More Facts About Finland!

More facts for y’all, gathered in my own experience of the country, to combine my love of Finland and my love of making lists =)

#1: Finns are really chatty.

I know that this is contrary to everything you read about the Finnish people, but it’s true! Sure, they can be shy at first, but once you make friends and sit them down with a coffee or lunch they’re a super chatty bunch! Of course, as with any nationality, this differs for each individual, but many of my Finnish friends love to talk and we can spend hours together without running out of conversation topics.

#2: It’s a super-eco-friendly country.

It might seem obvious, being surrounded by nature and all, but Finland offers so many opportunities to recycle, use eco-friendly products and generally be good to the world. Even near the student housing there are recycling facilities, on lunch the excess food on your plate gets puts in a separate compost bin and the network of cycle lanes provides incentive for people to cycle all year round, reducing the need to drive.

#3: They do funky things with chocolate flavours.

Seriously, there are many mind-boggling flavours of chocolate and bizarro combinations of sweets, including chocolate mixed with licorice, licorice mixed with mint and lemon-flavoured chocolate. Buying sweets here is a surprise; you never know what you’ll end up with!

#4: Finns are incredibly helpful.

I remember being lost in my first week of classes and asking for directions – the girl didn’t know the room but she produced a map and walked me to the classroom! I’ve had the same experience many times when asking for directions; they won’t just point you but they will take you to make sure you arrive at your destination. This also applies to lending – my Finnish friends are the first ones to let me borrow something/cook for me/help me find a service in town. Make sure you return the favour when you can and show your gratitude! (Of course they won’t hold it against you if you don’t, but it sure is nice to let your friends know that you appreciate them =) )

#5: There’s a dessert for every holiday.

Runebergintorttu (Runeberg’s Tarts), Laskiaispulla (a bun with cream) and Joulutorttu (Christmas Tart) are just a few desserts to mark the festivities. At the risk of sounding food obsessed you should keep an eye out for these – it’s a fun way to experience regular Finnish life, by taking part in the food customs, and you never know what kind of foods you might fall in love with!

Stay tuned for more!

(I might try to create ‘themed’ lists of facts – got any suggestions?)

 

Spring is Coming!

I spent the afternoon on the Hietasaari island just walking and enjoying the sunshine! The temperature has been much higher lately and, although it’s dropped again this weekend, you can finally start to feel the warmth from the sun when you’re outside. The roads and pavements are a little dangerous where the snow is melting and they’ve turned to sheets of ice, but a pair of ice spike covers on your shoes will do the trick!

On another note I’m quit behind on all of your blogs – my apologies but I’ve got a scratched cornea and too much computer time is really painful for my eye. It’s slowly healing and hopefully I can get up to date next week.

Here are the pictures from my walk.

Watch Out, Icicles!

Did you know that a falling icicle can kill a person? Me neither, until I moved to Finland. This is the country where there’s a whole new world of things to be considered, every day tasks that had never before crossed your mind. Evading icicles has become one of them.

Take a look at these badboys hanging from the roof of the kauppahalli:

 

Now imagine getting hit in the head by one of those things – not so pretty any more are they?

Okay, they’re still a bit pretty in the sunshine, but also a lot more menacing. Like the jaws of an animal waiting to bite. All around Oulu paths are blocked off and warning signs placed alongside buildings to warn people of the danger. Just last year an old lady died in Oulu after being struck by one.

As with most random things, if you Google it there’ll be a website. If you’re a bit morbid/bored here’s a list of ’10 Chilling Tales of People Killed by Icicles Around the World‘. I’m not even kidding, go see for yourself.

There is one positive side to icicles: they signal that spring is on its way. Finally. Okay, so it’s still going to be a long wait until the snow melts, but the temperature is climbing, the days are getting longer and there are birds in the trees. I’d never really realised the absence of birdsong until it came back, and it lifts my spirits to hear them singing in the morning.

At the moment, when there’s a some sunshine, I just can’t help myself and I have to go for a walk. I’m like a labrador scratching at the door with my lead in my mouth. Even if it’s cold I’ll find a long way to walk home, just to soak up the weak sun. Today I took the bus to town and walked from Linnansaari to Pikisaari and through the market square. Lots of other people had the same idea and I was surrounded by joggers, cyclists and nordic walkers, all out to make the most of the weather. 

 

Oulu is so beautiful when the sun is out! My top tip for this season is: buy sunglasses. The snow gets awfully bright in the sunshine and can cause snowblindness if you stare at it too long. Don’t be worried about looking silly, everyone wears shades, even if they’re bundled up in a hundred layers!

I hope everyone else has some lovely weather this weekend! Are there any signs of spring yet where you are?

