Live data from Hacker News

Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

sysselmesteren.no

31–40 of 92 posts

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#31
post #6

One thing I didn't see in here that is absolutely relevant to life (but perhaps considered a foregone conclusion by the Norwegian government) is the concept of midnight sun and polar night, where the sun is periodically either above or below the horizon for 24 hours a day for months on end. It's a real mind-bender and can be very tough on the spirit in the winter. Quoting the 'time in Svalbard' Wikipedia article: > A…

As someone who has pulled the night shift for a couple years, I could handle it no probs; black out curtains, a white noise box fan, a regular sleep schedule, and soft music are all you need. Just to get to live in a Scandanavian country, i could deal with it. Unfortunately, I'm not rich enough to buy my way in :) .

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#33

What's the typical cloud coverage in Svalbard? Is it typically cloudy? I've always been interested in the polar night strictly from an astronomy viewing perspective. Does the convenience of 24 hour night sky become moot from near constant cloud cover?

Haven't been to Svalbard but sadly my experience on the mainland in Norway and other nearby places with polar night is that cloud cover is near constant. Perhaps 75% of the time. But, the sky is jaw dropping the rest of the time.

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#34
> The use of all violence is prohibited in Norway. You are not allowed to abuse children or use any other kind of corporeal punishment when bringing up children. Severe penalties may be applied to anyone who has physically abused a child.

Never saw that before. This should be standard everywhere.

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#35

The show Fortitude is basically set in Svalbard. Technically, the island is called Fortitude but basically just for artistic freedom; it's basically Svalbard. Even though the show is fiction I learned from it that you're essentially required to carry firearms whenever you leave town so that you don't get eaten by polar bears.

IIRC the legal requirement is to carry an "anti-polar bear device". Rifles are the most common but flare guns are also allowed since they can scare the bears off.

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#37

> The use of all violence is prohibited in Norway. You are not allowed to abuse children or use any other kind of corporeal punishment when bringing up children. Severe penalties may be applied to anyone who has physically abused a child. Never saw that before. This should be standard everywhere.

It is standard in a lot of places: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d8/Ma...

I can't vouch for how seriously those different countries look at the issue, though, despite what they have legislated, e.g. I once had a relationship with a Korean who had been physically abused by both parents and teachers. Here in Denmark it was outlawed in the 90s and isn't very common.

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#38

“if you are willing to shovel shit in this part of our country it does not entitle you or your family to the rights of the mainland”

Hey they could send European refugees there so they wouldn't have to risk them gaining residency/citizenship in Norway proper.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/norwegian-po...

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#39
post #5

Interesting – I was just looking into visiting/living in Svalbard for a couple of months for the unique experience of it. Unfortunately, I could only find one apartment building [1] and the price for an apartment was $6,000 USD. I've read that most of the apartments are owned by companies, and you have to work for the company to have access to the apartment. Does anyone know of any other alternatives for a short stay…

I can't comment on current availability, but when I visited ~4 years ago I stayed in someone's apartment that was listed on AirBnB.

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#40

> The use of all violence is prohibited in Norway. You are not allowed to abuse children or use any other kind of corporeal punishment when bringing up children. Severe penalties may be applied to anyone who has physically abused a child. Never saw that before. This should be standard everywhere.

Pretty sure it’s the law everywhere
Post reply on HN