I visited Svalbard in the dead of winter, it was a very surreal experience, not seeing any sunlight at all for a whole week. I was quite astounded by how "normal" life was there in the one town, and the contrast of the rawness of nature outside the town. In any direction away from the town there is nothing -- no roads, no cell reception, no shelters, just lots and lots of snow and hungry polar bears (hence you need someone with a rifle in your group if you leave the town at all).
I noticed this, someone in the group had a rifle, and also brought along a
"sacrificial" husky (basically they told me they'd shoot at the bear, sic the dog, and everybody had to run away screaming).
No idea how much of this is true, and how much was story for a tourist.
