A Cabin in the Woods of Lapland

After hanging out with Santa in his 'hood for the day we headed back to the train station, retrieved our luggage, and caught the bus to Äkäslompolo, in Lapland Finland. It was a 2 1/2 drive north in the dark (even though it was only 3pm if I remember). We had the bus drop us off at the tiny airport and from there grabbed a cab which took us the rest of the way to the village itself. It was a dark and very foggy drive through the ski resorts. Some of the big pine trees flanking the road were beautifully lit up, creating a nice series of tree lampposts if you will.

As we entered the village our taxi had to slow down because reindeer were walking in the middle of the road in front of our car. We all started to "ooh" and "ahh" while our driver shrugged and proclaimed "ah, Lapland!"

We found our rental, the Aurora Cabin, and could not have been more charmed. A small log cabin, in a little subdivision, right on the edge of the forest. We had both a front porch, complete with plastic toboggans, as well as a back porch that looked out to the woods. Inside the upstairs had a big loft and bathroom, while downstairs had two bedrooms flanking the kitchen and living room. The living room had a sweet little fireplace and the cabin was stocked with small round, birch logs which smelled great when we burned them. And the bathroom had a sauna which seated 4!

The next morning Forest and I headed to the store to stock up for the upcoming five days. We realized as we saw others walking to the main area of town that people used their toboggans to transport their groceries. We hadn't brought ours but passed a sledding area with some semi-busted up ones that looked abandoned so we borrowed a couple.

We absolutely loved our cabin in the woods! We spent the days going on walks, playing in the snow, reading by the fire, sweating in our sauna, and playing games. Total relaxation.

Of course we had a very busy New Years Eve!

We booked a few other excursions as well. On our first full day, after our friends Matthieu and Violaine arrived, we went night snowshoeing through the national forest with a private guide. We all had hoped to see the Northern Lights but it was cloudy (our entire time in Lapland) and actively snowing that night. It was still a great hike though, about 2 1/2 hours total in really deep snow! We had a rest stop halfway at a little shelter that hikers use. There is a fire pit as well as kettles and pans that people are allowed to use, and expected to clean and leave for the next. Our guide made us coffee (which we spiked) and served us pulla, which are traditional Finnish sweet rolls. 

Another day we arranged for a trip out to a Husky Farm which was a big highlight for us all. Again each couple was given their own sled and dog team to drive. We headed 5k to the Ice Village and Hotel through lovely scenery- with dogs barking their heads off!!

We took about an hour and explored the Ice Hotel, including its chapel and bar (which sadly wasn't open yet). Then warmed up with some salmon soup before getting back to our dog team and heading home.

On our last day in the village we rented a traditional wood heated sauna in a private cabin that sat on the frozen lake.

For 60 Euro we had it to ourselves for an hour. The main room had a fireplace, a picnic table to eat and drink at, and hooks for our clothes. Once you stripped down (to swimsuits in our case) you could enter the huge and HOT sauna. This thing was heated to 194F. There was a hose that came in directly from the lake and filled a large barrel which you could douse yourself with to cool off a bit.

Or you could jump in the lake, which some did. I did not.

You just can't get more Finnish than all of that!

We had some tasty meals in Äkäslompolo also. There was a pizza place in town that served really interesting pies with ingredients like salmon, smoked reindeer, and bear. We went more than once over 5 days as the pizza was really good. And yes, I did try bear pizza!

One night we went to dinner at Poro Restaurant which was located pretty much directly behind our cabin and across a field. The building boasted Santa's Workshop upstairs and a chance to meet him, which we all did. As we went to leave for the dining room we were all informed that we owed 6 Euro each for the visit. Naughty Santa.

Although the service was quite slow our dinners were all very good downstairs. The menu was heavy on reindeer and the decor inside resembled a traditional lodge of sorts.

We also had dinner at the casual pub style place call Julli's  which was fun and and easy to walk to. For our last dinner in town we went to Rouhe which we took a cab to and from as it was a bit farther. Food, atmosphere, and service here were all excellent!

And a lot of time we just cooked in our little cabin in the woods.

Photos from Akaslompolo here

New Year's Eve; A Chilly Story

We try to vary our New Year's Eve trips between cold and warm weather locations. Some wonder aloud to us why we would want to hang out in the dark and freezing cold, why we wouldn't always want to be on a warm tropical beach. But honestly, it is fun to get all bundled up! And the snow and the cold add a certain light, a certain serenity to places. Now a beach ain't a bad situation either!

For New Year's Eve 2013 six of us were in a log cabin in the tiny town of Äkäslompolo, Finland. This is an area in Lapland 110 miles north of the Arctic Circle. The town boarders a lake by the same name. Here it is, the red dot on the map, you can see that it is about as north as you can get before you fall into the Barents Sea. So yeah, it was cold. And beautiful.

