Way Up North

World War II- German cemetery near Rovaniemi

Book listing the German soldiers who died in this region of Lapland during World War II

View looking out from the memorial/cemetery towards the lake

Remembering those who died during the war

My hike out to the cemetery was through a deeply forested area

Santa Claus Village-- Rovaniemi, Finland

Straddling the line that marks the Arctic Circle in Rovaniemi

The official line

Building where we met Santa and location of his office

A little Christmas spirit in July

On the drive to the north country

Kodie was amazed at the size of this chocolate bar we found at a candy store in Sweden

Stately hotel in Haparanda, Sweden--- a town along the Finland/Sweden border

Swedish shopping landmark in Haparanda

This past weekend we loaded up the car and took off for the northern region of Finland. Our time in Finland is starting to wind down, so we decided to get this trip in before going back to the states. We spent the first night in Rovaniemi, which is the town that marks the start of the Arctic Circle territory. Rovaniemi is also the official home of Santa Claus, so we paid him a visit during our stay in this unique part of Finland. Rovaniemi lies in a region of the country known as Lapland, which is characterized by thick forests, vast meadows, abundant wildlife, and beautiful lakes and rivers. I would describe it as a place where you would go to hear yourself think. The rugged landscape typifies the type of individual who calls this sort of place home. We had a limited amount of time for our visit and the drive to our final destination was about 8 hours from Seinajoki, so we crammed a lot of activities into our stay. We all agreed that Lapland is definitely worth the effort it takes to get there. Here are some pics from our journey.

Lights out.