i'm standing on the outskirts of the city of ski it's right up in the far north of russia and it's been the starting point for many polar expeditions and i'm hoping that i'm going to get to try one or two arctic challenges but so. you have to be physically fit to survive on him and the people certainly seem to have a lot of energy one of the biggest annual events and moments ski is the northern lympics a collection of winter games that brings the population out in force and this is a welcome to take home to. now if you're going to be an all to explore one thing you have to how it is plenty of stamina so all you have decided to enter. some of the best of insurance on the cross-country market.

must meet. you on. you tube and thank you very much who's your number one thirty one thirty which i think is about there's about a thousand people here. i'll make it to number hundred thirty i'll be very lucky ok i'll go so well you i'm told is an experience i'm one of the race organizers and apparently i wasn't exactly in for a treat he told me a bit about the specifics of the race because it seems fairly true through the hard read you know here's a thousand gates and a bit more strange he'll has about fifty kilo the race to four if i feel it's ok well i think if i make it past the first kilometer. if out of myself i think it's right i said to try so that. i may get said good. as the other ski. zoomed off into the distance i try to get into

a rhythm i don't have one of the go cross-country skiing and this time it wasn't any easier. so there's a more energy efficient way to do this. come on. early for should i go home is the guy. that will want to technical issues or how to address. col go backwards. first lesson. at least i was able to pick up some tips as my competitors spent posting. to the bonbon.

the problem is all these guys are already trying to kill woods in front of it. it was slow going but i was determined to make it to the finish line unfortunately on zone was waiting to keep me a hound. zero. zero zero zero so forth were they say about five kilometers so this is what it takes. to live and work in the arctic. could help me a little. bit it's been a tough introduction to moment's thought i'd head out into the countryside to meet some animals who are thriving in the difficult conditions. but one thing i was really looking forward to doing up here was running into some scented oxic wildlife

but so much from that it also seems that they might have wanted to exotic guests. as well. with hello are tim hi jim most to me this may be rather far from their native lot of spots according to keep iraq film but cold doesn't bother them at all and they're surprisingly even temperate. of course the traditional habitat of the ostrich is africa these birds can also survive in the north especially considering the temperatures drop during the night in africa so they can live in different places as long as they have enough food. to eat. i think they are getting a bit hungry so what they want is to give them a snack for my coat gets torn to ribbons. there might not be too much grass for them to nibble on round here but these ostrich is don't lack for vitamins and i was about to serve them a favorite cabbage and carrot combination. that

oh what i've got this is like. it's going straight for the bucket especially this picture over here. and goes. all out of. sync you madame and miss your dinner was just a distraction. there are a few nice leftovers on the ground if you would like. you might not expect to find a thriving ostrich farm in moments. but people have been surviving on here in the cold for almost two thousand years. lehner and alexander live across the tundra on the outskirts of moments they're part of the sami people the most northern indigenous people in europe. so they straight out of a very. trusting. cover

get fed up. as one hundred fifty of them all waiting up here. feeding time. so we're going to give them a treat to see. the reindeer all the samis life blunt used for meat on transport and they're well aware of what the shouts of their odors mean so this is the main feeding trough it seems time to throw it out right more than girls. well there are too clever to be. this one once the absolute is going to get about two kilos wrong great like a shark i used to working one third movie does deserve a bit more. although the sami have been hurting reindeer for centuries yelena says they also embrace the modern world but he just hurting reindeer is not tradition

it's true though that the younger generations has somewhat modified it was still used ranges can to make footwear in the past they made things for consumption now production has switched to outfits for people driving snow mobiles. might say we are modern day people but we still want to some of the old practices might we can get away from them over you. and that includes putting some of the animals to work after all could you really have all these reindeer without a sleigh. feeding the reindeer is one thing but catching them is quite another xander is going to teach me the traditional way to become a reindeer cowboy. and that means becoming a dab hand with a rope. we usually catch the ones we think are ill or the reindeer that are going to be used for work but want to know the. and once it's killed up and ready.

