"The North Awakens"

Photographer/fine artists Jonathan Besler, Florian Gampert, and Kevin May used drone cameras to make "The North Awakens,"a video of the gorgeous, surreal, sweeping landscapes of Iceland. Enjoy!

https://jonathanbesler-shop.fineartprint.de/
https://www.instagram.com/fgampert/
https://www.instagram.com/may.kevin/

Winter Cabin 2016

I'll be spending the holidays at the cabin--if you need me, call the general store in town and have Sam drive his pick up out to get me because there's no phone at the cabin and no cell reception.

Dreams Are The Heart Of The Universe

"Long years ago I gave pain by saying, with the arrogance of boyhood, that it was foolish to tell one’s dreams. I have done penance for that remark since. . . . I have cultivated, so far as I care to, my garden of dreams, and it scarcely seems to me that it is a large garden. Yet every path of it, I sometimes think, might lead at last to the heart of the universe."
— Havelock Ellis

“Myths are public dreams. Dreams are private myths.”
— Joseph Campbell

“The answer is dreams. Dreaming on and on. Entering the world of dreams and never coming out. Living in dreams for the rest of time.”
— Haruki Murakami

Our Fragile Oasis

The pettiness below must seem pretty insane from up there...

Time lapse sequences of photographs taken by Ron Garan and the crew of expeditions 28 & 29 onboard the International Space Station from August to October, 2011.

Shooting locations in order of appearance:

1. Aurora Borealis Pass over the United States at Night
2. Aurora Borealis and eastern United States at Night
3. Aurora Australis from Madagascar to southwest of Australia
4. Aurora Australis south of Australia
5. Northwest coast of United States to Central South America at Night
6. Aurora Australis from the Southern to the Northern Pacific Ocean
7. Halfway around the World
8. Night Pass over Central Africa and the Middle East
9. Evening Pass over the Sahara Desert and the Middle East
10. Pass over Canada and Central United States at Night
11. Pass over Southern California to Hudson Bay
12. Islands in the Philippine Sea at Night
13. Pass over Eastern Asia to Philippine Sea and Guam
14. Views of the Mideast at Night
15. Night Pass over Mediterranean Sea
16. Aurora Borealis and the United States at Night
17. Aurora Australis over Indian Ocean
18. Eastern Europe to Southeastern Asia at Night

http://fragileoasis.org/
http://eol.jsc.nasa.gov/
Edited by Michael Konig http://www.koenigm.com/

Aurora Village

I recently posted about Finland's Hotel Kakslauttanen here, where one can stay in a glass domed igloo to watch the Aurora Borealis all night long. In that spirit, here is Aurora Village, located in Yellowknife, Canada. Guests relax in heated teepees picturesquely situated by Aurora Lake while waiting for the Aurora. Outside, one can sit in a heated seat that swivels 360* for maximum viewing pleasure of the Northern Lights. Although it appears one does not sleep in the teepees, Aurora Village does offer packages that include hotel accommodations nearby.

Visit their website; they offer a "Recent Aurora" link where they post updated pictures of the previous night's Aurora!
http://www.auroravillage.com/index.html

Hotel Kakslauttanen

Oh, how I would love to spend a holiday season at Hotel Kakslauttanen, perched in Lapland, at the northern-most edge of Finland... within the Arctic Circle! In addition to log cabins and traditional igloos, they have a unique glass igloo village where one can relax in bed, in insulated normal room-temperature warmth and gaze up at the Aurora Borealis, or Northern Lights, through the special thermal fog-free glass.

They also have the world's largest smoke sauna and reindeer safaris in the winter! What more could I possibly want?

Here are the log cabins. I can't make up my mind; I might have to stay a night in the glass igloo and then a night in a log cabin!

Visit their website for more information and great virtual tours of the Glass Igloos, Log Cabins, Snow Restaurant, and Snow Chapel.
http://kakslauttanen.fi/en/