The morning of New Year's Eve we were all picked up by bus and taken about an hour north to a reindeer farm. I don't think too many people have typed that sentence before! The family who owns the farm has had it and their herd for many years, and makes their living off of all things reindeer. This was no tourist show, although they host many, even the traditional Sami dress is something they still wear. We booked our tour through Destination Lapland

We started the day with a sled ride, ours pulled by Rocky, and each couple got their own sled. The reindeer were harnessed together with one being the lead so there was no need to drive or do anything except for enjoy the ride. As they got to running, Matt & Vio's reindeer who was behind us, tried to pass! We were all laughing and having a great time!

When we finished our ride we were invited into the owners' home for lunch. There was homemade reindeer soup (don't be the slow sled puller!), fresh baked bread, and blueberry juice. The owner told me she also grows her own vegetables for the soup. It was all absolutely delicious. 

After our lunch it was our turn to feed the reindeer. They eat dried moss and the farm owners buy it in bulk. They get pretty excited when those bags of moss come out!

With both people and reindeer being fed, we gathered around a toasty fire, the logs covered with pelts, and were offered coffee and cookies. They passed around some horns so everyone could feel how heavy there are and then taught everyone how to throw a lasso, practicing around some mounted horns. There was a traditional teepee to check out and also a little museum they had put together of their family history and artifacts of the Sami culture. It was all so interesting, cool, and fun!

Once we got home Forest and I walked (with sleds) to the grocery store and returned to make a nice dinner for everyone. We stared with some lovely foie gras that Forest & Thibault had brought from France, as well as some patė, and elk sausage we had bought in Estonia. And cocktails of course! Then we cooked a nice baked salmon dinner with roasted potatoes, cucumbers in yogurt, and green salad.

After dinner we all walked down to the frozen lake, armed with champagne bottles and flasks. The streetlights were turned off and luminaries were lit and lining the snowy sidewalks. We gathered with the rest of the town and lined up to purchase paper lanterns. At midnight everyone lit and released their lanterns, and we all took our turn setting ours upward. 

We watched as the lanterns floated peacefully up into the sky, little lights twinkling (mine crashed and burned in a tree!), drank our champagne, and then walked home through the snowy night.

Photos here

Hyvää Joulua From Santa's Village

Hyvää Joulua, or Merry Christmas to you!  Last year we spent Christmas in Helsinki, Finland and a few days later boarded an overnight train heading north to Lapland. After depositing our luggage in our private sleeping compartment -outfitted with bunk beds and a nicely stocked vanity and sink- we made our way to the dining car for some snacks, drinks, and games. Since our sleeping car was at the exact opposite end of the dining car it was a really long hike, we decided to hunker down for a while.

Finally turning in, we were rocked to sleep by the train traveling through the dark and awoke some hours later in Rovaniemi. It was VERY early in the morning so we had a bit of a wait before things started to open. We stored our luggage at the train station, had some coffee and rolls at the connected cafe, and then grabbed a bus which took us to the very outskirts of the town. Rovaniemi sits right on the Arctic Circle and is home to Santa Claus, not the North Pole as you may have been led to believe.

In our excitement we exited the bus at the wrong stop - Santa Experience theme park in Joulukka which is literally next door- we grabbed a taxi and arrived at Santa's Village. The sky was just starting to lighten up and as we walked outside we saw our first snow of the season. Huge fat flakes fell in the village decorated with Christmas trees, snow men, and lights. It really was magical.

And touristy! Santa's Village is made up of numerous shops selling everything from magnets to fox fur coats. There were reindeer rides, a traditional Lapland teepee, sledding hills, firepits, etc. The reservations to see the big man himself are done on a timed basis and we had a while to wait. We decided to have lunch inside the main building. Delicious salmon soup for me and a reindeer burger for Dayne. The owner was really interesting and told us how his family had been in the reindeer industry for generations. He explained that farmers notch the ears of their herds so that they are identifiable. The chairs in his restaurant showed off the different styles of notches.

Next we visited Santa's Post Office which to date had received around 16 million letters from around the world. We bought some cards and sat down at tables stocked with pens to fill them out. Then you choose to mail your letters either on that day or you can place them in the special red mailbox where they will be held and delivered at Christmas, even if you are there in January. Crazy little elves!

Finally it was time to see Santa! We got in line and expected to see him as we were ushered through the huge doors. But instead we were led to a coat check room and instructed that we weren't to use our cameras as Santa doesn't like you taking free photos it turns out. Then we joined a huge queue that snaked through an almost erie multi-level building. It was kind of dark, meant to resemble the interior of a clock, with gears and wheels rotating and ticking. The walls were decorated with photos of famous, and not so famous, folks meeting St Nick. 

After quite some time of inching through the building it was our turn. He welcomed us in both French and English (Santa speaks five languages fluently) and invited us to sit with him for a photo. 

Ho, ho, ho! Merry Christmas!!!

All Santa Village photos here