THIS Is How Santa Claus Is Welcomed Home Near the NORTH POLE ︱ Svalbard, Polar Night

It is time for my favorite event of the year. Every year on the first of advent something magical happens here in Longyearbyen. According to local legend Santa Claus lives high up on the mountainside inside an old closed down coal mine overlooking the town. For most of the year it's silent and dark, forbidden to enter. But on this one day everything changes. Suddenly lights appear in the windows of the mine, a glowing Christmas tree shines above the entrance, and down at the foot of the mountain a little postbox appears. Santa Claus, or Julenissen as he's called in Norwegian, has returned. Okay we are almost ready to go now. Look how many people are starting to arrive. I said that I wasn't going to take one of these because last time I almost burned my hair off. But you know what, you live and you have a good time. It is time for my favorite event of the year. The yearly torch walk to welcome Santa Claus to Longyearbyen which according to local legend is where he lives. So on the first of advent he returns back home. And that is kind of like when Christmas begins here. There's also a postbox at the bottom of the mountain where the kids will leave their wish lists. So this is without a doubt the most magical event of the year. We start walking soon. It's possible. You crowded training Grim? Crowded training myself. The whole village is invited to gather at Huset where torches are handed out. For this one special event the street lights are completely turned off like a celebration of the darkness we live in this time of year. During polar night darkness is part of our everyday life and today we celebrate it with light and wonder. Together we walk out into the pitch black arctic day guided only by the gentle glow of flickering flames. The torches feel like more than just light. They feel like warmth, tradition and a quiet sense of magic moving through the dark together. Our first stop is the little postbox at the bottom of the mountain. This is where the children will place their wish lists for Christmas sending their hopes up towards Santa's mine high above. The whole town is invited for this event and generally you know it's mostly kind of for the kids and I know that a lot of the students go. I go every year. I've been on my own. I've been with my friends. Christopher's been with me. This for me is just all about kind of celebrating polar night and they will also turn off the street lights. So we're all going to walk in darkness to the postbox. The lights are on. Look he is home. Look at the darkness. Christopher and Grim are somewhere in the back because Grim is working on his crowd control. Just being a little bit calmer but he's doing okay. So it's all about just training basically. Okay so the first stop is going to be up pretty soon and it's just below the mine which is Santa Claus's mine which is located quite high up in the mountain. So at the bottom there's a postbox for the kids. So there's going to be a lot of wish lists. Usually it's full filled to the brim. Look at that he's home. This is so cute. I love it. I think they're starting to sing now as well. Okay let's go and see. We should also be able to find Christopher and Grim now if we look for them I think. Oh my gosh there's so much snow here. The mine is up there. I know that bark. So the kids when they have left their lists for Santa Claus back here everybody starts walking down to town. Look so now we're on our way to the main square for the lighting of the Christmas tree. I'm very excited to see this year's Christmas tree. We've had some varied results during the years. One year we had a Christmas tree that they named the Christmas twig because it was that bad. They had to replace it. Look at Santa Claus. He is back. Christmas can begin. Time to go and get some mulled wine, a gingerbread cookie, all the things. We are having such good weather as well. No wind. The stars are coming out as well. This is magical. During polar night it's easy to feel how small and quiet the world up here can be. The darkness is deep. The days are long and everyone is tucked away in their own little bubbles. And that's exactly why days like these matter so much. It isn't just about Santa Claus or torches or even the children's wish lists. It's about the village, about stepping outside in the dark, meeting your neighbors and walking side by side through the darkness. It's an event made for children, yes, but it's also for everyone who lives here. For new faces looking to feel at home, for old friends catching up, for people who just want to feel connected to the community, especially in the darkest season of the year. You don't have to say much. Sometimes it's just a smile, a shared laugh or walking quietly together under the stars. And somehow that's enough to make the whole town feel warmer. In a place where the sun disappears for months, this is how we remind each other that we're not alone. We're a community. And today we celebrate that together. As soon as I put out my torch, you really get the feeling of how dark it is. The camera makes everything look so light. Wait, let me show you how dark it is. This is what I see. Can you see Santa Claus's mine up there? But I'm going to turn it back to a little bit lighter so you can actually see. That is just as magical. Are you having a great time? Oh, yes. Is it stressful to have Grimm? As long as we go walking alone here, then it's easy. It's good training for him though, isn't it? He's not so used to crowds, you know. He chills with Christopher or at home, but he's getting better. But he does need quite a lot of training to remember what the rules are of being in a crowd. So we will see down on the main street. We've now almost made it to the main street. We are towards the end because it was calmer for Grimm. But now everybody's turning up onto the main street to walk down to the Christmas tree. And there will be caroling and lots of cozy things. I can't say it again. We have the best weather today for this. One year, me and Lynn, I think it was, walked in minus 20 and like 20 meters per second. There wasn't that many people that came that year, just a little bit less. But still magical. But this is a lot easier. We have now made it to the main street. And you'll see so many people using what's called a spadek, which means a kick. It kind of translates to. And it's definitely one of the best modes of transportation during winter. It's kind of like a, what do you call it? Like a chair with very long metal skis. So you can kick your way around and glide on the snow. And you see even the kids have their kid ones and they're so cute. So that's, you'll see them all the time and everywhere. Okay, it's time for the reveal. I haven't seen the tree yet. As I do this time of the year, do you remember when we were. That was the torch walk this year. Grim and I are now going to walk all the way back up to pick up the car. But what a wonderful event. I met so many of you guys as well, which I love. I just love that people are coming here and or they're just here at the same time. And take part in these wonderful events. The cutest kids stopped me. We are walking on our way. What I think is so lovely is that every year there's a speech. Just before they turn on the Christmas tree. Where they talk about community and how important that is in a place like this. And how important it is during polar nights. And I think that's such a nice kind of sentiment to share. But even though we are so many who love this time of year. There can be people struggling. So they always say like look to the person to your right and to your left. And say hi, you know, notice them. And kind of like notice your friends and the people around you. And make sure that everybody is doing good. And I always think that's such a nice thing to share and talk about on an event like this. Because it truly is about community, you know. Coming together and feeling like you're a part of this town. And you know, it's one of the reasons I love Longyearbyen and events like this. There's northern lights. That's incredible. That is just the icing on the cake on this absolutely magical Christmas start. And first of advent here in Longyearbyen. The world's northernmost town. And also the darkest place in the world. And just days like this really just makes it feel like you live in a fairy tale. Bye from us. Bye from me and Grim. And Santa Claus and the northern lights. See you in the next video. Love you guys. Bye!