Political correspondent Tania Branigan is trekking to the Arctic with a team of MPs Read all entries / More on the Arctic challenge
Ed Vaizey MP. Photo: Tania BraniganDay one, Finland: Why? Why? What were we thinking of? As we leave the reassuring warmth of Kittila airport in Finland, our guide - the appropriately named Philip Kool - is briefing us on the week ahead and second thoughts are already evident among the team of MPs and charity volunteers.
"A few days ago it was -37, the coldest temperature this year," says Philip cheerfully. "Actually, no one bothers with minus here: if someone says it's 30, they don't mean plus. Keep warm and don't get wet. If you get wet - it never gets dry. And I don't really think you can put on too much."
The good news? It's positively balmy at the moment - a mere -10C, which for this time of year is almost tropical.
Even so, the snow here is measured in feet rather than inches. And despite the huge drifts lining the roads and runways, the airports, schools and vehicles still function just fine. Clearly the Finnish are hardier folk than us - as evidenced by the huge range of ice creams on sale at the service station where we stop for dinner.
The politicians here have a lot in common - they were all elected at the last election for one thing - but everyone is still a little wary as they chat politely about their past jobs and their families.
The atmosphere starts to thaw over coffee as they talk about their constituency work, one of the least noticed but most onerous parts of most MPs' workloads. "Even if you have a really frustrating week in Westminster, you can go back and you feel you've achieved something positive," says Nick Clegg, Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman, to nods.
