Santa Claus is alive and well and lives in Finland.
The so-called “happiest” place on earth has a magical tradition that lifts spirits around the world – a post office where desirable letter writers are promised a direct line to St. Nick 365 days a year.
Funded by taxpayers and located in the tourist destination of Santa Claus Village near the city of Rovaniemi in Finland’s Lapland region, the magical mail delivery is staffed by a full-time crew of “elves” – some of whom have worked there for decades.
At a time when even Santa’s job is at risk of being taken over by artificial intelligence, the happy-go-lucky crew working for the sleigh-powered wish-fulfiller spend their days sorting the hundreds of thousands of letters sent to the near-North Pole address each year – even answered a surprisingly large proportion of the correspondence.
“This comes as a surprise to a lot of visitors because they’re thinking this is some kind of pretend post, but it’s true,” said Heidi, a seasoned holiday listing office vet for Cover Images.
Santa Claus’ main post office was first opened in 1991 – and is considered Santa’s “official” address, at least by Finns.
“In December, and I’d say in January too, 30,000 letters arrive every day,” revealed Elina, another of the elves. “This is the busiest time with papers. But even during the summer we receive letters which can be several hundred that arrive every day. It always feels busy.”
Many of the envelopes contain wish lists compiled by young children – and the elves promise to open and read every single letter that comes to Santa, or the man with the various red nicknames.
But then there are the many, very personal notes that come in throughout the year — from Father Christmas fans of all ages, workers note. And many of them want nothing more than life advice, they say.
“Quite a lot [the letters] it’s not a wish list,” explained Elina. “So they’re real letters where people tell Santa about their lives and how they’ve been.
“A lot of people write a letter every year and say how their year has been and they’re full of life and full of detail. You can see what the world is like in different countries through letters.”
“And it’s not just children who write. Adults also write to Santa Claus,” added Heidi. Especially young people, from 16 to 28 years old, who are looking for advice”.
“I would say that most of the letters that come from young people indicate a level of stress related to their studies,” said Elina. “They don’t ask Santa for anything materialistic, instead they ask for energy to study or get better grades and help to get into a certain university. They look to Santa for strength and he is seen as a figure of hope and good in the world.”
The big guy is also seen by people in some countries as a relationship counselor.
“There are quite a few letters that say: ‘Santa, I met this girl or this boy.’ What do I do now? Can you help me?’ So there are all kinds of papers”, said Elina.
And then there are those who follow the advice that it’s better to give than to take literally, the elves shared – with paintings, drawings and practical gifts like woolen socks often unwrapped as part of the elves’ work day.
While it’s impossible to thank the half a million or more people who are estimated to send letters each year, the crew promises that everything is read – and that organizations such as hospitals, schools and day care centers are prioritized to receive responses.
“We send letters to people, but he can’t reply to everyone,” Heidi said. “When there’s someone who shares more about their life, or asks Santa a lot of questions, maybe he might have a little better chance of getting an answer. But it’s always a nice surprise if someone gets a response.”
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Image Source : nypost.com