A band of people who had lived off the lands for years, moving whenever necessary, have trouble adjusting to "modern life." There are stories of displacement, poverty, etc. Many would prefer to be left alone, but that's just not possible.
That's the story of the Sami people in Northern Europe, just like it is for the Native population in the Americans. Indigenous people around the world all have their problems, it seems.
The Samis are spread out in four countries - Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia. The estimate is that they number 80,000, although Russia doesn't keep track of such numbers. They speak nine different languages, although some of them are close together in origin. You can imagine some of the problems they had during World War II, when Hitler and Stalin were jousting in the area and had, um, different interests than the local population.
Efforts to keep the Sami culture alive have grown in recent years. One step toward that goal was the establishment of a museum called Siida in Inari, a town surrounded by lakes, national parks, wilderness areas, game preserves and trees ... but not many people. Reindeer certainly outnumber people by a wide margin.
Siida offers a good-sized peak into the Sami way of life, through permanent exhibits and temporary displays. Outside there are examples of houses that have been used through the years. Inside we find various educational displays, including a study of the link between the people and the land.
This is certainly a nice effort to bring the Sami culture to life. If you want a closer look at the life of the people in Northern Europe, this might be a good starting point. Here's a video that looks around; don't bother turning up the sound.
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