Related articles

• My Favourite Things To Do In Oulu (finlandandback.wordpress.com)
• Natural Oulu vs Industrial Oulu (finlandandback.wordpress.com)
• icicle hunting (modflowers.wordpress.com)
• The Silent, Magical Woods of Oulu (finlandandback.wordpress.com)

 

A Lake at Sunrise

It’s been a slow weekend of Radio 4, reading and occasional bike rides. Saturday morning’s trip out yielded this beauty – the sun rise over the lake. Sadly it was the most sun to hit the sky and the rest of the day was cloud-covered and cold. Temperatures have hit another low and it’s chilly, not quite minus twenty though, thankfully. I shall try to be more productive next weekend, but I felt like relaxing and lounging round the house. Any suggestions for next weekend’s itinerary?

 

What did everyone else do this weekend?

The Silent, Magical Woods of Oulu

I took a video of a short walk through the woods in Oulu – short because it was freezing and I had, stupidly, forgotten to wrap up warm enough. Tip: never leave the house without your gloves!

The video isn’t terribly exciting but it shows the beauty of the nature in Oulu and gives a little glimpse into the magic that you can encounter only minutes from the university.

Enjoy!

 

The Finnish Word for Lake is ‘Järvi’

Finland is known as ‘the land of the thousand lakes’ because of the vast number of lakes that make up 10% of the country. There are around 180,000 lakes of varying size and they provide Finns with sport, food and a more moderate climate than the other northern countries. Water sports, fishing and swimming in the summer are replaced by ice-hole fishing and skiing in the winter.

There are two lakes within walking distance of Oulu University and both are great places to watch for Northern Lights. The above lake is named Kuivasjarvi and if the weather’s right take advantage of it and go for a walk or bike ride.

 

Most lakes in Finland freeze over in the winter and it’s normal for them to be turned into skiing paths or ice roads. Make sure you’re careful before you venture out, wait and see if a local goes out before trying it yourself! It’s incredibly dangerous to walk on a lake if it’s not fully frozen and you shouldn’t do it if you’re not sure.

This article on the Lonely Planet website gives some tips and routes to make the most of the Finnish lakes, something which I’d like to try myself before I go. I’d highly recommend a walk on a frozen lake, brush away the snow to see the clear glassy surface beneath!

Check out my other post for more pictures from this morning’s trip out.

 

A Bird Drinks From A Frozen Lake

This morning’s bike ride, combined with the sun, blue skies and falling snow was a great way to start my day. It only lasted around an hour and I was lucky enough to catch this interesting combination of weather and some great photos.

snow falling on Kuivasjarvi

a bird drinks from a frozen lake

there’s nothing more beautiful than sunshine on snow

 

the snow looks like glitter in the sun

Hopefully the blue skies will appear more frequently!

Zooming Down a Mountain Like a Train With No Driver

I’d never even looked at a ski slope before I rocked up to Ruka on a bus full of thiry-odd other Erasmus students, geared up for a weekend of skiing and snowboarding. The cabins that greeted us were cosy and the views were incredible – snow and trees for miles, blanketed by a peaceful, unspoiled quiet. It was a Christmas fairy-land meets remote village meets sporting community. In two days I learnt to ski, snowboard and experience a real ESN Oulu outing and it was one of the most challenging weekends of my stay in Oulu.

Ruka

As one of the largest ski resorts in Finland, Ruka is located in Kuusamo, only an hour’s flight from Helsinki and easily accessible by road (albeit a long one). At the resort there are as many as 21 ski lifts, 2 ski shops, a bowling alley, 28 restaurants and bars and miles of the stunning Finnish countryside. This place has it all. As well as a variety of skiing and snowboarding routes there are also opportunities for cross-country skiing, husky safaris, ice karting and snow shoe walking. You’re really spoilt for choice here and it’s not restricted to the winter season – there’s plenty to do in the summer. You can read more about what Ruka has to offer here.

Learning to Ski

If you’ve never gone skiing before I would recommend that you let go of your fear, inhale the fresh air and go for it. And maybe get some lessons too. That’s what I did on our first morning; I joined three other students who had never skied before and met Pekka, my wise but friendly instructor. He took us away from all the professional adults and overconfident teenagers chasing each other down the mountain and led us to the slightly more relaxed children’s area. Comical penguins and elves lined the slopes, cheering us on.

It was fairly easy to get the hang of skiing – keep your feet straight, make the ‘plow’ shape when you want to stop, hold a good posture. I thought I had my technique down and was feeling cold but confident. I ran back for a peanut butter sandwich lunch, keen to get onto a real slope. A proper slope.

Now, had I been smart I might have opted for the ‘in-betweeny’, middle-sized slope for people just starting out, but instead I eagerly hopped into a ski lift and zoomed up the mountainside. The view, by the way, was incredible, but sadly I didn’t take my camera for fear of crushing it. I alighted at the top, gazed around in awe, and then felt my heart jump into my mouth. I had to go down. The only way down was to ski. Down. A hill. A really big hill. After some dithering and panicking I went for it and pushed away with my poles – it was great, I was flying!

The only problem was that I couldn’t find the brakes! All my lessons in stopping fell from my head as I panicked and tried to avoid swerving into innocent children and happy couples enjoying their day. There I was zooming down a mountain like a train with no driver! After an age I reached the bottom and a flat surface but my legs wouldn’t stop shaking!

