North Pole, Alaska, prides itself on being the ersatz home of the jolly old elf in the red suit. The small town 14 miles southeast of Fairbanks and 140 miles south of the Arctic Circle has created an entire tourist industry around being Santa's home. Streets have names referring to Santa or Christmas. There is a fake North Pole marker about which reindeer prance, and you can take your kids picture as she pets a moose. There are innumerable shops in which to buy Christmas ornaments. You can buy a limited-edition, stuffed North Pole bear or a deed to one square inch of land in the town, with official documentation. But North Pole's most important function is processing the thousands of letters U.S. Children mail to Santa, often with just the address "Santa Claus, North Pole." The U.S. Postal Service delivers all letter addressed to Santa to the town. More than a million Santa-reply letters have been sent from The Santa House in North Pole since the program began in 1952. Hundreds of volunteers spend weeks in December opening and answering each child's request, sometimes filling the most poignant ones. So, yes, in a way you can say that Santa does live in North Pole -- if he epitomizes the holiday spirit and selfless gift-giving.
