Sawt Falasteen - As Arctic climate warms, even Santa runs short of snow

By this time of year, the town of Rovaniemi in Finnish Lapland -- marketed by tourism officials since the 1980s as the "real" home of Santa Claus -- should be white and pretty.

But on a recent visit, rain poured down from a gloomy slate sky and the temperature was well above freezing, with the thermometer showing +2C.

"My reindeer can fly, so that's no problem," said the man in the red suit and long white beard, resting his weary legs after a long day of meeting excited children and adults.

But "we can see that climate change is real. And it's affecting the reindeer. It's affecting life here in the Arctic," added the man, whose employers declined to identify him by his real name.

Herders say milder and more unpredictable winters have left reindeer struggling to dig up their main food, lichen.

Snow and ice have melted and refrozen, burying it under layers of packed ice.

The Arctic is warming faster than other parts of the world due to climate change -- nearly four times as fast, according to research published by Finland-based scientists in the journal Nature in 2022.

Warming global temperatures, driven by humans burning fossil fuels, have been aggravating weather disasters such as floods and droughts worldwide in recent years.

In Finnish Lapland, after a historically warm summer, a new November temperature record was set a few weeks ago when 11.1C was measured in the town of Utsjoki, breaking the previous record of 11.0C from 1975.

- Tourism boom -

Tourists flock to Rovaniemi from around the world to see its enchanting snowy landscapes and experience the Arctic cold.

With only a few hours of daylight this time of the year, many also hope to see the spectacular colours of the Northern Lights streaking across the dark skies.

Last year, the town registered a record high of more than one million overnight stays.

Visitors looking to get a glimpse of Santa can meet the man himself at different locations in Rovaniemi, including the Santa Park underground theme park and the nearby Santa Claus Village.

"It's super nice. It's like in the Christmas movies, super magical," said Maria Batista Torres from Tenerife in Spain, visiting the Santa Claus Village with her two young children.

Glittering fairy lights illuminate rooftops and trees in the Santa Claus Village, which is open all year round.

"I figured it would be much more snowy," however, said Wenguel, a visitor from the United States.

"I mean, it still feels like Christmas... but I figured it would be a little bit more Santa-like."

In addition to meeting Santa Claus, visitors can pay to go snowmobiling or jump on a reindeer sleigh-ride.

While visiting Santa Claus Village is free, a picture taken with Santa costs a minimum of 40 euros ($42).

- Wishing for peace -

Gloomy skies aside, Santa Claus's Post Office in Santa Claus Village was bustling with activity, as red-hooded elves busily stamped cards and sorted piles of letters in the Christmas rush.

"In December there can be about 30,000 letters each day," said postal elf Heidi Mustonen, who has worked here for 20 years.

Over half a million letters to Santa find their way here every year, Heidi said, insisting that every letter gets opened and read thoroughly.

Most of the letters were wish lists, but both children and adults also wrote to tell Santa about their personal concerns, fears, wishes and joys, with many of the envelopes containing drawings and small gifts.

"This year many people have wished for peace," Heidi said.

Most letters sent from Asian countries were written by young adults, with many wishing for strength to cope with their studies, she said.

Letters from European countries were meanwhile mostly written by children.

Heidi said she loved the warm and happy atmosphere in Santa's village, but did wish for snowfall to brighten up the landscape.

"We would make snow everywhere if we could. But we are just postal elves."

S.AbuJamous--SF-PST