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Summer in Finland in 4 pictures

2014.08.13. 17:46 Vitzus

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Szólj hozzá!

2014. 7. 5.

2014.07.05. 20:41 Vitzus

Today was a very nice day, rather different from the others, and not just because I had a day off. The mum, the boys and me left the house at 9.30 in the morning and it was already around 17*C warm! The days before around this time it was only around 12*C so I had high hopes. We were heading to the village of Joutsa, to the local village festival, the Joutsan Joutopäivät. The reason for the hurry was the Loiskis children band (not by children, but to children), who started their set at 10 a.m. And what a set! Honestly, I enjoyed it! The band was very multiculti, playing on bagpipes, accordion, bouzuki, guitar, bass guitar, contrabass and whatnot, bringing songs from the US introducing bluegrass, singing songs about travels around the world... Mentioning England and playing the Big Bens tones, France and playing the hymn, Russia, playing some catchy folk dance tune, by which I realised how very Russian the folk rock band Kalevala sounds! Because well, Loiskis's Russian tune was so Kalevalaish, haha. :D I was sad that Hungary wasn't mentioned in any of their songs about countries but then ... a huge surprise followed! They played a complete 'cover' of a Hungarian folk song, Repülj madár, sung both translated to Finnish and also in Hungarian!! Unfortunately my phone's memory was full so could only record 3 worthless seconds of the song T_T After the concert I went to praise them a bit to find out the singer likes the Hungarian band Muzsikás, and has recently visited Hungary and guess what... The second I told him I am a Hungarian he came to hug me!!! :O A Finn! :O

 

After this we went to the amusement park part, and I also got to sit on one of the caroussels, there was one also to be enjoyed by bigger kids and adults, fast and spinning, I loved it! Should already finally visit Linnanmäki, damn! :D

Then we went to the farm exhibition part, where some farmers were advertising something and one could look at tractors and ride children tractors and pet cows... Of course our boys were super enthusiastic about all the tractors, as if they didn't have the same stuff at home, haha :D

I rather took some pics of the animals, and the Sampo tractor, powered by Sisu :DDD The last pic is a Suomenlammas, omgomg. *.*

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After that we left to the grandma who is a really sweet cupcake and nice to talk to and she likes me and I like her and then we came home. The day was unbelievably warm, around 22*C, and it actually kind of felt warmer than that and I had a free day, the boys stayed at the grandma so I decided to go out and sunbathe and so I did for 3 hours. Before the electical fence around the field struck me, then the river almost took me away and me with my tired arms had trouble getting back to the shore, but then it was all ok. I don't think I got sunburnt there, I hope I did get tanned, but for sure I got burnt red still in Joutsa, while watching the children and the stuff, you can tell the lines of the shirt I had, lol. FINALLY, man. Not that I missed getting burned, but all that 12-16*C with constant rainclouds above your head were really getting on my nerves. I really enjoyed my time at the riverside, err, naked, listening to music and taking in the warmth of the sun.  And the peace. Awh.

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Szólj hozzá!

Címkék: finnország finland au pair suomi au-pair

2014. 7. 3.

2014.07.03. 22:47 Vitzus

Still no own computer but I am having some quiet time, hopefully it won´t end before I have this finished.

Today it is summer and a rather relaxed day, in the morning I had to vacuum and then look after the kids, also got my first pocket money, happyhappy!

Really, today it is warm and the sun shines a lot in comparison to the previous days. Note: warm means 18-21*C. So of course, we were eating some ice cream, for it is summer!

It also affects my mood a lot.

