-Funding for this series has been provided in part by the following.

-The Stavanger region -- adventurous shores, deep fjords, lively towns, and the iconic Preikestolen.

The Edge of Norway.

-Norwegian Alpinco -- connecting mountain spots, steep slopes, alpine villages, and outdoor activities all year round.

-In Sigdal, Norway, where mountains rise and forests whisper, Anne Line and Courtney create Norwegian gifts so you can bring a piece of Norway with you.

Nordic Box -- memories from Norway.

-♪ Oh, take me home, take me home where I belong ♪ -VGAN Chocolate, Norwegian flavor.

-♪ I can't take it anymore ♪ [ Jet engine roaring ] ♪♪ -In this episode, we are going far north towards the Russian border, eastern Finnmark.

Sigrid, what do you expect to find?

-I expect to find some really good fish and beautiful ingredients from the ocean.

-And, Stig?

-I hope I will find some good things to drink.

And since we are in Norway's answer to Alaska, I think I'm going to make something that's as cold as the weather.

-It's an adventurous trip we're on.

♪♪ ♪♪ Join me on a journey where we will meet people who live, work and enjoy life right here in the far North.

♪♪ [ Both laugh ] [ Foghorn blows ] ♪♪ I'm taking you to meet the fantastic people of the North.

♪♪ Welcome to the eastern and northern part of Norway, Finnmark.

We're in Kirkenes.

Pal and his crew are going to take us on these boats into a small place called Bugoynes, which is really a paradise in the Varangerfjord.

-Hop on board.

Sit down.

♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ -Bugoynes is a unique fishing village with a proud and special story.

It was spared by the Germans when they burned down most of Finnmark, as they were pushed south by the Russians.

Today, a one of a kind destination.

-Pal, please tell me a little bit about the life here on Bugoynes and how your family ended up here.

-My family ended up here in Bugoynes because they came from middle part of Finland in the mid 1800s.

It was hunger in Finland.

They have heard about the rich Varangerfjorden.

So my grandparents and my mother, they are still speaking Finnish as their language.

-And you call this Little Finland?

-It's called Little Finland, yes, or Pikku-Suomi, like they say in Finland.

-Fishery is a -- is a big part of this community.

But you decided to start this adventure lodge.

How did that happen?

-It has been a lot of tourists here in Bugoynes last 30, 40 years.

So I decided some years ago that I wanted to make something happen here in Bugoynes.

So we started this Varanger Brygge.

We have a pier.

We have boats.

You can go sea fishing.

You can go hunting.

You can go hiking on the mountains.

And of course, we have sauna, different saunas.

-Of course.

Little Finland.

-Little Pikku-Suomi and sauna.

-But when we arrived there, it was kind of snowstorm.

Today it's sunny and summery.

-That's one of the best feedback to get from the tourists.

The weather is changing fast.

-Yeah, amazing.

It's a beautiful place, and I'm really, really looking forward to explore this.

-Yes.

That's nice.

Thank you.

-Thank you.

-Bard Greni is a renowned chef with experience from Norway's finest restaurants.

He is originally from the far south but has fallen completely in love with the wild Finnmark.

Tonight, he and Sigrid will prepare a feast for the local food producers with their own ingredients.

-Bard, this is a dish that I'm really looking forward to.

This is the best thing I know.

This is cod's tongue.

-Yeah.

-And then we found this local producer who made this cured ham.

-Yeah.

-And you've been traveling a lot.

And this, you have gave this thumb up.

-Oh, yes.

It's over 16 month dried.

-16 months?

Yeah.

-Yeah.

And you can feel the nutty taste inside of it.

-Yeah.

Yeah.

-And it's amazing.

-And you taught me that -- Because I've been frying cod tongues a lot.

But you taught me to put them in vinegar.

-Yeah.

-In vinegar a little bit before to get the acid in it.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-I can't wait.

♪♪ -I'm curious to hear more from those who make food in this harsh climate, for instance, Sindre, who must be one of the world's northernmost farmers.

How is it to be a farmer up here in the far, far north?

-To be a farmer here has -- has its challenges with weather, wind and a long winter.

-And what kind of animals do you have?

-We have sheep, and we have cows for meat.

-Yeah.

And this is the meat that we're going to sample tonight.

