Day 9 (4 Dec) in Rovaniemi, Finland: Snowmobiling, Roka Restaurant, Pictures with another Santa

We reached Safarita for Snowmobiling at 8am. It was a stone's throw away from our hotel, just opposite Nili. We were given a pep talk on how expensive their snowmobiles were and how much we had to pay if we did different degree of damage to the snowmobile. Some of us ended up paying an additional 20 euro for the insurance.

For Snowmobiling, we were required to have a driver's license in case we crash the vehicle.

After that, we were whisked to another location to suit up like how we did for the husky dog sledding activity.

An instructor teaching how to ride the snowmobile

Husky dog sledding is more fun than snowmobiling. 

Snowmobiling was wobbly and the vehicle was heavy. I had to use my body weight to turn the handle whenever there was a turn. I was also fearful that I might fall when the road was uneven, which happened very often.

I was especially scared when crossing a bridge, even if it was a very short one. My mother was also worried that we might go into the water. All in all, I found snowmobiling stressful and my arms were sore and tired. The best part of the activity was the posing. 

I found Roka Street Bistro on the Internet and it's a gem. It was a few minutes' walk away from my hotel.

We didn't have a reservation but we were met with smiles and were asked to wait for a seat

We asked for blueberry juice and we downed them even before the food arrived.

Salmon fish soup. The salmon was tender and fresh. Yumz!

Pork chop with chips

The pork was sweet and tender with a good amount of fats and lean meat. Even my mother thought it was good. She could not wait for me to finish taking pictures of it first before devouring it.

I packeted the reindeer sandwich away as it was impossible for us to finish everything.

I ate it in the hotel about an hour or two later. Wow, was it good! It was like tender minced beef.

I would recommend this bistro. As we were eating, the line outside the bistro started forming and it got longer and longer. I was glad we came earlier.

After resting for some hours, I decided to go to the nearby Santa's office to have some pictures taken.

My mother joined me.

I paid 90 euro for a usb and a hard copy. I am just worried I won't be able to use the usb. I haven't found a drive that works with it. 

We fell in love with this that we went to buy a carton of it at K Supermarket. I was worried we could not finish it. I finished it within a few hours. It was too good!

Day 8 (3 Dec) in Rovaniemi, Finland: Husky Sled, Eating Bear Meat and Reindeer Meat, Out-in-the-Wild Hunting of Aurora

The glass igloo accommodation is not cheap. We had to check out of it the next morning. The tour manager helped all of us to take pictures at the venue as a momento. 

We were whisked to a husky dog farm where we would do dog sledding. I was highly strung about this activity as I had read that the dogs run very fast, so fast that the wind would 'cut' your face or dry out your face. I bought a hat with a face mask function that covered everything except the eyes for my mother and myself. I had enquired a few times if it was possible for a staff to 'drive' us instead of having me being the driver. The tour manager had assured me that it was safe and the fun was in the driving. I had no choice but to give it a try.

We had to put on their suit, their socks and boots. We were told to ask for two shoe-size bigger than our normal shoe size. For example, I wear size 37 most of the time, so I requested for size 39. The suit was a challenge to wear. You need to sit down and put in your feet first before pulling it up like an overall. Wear your boots last.

The dogs were energetic and strong. We were instructed to step on the brake to slow down the dogs and to have both feet on the brake to stop them from running. Even when I put my whole body weight on the brake, the dogs could still move forward and almost run. I jumped on the brake repeatedly to signal them to stop.

It was fun. However, there were times when the dogs swung the sled to the sides of the running path and the sled tilted and my mother almost fell out. I also almost fell off. I lowered my centre of gravity when there was a turn to reduce the possibility of me falling off.

A lady fell twice but it was all good. The guide at the back picked her up. I don't know how her daughter's sled was stopped though as the dogs would have kept on running without anyone stepping on the brake.

Us with our dogs

We were given the opportunity and time to interact with some dogs that were not running after the sledding activity. The dogs were docile but active. 

As usual, after the activity, we were served a hot drink

After the husky sledding, we returned to Santa Claus Village for a few hours. I had spent hours writing postcards to post from Santa's Post Office.

The postcards were cheap. Each card mostly cost 1 euro. The expensive ones were the stamps. The cheapest stamp cost 3.15 euro. There was a 'special' which cost 5+ euro. The stamps were very attractive. I could not help but bought some to keep.

It seemed everybody was taking pictures or recording themselves posting the postcards. So I did likewise.

The Post Office was a crazy scene. It was incredibly busy. 

Do not write your postcards at the Post Office. You write your postcards early, before you go to Santa Claus Village. You only go there to buy stamps and post the postcards. Otherwise, it would be quite stressful to write there. Our tour manager told us to start accumulating and writing postcards way back in Tromso. She cautioned us against writing them at the Post Office. When I saw how busy the Post Office was and how people were struggling to write in that cramped space, I understood what she meant.

This Roosevelt Cottage was just next to the Post Office. My elder sister had asked me to go there to buy reindeer horn whistles as souvenirs.

Just 10 euro each. Engraving of names is free and took only a few seconds. I had a hard time picking out  shorter whistles though. If it's too long, it doesn't look nice.

I also bought a few necklace with pendants made of reindeer antler for the younger girls in the family.

A young Japanese lady helped us take the picture. Singapore is 9395km away from Rovaniemi!

We left Santa Claus Village at 4pm and reached the Rovaniemi hotel at 4.40pm.

