North of the Artic Circle, built under Stalin, by thousands of prisoners, this city is one of the coldest, one of the most inhospitable, and one of the most polluted in the world. The annual average temperature is -10 degrees. It is mainly devoted to the extraction of nickel and its transformation. An unreal city, fascinating in its ugliness, forbidden to foreigners, accessible only by plane.
My flight was 3 days late, then after 2 days working under a Dandesque storm by winds of more than 100 kilometers an hour, I fell sick, and finished my 9 days licensed on the spot in bed in my over-heated hotel at almost 30 degrees.
I’m going back next winter.
Christophe Jacrot
