By way of an introduction, Finland is situated between the 60th and 70th degree of latitude, covering an area of 130,000 square miles. 10% of this area is covered by water. It has a population of approximately 5 million people. The land in the north of Finland forms part of Lapland. The area is inhabited by the Lappish people and their Reindeer (220,000 Reindeer, 200,000 people). The principal town of Finnish Lapland is called Rovaniemi on the Arctic Circle, and 150 km north of Rovaniemi is Luosto.
Luosto is a ski resort and has around 200 permanent inhabitants. The town consists of a few hotels, a few shops and quite a few log cabins. All are centered around the foot of the Luoston fells where hiking in summer and skiing in winter are the main attractions. Our stay in Luosto was very special. Our accommodation was a centrally positioned log cabin. The cabin had four on-suite bedrooms, each with two large bunk beds and a personal drinks cabinet together with table and chairs. Other facilities in the log cabin included Sauna, open fireplace, changing area, fully fitted kitchen, overhead projector, TV and stereo. The view from the open french windows out into the wintry wilderness was excellent.
The bar was our main haunt at night. The bar was always open well into the early hours, serving Lapin Kulta and Hoff beer. Special nights were laid on, including a Karaoke night. It must be said that the best place to be on the night of the new millennium was on the steps of the Hovi, watching fireworks explode in the snow-ridden heavens.
Some nights were spent cooking. But it soon became clear that cooking time got in the way of drinking time. And so the establishment on the right was visited regularly. The specialty of the restaurant was melt-in-the-mouth Reindeer with the world’s softest mashed potatoes. But for those of us who couldn’t bring themselves to eat Rudolph there was a wide variety of European dishes that were as tasty.
A special mention must be made to the supermarket in Luosto. This is the place where we bought food to cook ourselves and all the other essentials like big bags of crisps and crates of Lapin Kulta. We were warned when organizing our trip to Finland that the price of beer and food was astronomical. So we fell lucky on having such a value for money place right on our doorstep. What’s with the internet in Lapland when a supermarket has got it’s own site?
Finally, entertainment during the day was provided by the ski resort (for skiing, snowboarding and sledging) and the Snow-games company, who let us rent a few of their snow mobiles.Original link
Luosto is a ski resort and has around 200 permanent inhabitants. The town consists of a few hotels, a few shops and quite a few log cabins. All are centered around the foot of the Luoston fells where hiking in summer and skiing in winter are the main attractions. Our stay in Luosto was very special. Our accommodation was a centrally positioned log cabin. The cabin had four on-suite bedrooms, each with two large bunk beds and a personal drinks cabinet together with table and chairs. Other facilities in the log cabin included Sauna, open fireplace, changing area, fully fitted kitchen, overhead projector, TV and stereo. The view from the open french windows out into the wintry wilderness was excellent.
The bar was our main haunt at night. The bar was always open well into the early hours, serving Lapin Kulta and Hoff beer. Special nights were laid on, including a Karaoke night. It must be said that the best place to be on the night of the new millennium was on the steps of the Hovi, watching fireworks explode in the snow-ridden heavens.
Some nights were spent cooking. But it soon became clear that cooking time got in the way of drinking time. And so the establishment on the right was visited regularly. The specialty of the restaurant was melt-in-the-mouth Reindeer with the world’s softest mashed potatoes. But for those of us who couldn’t bring themselves to eat Rudolph there was a wide variety of European dishes that were as tasty.
A special mention must be made to the supermarket in Luosto. This is the place where we bought food to cook ourselves and all the other essentials like big bags of crisps and crates of Lapin Kulta. We were warned when organizing our trip to Finland that the price of beer and food was astronomical. So we fell lucky on having such a value for money place right on our doorstep. What’s with the internet in Lapland when a supermarket has got it’s own site?
Finally, entertainment during the day was provided by the ski resort (for skiing, snowboarding and sledging) and the Snow-games company, who let us rent a few of their snow mobiles.Original link