because nothing. was. going to him. too small for me that's the boat i got close but close wasn't going to pull all sleigh but if it first you don't succeed. yes yes yes yes yes. i can bring you down. some real reindeer wrestling. so that was a little odd as well if i were there. thank you very much you would make a good reindeer herder. with all reluctant recruits harnessed up hoss lay was ready to go if i was going to get to my next destination before nightfall i needed something

a little bit faster. i think driving one of these might be the most fun you can have and conditions are. pretty serious weather back there. i think i heard a bit of a rest. this is supposed to be a hotel with a different. source with that hello welcome to the snow than it. i was desperate for something to eat and drink but navigating your way through this place is a bit of a challenge. that

. they come maybe slightly lost. the fortunately or finally found somebody to give me directions just with a hello excuse me mr can you tell me where is the ball here i'll show you the way thank you it's very important. when you're surrounded by snow for two thirds of the year it makes sense to make the most of it i'm glad the mayor and friends have created one of the region's most original and popular attractions the snow village

every year the complex is rebuilt from scratch and this time the theme is countries of the worlds. but this is the room of dedicated to england. they have. the sake spirit here. to be or not to be british bulldog. this is your kingdom. come to us that. a home away from. africa and south america and europe are all represented here bumps along just room is reserved for the model i. would move them. finally here is the russia room. the room of mother russia is here are some famous russian symbols such as the kremlin garron the first man in space and of course the russian troika and the russian birch tree all the wonders of the

motherland are on the same play. and thankfully he also happened to be right next to the bomb you are welcome thank you daria. and sergey is much needed. when i got to work on dinner and i deem it told me that this place really is a dream come true that the project is the result of a childhood fantasy when i was young i used to dig out small passages as i grew older the passages grew larger that's how a child's dream materialized the structure has been a run for four years i'm glad to know that this has given people some happy moments . full time that i said goodbye to and added to my scandinavian theme drew we're always in for a bit of a surprise. ok i see what they mean now about a hotel with

a difference but. it's been such a long day for the radio. good to lie back and dream of the sea. on the edge of human capability. struggling with pain and dream. layout to become the first. for. fall in the.

it is easy to miss it if.

i.

live. after braving the elements and spend the evenings in icy hotels i was starting to feel more at home above the arctic circle and it seemed that my adventures with brain damage. with all these guys around i'm going to surprise the sons of course hasn't put in an appearance but this is in fact the highlights all more months snore than elin picks i'm going to see what it takes to be a reindeer rider. these

races all the highlights of the games and the sammy riders tear around the blistering speech. once the competition is over anyone can have a go. the thing is about these races and most of these reindeer is still quite wild . so to do is easier said than the. feel the two of them hooked up. ready for some sleigh rides child transceiver. rights so all right and there's a ready i'm already this is the big questions. they seem to know what they're doing. on just how to hold on tight.

over though this is seriously. i mean there isn't a list of. a lot of. suds up. to. be. sure but exhilarating ride later i walked to the nearby river to get my breath back. i was still dreaming of sailing on the bering sea but i knew there was still plenty more to do before i felt comfortable heading out on to more months frigid waters. but there is a place in the city where the locals have a pretty high tolerance for an icy did. well as well as being a place that entertains visitors the ocean or and also doubles as

a research center and today i'm going to take part in one or two little experiments with the residents it was time for the grand entrance of dick all fantastically facial hair to greenland seal. is really. trained to respond to it is the frequencies of sounds. underwater sitting. with each. session now is three hundred. the seals have incredibly sensitive hearing and the trainers here are looking to find out exactly what sounds they can tell apart. so they don't quite go down still in the learning.

it may still be a work in progress but they're having some excellent results and we want to find out how sharp a series here and. can distinguish sounds from little difference as little as twenty has between them months hearing lies outside to the two hundred has limit seals have a very sensitive hearing. and the trainers hope that given time the work they're doing will both benefit science and perk up their performances. so there are some really interesting behavioral studies going on in this oceanarium. it just goes to show that at least in the case of decay you can teach an old seal new tricks and that writes oh boy i. can do this one.

