A Stop in Finland

Arrived in Finland from northern Norway by bus. Crossed Finnish Lapland skirting numerous lakes including Lake Inari and reached Rovaniemi. From here by bus I went back a little north to the Arctic Circle where the Santa Claus Village has been rebuilt. A real village where it is always Christmas with decorated trees and a wooden cabin housing Santa Claus. An attraction for tourists and children where, by leaving your address, you can receive a greeting at home for Christmas. Returned for the night in modern Rovaniemi, from where the following morning I left by train for Kemi on the Gulf of Bothnia. With a local bus I continued to Tornio and from there on foot to nearby Haparanda, which lies on the other side of a river, in Swedish territory. Between these two towns, when Finland was occupied by the Soviets, prisoner exchanges took place.

Southern Finland, which also includes the capital, never particularly attracted me, and for this reason I have never been there.