I start to feel that some stuff is already going much easier with the kids. I don't know whether they are just having better days or getting used to me, trusting me and liking me more, but nowadays (*knocks wood*) it goes rather fast to change their clothes, to dress their playing clothes and the small one who needs dressing is rather cooperative and uuuuusually dressing happens pretty fast. Sometimes it was a horror when the bigger one wants to go out already, is shouting, the small one also finally decides, okay, let's go, and then it doesn't take half a minute and he is crying that he doesn't want to go out. And then dressing him up finally, especially when he doesn't cooperate. But this seems to change and luckily also I am now much better at dressing them, I am making new records in putting socks on his feet, I am learning :D 

I wouldn't really say they have days and days but rather hours and hours when their mood can completely change. Which is good because you can know that if you are almost going deaf from the hysteric shouting, it soon will be over and everyhing becomes O.K. again, you just have to survive that. But it is hard not to get influenced by it.

Also, these days the mealtimes, mostly the dinner, which happens without the parents seems to go much easier, but maybe it's just the kids' mood, or maybe it really is our relationship getting different or they just are now less brave with me, because they know they can't fuck around with me, hihihi :) Sometimes there were big shoutings at eating, and throwing the chairs around and playing with food but that also seems to flow much more smooth now.

I had some thoughts in my mind but this is it for today.

Szólj hozzá!

2014. 7. 2.

2014.07.02. 22:45 Vitzus

My laptop is broken so won't write anything big here, just posting some pictures, today I spent an hour in the forest. Sometimes work is tiringt, and a lot, and gotta get up early and adapt to children who think you are their slave, but if from 12h work I get that one hour free walking in the forest I really feel it is worth it and could cry from happiness.. Listening to some Finnish metal alongside, perfection. Here some pics, the first being a bit biology :D fak egybe.jpg

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Szólj hozzá!

2014. 6. 27.

2014.06.27. 22:45 Vitzus

I am getting some requests what to write about, like for example I should write about food, which I will do when I have more material. Keep sending such topic requests, they help me, they inspire me, and it's nice to feel like 'serving' my audience a bit and you can find out what you want.

The family

Now I am going to write a bit about the family I live with and absolutely love. The parents are both in their forties, and before somebody thinks that farmers aren't part of the intelligentsia I can tell you these guys are. The same intelligence can be seen on the kids, even tho they are kids, but you can still tell. The parents are extremely hard working, they work around 15 hours a day, it is insane. There is a lot to do at the huge dairy farm and with all the fields. I also really love their sense of humour, I find funny especially the father - as he doesn't really talk much, usually when he opens his mouth it's something funny, so the ratio is pretty good. The mother is very nice, and kind to me, very respectful and tries to keep me not too busy, giving me enough free time also during the day, and I haven't heard a bad word from her to me. So it is not like 'hey we give you money so do your job 100000% perfectly'. But of course I am trying to do my job very well. She also made some great jokes which usually crack me up.

Juhannus

One thing that made me laugh happened at the family Juhannus. Juhannus is the Finnish version of the Midsummer night, when the longest day of the day and the summer is being celebrated with huge bonfires, staying up late, and well, drinking. Some pictures are following. We missed the beginning of the bonfire so when we arrived it was only a smaller version left, then the kids had ice cream (who the fuck cares it was around 10*C rainy-windy, lol), and the father and I a beer, let's have some alcohol at Juhannus, dammit, haha. Then as we were walking around the territory, the harbour of Päijänne, and the parking lot, one of the kids fell down while walking and the mother commented: Yes, it is rather usual that Finnish men end up fallen on the ground at the time of Juhannus. :D:D And well, it is usually true. The biggest celebration happens on Juhannusaatto, juhannus-eve, so the 20th of June. That means that one is supposed to be drunk already on the 19th until the night as well. And that everybody, just evvvverbody is leaving the cities to their summer cottage, mökki, to the nature and enjoying peace and booze there. 

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On this one you can see my host mother, the smaller and the bigger child, from right to left :D 

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I myself made a slavic-style Kupala wreath, as girls do on midsummer eve and had a walk in the nature. Didn't stay up late, it was very cloudy so the Sun couldn't be followed anyway. So I just went to bed with flowers put under my pillow. :) 

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The exterior of the house also looked rather Juhannus-like. There were juhannuskoivut in front of the house, which means some rather big branches of birch tree, and the flag was raised to the pole and stayed there. I already talked about the liputuspäivät, the flag raising days, when you usually have to take it down at sunset, but as at Juhannus the sun is not really supposed to set, it can stay there waving all 'night'. 

