ICEHOTEL

400 year old Viking church in Jukkasjärvi

The Ice Church.

 

One of the best rooms...in my opinion :)

 

Ice Bar.

ICEHOTEL

On Saturday we took a 30 minute bus ride to Jukkasjärvi to see the ICEHOTEL. Wow. It was pretty crazy. Every December, a new hotel is built. It takes approximately 2 months to construct, and then in April, it takes about 2 months to melt. The ice is taken from the Torne River, which runs behind the hotel, and is considered to be one of the purest rivers in all of Europe. Its gentle flow and purity give the ice a crystal blue appearance with little to no bubbles. The ice is truly beautiful. Never thought I would say that about ice! 

Every season, a couple hundred artists submit their room deign ideas to the ICEHOTEL, and about 35 or so are chosen to construct their rooms in the hotel. Its pretty cool because there is a lot of variety. Also, the chapel is a new creation every year. This year it had the theme of "woods". Surprisingly enough, it is a popular place to get married! Bah! -5 C is a liiiiittle cold for me, thanks. :)

We also visited a church in Jukkasjärvi dating back to the Vikings 400 years ago. It is the oldest church in Lapland, and has some pretty neat history behind it as well.