August 3 To Rovaniemi (Day 311)
On the Road Again, actually On the Rails Again! This time further north in Finland to the town of Rovaniemi, the official Hometown of Santa Claus! And his Reindeer! We caught a morning train for the 5 hour ride to just below the Arctic Circle.
We left from the quaint train station in Kokkola, restored and still used.
We arrived in Rovaniemi at about 3pm and walked the 20 minutes to our Airbnb. This apartment is very near a lake with a backdoor opening onto the path around the lake.
You might notice the metal rack (with the blue arrow pointing to it). We’ve seen these behind almost every apartment building and are stumped as to their use! A weird clothes line? A ski rack? A weird bike rack? More on this later!
After we unpacked we walked to the grocery store and the liquor store. In Finland all beer, wine and spirits are sold in state run liquor stores that have limited open hours! Luckily the stores were in the same shopping center!
Walking along the lakeshore, past these fragrant flowers was a wonderful start and finish to our shopping foray.
A bonus in this apartment, and a staple in many Finnish households (even one bedroom apartments!) is a sauna! Accurately pronounced “Sow-naa”!
A wonderful way to relax in the steamy heat, then a cold shower, and the best night’s sleep in a long time!