tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1248503935075362425.post3835534300406480100..comments2024-03-26T07:58:59.761+00:00Comments on I'll think of something later: Above the Arctic Circle: coastline and maelstromDavidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14506881804082382739noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1248503935075362425.post-42594784502699983292018-04-04T09:21:39.756+01:002018-04-04T09:21:39.756+01:00As I wrote, he interpreted for the Russian prisone...As I wrote, he interpreted for the Russian prisoners of war. Many thanks for the extra information. Mine is that Martin was born in 1912 in a small town on the Volga. His father was a pharmacist accused in 1918 of being a capitalist; his staff protested, saying 'he works with us, not over us'. The family left during the Civil War and took a hazardous journey to what was then Constantinople; crossing the lines, Martin's toy soldier was taken by a Bolshevik official. Then they found their way to England, where he lived for the next 80 years.Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14506881804082382739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1248503935075362425.post-43861829915250669182018-04-04T08:18:14.332+01:002018-04-04T08:18:14.332+01:00Murmansk is a Russian city and one of the main por...Murmansk is a Russian city and one of the main ports which received convoys from the West during WW2 to supply the Russian armies with much needed materials - trucks etc. They were freezing and terrible and dangerous journeys, but Stalin did not care and was annoyed (to say the least) when the convoys were suspended for a time because of the losses in ships and men.<br /><br />Thus I would imagine that the friend that you mention in your blog, if at Murmansk, must have been one of the interpreters who assisted when the ships unloaded etc at Murmansk. David Damantnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1248503935075362425.post-90227094301587407402018-04-02T11:57:01.689+01:002018-04-02T11:57:01.689+01:00Thank you for that, Sir David. As a piece of histo...Thank you for that, Sir David. As a piece of history that lives with me, a much-loved student who died at the age of 97, Martin Zam, was an interpreter with the British army for the Russian prisoners of war in Murmansk.Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14506881804082382739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1248503935075362425.post-32953761060366324462018-04-02T09:05:54.075+01:002018-04-02T09:05:54.075+01:00After the defeat of Poland, Hitler decided (1940)t...After the defeat of Poland, Hitler decided (1940)that before attacking the Low Countries and France he would seize Norway, to protect the sea route around the Norwegian coast (since that was used to bring iron ore to Germany from Sweden) and provide bases for attacks on Britain. The British effort to prevent this was a bit of a shambles, and we were thrown out. But several parts of the coast were involved in the fighting and Bodo is south of Narvik which was where the iron ore started from and which saw a lot of fighting. The German plan was a well kept secret. Even the general appointed to the command of the troops planned the German attack from a Baedecker guide in his hotel room.David Damantnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1248503935075362425.post-23952374472795292572018-04-01T08:48:53.971+01:002018-04-01T08:48:53.971+01:00Big military bases up there, is the answer. Plus o...Big military bases up there, is the answer. Plus of course the borderlands with Russia, which means that bomber jets are still flying around quite a bit. Yes, I wondered about the other contenders. Strictly speaking, it's many mini maelstroms rather than one big one. But I should find out more.<br /><br />I'm fine with the cold so long as I'm well wrapped up and it's clear and sharp. I've been in colder - minus 14 in Moscow, where you couldn't really be walking outside for more than 20 minutes at a time.<br /><br />No, is the answer to your question, though I'd love to have taken the train, I flew to Oslo and then onwards - on a big plane, one of many in the day, that was packed. Surprising how many people live up there - settlements run up most of the ocastline. From France to Kiruna reminds me the fact they told me - that if you took a piece of string between Oslo and the northern border and then reversed it, you'd go from Oslo to Rome.Davidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14506881804082382739noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1248503935075362425.post-33283493318217850412018-04-01T03:30:55.639+01:002018-04-01T03:30:55.639+01:00There is something unfathomable (to me) about the ...There is something unfathomable (to me) about the idea of bombing a place in the Arctic circle. What might have been the reason, if you know? Interesting, also, that Bodo is home to the largest maelstrom in the world. I wonder where the other maelstrom contenders might be located. I don’t envy you being out in that cold, though it’s clear you took in some beautiful countryside as a result. Did you take the train from Oslo, by the way? I will never forget my own trip up to the Artic circle (to Kiruna Sweden). I had no idea, when I decided, on my Eurail Pass, to head up there from France, how long it would take! But it was well worth it.Susanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15674930917585246294noreply@blogger.com