For this weekend’s excursion from the daily excavation site the team gathered together for a road trip to Rovaniemi. It was a long, sleep-filled haul but the end product was quite worth the trip. We arrived in Rovaniemi at around 1 p.m. and immediately the group split to dine at whichever place their wallets felt most comfortable. Some ate at the famous Rocktaurant as other decided for a pizza buffet.
After the delicious meals filled our belly’s we walked down towards the river where, unbeknownst to us, a marathon was being run and we were standing at the finish line. Runners zipped on by as we cheered on those who have never met us; they gave us grateful smiles and kiitos. The river was an amazing site and an equally amazing site was the bridge, which our Finnish friend Riku informed us was helped built by his father.
Soon after we became sucked in by tourist traps and coughed up some cash for souvenirs, completely forgetting the time and the rendezvous point of our other half. We scrambled, asking strangers for directions to the nearest museum (not truly knowing which museum we’re supposed to head to) and finally we found ourselves in the Arktikum museum.
The Arktikum museum was an arctic wonderland for arctic archaeologists with exhibits about Lapland and their World War II horrors but, on a lighter side, many of the exhibits dealt with animal life in the region and archaeological sites of importance in the area. Showcases of iron tools and blades outlined the perimeter of the first museum hall while other halls displayed reconstructions of wildlife and human inhabitance living together as one in the treacherous, changing weather of the Arctic Circle.
The other standout aspects of the museum were the theatre room, which I will get to in a moment, and a room, appropriately titled by the students as the “acid” room. In the “acid” room, one had to lie down on a cushioned-filled floor and observe a light show of life in the arctic. Though the show lasted only about 10 minutes, the music and the CG blended together to created a beautiful world of the northern lights. The theatre room was an entirely different experience on a more educational basis. In the theatre room, a short film about the history of the Lapland was shown; giving people a glimpse of a world long since past.
Though the Arktikum museum was a fulfilling trip in itself, we were gifted with a trip to the Arctic Circle and an opportunity to meet Santa Claus. Unfortunately we arrived too late to see Santa we did enjoy the company of our team in an environment outside the excavation. Rovaniemi was a wonderful experience and a trip worth remembering. The tension of the excavations quickly vanished but the sun is always brighter before the rains and on Monday, the rains came.
Saturday’s trip to Rovaniemi seemed so long ago today as excavations began not so bright and early. The dig site was gloomy and miserable, entirely due to the rains falling upon us at such a crucial time of the excavation. The team was split into surveyors and diggers. The survey team consisted of Spyros, Laurel, Greg, Dan, Dustin, Chris and Lauren while back at the dig site the team consisted of Matt, Adam, Juan, Carlos, Noelia, Eva, Riku and Rob.
From the sound of things, both team had trouble dealing with cold, wetness of the rain as the survey team was plagued with mosquitoes and rain, as well with the disappointment of finding nothing. While at the excavation more fire cracked rock was found and a strange dirt circle. At this time the dirt circle is still a mystery but hopefully tomorrow, being a new day of opportunities, an understanding of what it could be might be brought to light. Until than, I must leave you bloggers with this cliffhanger; check back tomorrow.
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