amusement parks

We’re Going to the Arctic Circle

/ Marie / Leave a comment

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I learned several years ago from a friend that Santa Claus lives in Finland. What!?! Santa Claus lives in Finland!?!? I did some research and found that it is true. An official Santa Claus lives just north of the town of Rovaniemi at the Arctic Circle in Finland. There is an underground park called Santa Park, Santa’s Village, and a wintery wonderland to explore. I decided that when my children were still young enough and old enough to enjoy such a trip, we would travel to the arctic circle to see Santa Claus.

When our oldest child was nine and our youngest three, I decided it was the best time to go. Our oldest is still young enough to enjoy the magic of Santa Claus. And I wasn’t terrified about our youngest wandering off into the wintry wood and freezing in the arctic. We decided to take the plunge and travel to Finland.

I’ve discovered that the more you know about a place you are going to visit, the more excited you become about the trip. I love reading history and travel stories about places I am going to visit. My children, however, need a different kind of encouragement. When I told them we were going to Finland, I was greeted by baffled looks and unenthusiastic responses. So, in order to help them become excited, I found a video with some music that I love (I can’t understand a word of it, but it is a catchy tune) that I hoped would arouse some excitement about our trip. It worked.

The Video That Helped My Children Become Excited About Going to Finland

I hope you like it. Maybe it will inspire you to take your children to Finland!

The Best Jungle Cruise

/ Marie / 4 Comments
Disneyland Hong Kong Castle

Disneyland Hong Kong Castle

After our recent trip to Disneyworld, I’ve been thinking about all our trips to Disney Parks. I fondly remember our trip to Disneyland in Hong Kong. It is a smaller park than the other Disney parks we’ve been to, although it has undergone an expansion since we were there in 2011. It is much less crowded than the other Disney parks. And, there is the added fun travel factor of hearing and seeing Chinese everywhere in the park.

There is one thing that Disneyland Hong Kong does better than all the other Disney parks we’ve been to. The Jungle Cruise. Disneyland California has the classic version. Disneyworld in Florida has an upgraded version with an ancient temple you travel through in addition to the classic elements. Disneyworld Hong Kong has an awesome surprise ending. Do you want to know what it is? Watch a video of it here.

Isn’t it an amazing end to the ride? We were not expecting it when we first rode the Jungle Cruise. You can feel the heat of the flames shooting out of the rock formations, and it is hot! The Jungle Cruise was our favorite thing in Hong Kong Disneyland.

There were a couple of other great surprises in store for us, too. During the parades, they will actually invite some of the children to dance in the parade with some of the characters. Our oldest daughter was able to dance in the luau section of the parade.

752She was a little nervous at the time, but so happy she did it afterwards! Where else do you get a chance to dance in a Disney parade? I think we might have to go back and do it again when she is older so she will actually remember the experience, instead of just seeing it in pictures. Since Hong Kong itself is a great destination, I don’t think I’ll have a hard time convincing the rest of the family that we need to go back.

In all the parts of Hong Kong we visited, people loved to take pictures with our kids, of our kids, sometimes they would just pick them up and hold them. This was especially true at Disneyland. Our youngest at the time had very blond hair. I remember waiting in the line for Winnie the Pooh, and people kept passing her down the line so they could all have turns to take pictures with her. A little unnerving, but thankfully everyone was really sweet to our children the entire time we were there.

726So, for an amazing Jungle Cruise experience, and a whole lot of other fun, take a day or two to visit Hong Kong Disneyland if you’re in the area.