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Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

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Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#71

Post by Symbiote »

teodorlu wrote: post #64
rippercushions wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is why virtually all Nordic households have blackout curtains.

That depends a lot. I live in Oslo now, and have lived in Trondheim and Finnmark near Kirkenes before. Never used blackout curtains in Oslo or Trondheim, absolutely needed them in Finnmark. I wouldn't say that blackout curtains are the norm in the Nordic countries, especially not Denmark. But if you're in a place where there's midnight sun, I suggest getting some.

Blackout curtains are easily available in Denmark, and I have some, but I don't think that's common.

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#72

Post by alister »

Amazingly, streetview is available for Longyearbyen in Google Maps. You can see from the silhouette that it was done by a guy on a bicycle with some sort of backpack mounted camera -- the results look just as good as regular Google streetview. I assume it was some sort of volunteer effort rather than a Google employee or contractor.

EDIT: It looks like it's a German company that's doing it: https://www.mapyourtown.com/

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#73

Post by stavros »

Schiphol wrote: post #55
Nullabillity wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I lived in Norrbotten for 10 years. Blackout curtains help, but it's not the same thing.

In Spain every house comes with 'Persian blinds' ( https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persiana ) installed. They completely block the passage of light and are a perfectly adequate solution to this problem. It's a mystery to me why no other country in Europe seems to know or care. So much so that there's no English version of the above Wikipedia page.

In Greece we have exterior shutters (as seen here: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Window_shutter). They fit an outside frame, and modern ones don't let any light at all in (not even light bleed in the edges). The room is just always completely dark.

I'm similarly puzzled as to why many other countries don't seem to have these. I've never managed to sleep as well elsewhere.

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#74

Post by whoooooo123 »

Semaphor wrote: post #43
Nullabillity wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People always talk about the winters, but the thing that really messes with you is the summers, if you're light-sensitive then that's a really long period of not getting any proper sleep.

Wouldn’t sleeping masks help? I love those (also earplugs and weighted blankets), but I’m not actually that light sensitive.

You don't put those on until you're actually in bed trying to sleep. It still messes with you that it doesn't get dark when it's late and bedtime is approaching.

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#75

Post by sva_ »

TazeTSchnitzel wrote: post #70

The notion of being covered by the social insurance system for only four weeks after unemployment is quite fascinating. I guess it's a compromise between having to completely exempt Svalbard from Norway's social insurance system (and thus having to find some replacement for it) and completely including it (and thus having to raise taxes). This might seem almost libertarian in design, but it's important to remember th…

> You literally are not allowed to die there

Tell that the polar bears

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Svalbard_polar_bear_att...

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#76

Post by Semaphor »

whoooooo123 wrote: post #74
Semaphor wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wouldn’t sleeping masks help? I love those (also earplugs and weighted blankets), but I’m not actually that light sensitive.

You don't put those on until you're actually in bed trying to sleep. It still messes with you that it doesn't get dark when it's late and bedtime is approaching.

That makes sense, thank you.

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#77

Post by emj »

notch656a wrote: post #41
refurb wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Pretty sure it’s the law everywhere

All violence sounds pretty extreme to me by most standards. For instance, boxing would be illegal, and toddlers would be in jail if seen hitting their parents/siblings. In practice I imagine it means something like "no violence from someone larger to someone smaller." Most places no one really gives a shit if it goes the other way around, like young kid hitting parent or wife hitting husband.

Professional boxing was illegal between 1969 and 2007 in Sweden.

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#78

Post by rafram »

throwaway290 wrote: post #27
alister wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So an isolated, remote, thinly populated location like Longyearbyen with almost zero tourism doesn't have many short-term apartment rentals. Fine, that makes sense. But what's the story with Seoul? It's among the densest and most connected cities in the world with plenty of tourism and business visitors. Why is finding a real short-term apartment so difficult? Can you explain more about the legal or cultural problem…

This has less to do with population density or prevalence of tourism and more with high-trust culture, tight communities, desire for predictable and safe immediate surroundings for one and one's family, fear of disruption or damage to property, disinclination to let vacationing strangers with unknown behavior and no responsibility or investment into well-being of the community live in your house (and next door to you…

No, the situation in Seoul is not “natural.” It’s not about tight communities or tourism, because those very high costs apply to Koreans renting long-term as well. Renting an apartment can cost tens of thousands of dollars in up-front deposits, and getting a mortgage (actually just a loan) to buy a house/apartment requires putting up a large asset that you already own as collateral.

In practice, both of those things mean that your parents need to be well off and willing to put tens of thousands of dollars and/or their house up as collateral for you to be able to find a place to live. It’s an insanely broken system that encourages economic stratification and keeps the vast majority of the population from ever hoping to own or even rent in the city.

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#79

Post by xenocratus »

For those interested in experiencing Svalbard quite thoroughly in the summer, I'll vouch for this [1] expedition. It will probably remain one of the highlights of my life (though we ended up monitoring a polar bear via binoculars for ~24h to make sure it doesn't come our way...)

[1] https://www.wildlife.no/activities/summer-activities/wildern...

Re: Information for foreign citizens in Longyearbyen [pdf]

#80

Post by Nullabillity »

Semaphor wrote: post #43
Nullabillity wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People always talk about the winters, but the thing that really messes with you is the summers, if you're light-sensitive then that's a really long period of not getting any proper sleep.

Wouldn’t sleeping masks help? I love those (also earplugs and weighted blankets), but I’m not actually that light sensitive.

I'm happy that it works for you, but I've never been able to sleep at all with that kind of pressure against my face.
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