The bus arrives at the hostel on time. Two hours before the flight, the driver starts collecting all the travelers from the town of Longyearbyen and takes them to the airport. And in fact, this is the only form of public transport on Svalbard. In the Arctic, there are no traffic jams – hated by drivers. For many years, mathematicians all over the world have been racking their brains to solve the problem of traffic jams. What if we could significantly reduce the number of vehicles? I have another idea. What if we went to the Arctic? There are not many roads there.

The bus drives around the town in less than ten minutes, stopping a few times along the way. For such a small settlement, there is a lot going on here. I recall yesterday’s dog sled race. Two loudspeakers, a modest organizers’ stand, two tapes marking the route and separating competitors from fans, and that’s all that’s needed to create good fun. It got really cold. Cheerful music plays from the loudspeakers. Competitors start one after another, with intervals of a few minutes. Fans in colorful down jackets jump in place trying to warm up, not forgetting, of course, to cheer them on. Another participant is getting ready to start. The dogs nervously wait for the command, react to a set signal, then start off abruptly and run along the  Adventdalen valley . I follow them with my eyes until the sled disappears against the background of the white, endless mountains of Svalbard. We will have to wait until tomorrow for the winner. I look out the bus window, looking for the race participants, but the first competitor at the finish line will appear at about the same time as I will be boarding the plane and saying goodbye to the Arctic. Fortunately, only for a short while