Bay Harbour: March 22, 2017

Wednesday March 22 2017
Latest Christchurch news at www.
.kiwi
BAY HARBOUR
PAGE 21
Travel
Searching for Santa in Lapland
YOU Travel company
director Melissa
Landrebe visited a town
named Luosto in Finish
Lapland. She writes
about the highlights of
her stay
AFTER AN interesting British
Airways charter flight, where the
cabin was decked with tinsel and
our flight attendants wore Santa
hats and sang Christmas carols,
we landed in Rovaniemi to begin
a quest to find Santa.
We were met by our representative
and led to our coach, which
would take us on the 1½- hour
journey into the Arctic Circle to
a little township called Luosto.
As it turns out, Luosto is a veritable
winter wonderland that is
supposedly home to the big man
in the red suit.
We arrived late afternoon on
December 23, under what was
described by our representative
as an amazing display of Aurora
borealis.
We were issued with snow suits
and boots and then transported
to our choice of accommodation,
in our case a two-storey log
cabin.
After settling in, we made
our way to dinner pulling the
children on toboggans, and ate a
hearty buffet meal. The trip back
to the log cabin proved to be a lot
easier, as it was downhill.
Being in the Arctic Circle in
the middle of winter is a joy in itself
with approximately 4½ hours
of light a day. The rest of the time
it is dark, lit only by stars and
flames from oil burners placed
alongside walkways.
With the arrival of Christmas
Eve the search for Santa began
in earnest. First we were taken
tobogganing at the base of the
skifield situated 2min by coach
from town central, then we were
back in the coach heading for the
snowmobile field where Santa
was supposedly seen earlier doing
doughnuts.
Alas, when we arrived Santa
SCENIC:
Luosto is
a winter
wonderland
as Melissa
Landrebe
and
daughter
Paige
Beardsley
found out.
was nowhere to be seen; however,
there was a good number of
snowmobiles to be ridden.
Next up was a trip to the husky
kennels and after a brief explanation
of how to control a pack of
energetic sled dogs, we were off.
This was physically exerting,
but very exciting and was probably
the activity enjoyed the most
by our group.
After the sled rides it was time
for lunch and we got to meet
some of Santa’s special elves.
What an exciting bunch they
were, full of vim and vigour.
We then re-boarded the coach
heading for Santa’s post office,
and we were amazed when the
elf working there produced a letter
to Santa written by one of the
children aboard our coach – a
truly magical moment.
We started heading back
to town central, stopping on
the way to see where Santa’s
special elves live. Then it was
time to head back to dinner in
anticipation of Christmas Day to
follow.
As it was, we were unsuccessful
in finding Santa that day.
However, in hindsight he was
probably busy delivering parcels
to children in other parts of the
world.
Christmas Day dawned, it
snowed, the fire was lit and presents
were opened.
Then, what better thing to do
on Christmas Day, it was off to
ride a sleigh pulled by reindeer,
a journey through snow-covered
trees at a leisurely pace.
We then had to check up on
one of Santa’s special elves before
heading back to get ready for
Christmas dinner and a disco for
the children.
This is definitely a bucket-list
trip.
•For more information email
Melissa, YOU Travel Ferrymead
– melissa@youferrymead.co.nz
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