Lapland - Huskies & Snow Hotel

The number one activity in Lapland for all of us was the husky ride.  Where the reindeer ride was slow, leisurely, enjoy-the-scenery type of activity, the huskies were fast, adrenalin-pumping, watch-out-for-that-turn! kind of ride.  

Entrance to the husky farm.  As soon as they heard us approaching, they started barking hysterically.

Look at how eager they were to go!

Huskies look like they have wolves for ancestors, don't they?

A quick 5-minute training, half a minute to strap the kids into the sleigh that will be pulled by the guide, a quick prayer that we don't crash, 

and we're off!

We were not prepared for how fast the huskies could go.  They were barking excitedly and speeding off following the lead of our guide, who is also their keeper.  Our guide said that they are trained only to follow the lead pack, and will not listen to our instructions, so we have to make sure we hold on tight and brake whenever it is going too fast.  YL took the reins first, and screamed with laughter while struggling to control the dogs.  

Speeding through the magical winter forest (I know this term is getting trite, but there is no other way to describe it) for 20 km towards the Snow Hotel in Lanio.  While the reindeer ride gave us time to absorb and reflect on its beauty, this ride gave us the chance to admire the vastness of its landscape and how insignificant we are in nature

A bit blurry, but in case you're wondering what husky-driving looks like.  This is the only other participant in our tour, a young German girl, driving behind us.

Phew, we got there in one piece.

There must be several snow hotels in Lapland, and this one we went to was in Lainio.  It is an ordinary hotel that is transformed into an extraordinary icy vacation destination in the winter.  It has a restaurant, a bar, 20+ hotel rooms, walls, slides and sculptures made of crystallized water.

We spent a good half hour exploring the hotel.  As it was just opened for the season, it was still quite empty, so we could take our time and peek in all the rooms and take pictures at leisure.

Corridor outside the hotel rooms

This is how it looks with flash

Carvings in ice outside the rooms, all along the corridors

Each room has a theme; this one is of Neptune/Poseidon, god of the seas.   The bed is carved in the shape of a boat.  There was also one of China with the Great Wall, one of USA with the American bald eagle, etc.  Not sure about you, but I wouldn't enjoy sleeping while a gigantic moody god stares at me like that...

The beds were carved of ice, too, while you sleep in thermal sleeping bags. 

An ice wedding chapel.  The altar, the podium, the seats, the ceilings - everything - were made of ice.

The dining room in the restaurant serves drinks in glasses made of ice, too

The long dining table for large gatherings is surrounded by carvings on the walls.  The benches were painstakingly-carved to resemble wood 

Mini golf - on ice, of course