Alcohol
Because of the past as a mining community there are still restrictions on buying alcohol. All long term students will get a card at the liquor shop Nordpolet which gives you permission to buy 24 cans of beer and 2 liters of spirits each month. Always remember to bring it to the shop that is located in a corner of Svalbardbutikken. Otherwise you will end up with wine, the managers' daily drink, which of course could not be rationed. Those on short courses or staying less than a month can use their flight tickets to purchase one months ration of alcohol.
Telephone Calls
All telephone numbers in Svalbard start with 79 (see last page for telephone list). You can buy a telecard for the payphones at UNIS or in the bar-racks. Cell phones work around town and since spring 2003 also in vicinity of Barentsburg. It is a norwegian network. Many students with GSM cell phones choose to buy Norwegian SIM cards in the electronics department of Svalbardbutikken. Iridium satellite phones are working again since the US defense department bought parts of their capacities. Nice to have for longer trips the take you far out in the wilderness. Can be rented from LJFF for 100 NOK per day and the student welfare has one to borrow for free. Works everywhere under open sky. 15 NOK per minute, cheaper than using a regular cell phone in Barentsburg.
Rifle
It is of course illegal to carry a loaded weapon in Longyearbyen. It is also illegal to carry weapons in shops and cafés. If you happen to have a weapon on you, and need to do something in the center of town, it is possible to lock in rifles at Svalbardbutikken. Just get a key at the last cash register. Students can borrow rifles and other safety equipment at the logistics department during their opening hours. Rifles can only be borrowed for a week at a time. However the system works best if you give your rifles back as soon as you are finished using them. If everyone does this, there shouldn't be any problem with the number of guns available. Many students buy their own guns. It is possible to buy your own Mauser at Paulsen for ~800 NOK, and receive up to 500 NOK if you deliver it back. You may choose to buy a new weapon, which usually can be resold without much loss in value. Or you can buy second-hand from leaving students. Remember to get a permit from Sysselmannen first. To get this permission as a foreinger is also no problem if you bring a clearance certificate (criminal record, 'Führungszeugnis' in German) from your home country. As they are more difficult to get when you are away already, it is highly recommendable to order one before you leave your home country, even if you're not sure that you want to buy a rifle yet.
Snowscooter or Skidoo
For spring students there is a scooter course held in February where you learn how to operate one. They are generally very simple machines.
1) Buying is probably the best thing to do, but you need a lot of money at once. A secondhand scooter costs about 5000 NOK to 35000 NOK. Usually, you get what you pay for. Get some experienced fellow to check out the scooter for you. It is safer to buy it in one of the scooter shops than private, but also more expensive. They want us for the money. Go together and make a face. As most scooters have two seats students in the past have joined together to buy scooters. The record for cheapest scooter was 1NOK which had to be repaired with scavenged parts taken from the scrapyard. So getting a scooter for next to nothing is possible if you are lucky and willing to work hard for it.
But note, scooters are notorious for breaking down. On average a scooter breaks down at least once per season. However students have access to the sea garage/workshop with a large array of tools and equipment to fix and repair scooters and sledges.
2) Renting is by far the most expensive option: expect to pay over 1000 NOK per day. There are three companies that rent out scooters: Svalbard Safari (at 'Paulsen') Henningsen ('Svalbard Reiser') and Scooterutleie. Don't go for the cheapest old scooters they offers, unless you're really keen in fixing these machines. They WILL break down! Scooterutleie is in middle and upper price class. Svalbard Safari has the upper price class, but also excellent scooters.
3) Borrowing can be done from fellow students, but it is difficult to measure the wear and tear. If a personal scooter is way above your budget or you are highly skeptical to scooters this is the thing to do. If you plan to drive around more than a little bit you should avoid it. That will not be very popular.
A word of warning about fixing scooters. Sometimes it can take the companies easily 6 weeks to fix something, and it's still not working afterwards. Cases have been reported where scooters were standing there 3 months (the season lasts about 4 months). Try the workshop at the gas station first. They are able to fix basic things there on all scooter brands. When you rent a scooter, CHECK IT CAREFULLY before you go. Often the heating in the handle bars or the hook or the lights are broken. Don't hesitate to change it if it's not 100% perfect.
Another word of warning, now about sledges: they break. On longer trips, it is very foolish to only bring along one sledge. Expect that you will lose at least one suspension or joint, and be sure to bring along spare parts and tools. Since you are with more scooters on a longer trip anyway, take at least one other sled. The student sledges are not exactly in perfect condition, so they are also prone to breaking down. You can usually borrow spare parts if you rent either a student sledge or a rental sledge. The student sledges are for rental, not just borrowing. With the amount of time and money it takes to keep them usable, we need quite a lot of money, and since not all the students have scooters and use sledges, we do not want to use our welfare money on this purpose. So there is a deposit and rental charge. If your sledge breaks down, you forfeit the de-posit. Sledges and parts for sledges are surprisingly expensive.
