|
If you want to sit on Santa's knee this year, you may also have to sit on the town council! At least that's the case in North Pole Alaska, in the United States. The town is always festive, but at this time of year, it's inundated with thousands of letters from children.
Festive trees glow amid the snow here in 'North Pole'. Of course this isn't the real North Pole... it's a small town of 2,200 residents in the US state of Alaska. Even the street lights are shaped like candy canes - like those that hang from Christmas trees around the world.
The signs in the town boast names like Santa Claus Lane and Snowman Lane. Because of its reputation, each year in December thousands of letters pour in from children, hoping Santa Claus will grant them a Christmas wish. But for North Pole's post office, it's a year-round venture.
Lisa Wineland is the manager, and in order to help Santa she spends a lot of her time sifting through the mail.
It's a Herculean task to process all of that mail, and during the holiday period the post office often needs to call on colleagues in nearby Anchorage to deal with the deluge.
Tourists often head for Santa Claus House, a gift shop that stocks all-things-Christmas. People can buy their North Pole souvenirs here, grab a sweet snack, pet a reindeer and - of course - sit on the knee of the main man himself.
And one North-Pole city official even boasts the name Santa Claus. Last year, he was elected to the city council on a write-in vote. But don't confuse this Santa with the one that sits inside Santa Claus House asking children what they want for Christmas.
For now the scene is set for this year's holiday season - with freshly fallen snow along Santa Claus Lane.
中国公共新闻网摘编：GAN JADE |
