Page 56 of A Winter in Wonderland
‘Oh, I’m sorry.’ I shut up quickly.
‘No, it’s OK, they like you. They say “Hyvää joulua” back, which is Merry Christmas in Finnish.’
‘Oh! Hoov-eye Julia,’ I mispronounced back, immediately cringing at my ineptitude.
We kept walking then and entered the lodge, where I couldn’t believe the transformation.
Being a large, wooden structure nestled in a snowy forest in the lead-up to Christmas, the building had always looked festive to me. Tall, decorated Christmas trees stood proudly in the entranceway, Christmas music hummed in the background, and the air of excitement was always present. But tonight, Love Adventuring Lapland had gone all-out.
Now, the large, almost sports hall-like room that was used for indoor activities (like the gingerbread decorating workshop, or sometimes weddings) had long tables that were stretched along one end, their tabletops blooming with winter shrub and berry centrepieces, accented with chunky cream candles, while strings of gold stars dangled from the ceiling. The other half of the hall was left clear for a dance floor, or for guests to mingle, and capping one end was a stage where Santa would be joining the party at the beginning to wish everyone a Merry Christmas before he had to get going on his deliveries (and younger holidaymakers would be heading to bed). He would then be replaced with a band who would play a Christmas disco.
‘This is gorgeous,’ I said to Esteri, breathing it all in. It was truly a winter wonderland, but not in the white crepe way my school had done, this was magical. Maybe it would be a magical night after all, just maybe …
He appeared at the other end of the hall, Josh, wearing his staff T-shirt but with a green waistcoat loose over the top,and green trousers. A slightly cooler version of his elf outfit, considering he and the other elves would risk overheating spending all evening in their big felt ensembles. He carried a box, his arms bare and just slightly muscled, his hair – currently hatless – messily swept to the side while he helped out with final preparations. As I watched he laughed heartily at something somebody said and then swept his eyes around the room. He landed on me, catching me looking, and held my gaze for a moment.
‘Jackpot,’ Esteri whispered beside me, and then edged away, yelling out, ‘Daan, what can I do?’
By the time I looked back at Josh he’d gone, and feeling a bit lost standing in the centre of the hall on my own, I scuttled after Esteri and helped her arrange the props for the photo booth.
‘Love Adventuring Lapland workers, can I have your attention?’ Daan called out and we all gathered around him.
‘First of all, you all look wonderful and festive, thank you for making the effort but also for all wearing your Love Adventuring Lapland T-shirts. I think you’ll stand out from the guests but still look part of the party, which is what we wanted. I hope you feel part of the party too, but remember, not too much.’
A chuckle went around the group.
Daan proceeded to go through the details of the party, reiterating fire escape plans and the plan for the evening. At the end, he added, ‘The party will go on until one o’clock in the morning, but if youreallydon’t think you can last that late please come and see me and don’t just leave.In my experience, guests will usually leave soon after midnight, many before, but I don’t want to be the only staff member here with a hundred rowdy visitors from around the world. And … ’ he paused, ‘if you make it to the end, we’ll crack open a littleglögiafter we’ve closed the doors.’
This time, we all cheered.Glögi, as I’d experienced way back at Santa Claus Village in Rovaniemi, was delicious. ‘What time is your first job tomorrow?’ I whispered to Esteri, who was making eyes at one of the husky men.
‘Ten thirty. We all get a nice lie-in on Christmas Day.’
I nodded. I hoped to still wake up early enough to call home, and then I didn’t have anything until late morning when I was taking some guests out on the dreaded snowmobiles.
When Daan dismissed us, we all raced about the hall making last-minute tweaks to decor, props, outfits, before the pre-band music was switched on and the soulful sounds of Ella Fitzgerald singing ‘Sleigh Ride’ filled the space (yay! My favourite!), and the doors were opened.
Outside, it had started snowing, and with the music, the smells, the beautiful scenery, my one much-loved Christmas song, I felt my heart rise in my chest, and a smile spread across my face.
I was, this Christmas, in this moment,happy.
‘Good luck tonight, you silly Brit,’ Esteri said beside me, uncharacteristically pulling me into a quick hug and kissing me on the cheek (actually, right on the ear, but I think she was aiming for the cheek).
‘Thank you,’ I laughed. ‘What was that for?’
‘Just because. You’ve worked hard. Good luck for a wonderful evening.’
‘You too,’ I stuttered, not quite sure what she was meaning, but grateful for the pep-talk which was actually more appropriate than she realised.
With that, the guests started to arrive, children running into the hall with big, wide eyes, trying to jump to reach the dangling stars and hitting the dance floor with amazing moves and zero insecurities. Parents followed, along with other adults, handing coats to the front desk and shaking snow from their hair and redoing their updos, having removed their hats.
The hall quickly filled up, the staff popping in our bright red T-shirts against reams of sparkles and maroons and forest greens. The elves were a huge hit with the kids on the dance floor, and during ‘Last Christmas’ I noticed Josh holding the hands of a little cutie-pie boy who could almost be a small version of him, and who seemed so entranced by Josh’s elfdom that Josh even let him try on his hat.
All of a sudden, the lights dimmed, and a quiet jingling of bells broke through the hush. Knowing what was about to happen, I, and my colleagues, all gasped theatrically and started whispering, ‘Is that … could it be … ’ and suchlike, and for the millionth time on this trip I floated out of my body to look down and not even recognise myself.
OK. I know I’m an adult. I know I don’t even like Christmas and I’m just happy that I’ve made it through to this crucial point without any disasters, but even I could feel the excitement permeate my cold, dead heart,and I found myself standing on tiptoes to try and see the door.
The chuckle started before we even saw him. A low, approaching, ‘Ho, ho, ho, ho, ho,’ and while the children, who were practically crawling their way onto the stage, nearly exploded with anticipation, in he came.
‘SANTA CLAUS!’ ‘Joulupukki!’ ‘Père Noël!’ ‘Samichlaus!’ People from all around the world, uniting over tradition and fun.
Santa made his way to the stage, waving and smiling from behind his big beard, while the Christmas music swelled.
As the crowd settled, Santa gave a speech about how happy he was to have all these visitors, how the reindeer were all fed and ready to get going, how he had a big night ahead, and how everyone at the party should eat a lot and be as merry as possible on the dance floor so they were nice and sleepy come bedtime.
There were whoops and squeals of joy from guests and staff alike. And from me.