What kind of meat is this?

-It's a small muscle that lays like a cover over the kidneys.

-And in Norway, it's called the butcher's cut.

-Yeah.

-So this was what the butcher ate.

-Yeah.

-This is the best piece.

-Yeah.

-And this is reindeer.

-This is reindeer, and it's smoked over the barbecue.

-And you just added salt and pepper.

-Yeah.

-You can see.

Can I have a taste?

-Yeah.

-Mmm.

Oh, la, la.

I like you.

-Yeah.

[ Laughs ] -Jan Ivvar, you're a reindeer herder.

-I am.

-You are maintaining a many thousand year old tradition of herding reindeer up north.

How do you feel about that?

-I feel great about it.

It's at times very hard work, but it's also very rewarding.

-And what's special about the reindeer meat?

It has some good effects to us when we eat it.

-You get all your minerals you need.

You get the omegas that you need.

So it's very healthy for you.

It's the healthiest meat you can eat.

-And tonight we are going to try this fantastic reindeer.

-Yes, even I am excited.

[ Both laugh ] -This is a very special smoked salmon, Mattis.

-This is the Pacific salmon or the pink salmon.

-And this is a sort of a new species to this area.

-Yeah.

We always had the Pacific salmon in our waters, but recently it's become a big boom in the fish population.

A lot of people kind of had a negative view on it.

-But you had an entrepreneurial view.

-Yeah, yeah.

And a lot of people have started, yeah, having an interest for the fish and started producing it in some kind of way.

And our kind of way is smoking.

[ Indistinct conversations ] -I can say this is the most expensive caviar I've ever tasted.

Bard, try this one.

-Wow.

-[ Laughs ] -It's so crispy.

-Yeah.

-This is amazing.

-Cristian, you have made a very, very special caviar.

-Yes, I have made caviar from lumpfish roe.

And it's the world's first ecologic fermented caviar.

-But how did you ferment it?

-I packed glasses and put them on the seabed at 25 meters deep.

-But why?

-I wanted to test.

And the darkness, the pressure, the temperature, the stable temperature activated the fermentation process.

-And your next move is to put out a new batch of glasses just outside here we are sitting.

-Yes, in a secret location.

And the quantity is also a big secret.

-Good luck, Cristian.

-Thank you.

[ Both laugh ] -Ivar Overli, you're a cheese maker from here.

How is it possible to make cheese in this very hostile climate?

-Yeah, it's -- it's magic, you know?

It's magic.

Yeah, yeah.

-And you're actually squeezed in between Russia and Finland.

-Yeah, I can look through my kitchen window over to Russia.

-And you make good cheese.

You even have a brown cheese.

-Yeah.

-And the cheese you're making is actually the world's northernmost cheese.

-Yeah.

I hope so.

-And -- And do you think you get a special taste from this very special climate in the north?

-Yeah, that's because I do this unpasteurized.

-Yeah, you don't cook the milk.

-I don't warm up the milk, yeah.

Therefore, it becomes a very special cheese.

-It's fantastic.

I'm so much looking forward to tasting it.

-Thank you.

-Thank you, Ivar.

One should not think that they have all you could wish for up here, but they do.

Local brew will definitely add to the atmosphere.

Stig takes care of that.

-Ole Kristian, you have your own craft brewery here in this region?

-Yeah.

-Qvaenbrygg.

Tell me a little bit about that.

-The reason why Bugoynes has this alias Pikku-Suomi is because most of the inhabitants of this village was from Finnish origin.

And the Norwegian slang for Finnish migrants was kven.

-And they were probably also brewing.

-I don't think so.

I think we kind of brought brewing into the kven.

-Oh, I see.

-They did sauna.

[ Both laugh ] -And hard liquor.

-Yeah, hard liquor and sauna.

[ Laughs ] -But please.

-This is Kaamos.

Kaamos is Finnish and means Arctic night, polar night.

We're told that this is the oldest known written recipe for beer in Europe.

-Uh-huh.

It's a classic beer, a schwarzbier, popular in the southern part of Germany.

-It smells very fresh, in a way.

-Yeah.

Some complexity.

-Quite carbonated, as well.

-Yeah.

-But still light, fresh, a little bit acidity, fruity in a way.