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I feel a bit sorry that the weather was bad and I couldn't stay up out in the nature and just watch the almost-everlasting-daylight and also a bit sorry that I couldn't spend it at a mökki far from everything and everybody. Even tho this place is not so different from that. 

 

Geography

Now, that I myself am a bit more familiar with where I am, I can also tell it to you guys a bit better.

Since 1997, there is a new distribution of counties in Finland, courtesy of Wikipedia:


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Etelä-Suomen lääni
(Södra Finlands län)
1997-2009

Länsi-Suomen läänin vaakuna.svg
Länsi-Suomen lääni
(Västra Finlands län)
1997-2009

Itä-Suomen läänin vaakuna.svg
Itä-Suomen lääni
(Östra Finlands län)
1997-2009
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Oulun lääni
(Uleåborgs län)
1775-2009

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Lapin lääni
(Lapplands län)
1938-2009

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Ahvenanmaan lääni
(Ålands län)
1918-2009

 

 

From this, I am Etelä-Suomen lääni, which is further divided to smaller regions. 

 

Do click the gallery. 

Szólj hozzá!

2014. 6. 13.

2014.06.13. 22:43 Vitzus

Today it was a nice day again. In the morning I was very exhausted and forgot to do the half of the morning routine but it all got sorted out in the end. By the way routines, cleaning poo from the potty and cleaning ass is becoming a normal part of it. Keep strong, Vica! 

So today morning (not actual morning, just in the English sense, around 11 a.m.) we left to the little town of Heinola, maybe 25 km away. I did not have to go with them, but I did choose to stay with the family, make programs together than just sitting alone in my room and surfing the web, and in addition I got to be a little in a city area. But I mostly went to spend time with the family, finally being able to send my postcards was just a plus. The grandma lives there so one of the points was visiting her but first we went to the ABC which is the name of the gas station that's surrounded by shops and malls and that kinda stuff, including a nice inside children's playground, and the boys were supper enthusiastic about going there. It is not too big, has 2 ways of going up, then one up passage and a slide, but it's nice. I also like these things so not having to go there alone but having children as an excuse was very nice! 

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Then we also had lunch there, for 10 eur you can get the menu which means main course+salad+drink, and you pretty much take as much you want. I had some fish stuff. :D The Finnish way of queuing up was so weird for me... I have been to a couple of places but never saw people standing in a Q being so far from each other. Also, every kid is blond here. And kotikalja, home made alcohol free beer is not too good. Tastes on, er, beeer. 

This is a Finnish queue:

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And this is my food, some fish stuff, with rice, salad, and the kotikalja.

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After this we went to the center of the city where the family first went to buy shoes and they 'let me go'. I was asked if I want to go along to the grandma but I thought it would be easier and maybe better for both if I just spend those two hours alone in Heinola. And so it was. 2 hours might seem long, but it really just was the perfect time for everything.

After visiting the square with clothing, fruits, and vegetable stalls, talking with a seller (yeah, he started talking to me!), I went into the post office to send my postcards but first I searched whether there maybe are even some from Heinola but there weren't. Then I looked around browsing for stuff, found metal stuff again. This is pretty normal in a post office. 

