You can't keep a good Santa down! Specifically, a Chinese city's giant sculpture of Santa, well on its way to being built this year despite ever-warming temperatures.

Despite the city of Harbin's proximity to Siberia, the region has been affected by the global (temperature) meltdown: For its annual ice festival, including the 78-foot-tall Santa, officials were forced to make snow just like a ski resort. CO2 trouble notwithstanding, this bad boy is going up to the delight of the 800,000 estimated visitors when the fest opens January 5.

Related Stories:
· Harbin Ice Festival Sweats Under Global Warming [Lost Weekend]
· Let it Snow: China Builds "World's Largest" Ice Santa [Reuters, via Yahoo!]
· Santa Isn't The Only One Who Digs The North Pole [Jaunted]

[Photo of a Harbin Santa in 2004: dennisyee] ]]> egw 2008-12-26T09:45:37-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/12/24/94327/233

In a moment of weakness, we were convinced to check out the Norad Santa Tracker. And you know what? Despite our suspicions that it'd be super cheesy, it managed to bring some geographic jolly to our Christmas Eve.

Santa, it seems, really does get everywhere, stopping off at places we know and love, like Sydney, Australia and Kobe, Japan, while also bringing presents to kids in spots we've never even heard of. An extra stocking stuffer goes out to anyone who's heard of Onekotan, Russia before today.

To celebrate Santa's globe wandering, we're taking the rest of the day off and hunkering down with eggnog and presents tomorrow. But we'll be back in full force on Friday to swap holiday horror stories and continue our hats-in-airports obsession. See you then, and merry Christmas!

Related Stories:
· Norad Santa Tracker [Official Site]
· Christmas coverage [Jaunted]]]> pbb 2008-12-24T13:00:36-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/12/22/13325/158

Ho ho no! Blue 1--a Finnish budget airline affiliated to SAS Airlines and not to be confused with Romania's Blue Air French-based Blue Line--has made a bunch of British kids really blue this Christmas.

The airline should have carried 160 people in two small planes from Manchester to Santa's home in Finnish Lapland early on Saturday morning, but the passengers were then told there'd be a delay while Blue found a new aircraft. The bigger one they got was then deemed too big to land at Finland's Enontekio airport in bad weather and the whole trip was canceled.

Police had to be called to calm down the screaming children, and angry parents had to explain to their kids that they hadn't been good enough to meet Santa this year after all.

Related Stories:
· Police called after angry parents protest at cancellation of flight to see Santa in Lapland [Daily Mail UK]
· Fury as Santa Trip is Sleighed [SMH]
· Will the Real Santa Please Stand Up? [Jaunted]

[Photo: (stephan)] ]]> amandak 2008-12-23T09:00:37-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/12/8/14409/6594

This time of year most people are trying to flee the cold weather instead of embrace it. But British tour operators are pushing trips to the region of Sápmi--classically but incorrectly known as Lapland--as a way to see Santa before he embarks on his RTW trip.

Being from the uncouth continent, we have no idea whether a trip to see Santa's house that doesn't involve a megamall and Polaroids is traditional, but we can't help but be intrigued by offers of Husky safaris and Arctic Circle crossings. Santa Park falls firmly on the tourist-trap side, but Polarfleece addicts might enjoy a toboggan-riding day trip that caters to their inner child. (And we mean inner because seriously, bundle up!)

Related Stories:
· Are Lapland Ski Resorts Finnished? [Jaunted]
· Foxy Lights in Finland [Jaunted]

[Photo of a reindeer in Rovaniemi, Finland: infeite]]]> egw 2008-12-08T16:20:26-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/11/18/5597/5896

When we think of Japan, Christmas is probably one of the last things to come to mind. Still, it makes sense that a country that loves itself some kitsch would fully embrace what has become the world’s tackiest and most commercial holiday (arguments for Valentine’s Day, Halloween and Diwali will all be accepted in the comments).

So we guess it makes sense that the Yokohama Hakkeijima Sea Paradise Aquarium in Tokyo has started featuring underwater shows with dolphins and scuba divers dressed as Santa Claus. Looks like our childhood fantasy is true: Santa really can be everywhere at the same time.

But listen, even if the aquarium’s dolphin show is a bit hokey, it’s still a site worth visiting during a trip through Japan. Since dollars, euros and even pounds are all virtually worthless against the yen these days, the best part of the park (after the swimming Santa, of course) is that everything at the aquarium and its adjacent Pleasure Land is a la carte. Once inside this man-made island, you can pay-as-you go to ride on the roller coaster, see the swimming mammals or swing over the sea on a giant pendulum. Japan: Cornering the Bizarre Travel market.

Related Stories:
· Yokohama Hakkeijima Sea Paradise Aquarium [Official Site]
· Japan Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Yokohama Hakkeijima Sea Paradise Aquarium] ]]> ced138 2008-11-19T11:05:15-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2008/7/21/10370/9278

It's too late to grow a real beard: The World Santa Claus Congress starts today in Copenhagen, whose residents will get a glimpse of many Kris Kringles as they parade and wreak havoc out of season.

Santas will promenade down Strøget, a pedestrian thoroughfare made up of several streets in the city center, and later jump into the Copenhagen harbor over the course of the three-day festival, now in its 51st year.

Just don't ask them which one is the real Santa; they'll say they all are.

Related Stories:
· World Santa Claus Congress [Official Site, in Danish]
· You Can Dine with Danes, Too [Jaunted]
· Santa Claus coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: paulafunnell]]]> egw 2008-07-21T12:30:20-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/12/21/105143/68

We already know that Santa is hanging out in Kyrgyzstan instead of the North Pole this year. Now the big man's hosts plan to name a mountain in his honor and put together some real-life reindeer games like chimney climbing and sled racing.

The Central Asian country--just south of Kazakhstan--has lots of remote and unnamed peaks, so turning one into Mount Santa Claus isn't a problem. And it's not an unprecedented move, as the Kyrgyzstanis have already named mountains for Vladimir Lenin and Boris Yeltsin.

Try as we may, we can't determine exactly where Mount Santa Claus is. But maybe that's for the better: Seems like the kind of place that could quickly get overrun by tourists.

Related Stories:
· Kyrgyzstan To Name Peak After Santa [BBC]
· Santa Claus coverage [Jaunted]
· Christmas coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo of Kyrgyzstani Mountains: Tigr]]]> pbb 2007-12-21T11:00:02-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/