Alexei Navalny, Russia’s most prominent opposition leader, spent his final weeks in a penal colony above the Arctic Circle. His 19-year prison sentence was widely condemned by rights groups and in the West as punishment for daring to cross President Vladimir Putin. Through messages passed through his lawyers, he posted regularly on social media in a characteristically optimistic and light-hearted tone. Here is what Navalny’s final weeks looked like, in his own words: ‘Ho-ho-ho’On Dec. 26, Navalny posted his first message from his new Arctic prison colony, having disappeared for weeks after bei…