We had the good fortune of connecting with Jan Hvizdal and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jan, career-wise, where do you want to be in the end?
The end goal is to learn and try to get better and educate myself every day of my life. I would also love to create an environmental and educational panel for kids to help to protect Planet Earth.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
10 years ago, I left my warm and cozy office job. For a long time, I was backpacking around the world. When I was traveling Alaska, I met a sleddog, and it completely changed my life. Since then, I was guiding with sleddogs in the Canadian Rockies, in the beautiful Arctic archipelago called Svalbard, or in Sweden. I was also working as a historian/expedition guide in Antarctica. Recently I signed a contract as an expedition photographer, so I will be traveling the planet to capture the most amazing animals and landscapes. I m definitely most proud of my Svalbard episode. We are taking people out every day, in complete darkness, during the storms, creating amazing trips. Many people told me that our dogsled trip was the best day of their life. And that is the life goal, to create something amazing.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Let s talk about Longyearbyen, the northernmost town in the world. I spent here last 4 years of my life. I would definitely take my friend on a 3-day dogsled expedition. He would see the stunning beauty of Svalbard with its glaciers, snow plains, and gorgeous pink sky. Then we would eat the crab fine dining menu in Funken Lodge. We would finish the evening with champagne and a sauna. The next day I would take my friend to explore different ice caves. Those are basically meltwater channels inside of a glacier. Then of course visit the northernmost brewery in the world. The last two days we would spend on a snowmobile trip exploring the East Coast of Svalbard with its majestic glaciers. Maybe we will be lucky enough to spot the King of the Arctic, Polar Bear.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would love to dedicate it to an organization called Greendog Svalbard AS. I was working in this company for 4 amazing years and I learned so much about the Arctic, adventure guiding a life itself. We have 300 hundred arctic sled dogs and we are providing guided trips to stunning Svalbard wilderness, polar bear habitat. I would mention Karina Bernlow and Martin Munck, bosses who taught me so much. Strong, independent, smart and honest – people to learn from.

Website: https://janhvizdalphotography.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/janhvizdal/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100041354380772

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