On my second attempt I had a big fall and thought that it was the end of my skiing career – which was unlucky, because I was still midway down a slope, but luckily two friendly French guys helped me down and I passed the rest of the afternoon on the nice steady easy slopes with some friends.

Beaten, Bruised and Ready to Snowboard

The next day, sore and battered, I was ready to try my hand at snowboarding – another first. Although I fell many more times than the previous day I enjoyed it so much more and felt a lot more confident than with skis. This time, however, I stuck to the nice ‘in-betweeny’ slopes and didn’t have any major disasters. Only minor squabbles with the ski lift to take me up – instead of sitting in a car I had to hold onto a pole and let it drag me up whilst I was standing on my snowboard. I can’t tell you how many times I was knocked off my feet by it. But it was worth the perseverance and although I was stiff as a piece of metal by the end of the day, I was satisfied with my new skill.

Equipment and Accommodation

If you’re going to Ruka to ski or snowboard you can rent everything need (apart from clothes) from the ski shop – even goggles. The guys in there were great – super friendly and helpful, especially when I told them that I was a beginner. They even helped me get the shoes on and taught me how to fasten them. Look out for discounts when you go – everything we did was half price on this particular weekend, making it a lot cheaper than it should have been. You can also change your equipment once for free – so if you don’t like skiing you can give snowboarding a go instead.

There are plenty of cabins in the surrounding area and ours was only a five minute walk from two restaurants and the ski lift. They’re cosy and great for a group of friends, with a nice big living area, dining table and kitchen. This is compensated for by quite small bedrooms, but they’re manageable for a weekend trip. And as a word of warning most of them have a ‘walk-in’ bathroom – there’s a shower curtain, but no door, so make sure you trust the people who you’re staying with!

While the ESN students partied at night and nursed hangovers in the morning I had an exciting but relaxing weekend. With no internet, no assignments to worry about and beautiful surroundings I spent my days in good company and my nights chilling out with a good book (Ken Kesey’s ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’, which I would highly recommend).  The ESN leaders had arranged some activities and games but I was too tired to join in and the most social activity I managed was a game of Jenga. Even so, I met some new people and had a blast. I would happily return to Ruka with some friends in tow and do it all over again – and who knows, one day I might even manage an intermediate slope!

For more info on Ruka and Kuusamo check out the website: http://www.ruka.fi/

‘5 Things to do in Helsinki’

I like to talk about Finland, a lot. An awful lot. Recently I received an email from the international office at my home university asking if I would be a tour guide for a visiting colleague in May. Would I ever? I jumped at the chance, sending him a long email with all my recommended foods to try and how great Finland is and how much he’d love it. Actually, I may have overdone it, and as I’ve not heard back I assume that I’ve frightened him a little with my enthusiasm.

In a slightly more controlled manner I’ve written an article which gapyear.com have very kindly published, entitled ‘5 Things to do in Helsinki’. Even after only a handful of days spent there it was incredibly hard to pick only five, but I managed it and I’m really pleased with the finished result. Hopefully it will inspire a lot more people to visit and see the beauty that is Helsinki for themselves.

You can check it out here, let me know what you think and if you like it then please feel free to share it!

In other news, I’ve created a shiny new email account for all your questions and comments. Email me at finlandandback@hotmail.co.uk!

Hope you’re all having a great day!

‘Excuse me, where is the toilet?’ – 5 Most Used Finnish Phrases

Finnish is a great language –  I love listening to it, I love speaking it, I love writing it. It might seem hard (and it can be at times), but it’s no harder than learning any other language. Stick with it, don’t be afraid to practice and keep listening and pretty soon you’ll have a few basic phrases down.

Here are my five most used phrases:

1. ‘Kuinka minä sanon _insert English word_ suomeksi?’ – How do I say _insert English word_ in Finnish?

I love to learn new words and ways of saying things. As well as learning the language one has to learn how to use it – you can’t just translate word for word. If you’re not sure, ask! Finns will be glad to help.

2. ‘Anteeksi, voitko toista hitaasti? ‘ – ‘I’m sorry, can you repeat that slowly?’

I’m still not very good at understanding spoken Finnish, not unless it’s spoken at a very slow pace!

3. ‘Haluaisin yksi kahvia/longkerro, kittos’ – ‘I’d like one coffee/long drink please’

Coffee for day time, long drink for night. Long drinks are fizzy, sweet drinks with gin in them. The moost common flavour is grape, but my favourite is pineapple, yum!

4. ‘Anteeski, missä on vessa?’ – ‘Excuse me, where is the toilet?’

One of the most valuable phrases to know! ‘Missä on’ can be used to ask where anything is, so it’s a nice all-round phrase to have.

5. ‘Hauska nähdä! Nähdään pian!’ – ‘It was nice to see you! See you soon!’

I say this virtually every time I part company with one of my Finnish friends.

 

So there you have it, my most used Finnish phrases – what do you think? Have you ever tried speaking Finnish?

To end I’d like to post the picture that I submitted to ‘toemailer’ which they have kindly published – it’s a really interesting blog so stop by and check it out! Hauska nähdä!