-Yeah.

Actually, the fruitiness is from the yeast.

-There's kind of coffee notes in the background, yes.

-Yes, yes.

-Okay.

Next beer.

-Yeah.

-So what do we have here?

This is Herra Hummala, Finnish word.

It's a celebration of the hop.

It's a very important ingredient in the beer.

-I recognize this beer style.

-Yeah.

This is a double dry hopped IPA.

-Yeah.

-We've used a South African hop for this beer.

-Okay.

Is that the hop that gives this very tropic fruit aroma?

-Yes, yes.

And if you try to pair it with some barbecue, some -- maybe a burger or something, it's excellent.

You can -- You can have more than one.

-I think your beer will fit the food that Bard and Sigrid is making now.

-Excellent.

-Let's go and try it.

-For more inspiration, visit our website, peopleofthenorth.net.

They get a lot of snow and ice here in the Arctic.

And with creativity and entrepreneurship, why not make it into a popular tourist attraction?

A year-round snow hotel... -Hi.

-...couldn't have been in a more natural place.

-Hi.

-Silje, we're here at the Snowhotel, and please tell me, what can I do here?

-Oh, we have a lot of experience.

-Mm.

-We have huskies.

-Oh.

-We have 180 huskies and some cute puppies.

-Wow.

-Then we can take you on a safari.

-Mm-hmm.

-And for northern lights and dog sledding.

-Dog -- Yeah.

Mm-hmm.

-We have snowmobiles, king crab safari.

-Yeah.

-We go up on the frozen fjord.

-And make a hole in the ice?

-We do.

We fish fresh king crab, and we serve them fresh in our restaurant.

-Oh, it must be wonderful.

-It is, it is.

And we have also a Sami experience here.

-Wow.

-We have a lavvu, and we also have four reindeers here.

-I can see that you're very enthusiastic about this and proud.

-I love it.

And we have so much nice guests from all over the world.

[ Singing in Sami ] [ Stig and Arne speaking in a global language ] -You have to explain to us the tradition of a joik.

What is it?

-The main thing in the -- in joik, or luohti which we say in my language, Sami language, is not the words.

We improvise with the words, but the main thing is -- is the melody.

And the melody -- melody can explain how you are as a person.

If you are a impulsive, happy person, your song will be like this.

[ Lively vocalizing ] And opposite, if you are a person -- a calm person, you talk slowly, never stressing, your song will be like this.

[ Vocalizing slowly ] -But this is something you do to honor people, right?

Or to -- to describe people.

-That's a good thing with -- with Sami traditional singing.

When I do my grandfather's song, many of the memories of him will just pop up in my mind.

And I will much more strongly remember him because -- And that's a good thing, the best thing we do have, is that it helps me to remember him and -- and, yeah, I really like it.

[ Singing in Sami ] ♪♪ ♪♪ -Wow.

[ Laughs ] This is the Snowhotel.

A bar for you, Stig.

-Wow.

-If you can make something nice, cold and refreshing, I'll see if I can find the guy who started the whole thing.

-I'm sure cold is not an issue in here.

-[ Laughs ] ♪♪ -Oh, hi, hi.

Hello and -- -Welcome.

-And this magnificent Snowhotel, how did it start?

-In Kirkenes, every children, every -- When I was young, we were digging snow caves all the day.

That was our main occupant.

And that is the idea here, that people shall go back to their childhood.

-Yeah.

And this Snowhotel is actually 365 days a year, even though it can get warm in Kirkenes.

-Yeah.

For example, this Father Christmas, I think this is four years old.

-Yeah.

But there's so many nice sculpture.

And I guess that really adds to the excitement when people come in here.

-This is because we want to really communicate to the childhood.

-And I actually have something that's not for children, and that's my own bartender.

And I think he found an ice bar.

I'll go and check it out.

-Okay.

Thank you.

-Thank you.

♪♪ -Ah.

-Oh, wow.

Wow.

-[ Chuckles ] Just what I needed.

-Yeah.

So I think Sigrid loved it.

-I loved it.

-It's nice to have something that reminds us of summer inside here.

-Yeah, absolutely.

[ Laughs ] -But it's easy to have a good time in here.

I mean, it's quiet, and you get this feeling that when you're a little kid, and you dig a snow cave, and it's cozy.