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Then I was browsing for too long and the lady actually came to help me if I need anything. I thanked her and said no. Ok, so 'the antisocial' Finns do this too. Then I went to send the postcards and she let me choose the stamp, saying 'stamp' in English, realising I'm not a Finnish. (Okay, let's be honest here, most of the people are anyway sure 80-90% on the first sight of my blac hair that I am not Finnish, haha :D). Then I continued in Finnish and she was all smiley. Sent my postcard, she right away without asking put them as priority. 1 eur each. What the fuck. Bought an extra stamp with a Finnish flag to have it as a sticker on my laptop :)

Then I went to a supermarket and stared at Finnish products, and imported English magazines, there are lots of them! I didn't actually buy anything there, haha. Then I went on to the book shop, looked at alllll the moomin stuff and overpriced notebooks, omg, I'm so glad I have one and pen-stuff, haha. xD Then I searched for Harry Potter books, paperback Chamber of Secrets was 10 eur which is totally affordable but then I think I have found one second hand for 3 eur, so yeah. Should read in Finnish. Cartoons I already watch. And understand! 

Then I went into a confectionary, found a cheap and well looking cookie and bought it for not even 2 euros! (Boh, this is driving me crazy, spent ~500 huf on a fkn cookie. Anyway, I don't complain, I do work for this money and I guess sometimes it's ok to get myself a little treat.) 

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Then (I know this post is full of the word then, whatever) went ahead for a walk, found a playground, went into a nice swing and ...swang? with listening to Finnish metal. It felt awesome that now, here, the actual chance that a musician who MADE that music will hear it from my phone rose from 0,0000000001% to 0,000000001%! 

After a song (Ensiferum's Ahti I think it was and then came Moonsorrow's Aurinko ja Kuu) I continued my walk to the local park next to the bay of the river, which then leads to Päijänne and has a lots of places for placing ships, went artsy:

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After this (no 'then'! :D) I even saw a gift shop, asked if they have a pen with 'Finland' written on it, but nope. It was almost about 3 when we were supposed to meet and go back so I went to the square and then in some minutes we headed back home. Or just almost. Stopped at the fish market at Pohjola and bought smoked salmon for dinner. I had a caffee and cookies with awesome strawberry jam for snack. Nowadays I need coffee. No, I would actually need sleep. And here I am, writnig at 0.29 a.m. Oy-yoy.

Some time later I managed to get both children outside and we played with haystacks and other dangerous stuff, I will have to start getting used to this and just taking care of them without being over-worried about certain stuff. Of course I hurt myself again. If you are with children, you will look like children. Like, muddy, green, blue, red and so. :D 

Anyway, it was nice, and I was a bad/good bigsister, I told all their 'bad' deeds to the mother. The day passed by quite peacefully, fortunately the weather was nice so we could play outside. We had the salmon and some mashed potatoes (which I didn't fuck up this time, last time it was too fucking watery xD, this time the bigger actually praised me for it!:)))) ), I really liked it.

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We played and then I got some time for my clothes which I washed while making the dinner and now hung them outside on the drier.. It felt nice to get all those things clean, to have some time for myself, I actually kinda like to do housework. I guess that is an advantage if you are an au-pair! :D 

I communicated with Remu today, I really love that doggy dog, big, black, dog of like 5 races mixed together, so also super clever. ♥ And I think he likes me. (Omg, or she? :D XD) The cat was also very cute, suddenly I heard a meow outside my room, found out the cat came actually to the door of my room, so I am sure to hear her, and then I went out and she led me to the door so I let her out. I love how these animals communicate so nicely♥

Szólj hozzá!

2014. 6. 11.

2014.06.11. 22:43 Vitzus

Au pair's day, how I see it in these days.

Until yesterday morning I was not alone, the ex au pair helped a lot, yesterday was the first half day and today the first complete day that I am alone. I have to tell I am extremely thankful for helping me both with practical stuff and also mentally! 

So the day more or less looks like this...

Well, every day is rather similar, and also different in many things. The structure of the days is pretty similar, the family for very nice, for the meals they always get together and eat together so that gives an order to the day.

