✳flâneur — a map of the web's best reading

The Island Without Time - The Atlantic

theatlantic.com · 2,927 words · saved by 1 readers

When the sun rises on May 18 in the small Norwegian fishing village of Sommarøy, located above the Arctic Circle, it doesn’t set again until July 26. Later in the year, it vanishes from November until January. In the winter, the island is covered in snow. But during the midnight sun, the weather is temperate, even hot. Purple wildflowers stick out of mossy grass, and the electric-blue water and white sand look more Caribbean than Arctic. Walking along the coast around 11 p.m., you might see kayakers paddling on the smooth sea in the distance, or children in pajamas fishing and running along the beach with their catches. Inspired by the extreme periods of light and dark, in late spring 2019, a group of locals signed a petition to make the village the first “time-free zone,” a place where anyone could buy groceries, cut grass, or eat dinner no matter the time. Their reasoning made sense enough: In a town where the sun shines at 1 a.m. in July and you can see the stars at 1 p.m. in Decemb

Listen − 1.0 x + Seek 0:00 17:04 This article was featured in the One Story to Read Today newsletter. Sign up for it here. W hen the sun rises on May 18 in the small Norwegian fishing village of Sommarøy, located above the Arctic Circle, it doesn’t set again until July 26. Later in the year, it vanishes from November until January. In the winter, the island is covered in snow. But during the midnight sun, the weather is temperate, even hot. Purple wildflowers stick out of mossy grass, and the electric-blue water and white sand look more Caribbean than Arctic. Walking along the coast around 11

Explore this link on the map →

related reading