Scandinavia 2019 Day 8: Rovaniemi, Finland
DAY 8: 3 DEC 2019
Morning world!
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| Reindeer ride at Apukka |
Morning world!
Last night's KP index for Northern lights was 2 but it was rather cloudy.
So, we gave up on camping for the lights once midnight struck and fell asleep soon after.
We were not that disappointed as we already saw them in Iceland.
The sun only started rising at around 0930 that day.
So we went for breakfast at the restaurant before taking a stroll around the resort.
Breakfast was simple but sumptuous, just like what we had in Iceland.
We finally found the lake which was frozen and the scenery around the lake was beautiful.
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| Frozen lake |
We paid 120 euros each for a 2 hour tour.
The tour comes with winter gear and a simple tea break.
The reindeer farm was located across the resort on the other side of the main road.
There were about 10 reindeer patiently waiting for us.
It was a small group and I got to ride on the sleigh by myself!
Arkmus was my reindeer and he was definitely a cheeky one.
He shook off his reins on the way back and left me alone!
We were led into a snowy forest during the ride.
The ride was slow and all of us took time to admire the scenery unfolding before our eyes.
After the ride, our guide, Sara, brought us to a Lappish hut to bake our very own traditional stick bun!
We each took a dough and thread it round a stick like a snake before placing it over the fire.
We each took a dough and thread it round a stick like a snake before placing it over the fire.
The trick is to make sure that the dough is well spread across the stick so that it cooks faster.
I didn't thread mine well so it took longer to cook.
I took a bite into the bun and the texture was really interesting!
The bun was as soft as a toasted marshmallow but it was chewy at the same time.
Although our tour was supposed to end at noon, we stayed a little longer before
heading back to the changing room.
There was a minor hiccup after the tour.
I booked a transfer to the city centre together with the tour.
However, it didn't go through despite me confirming with the front desk staff last night.
The resort actually had transfers to the city centre for about 10 euros each
but we just missed it by 10 minutes.
So I decided to wait for the public bus which was set to arrive at 1345.
I was a little scared that the bus wouldn't come but it came!
We paid 7.90 euros each for the bus ride.
I booked an apartment just 5 to 10 minutes away from Rovaniemi bus station.
It took us about 30 minutes to arrive at the bus station.
We slowly made our way to our apartment where we met our host.
We paid S$160 per night and the room came with a small kitchenette.
The food here is cheaper compared to Iceland so we didn't cook any meals here.
We left our apartment and headed to the main shopping area.
We walked around the malls in the vicinity but everything was expensive.
However, we did get some postcards to be mailed out from Santa Claus Post Office at
less than 1 euro as we anticipated that it will be expensive at Santa Claus Village.
We made our way to Restaurant Nili, one of the famous restaurants selling Lappish cuisines
in the city centre.
I made a reservation on their website before leaving for this trip and I was glad that I did it.
Groups that walked in were told to wait at least 1.5 to 2 hours in order to get a table.
That is how popular they are!
The dinner bill came up to 68 euros.
The decor in the restaurant was very rustic with deer antlers and bear fur mounted on the walls.
We ordered a starter which was mushrooms served with sour cream and cheese,
but it was not worth it at all.
but it was not worth it at all.
I had the arctic ocean salmon and my mum had hearty beef steak for mains.
The salmon was fresh and soft!
The steak was surprisingly good even though the restaurant specialised more in seafood!
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| Nili's Porcini Kuksa |
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| Grilled Salmon |
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| Steak |
We didn't have a proper lunch so we were alright with paying more for dinner.
We decided to head back to our apartment after dinner as we have explored most of the shops.
Also, we were waiting for an Apukka staff to drop by to return a ring which my mum
misplaced in our glass igloo.
It was a really nice gesture as they were very prompt in replying my emails about
the ring issue.
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