I get up between 7.30 and 8.00 at some point, the boys come down to the living room to watch children programmes in the TV, all alone so I don't have to wake them. While they are watching the TV, I prepare breakfast stuff (bread, butter, yoghurt, juice) on the table, take the potty, nappy and their day-clothes from the first floor to downstairs. After the programs end I call them to eat, and hope they eat normally and nicely and don't start making any chaos. Then I hope to get them to brush teeth, then get on some outside clothes if they want to go outside. Then we go outside, or play inside and lunch is at 12.30. Sometimes I need to help with preparing it, then we have luch, and I put the dishes into the dishwasher. Then sometimes I am with the boys or like now, I have some free time. Then at 4 there is snack with some fruits and such stuff, at 6 supper and around 8-9 there is dinner, among those I am with the boys, take care of them and play with them. Sometimes stuff has to be prepared for supper, so I do that while they watch some childrens programme between 5 and 6. Sometimes it is exhausting because I may be the over-worrying type, and want to take too much care, and am afraid and worried of how they can hurt themselves and extra energies go away for that worrying... But what can I do.

Then some other times, when I don't have to be the boys, I load in/load out the washing machine, and put the clothes to dry. The stuff is easy, wash dishes a bit and put to dishwasher, it usually gets full before dinner, so I put it, around 10 I load it out and have my dinner. Usually some awesome Finnish bread with super nice cheese and some juice, and then I just have computer time, those are the happy nights!

I should find more time to go to the forest to walk, to take pictures, at some point I should wash my clothes, and clean the room but I guess in some days the stuff gets settled better already.

Sometimes the kids are very nice, especially the older one, he eats then brushes teeth and then dresses up without me saying a word. But when he doesn't want something, he just starts a huge hysteria with his 5 year old willing self. The three year old starts crying if anything is even a bit bad and he is not clean yet, sometimes does his stuff into the diaper, that's pretty nasty to clean but one can get used to everything I guess.

Inside we usually play with tractors, read books, draw with pencils and so stuff like that. Outside it's a lot of fun (for them, for me it's constant fear), there are tractors, hay, and all that farm stuff that can be played with, bicycles which can be ridden, grass that can be cut and sand where one can play with tractors. I am just happy I can be in the sun and get tanned... :P 

Soon I should ask for my first free days, hm. :D

Szólj hozzá!

2014. 6. 11.

2014.06.11. 22:42 Vitzus

Seems like I have some free time to write and it would be pretty much about time to do so, so here we go.

FYI, I opened a tumblr: thisisfinland.tumblr.com , there will be some funfacts and stuff like that about Finland. The blog continues as it was, in this diary likey style but I hope to get a nice Tumblr going, I am full of ideas.

 

I still have some pictures I haven't yet showed from these days. When I arrived to Helsinki, the next day, 4th of June there was a liputuspäivä. That more or less meas flag day, which kind of means national festivities, holidays, memory days, and the city is full of flags. Like, REALLY FULL. The liputuspäivä can occur because of some historical event, it can be the birthday of a famous finn and stuff like that, the 4th June is the Puolustusvoimain lippujuhlan päivä, the Defence Force's Day, A honvédség napja. For this reason not only the buildings were full of flags, but many veterans dressed up in their pretty clothes. On the second picture you can see the Senaatintori, the photo was taken in front of the famous all-white Tuomikirkko, there you can also see some flags. Can you find the Swedish one? :D Among the streets you see much more flags hanging from like every second building.

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I have already had my first bad day here, already on the 7th June. The parents went for some wedding so for the day it was only the other au-pair, me, and around later afternoon the grandma arrived too, but the kis weren't too nice. The weather was bad so it was impossible to go out which made the boys too hyperactive and too bored inside, which made them 'bed', and they did chaos, the bigger had like 5 hysterias, they started threwing off all the stuff from my bed and throwing my things around and then the smaller one bit me, but very much, the spots of his teeth remained and bled and the spot on my thigh hurt all evening. Now it is the 11th and it still looks very ugly, but doesn't hurt. I was already very tired and the kids had to be looked after, it was exhausting, and then even my computer didn't want to work, that was already the top of everything. Then I went to the forest to calm down a bit but was it was raining and cold and getting 'night', it was incredibly full of mosquitos who just kept following me, so it was very unnice. But I am past this. :)

