December 22, 2018
What is Christmas for you?
Christmas for me is sure the most wonderful time of the year. And I'm not exaggerating. It's my favourite holidays, my favourite time of the year, full of magic in the air. It's when I'm the happiest. Some say that Christmas is for kids, but I can't agree. I'm obsessed with Christmas music, Hallmark Christmas movies, gift wrapping, family and friends reunion, Christmas lights and ornaments, and just anything Christmassy.
This year, I'm so happy that I get to celebrate Christmas and New Year in a country where it snows. This is our first time that we've experience winter in a Winter wonderland country of Finland which is in Lapland located in the Arctic circle.
First off, we flew from Manila, Philippines all the way to Hongkong via Cathay Pacific. And then from Hongkong, we waited for 4 hours. And then Hongkong to Helsinki, Finland via Finn Air. And again we waited for almost 6 hours at Helsinki Airport for our connecting flight going to Rovaniemi, Lapland. Going to Rovaniemi from Helsinki took us 1 hour and 10 minutes via plane.
...and voila, where in Lapland.
To our surprise, a winter wonderland of pink skies welcomed us– Finnish Lapland is where all your snow-filled fantasies come to life. And right at the heart of it is Rovaniemi, perched on the edge of the Arctic Circle and the official home of Santa Claus. In Lapland, the sun rises just before 11am and sets at 2pm, but that doesn’t mean it’s black or dark the rest of the day. It’s twilight between 9.30am and 3.30pm so you can still see and there are beautiful long sunrises and sunsets.
WHERE TO STAY IN ROVANIEMI?
Santa's Holiday Home
Most visitors in Rovaniemi stay in one of two main areas. There’s the city center which has a good selection of hotels and holiday rentals. The bonus is you have easy access to shops, restaurants and transport. Or you can head outside the city, which is where you’ll find that snowy forest scenery, and where there’s less light pollution so you’re more likely to see the Northern Lights.
As for us we stayed in the city center (Santa's Holiday Home- which is an apartment ), right in the middle of the city proper. Sampokeskus Shopping Centre is 100 m from Apartments Pekankatu, while Lordi Square is 100 m away. The nearest airport is Rovaniemi Airport, 8 km from the property. What's good also is that there's a 24 hrs convenience store, Nordic tour company is within the vicinity and lots of restaurant is just walking distance. What I like about our apartment was the Scandinavian interior, very minimalist and chic!
THINGS TO DO IN SANTA CLAUS VILLAGE:
1. Meet Santa Claus, and cross the Arctic Circle
2. Husky Sledding
Husky sleigh ride is a mode of transport for the Finn's in the olden times. The best way to get around the Arctic Circle. The colder it gets the faster the huskies will run. This was such a surreal experience because you get to see a beautiful view of the Arctic Circle (too bad no photos while sledding because I'm freezing to death while sledding, just picture it out like the movie NARNIA).
3. Reindeer Sleigh Ride
- What a thrilling experience to ride the sleigh. But be careful of the Reindeer's Antler, it is dangerous.
FACT: Do you know that in LAPLAND, it is customary for drivers to warn each other about reindeer ahead by flashing the high beams. There's also a reindeer road sign (COOL, right?!).
4. Visit the Santa Claus Post Office
This is the place where you can send letters to anyone be it yourself (i know SELF LOVE), family, and friends, or even SANTA CLAUS itself.
Things to DO and SEE in Rovaniemi:
1. Visit the ”Lumberjack’s Candle Bridge"
- it was built in 1989. It serves as a balancing element between town buildings, the gently sloping Ounasvaara Hill and the spacious sceneries of Kemijoki River, and at the back of the Angry Bird Lapset. One of the best place to see the sunset and sunrise. And at times, if the weather is really good, not cloudy, the Northern lights can be visible from here.
2. Rovaniemi Church
- completed in 1950. It was designed by the architect Bertil Liljequist.
3. Angry Birds Lapset
- an open-air playground located on the riverbank by Valtakatu-street, within walking distance from the city center. Entry to the Angry Birds Activity Park is free of charge.
4. Lappish Barbecue under the Northern sky
- We rode a tourist bus going to PALLAS- YLLASTUNTURI NATIONAL PARK, which is 3 hours away from the city center.
FACT: It's better to see the Northern lights away from the city. The further you are from the city, the more visible the Northern lights is. Because if you are in the city or near the city, there's a lot of radiation, and circuit power which can hinder the Northern lights from showing up. But there were times, Aurora showed up in the city, because the power of that Northern light was too high. I mean, it really depends, you know!! that's MOTHER NATURE.
5. Visit Arktikum Museum
- learned a lot about the Arctic region. From the Ancient times, the WW2, winter war, the local Sami people. different species in the wildlife, to the folklore and scientific explanations behind the Aurora Borealis. (Just bring a student I.D or any I.D to get a discount).
6. Visit Lappia and Rovaniemi Library
- You can visit Rovaniemi's theater and the library, FREE OF CHARGE. There's also a bonus inside their library, especially for art lovers like me. There are lots of paintings hanging by the walls that portrays LAPLAND! Again, it's free of charge, all you have to do is to write your name on the registry paper for them to track down how many visitors they have everyday.
7. Go snowmobile in the forest
- What a surreal experience to say the least! One of the highlights of this trip. We drove the snowmobiles into the woods, came across reindeers who were passing by and stopped on a frozen lake during sunset on a -20 degrees C weather. My whole body was totally frozen, and can't help but think how wonderful this place really is.
If you want to try this experience, you can go to SAFARTICA office located in the city center. What's nice with this travel agency is that first of all they provide the clothing that you will wear (from top to bottom, even gloves). We rode a private van going to Saarenkyla, 30 minutes away from the city center. And then first off, they instructed us on how to use the snowmobile, which is cool (because the controller is warm, so your hands will not freeze to death, but I tell you MY WHOLE BODY WAS LITERALLY FROZEN to the point that i can't move, I feel numb, like I just lost my body and my soul is the only one left. You can contact or check the travel agency here in their instagram account @safartica.
8. Try some of their famous CoCo
- Having the famous "Kaokao". I recommend this shop because of it's homey vibes. You can buy souvenirs and gifts while enjoying the cozy atmosphere of Café Linna. Plus, there's a free Wi-fi!
9. See the Northern Lights
- “Revontulet”(Fox fire)🦊 I'm so fascinated by this legendary story amongst the Finnish and Sámi people. It was said that the lights were caused by the fire fox who ran so quickly across the snow. His tail caused sparks to fly into the night sky creating the Aurora. A huge shout out to the real Aurora expert @akimikkola @onedayinlapland @wildblueberrylapland.
For more stories check out their instagram account and my account @klarissemonje.
We were absolutely thrilled to experience the beauty of Finland and were lucky enough to spot the Aurora Borealis on our 3rd to the last night of our stay. Hunting Aurora is not easy, it took us many nights to finally see her. But don’t be disappointed if you miss out as there are no guaranties with nature and there is so much more to this beautiful place. Lookout for these signs: if its a clear sky and you can see stars, then wait for it to be completely dark (which happened for us at about 1:30 am )
10. Celebrate New year in Arctic Snow-hotel and Glass Igloos
For me, Lapland, Finland is the number 1 place in the world to experience a true and magical winter wonderland as I get to tick off one bucket list after another.
I hope to see you again, Lapland
xoxo, Klarisse
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