The last couple of ports we explored within the Arctic Circle were Alta and Tromso—both one-horse towns, as we would say in Australia—but crucial, and not just because they offer suitable port facilities for large ships in this extremely isolated region.

Spectacular sightings of the Northern Lights are common here, and the local infrastructure means exploring the beautiful natural wilderness on day tours are possible. We were on a Northern Norway tour during World War 2 out of Tromso when the driver let slip that the bus was on the wrong road for a few minutes.

He said we won’t be going down here any further, he said – it leads to the Russian border. Suddenly I was thinking how close we were to yet another senseless war – and a dread feeling of the sort locals must live with everyday crossed my mind. It’s not the first time I have sensed an underlying fear that most Australians thankfully would not understand.

I used to go to the world’s foremost travel trade show, ITB, in Berlin back in the days of the Cold War – the wall was still intact. Nuclear war threats were constantly making the news – people trying to escape from the East and get over the wall were being shot in no man’s land. Families had been divided – these were terrible times, and it only took a day or two to realise what was different about Berlin.

Tension lurked everywhere. I recall one day, we wanted to see the Brandenburg Gates. We got a cab. The driver headed down until we passed the Russian memorial, when something spooked him. He suddenly stopped, turned the car around, and took us back to the hotel. There was no explanation.

So here we were in Tromso in Norway – until recently, a neutral country. That did not stop Hitler, however – in 1940, German forces launched an invasion of Denmark and Norway. I won’t go into the details of the battles – we did visit the graves of 34 Commonwealth seamen who lost their lives, including a pilot from New Zealand. How would it feel to know Russia, led by a power-hungry dictator like Putin, is just down the road?

I would have thought it uncomfortable, to say the least, but the North has recently greatly strengthened its defence forces. We noticed convoys of military vehicles as we drove around from memorial to memorial on their way home from the Norwegian military exercise Cold Response. The exercise was expanded this year to a Nordic Response in 2024 thanks to the NATO expansion with Finland and Sweden. Over 20,000 soldiers from 13 allied nations took part.

Written by: Ian McIntosh

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