i left to take a well earned rest and i went off to explore some more of the city. more months because one of the youngest regional capitals in russia it was founded in one nine hundred sixteen and it's the largest city in the world north of the arctic circle. its most impressive monument is at its highest point. safe to say the moments because one city during world war two it was a vital supply port for the soviet union and the allies and in fact the germans wanted to cut it off so badly that they dropped more bombs here than anywhere else apart from stalin and just like the readiness monument in stalin the locals have built their own enormous tribute to the defenders here and they've nicknamed him as your ship. with fantastic views of the city it seemed like the perfect place to begin my moments experience and luckily i had someone to put me on the right track

. with more months of the port came first followed by a nearby settlement accommodating the port workers it's ice free but sometimes it does get frozen over because of fresh water from the local rivers the gulf stream prevents it from freezing over because it is this current that enables europe to survive without it the european continent would freeze with. more months is also home to russia's nuclear icebreaker fleet m m. those of the city's nautical past easy to find. this is a monument to. which was the very first polar ice breaker in the world and becoming one of the longest lived ice breakers ever in history and that. is its original anchor. we finally made it to the city docks and a place which has particularly fond memories for virtuous love. in one thousand

nine hundred four at the boat we had built sailed out from here the women were sobbing as we left port many of them felt they would never see as again the weather was fine day we were wearing shorts those two days before we entered the arctic were great and then the temperatures dropped that was the treasure memories of our voyage not just because i built the boat. but just love was forced to leave his boat in the arctic but he and his crew made it back safely it was an inspiring story and i felt i was finally ready to take to the water so this is what it's all been leading up to my final test in more months come on coming aboard. catarina here to see if i can master some arctic sea which. captain larry go here hello. so what do i need to do to be a real arctic sailor i'll show you the great thank you very much.

we've set sail. and immediately i was sent to work on the deck for. the fun of being on their beds oversleep you can't have. a great big lengths of rope lying around in the way of the ship. is a section. we couldn't have picked better conditions to head out in but you always have to be on your toes out here. for right now the weather is come with lots of sunshine but it may change at any moment the northern seas are no one for the magnificence you know the water appears to be black now but it will turn yellow when it stormy our yard is well equipped to face icy conditions. and apparently

it's a certain type of person that wants to explore these waters mother when you move them to people sailing through the arctic are adventurous by nature but of course there are some tiny risks. one of them is the fact that the temperature of the water is always plus four degrees if you spend more than fifteen minutes and there you should probably call your wife to say goodbye. as valeri have worn the temperature drop quickly and we moved into the cabin to take a look at the instruments. that were heading almost directly north zero degrees compass points here my current job is to make sure that we just don't crash into the port but fortunately it's a reasonable distance over there. and in case the weather is to foul there is the latest technology to rely on. going to crash into that number about rates we have

to avoid that sort of little way down the line there. everyone gets to place it was going to take us nearly two days to get into arctic waters if you like i wasn't going to be seeing an iceberg on this trip but then valarie said he had one extremely chilly final challenge for me. he wanted me to go in there and find this is what's free a lot to explore is how to do. at least i was being given a survival suit it's capable of keeping you alive in the water for a couple of hours if you can get it on in time. this. morning. but finally i was ready to take the plunge the last big tits. to do this very quickly before i changed my mind.

a bit but also both. my feet. even with the suit on it's not exactly a pleasant experience i couldn't wait to get back on board. them now james. we can consider you a real sailor finisher man a true sailor should wear a real uniform or even more stripes. and i tell you it's much better being on the barents sea and being it. certainly put myself through the wringer a bit of here but well expedition is going to have to wait although the locals do say that if you flip a coin into the water here you will come back. you know years. today more months

or more of the poll. courageous and creative. elegance and full and those public speaking. to.

a few european bodybuilders against millions of which immigrants. which may not seem so serious now. but this could be a real threat to. european extremists. on. the world to the future science technology innovation all the latest developments from around russia we've got the future covered.