A young woman in Finland used to work as a cook and waitress in a restaurant, but an accidental injury at work caused a tear in her muscle fibers, making her unable to stand on a hard floor for long periods of time, so she had to consider changing jobs. Today, she enjoys the outdoors as a reindeer herder and runs a successful tour company.
Instead of serving plates and preparing food, 26-year-old Janeta Kenterra is part of her own tour company and spends time on reindeer sleighs in the snowy forests of the town of Levi in northern Finnish Lapland.
It was a natural step for Kenterra, who quit her job about five years ago, as she grew up in a family that herded reindeer.
She told the media: "Traditionally, reindeer herder families would take their children with them when they were very young. So, you deal with animals from a very young age. ”
Kenterra always wanted to own a farm, and in her childhood, her family raised various animals such as horses, sheep and cattle. But when she stepped into school, she realized it wasn't the best way to make money.
So I tried to learn other things to earn an income. Kenterra said.
She graduated in tourism and tried her hand at cooking, but it wasn't really what she wanted to do. That prompted me to start looking for reindeer, Kenterra says, "One day I went to visit a farm and saw hundreds of reindeer running around the pasture, and that's what I wanted to do." ”
Kenterra started a tour company called Eanan Tours in the town of Levi in 2019 and she soon started putting all her energy into the business and her reindeer. But she also faced many challenges at once.
Since she couldn't spend much time outside of work, her friendships began to fade, and many friends and even some relatives thought that she was doing something very stupid at a young age and thought it was a wrong choice, so they all took the initiative to distance themselves from her.
In the first year, she borrowed a loan of 80,000 euros to buy all the equipment. However, two months later, the pandemic hit and she had to close her business because there were no tourists.
Initially, banks only demanded interest payments, but after 2021 they began to demand full repayment, although few people still travel to Lapland. During this challenging time, her father and partner Victor from Spain were extremely supportive. Their persistence and dedication have finally paid off, because "the current tourism season, business is booming." ”
Their company's peak tourist season runs from November to March, welcoming guests from all over the world.
Much of Kenterra's work involves taming reindeer and interacting with people. Through careful observation, she learned more about these cute creatures and shared some of their unique characteristics.
"I often say that reindeer are a bit like house cats; Some will be happy if you stroke them. But they are not all the same personalities, and some reindeer are really curious and like to interact with people. But some choose to leave the crowd and prefer to be alone. ”
A typical day in Kenterra begins at 7 or 8 a.m., and she brings food and nooses to the reindeer rest camp and calls them up. According to a video posted on Facebook, her work includes making hay for reindeer and collecting berries.
For pleasure only, Kenterra shot thrilling videos of riding deep in the forest on a sleigh and uploaded them to her social media account.
Reindeer are an integral part of Finnish life, providing not only transport, clothing and blankets for the cold, but also an important source of food.
While Kenterra loves to make traditional food and has eaten reindeer meat herself since she was a child, she now only bakes for her guests. Being so close to them, Kenterra simply couldn't bear to eat the reindeer she had trained.
Kenterra said reindeer are strong animals and working with them requires a high level of mutual respect.
"I think when they grow very large antlers, they get along with me very carefully," she says. This is because I respect them and they treat me the same. ”