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::TRAVEL NEWS::
LE Newsletter - January 19, 2012
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Top 10 Best Places To Spend Winter
Source: By Annette McLeod, MSN Travel
(January 15, 2012) When it comes to winter, we Canadians
tend to fall
into two camps: those who relish every snowflake, and those who
hide like grizzly bears, trying to stay asleep until April. The
former take their winter vacations in Banff or Mont Tremblant or
Whistler, or some other perfectly gorgeous, snow-laden resort
town where an affinity for hot chocolate is as easily indulged
as a need for downhill speed. The latter take to the skies like
Monarch butterflies, desperate to get to Punta Cana or Cuba or
Bermuda as quickly as possible.
In either case, it's time to shake things up. Our winter-lovers
tend to think a Canadian winter is the quintessential winter, so
why go anywhere else? Our winter-haters need to be lured away to
a snowy destination with an activity so unique and a place so
worth seeing, not even they will want to stay in the house. Here
are 10 great wintery winter holidays both tribes of Canadians
will love.
1. Cruise the Norwegian fjords
There are a number of companies offering an array of Norwegian
fjord winter cruises, but they all have one thing in common:
stunning scenery. Norway's mountains, valleys, quaint villages
and glaciers glide past like something out of a fairytale. Ports
of call let you dip a toe into Russia, stay overnight in an ice
hotel, join a dog-sledding or snowmobiling excursion or splash
around in the icy Barents Sea. If you're really lucky, you may
even find yourself cruising under the Northern Lights.
2. Break the ice in Moscow
Take a cruise down the Moscow River in an
icebreaker, one of several thick-hulled boats that can navigate
the icy water year-round. Glass-enclosed decks let you view the
city sights, including the Kremlin, without getting frostbite.
Sample some borscht or just tuck into the local vodka, an
especially tempting pleasure at night when the city is
illuminated as you sip to a symphony of cracking ice, both
outside the boat in and inside your glass. Boats are clean and
spacious, and you may even find a crew member who speaks
English.
3. Camp out on an Icelandic glacier
Join an expedition leaving Reykjavik by 4x4; when you hit the
edge of the glacier, your guides will let a little air out of
the tires to prepare for the rough ride ahead. Pitch in setting
up camp for an unforgettable night beneath arctic skies. Various
tours include an overnight in a highland chalet en route or a
visit to a hot spring. Or, if you think winter camping sounds
intrepid, try lava caving in the Stora-Bollahraun lava field or
winter snorkelling in the Silfra Fissure while you're at it.
4. Run away and see the circus in Budapest
The International Circus Festival comes to Budapest, Hungary,
every second February to pit the best international and
Hungarian acts against one another for awards and bragging
rights. Acts for 2012 include banana-wielding American comedian
Kirk Marsh (shown), Germany's Leonid Beljakov and his comedic
dogs, a Colombian teeterboard troupe, Ukrainian living statues
and a Russian foot-juggler. Canada represents with Becky Hoops
and her hula hoops and Chilly & Fly with their standing cradle,
whatever the heck that is.
5. Take a chilly dip in Helsinki
I must confess to not really understanding this one. Perhaps
it's like hitting your head against a wall because it feels so
good when you stop. But the Finns swear by it — Avantouinti or,
literally, 'ice hole swimming.' You'll find clubs throughout
Finland that offer a thoughtfully ladder-equipped hole in the
thick Nordic ice, through which you can plunge your crazy
Canadian patootie before high-tailing it into the nearest sauna.
Then you do it again. And if your heart hasn't stopped yet,
again. Try the Kuusijärvi Recreation Centre, Oittaa Recreation
Centre or Rastila Camping.
6. Celebrate snow in Sapporo, Japan
Over seven days in February, the Sapporo Snow Festival (or Yuki
Matsuri) brings two million people to the largest city on the
island of Hokkaido to check out hundreds of snow and ice
sculptures, some of which are the size of a duplex. The main
festival site, Odori Park, which spans the width of the city,
features concert stages with a variety of entertainment. The
Tsudome site features snow slides and mazes. The Susukino site
is home to the ice sculpture contest, as well as the reigning
Ice Queen. Also be sure to try the region's renowned Sapporo
beer.
7. Follow the light in Beijing
The Longqing Gorge Ice Lantern Festival happens about 90 km
northwest of Beijing in a canyon well-travelled by rowers and
hikers in summer. In winter, the area is transformed into a
wonderland, with more than 400 sculptures carved out of the ice,
glowing with the lights captured within. And of course, there's
many a lantern to be admired. Or you can slide down the ice
slide or bungee off a 48-metre-high platform.
8. Bundle up for Kiruna, Sweden
Kiruna's annual Snow Festival features snow sculpting (of
course), as well as reindeer and dogsled races, skiing and
skating competitions and a winter fair for a five-day stretch at
the end of January, and all of it above the Arctic Circle in
Swedish Lapland. The first of its kind and the world's largest,
the Icehotel in nearby Jukkasjärvi offers indoor temperatures of
between -5 C and -8 C, regardless of outside temperature, but
the reindeer skins should keep you toasty. If you go in March,
you can watch them harvest blocks of ice from the Torne River to
store until next year.
9. Say goodbye to winter in the Ukraine
Maslenitsa, which takes place the week before Lent, is a great
way to say so long to another winter by scarfing blini
(traditional pancakes) and other Slavic goodies, like sausages
and perogis. At Pirogovo, an open-air folk museum at the south
end of Kiev, you can check out historic folk architecture,
including windmills, churches and school houses, while enjoying
the festivities. On Shrove Tuesday, the last day of the event,
enjoy the burning of a straw man that symbolizes the past
winter.
10. Go south for some wintery fun
Of course, you won't want to go too far south, or you'll miss
all this
great winteriness! Instead, visit our American cousins in
Manhattan, where you can ice skate at Rockefeller Centre, take a
horse-drawn carriage ride through Central Park, go sledding at
CiCo Park, take a boat tour on the Hudson — or pack it all in
and do something cultural like visit a museum. Of course, you
can always just have a hot chocolate and shop 'til you drop.
10 sunny escapes
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::ENTERTAINMENT NEWS WITH A CANADIAN TWIST::
