This kind of cold is no joke: In addition to weather so severe it can give you frostbite while running errands, there's also the freezing fog, which limits visibility to 20 or 30 feet. Despite these obvious weather challenges, the city, located along the Lena River, about 280 miles south of the Arctic Circle, is a major port town. It is also the site of diamond and gold extraction, along with oil and gas production — which has the side benefit of keeping the "frost encrusted houses" in steady supply of much-needed heat. Many homes are built on stilts because of the year-round permafrost, notes Lonely Planet. When the short-lived spring arrives, icy roads turn to muddy muck. It's the one time of year when residents can't cross the usually iced-over river — which has no bridge. Summers, by the way, are short, hot and mosquito filled, so maybe year-round winter doesn't seem so bad after all. Follow Claudine Zap on Twitter: @zapkidd
This kind of cold is no joke: In addition to weather so severe it can give you frostbite while running errands, there's also the freezing fog, which limits visibility to 20 or 30 feet. Despite these obvious weather challenges, the city, located along the Lena River, about 280 miles south of the Arctic Circle, is a major port town. It is also the site of diamond and gold extraction, along with oil and gas production — which has the side benefit of keeping the "frost encrusted houses" in steady supply of much-needed heat. Many homes are built on stilts because of the year-round permafrost, notes Lonely Planet. When the short-lived spring arrives, icy roads turn to muddy muck. It's the one time of year when residents can't cross the usually iced-over river — which has no bridge. Summers, by the way, are short, hot and mosquito filled, so maybe year-round winter doesn't seem so bad after all. Follow Claudine Zap on Twitter: @zapkidd
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