-Absolutely.

-It's a cool bar.

-It's a cool bar.

[ Laughter ] It's a cool drink.

-It's a cool bartender.

Okay.

Skal.

It's time for bed.

This was a nightcap.

[ Laughs ] ♪♪ Okay.

We're leaving Kirkenes, our outpost towards the Russian border.

It's very far north, Sigrid.

-It is.

-But it's so many nice things to explore in Kirkenes.

-And so many good things to eat.

-Are you looking forward to going south also?

-Yeah, I hope it's going to be a little bit warmer.

-We're going to see all these fantastic fishing villages that are like pearls on a string all the way to Tromso.

Thanks to the 130-year-old coastal voyage, you and I can experience this remote and unique landscape and the rugged villages on the brink of the Barents Sea in a comfortable way.

It is the ocean that made people settle here, and Sigrid has a large case of what is caught here.

And the chef is not difficult to find on board.

-Okay, Oscar.

-Alright.

Yes.

-What have you planned?

-We're going to start with a king crab... -Yeah.

-...that we also use in our fine dining restaurant.

-Yeah.

Mm.

And you're using the local ingredients?

-That's right.

-Yeah.

-We take advantage of the ports we visit and use the best ingredients from every spot that we visit.

-Yeah.

Yeah.

Local producers.

-Exactly, yeah.

-Good for them.

Good for you.

-Exactly.

-Good for the guests.

-Yeah.

They love it.

-Yeah.

-We love it.

-Okay.

Let's start.

-Yeah.

-Ooh!

♪♪ -Sigrid and Chef Oscar is busy making great seafood, while Stig and I are curious to see if there's anything interesting going on in our first stop, Vardo.

This is Vardo, the easternmost town in Norway.

We're actually going to visit a friend of mine who's in a hotel here.

When you're in Vardo, just for one hour on the coastal voyage, it's a good thing to visit the Varanger Chef, Tor-Emil.

How is it to be a chef here in this region?

-It's very easy, because we have so much good protein here in -- in Varanger, a lot of fish.

It take me 5, 10 minutes here, and you get a lot of cod, haddock, halibut, king crab, and shrimps, and not so much lemon and tomatoes, but -- -Everything we like.

-Everything we like.

We like protein from the sea.

But tell us a little bit -- What have you prepared for our snack stay here at Vardo?

-There's some bread with kimchi mayo and some haddock, smoked haddock.

It's raw, you see?

It's very good.

-Just smoked?

-Smoked, smoked and sliced and with -- with horseradish dressing and onion.

-Lovely.

-Smoked.

-And that's a traditional Norwegian lomper?

-Lomper.

-Potato cake.

-Normally in Southern Norway, they have sausages in those.

-Yeah.

We have fish.

-[ Laughs ] -Of course.

-Wasn't this a good idea, Stig?

-Very good idea, I would say.

[ Laughs ] -Skal.

-Skal.

♪♪ -Well, that's Vardo, easternmost city in Norway.

-That's quite weird.

-That's quite weird.

-We are far, far north.

-Still east, east, east.

-Norway goes like this, stretches to the right.

-What's next stop, Arne?

-Next stop is Batsfjord in about 2 1/2 hours.

-Fantastic.

♪♪ -The next dish.

Cod.

-Yes, exactly.

-How would you like to serve that?

-We use a mushroom called a shimeji.

-Wow.

-Shimeji mushroom that we first marinate in some acid... -Oi.

-...oil, sugar, and black pepper.

-Wow.

That was an explosion.

-Yeah, it was?

It was nice?

-Mmm.

The clean, mild taste of the cod, and with this, oh.

-Yeah.

Let's try it.

-Can't wait.

Can't wait.

♪♪ ♪♪ -For more inspiration, visit our website, peopleofthenorth.net.

♪♪ I have found two of the passengers.

Harald and Doris, you are from Germany.

-Hi.

-From Bavaria, and you have been on this ship for?

-The whole round trip from Bergen to Kirkenes and back.

-Wonderful.

-And then of course you know that Oscar is making lovely food.

What are you curious of tasting?

-I want to taste the king crabs.

-The king crab?

Harald?

-I will take this.

Yeah.

-Yeah.

