Apologies for the radio silence over on this space - it's been something of an uphill task getting started on actual productive tasks again. About three weeks ago, I departed on a trip to Saariselka in the Finnish Laplands. Never had I seen that much snow! It sure was a change of environment. One of the first stops was to a castle made entirely of snow - take that, eskimos! Inside, there were sculptures made entirely of ice carved into the thick walls of snow.
We also paid a visit to Santa Claus Village in Rovaniemi, where we had a pitstop and I had the best meatballs I've ever had..
One of the highlights of the trip had to be husky sledding. If you'd told me 10 years ago that I would -one day- sit in a sled, being pulled by six huskies (like my idea of a true blue eskimo) in a winter wonderland of snow, I would've died of excitement. It felt so surreal and unlike anything I had ever experienced.
Now before animal-lovers start coming after me for my hide, let me explain. During the ride, the dogs seemed to be struggling with pulling our weight. I felt so bad (firstly, for making the dogs suffer under our weight. Secondly, because I thought it meant we had to start laying off the ice cream and chips.)
After the ride, the staff at the husky farm explained that these Alaskan huskies, different from Siberian ones, were actually struggling only because it was a really hot day. It was 2 degrees celsius, while an ideal temperature for them would've been - 30. The "really hot day" also meant the ice was not ideal for sledding, which made it hard for them to pull.
"They're actually incredibly strong animals. They were made to run. They've been programmed by their natural instincts to think, from the moment they're born, "Run, run, run!' When they're being trained, they run hundreds of kilometres every single day, so this short ride is actually nothing for them."
Our guide was so passionate about huskies and it really was interesting to hear his experiences. Apparently, the newbie puppies are put in the middle, where they're trained to follow those at the front, who are the most intelligent.
Husky sledding was truly an experience unlike any other, and I'd highly recommend it to anyone going to Lapand. Not to mention, being around dogs made me so so happy (given how much I miss my little pup back home).
