what a trip!
If you’d like to see what we experienced from a few days on the ground in London, two weeks at sea visiting Scotland and Norway, and a 48-hour stopover in Iceland, you can watch my monthly video recap below.
Though the “movie” is longer than usual, think of it as a meditation on beauty and light. Perhaps you’ll come away feeling richly fed and expanded by the Nordic experience as we did.
Also below I’ve included a few summary highlights in case you’re curious to know a bit more about what you’re seeing.
What is the most recent trip you’ve taken that has bent your mind and made come alive?
Ahhh ☀️
UK 🇬🇧
From London to Greenwich and up to Scottish highland country.
Think scenes from a Masterpiece Theatre series where you’re the lead actor tromping through landscapes that date back several millennia.
Some highlights
Weaving through London’s Regent’s Canal in a narrowboat. (One of London’s best kept secrets, if you ask me.)
A sneak peek inside one of London’s private gardens — on the only day of the year that they open to the public
Edinburgh and all things Scottish
Standing stones, Neolithic settlements, and window etchings from the 1940s (there’s a story there!) on the Orkney Islands
A misty and mystical sail in and sail out of the Shetland Islands, 4,000 year-old dwellings at Jarlshof, sharing the road with airplanes
Norway 🇳🇴
For a country that experiences some of the most extreme conditions (read: cold), its people are some of the warmest and friendliest I’ve ever met. And inspiring too.
You have to have grit to live in the land where light and dark messes with your mind (and biorhythms).
Some highlights
Crossing the Arctic Circle at 11 pm when the sun is still high above the horizon
“In Cod we trust” — the stockfish industry explained in Leknes, Norway
Haukland beach: voted the “most beautiful beach in Norway”
Trolls, glass blowers, and high mountain peaks in Tromso
Italian bikers rolling out their “Motos for Peace” banner in Nordkapp — Europe’s northernmost point
Humans cycling and romping in and around the glaciers, defying the bitter cold, in Nordkapp
The simple beauty of St. John’s chapel — the world’s northernmost chapel built inside a rock
Rocky mountain highs: a 4-hour bus ride through the breathtaking Fjords of Geiranger
Rainy day hues in Bergen
The quirky Moxy hotel in Bergen (which gave us 3 days to recover and get the best night’s sleep, courtesy of the best blackout curtains)
Iceland 🇮🇸
Iceland quite literally blew us away. We came away feeling even more alive, energized, and ready for anything!
This is what taking the airline up on its free 48-hour layover can look like:
A stirring visit to the ultramodern cathedral in the center of Reykjavik
Gigantic waterfalls that make you come alive
Bubbling geothermal fields that make you feel like you’re walking on the moon; thrilling geysers that shoot up into the sky every few minutes
Natural hot lagoons that will cure anything that ails
Volcanic craters and vast green spaces that expand your view of the world
Lupines for miles (with soundtracks of birdsong) that bend the mind
Life in the slow lane — Video — June 2025
Into the midnight sun… and then some
(Best with sound)
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Music credit: “Lush Life” by Joey Alexander
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* New to my monthly video meditations of life in the slow lane? Click here to learn why I do them.
Speaking of travel
(in case you missed it)
Between Worlds: A Photo Journey
Exploring the beauty of travel’s transitional spaces… and our relationship to them.
Beautiful video! I felt like I took a mini trip with you.
I’m glad you had your mind bend. Isn’t that great when we travel and see things from a different perspective? Like dimmer way after my bedtime in summer Norway! 😊