So, have this been a dream for some time, or was it a jump on or -- -Was especially a dream from Doris... -Yeah?

-...for nearly whole -- her whole life.

-Wow.

-It's my birthday present.

-Oh, yeah!

-Oh!

Happy birthday!

-Nice to meet you.

-Ja.

Ja.

-Danke schoen.

♪♪ -Our southbound cruise is getting near our final port, but we have to make a stop in the historic city of Hammerfest.

We have a date with a legend who really made it big in the US, at a scenic restaurant and hotel she donated to the city.

We're so lucky to find an American connection to the world northernmost city, Hammerfest.

Turi, you grew up here, and then you ventured on to the US.

What -- What's your story?

-I went to the US together with an old girlfriend.

-So, and you were like 20 years?

-Yeah, I was 22.

-And what were you doing in the US when you came there?

-When I came there, I was an au pair.

-An au pair?

-Yes.

-But there's a big, big step from being an au pair, 22 years old, and then becoming the world's best paid female CEO.

-Oh, that was only once.

-But still.

-[ Laughs ] -What kind of business did you venture into in the US?

-Medical instruments, but specialized ones.

-And then, of course, it was a huge success.

aside -- -It was not a huge success.

-Wasn't it?

-No, not to begin with.

It took a lot of trial and error to get started.

-And then you decided to give something back to your hometown, Turistua, a tourists' sort of cabin.

Why did you want to come back and do something to -- -Because I love the place.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

When you lived here, you get the feel for it.

-Yeah.

And your brother decided to -- to run it.

-And my brother said that he would be glad to run it and to move back here.

[ Both laugh ] -Very nice meeting you.

We are here in front of beautiful Hammerfest, the world's northernmost city.

And actually, when I was a little kid, I lived over there for a year, and I went to school.

-Look at you.

-Yeah, but at that time, it was no talk about dry martinis.

-No, but today it is.

And today I'm going to make a martini.

I've extracted some dried cloudberries into vermouth, and then I'm going to use this gin, local gin from Myken with a soothing name, Summer Gin.

-Yeah.

It's almost summer.

-Almost.

Yes.

♪♪ ♪♪ -Beautiful, the color of cloudberries and the color of Soroya and Hammerfest.

Probably the northernmost martini in the world.

-Yeah.

-What are you going to call it?

-It's Turi.

-Of course it's a Turi martini.

I think I'm going to give this to Turi.

-Okay.

Skal.

-This is a Turi martini, to Turi and your brother, Hans.

-Cheers, Hans.

-Hey, hey.

Skal.

-Skal.

-What has it meant to Hammerfest, what Turi has done for her hometown?

-It meant everything.

It was, Hammerfest low down in the dumper.

-So you're proud of your sister?

-Oh, yes, I'm proud of her.

-It's fantastic what you have done.

Cheers.

Skal.

Skal.

-Cheers.

Skal.

♪♪ -For more inspiration, visit our website, peopleofthenorth.net.

Yep, next stop is Tromso.

That's where we're going off.

And, Sigrid, how is this trip from Kirkenes been for you?

-The landscape started off very flat but exotic.

Ice cold and gold.

But then the mountains raised up and got more alpine style of it.

And of course, we have enjoyed ourselves very much on board.

-Stig, food and drinks, how was it?

-I think this is the most comfortable trip we have done so far.

Just walking around, jumping off and on, have good food, drinks, and, yeah, to see the northern part of our coastline has been amazing.

-All these fantastic little villages are ready for you if you come to Finnmark.

♪♪ ♪♪ For more inspiration visit our website, peopleofthenorth.net.

-Funding for this series has been provided in part by the following.

-The Stavanger region -- adventurous shores, deep fjords, lively towns, and the iconic Preikestolen.

The Edge of Norway.

-Norwegian Alpinco -- connecting mountain spots, steep slopes, alpine villages, and outdoor activities all year round.

-In Sigdal, Norway, where mountains rise and forests whisper, Anne Line and Courtney create Norwegian gifts so you can bring a piece of Norway with you.

Nordic Box -- memories from Norway.

-♪ Oh, take me home, take me home where I belong ♪ -VGAN Chocolate, Norwegian flavor.

-♪ I can't take it anymore ♪ [ Jet engine roaring ]