ANZCA Bulletin June 2012 - final.pdf - Australian and New Zealand ...

Rug RUG up UP and ANDExploRE EXPLORE WiTh WITH a AWinTRy WINTRY EuRopEanEUROPEANadvEnTuREADVENTUREThere’s much to enjoy about a northern hemisphere winterprovided you know where to go, writes Kendall hill. Hill.Winter in Europe offers far more than jetset ski resortsand a white Christmas. Take advantage of affordableairfares and hotels and barely there crowds to discoverthe treasures of a cold continent – but whatever you do,don’t pack light.1. Ice dreamsThe Arctic’s greatest architectural folly wasfirst carved from frozen water in the Laplandvillage of Jukkasjärvi 20 years ago. Since then, everyNovember and December the Ice Hotel is built afreshand decorated by invited artists armed with a grand design,a chisel and a hardy constitution. Their ephemeral creationssimply melt back into the earth each spring. Winters can bebleakly bitter and perennially dark in northern Scandinavia butthere are consolations to bedding down in a minus-five-degreeart installation – chief among them the strong probability ofwitnessing the Northern Lights. There are also the uncommonpleasures of sleeping on reindeer furs, steaming cups of hotlingonberry juice and morning saunas.The hotel opens for business in mid-December and closesby the end of April; guests normally combine a night inthe Ice Hotel with a heated stay in nearby Kiruna.Ice Hotel; from 1600 SEK a person a night(about $230); icehotel.com.2. A more sereneSerenissimaIn spring, summer and autumn it’s hard to appreciate thedazzling, cinematic beauty of Venice through the constantthrong of fellow tourists. So go in winter instead, when mistsroll in from the Adriatic to shroud the Gothic canalscapes withyet another layer of wonder and timelessness. (It’s even moresublime with a light icing of snow.) Rain is relatively scarce inDecember and January and the mercury ebbs to single figures– perfect for ice skating in the Campo San Polo or exploring thePalazzo Ducale, the Campanile and the wealth of heavenlylandmarks that are hell to visit in peak season. For thosenot averse to hordes and exorbitant hotel rates, the famedCarnevale will run from January 26 to February 13 in2013 with a host of masked balls, cultural events andfree guided tours of such cultural institutions asthe Peggy Guggenheim Collection.See carnevale.venezia.it for fulldetails. en.turismovenezia.it94 ANZCA Bulletin June 2012