Korvatunturi

18 TARINA JA VISUAALISUUS | 2.1 TARINAT JA KUVITUKSET

Far away

in northern

Finland...

...at the distant polar circle, lives Autumn and the Christmas season are the busiest times
Santa Claus, a warm-hearted and grey-bearded old fellow,
together with his spouse and the playful gnomes. This place at Korvatunturi, because the gifts must be prepared and all
is called “Lappi” in Finnish, or Lapland in English, and it letters answered that Santa has received. In the summer,
is closely related to the Finnish Christmas tradition. Here, even the folks at Korvatunturi take it easy and spend some
right at the foot of the Korvatunturi Fell, Santa’s secret home time together playing and engaging in various hobbies.
is located. This is also where Santa spends most of his time.
Many people have tried to guess Santa’s age, but it just so
happens that nobody knows how old he is, not even Santa
himself. Having been around for quite some time he has kept
up with the changing world, consulting his helper gnomes
who are always eager to prepare for next year’s Christmas
and learn new things.

School work is part of the gnomes’ spring-time routines.

This is the time when they are busy studying foreign
languages to be able to go through wish lists and deliver the
mail to the correct addresses. They also practise good habits,
discuss what is right and wrong, and how one should respect
nature. The school day always starts with Santa’s briefing in
which he tells many stories, sometimes even exciting ones, on
how important it is to be helpful to others.

VISUALISTICS | 2.1 STORY AND ILLUSTRATIONS 19

Santa’s There is something glittery on the mantelpiece of Santa’s
gift-making
workshops... cottage. That’s Santa’s magic box! As Christmas draws nearer,
Santa takes the box from the mantelpiece and places it on the
...reindeer stables, and, of course, the heart of the entire area – large living room table. There is only one key to the box which
Santa always keeps in his pocket. By opening this magic box he
Santa’s house – are all located in the Korvatunturi area. In can release all of the secret Christmas magic about which the
Santa’s house there is room for everybody. The cosy, warm and gnomes have told stories, including how the reindeer learned to
spacious log house is open to all gnomes and forest animals. fly and how the myriad of gifts remaining unfinished still on
There is always food to be found at Santa’s home and a place to the morning of Christmas Eve could be finished just in time.
stay overnight for the friendly stroller. There are many doors of different sizes to Santa’s house. There
are large doors for large animals and large gifts, and small
Santa’s favourite place is his own armchair at the fireplace. doors which even the tiniest of gnomes can open. The legend
has it that nobody has ever used all of the doors in Santa’s
When the evening comes, Santa sits down in this chair, house, and that only Santa knows where they all lead.
produces a big red Book of Names from an old chest next to
the chair and opens it on his lap. This book, which is decorated Behind the stairs leading to the first floor there is Santa’s
with beautiful golden buckles, holds the names of all the
children the gnomes have told him about. Stories of righteous secret hatch. Through this hatch in the floor Santa can go
and caring children never fail to put a smile on Santa’s face and down to the basement where Santa’s command centre is located.
get him thinking of the coming Christmas. There are dozens of computers and monitors in the basement,
all receiving messages and letters from gnomes and children
from all over the world. Big receiver units transmit even the
faintest little whispers to Santa, and the gnomes are busy
answering the text messages of which Santa receives plenty at
all times. From the wall-mounted monitors one may observe the
preparation of gifts in Santa’s workshop, and the gnomes use
a large red receiver to notify the folks in the workshop of new
orders.

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Santa is keen In the yard, at the front of the red barn, the stable gnomes

on modern are discussing with the woodworking gnomes. The gnomes
are planning to make small pigeonholes for the sleigh to store
technology... Santa’s maps and wish lists. The gnomes are measuring the
sleigh to figure out where to place the pigeonholes, reminiscing
It helps him gather the wish lists and put the addresses at the same time about last Christmas and how Santa in his
of all children directly on his route maps. Santa has recently reindeer-drawn sleigh took off into the starlit sky. One of
spent a lot of time on the Internet. This has helped him the stable gnomes who travelled with Santa in the sleigh told
find new ideas for the Christmases to come, and he has been stories of the long travels through Europe and America.
particularly happy for the possibility to spread the message of
goodwill all around the world. Even the gnomes have noticed The gnomes don’t know exactly how Santa, with all his gifts,
that Santa sometimes participates in the discussions on the
Internet giving hints on how to bind an oat sheaf for the manages to be on time and make all his destinations. One of
birds. However, in his large living room he does not want any the stable gnomes had heard from a cartographer gnome the
computers at all. Santa thinks that it is sometimes good to sit story of time zones and that in America it was only the morning
still and quiet down at the fireplace, maybe even sing some when at Korvatunturi the sun was already setting and it was
Christmas songs with Mrs. Santa. time to go to bed. Still, without Santa’s magic box, none of the
gnomes believed Santa could have made it.
Behind the large living room, is Mrs. Santa’s realm. In
The woodworking gnomes also said that nowadays Santa
the huge kitchen she gives directions to the kitchen gnomes
and tastes the dishes being prepared for dinner. Mrs. Santa does not take all gifts to the children himself, and that most
is known for her massive feasts where there’s always enough of the gifts are bought by the parents for their children. The
food for everybody. The encouraging words of the joyful and parents call Santa every day asking for their wishes and if the
friendly Mother Christmas and her playful tickle on the neck kids had been kind to their friends. Santa always reminds the
will never be forgotten by the tiny kitchen gnomes. parents that the most important thing in giving is the message
of friendship and that giving presents is only one way of
Mrs. Santa has her own secret recipes for certain showing you care.

Christmas dishes. They are stored in a large binder of red and
green colour, with Santa’s picture on the cover. The gnomes
may use the recipes for cooking while Mrs. Santa is working
on some new ones. Mrs. Santa thinks that the Christmas
peace and goodwill are best found in the moments when
people gather together to prepare Christmas dishes, baking
and tasting warm gingerbread cookies straight from the oven
while the huge candle lanterns are being lit outside by the
stable gnomes.

VISUALISTICS | 2.1 STORY AND ILLUSTRATIONS 23

The cartographer

gnome...

...also said that the reindeer could always find their way back to

Korvatunturi even if nobody else knew the way. When the last gifts
are given out and Santa approaches the arctic circle, the legend has it
that Santa switches off the satellite GPS and gives instructions to his
head reindeer, Rudolf, guided by the northern lights and winds. The
Lappish Nature knows Santa will be returning in his sleigh from his
important mission and helps steer the exhausted reindeer to the right
place. Helping out Santa is a great honour for the Lappish Nature,
which is why you may see northern lights carrying out their routine
exercises in the sky, even if Christmas is still a long time away.

24 VISUALISTICS | 2.1 STORY AND ILLUSTRATIONS

TUNNUKSET | 1.1 ÄÄNI JA TUOKSU 25