as we dock in Kirkenes the thermometer on the port building reads minus 23, so it's warmed up a bit !!.
after checking into the swanky Thon hotel we go for a wander round town
a signpost tells us just how far north we are
We are in fact only 13km from the Russian border and further east than Istanbul.
After a short walk we arrive at the Gabba reindeer reserve which is also the site of the Kirkenes snow hotel which is newly constructed each winter using blocks of ice and snow made from water out of the nearby lake, it has 20 rooms all individualy themed and carved. You can stay the night though non of rooms are en-suite.
some of the ice sculptures and carvings are very elaborate
this is the one in the bridal suite
outside two teams of huskies are about to race off into the wilderness
and Rudolph comes over to see what's happening
we pop inside the Gabba restuarant to warm up and have lunch which consists of hot chocolate , reindeer soup, vodka, reindeer sausage (which we cook ourselves over the open fire)
chocolate / carrot cake, coffee and more vodka. Outside it's now starting to get dark again
An amazing day out.
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