I had reserved the table at Nili a few days before. The tour manager said it is a must to make reservation for Nili Restaurant. Otherwise, you are unlikely to get a table.

Nili is famous for exotic meats like bear meat and reindeer meat

Appetiser: Bear meat soup

Meat texture was similar to dry chicken breast meat. The soup was salty. We did not particularly enjoy it but we finished it anyway since it was bear meat.

Reindeer sausage and meat

The meat is obviously more tender than the sausage. It tasted like beef. The sausage was like what we had in Tromso, hard.

Service in Nili was attentive. The guy who served us was respectful and made good recommendations based on what tourists come for. He also recommended the Christmas drink glogi to us. We finished up our blueberry juice (and craved for more). He even wished us a great stay at Rovaniemi before we left. However, the food was nothing to die for.

At 9pm, we were driven to the 'wilderness' to wait for the appearance of Aurora

As usual, we didn't have to worry about being out in the cold.

Ultimately, it was a barbeque-in-Finland experience again. Cloud coverage was too heavy for any possibility of Aurora. We left for our hotel at 11.20pm.

We were quite disappointed - for coming so far and so late just to see nothing. We were looking forward to have some nice pictures with the Aurora taken by the professional photographer. The tour manager could sense the disappointment and tried to uplift our spirit by saying things like "you had a once in a lifetime experience barbequing in Finland!" but it didn't work. 

Day 7 (2 Dec) in Lapland, Finland: Santa Claus Village, Meeting Santa Claus, Reindeer Ride, Glass Igloo Experience

 Today, we checked out of the hotel at 7am to take a coach to Santa Claus Village.

The trip is so hurried I often find myself without a picture of the hotels we stayed in.

The tour manager commented that our group sleeps a lot. The moment we get on the coach, we sleep. Well, it's a five-hour journey and we woke up early.

I usually sleep at 11pm and wake up between 1.30am and 3.30am.

Firstly, I am stressed. I am the only one who's taking care of my mother. I am worried that we would be late. As it is, we have been late on a few counts already. I am worried that I would oversleep. I have set the alarm several times but I can't hear it at all. I can't depend on my mother because she's also exhausted. And she's hard of hearing. If she doesn't wear her hearing aid, she won't be able to hear a thing. 

My mother also wakes up at odd hours and wakes me up to ask if we have overslept, if the group has left without us, if the guide has abandoned us. This adds to my stress and anxiety.

Secondly, I need to pack and plan what to wear. It's my first time 'holidaying' at such extreme temperatures. I have a hard time anticipating how much I should cover myself up. My mother will also ask me what she should wear, how many layers, which hat, whether she should put on her crampons, which down or jacket she should wear, how many heat packs she should use. I also have to remind her to apply moisturiser for her face, her body, her legs, and lip balm for her lips.

It is a very stressful trip for me.

I realised that I am not the only one who finds the trip stressful and hurried. A couple with teenage children commented that they found it stressful as well.

We reached the border of Sweden

Once we cross the border, we will be in Finland

It was 2pm by the time we reached Santa Claus Village in Rovaniemi. The daylight hour was ending.

This means that it would be dark when we did the reindeer ride.

The tour manager informed us that our reindeer sleigh ride was 3pm. My first objective was to run to the Santa Claus house to get a queue number.

I had done my research and I knew that I should go for the 'genuine' one at Santa Claus Office.

I was overjoyed when we got the queue timing at 4pm. Actually, the female staff dressed in the elf costume offered 3.15pm but we had to get a later timing to accommodate the reindeer ride.

We went on the live webcam and shared the link with our family and waved at them.

Can you see me?

Yes. It's -11 degree celsius.

I tried getting near to the reindeer but it tried to attack me using its antlers!

I should have stood near the rear of the reindeer.

I could only imagine how beautiful it could have been if we had taken it during the daylight hours.

It was not as slow as I had imagined it to be, but enough to lull my mother to sleep

After the ride, we were led to a small tent where we were given a hot cup of glogi, a Christmas drink concocted with cinnamon and ingredients I know not. I don't really like it as it is sour to me.

After that, we rushed off to Santa Claus Office to queue up for our pictures. My oh my! What a queue it would be!

We reached there at 3.30pm but we could not enter until 3.45pm. Then the queue began.

We only reached Santa at 5pm!

I paid 140 euro for all digital copies which I can download via a link and a hard copy.

Some of my group tour members thought that they charged by per shot so they took a picture with Santa together. They would have taken individually with Santa if they had known that the price was the same as two persons taking together with Santa.

So take first, and decide if you want the pictures later.

I had wanted to try the grilled salmon at Santa's Salmon Place. Unfortunately, time was too tight to eat proper food. In the tour manager's words, you either take pictures or buy souvenirs. If you take pictures, you will have a lot of time; If you buy souvenirs, you will find that you don't have enough time.

We left Santa Claus Village at 5.30pm to check into our glass igloo for the night.

Each time, the tour manager gave us the accommodation with the shortest walking distance due to my mother's age.

The igloo has a low headroom at the doorway. If you are not careful, you would bump your head like what happened to me.

It was supposed to be good for watching the Aurora from within the igloo but it was not to be. 

The cloud coverage was 100% that night so no chance to see the Aurora.

The dinner place was in a tent-house some walking distance away.

Grilled salmon

Very tasty too!

Some veggie soup that was yummy

My mother became tired so we excused ourselves to return to the igloo first.