 

As I said, I live right next to a tiny river, I found the wikipedia page about it: http://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tainionvirta

 

One of the days something totally cute happened.. during the night a new calf was born and he started walking, finding his way to the office of the stable and went to the computer - part of the new generation as you can see, and made some mess. But it's cute. Anyway, a picture of the newborn :) 201406091200.jpg

 

I haven't even showed the pictures I took from the bus while coming here, anteeeeksi! Yes, that IS a sign to warn about reindeer crossing. 

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After the bad day of course more good, well, what can I say, awesome moments came as well. It was the 9th of June when I had some time to go walking to the forest - because yeah, this is rural Finland, a minute or two minutes of walk and you ARE in the forest. What can I say, it was a wonder. It was beautiful, energising, and everything. I went there listening to music, enjoying the sun on the clearings, enjoying the awesome smell, looking around, sometimes crying a bit from happiness. I was out for 60-80 minutes maybe, and as I came back I felt incredibly happy, being in perfect harmony, calmness, inner peace, reaching the nirvana or something. I cannot put into words what a wonderful feeling and emotion I had, really. Wow. 

Some pictures of that... Please be patient, the blog will be full of these... Now I just went for walkign so I didn't take my mirror reflex camera, just the phone so that can be seen on the quality of the pictures. I will go photographing there as well. I am glad I took my DSLR as well to here, because there is a lot to shoot.

 

Szólj hozzá!

Arriving and beginning

2014.06.08. 22:40 Vitzus

I am so much behind with my blogposts! But I really would like to write detailedly at least about the beginning!

This is the direct continuation of my previous post, telling about 2014. 6. 5. 

So after some minutes of car ride we arrived to the farm, I immedietaly saw several buildings - there are truck storage, stable, some more farm buildings and the house. Then I met the children who were shy at first, met the father and the au pair who is still here for a couple of days. Because of that I have to sleep in another room temporarily but it is not a problem, even though it is pretty dangerous to my personal stuff. The kids are taught not to go to the aupairs room, but this is the workroom so of course they can come... I just should hide and pack everything and not get angry if they jump on and dirt my bed... It smelled a bit on farm but now on the 4th day I can't actually smell it anymore.

Anyway, they are really sweet and especially I am in love with the smile and the smiling eyes of the smaller one. letöltés (2).jpg

A bit after arrival we went out with the boys, they took their bicycles and showed me around a bit and we instantly started playing. I managed to make them laugh and after that they weren't shy at all anymore, we played all kind of staff, tag, running, throwing stones, children are creative and can play with practically anything. Then soon it was time to eat for the boys, I arrived around 19.30 and that is not so far anymore from their sleeping time so there was not much left of the day... 

Then I thought I may have trouble sleeping because as I told you, it never really gets dark here in the summer and there is maximum twilight but around 1 a.m. or so I fell asleep and slept quite well.

The second day was very long and very full. I managed to go to the stable I went and checked out the cows and calves, there is a lot of them, they are very big, and they are sweet, how much they stare at me.

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Then the same day it was saunaday and I was very happy. Er, it is true, Finns are much different about being naked, it was rather normal to get naked in front of people I have known for a day. There isn't a lake at the sauna but there is a river, the building - with a small kitchen like thing and the sauna is ~500 metres from the house, at the other side of the field. It was very nice, not too hot, rather calm, and I washed myself and my hair there, Finnish style. In this country there are plugholes/sinkers everywhere on the ground of bathroom and sauna so it's nice that you don't have to be suuuuper careful, it is so free.. like the life here. It really seems to be free. Stablework and fieldwork have to be always done, schedule is tight for that but there isn't hurry anywhere, there is no boss, the boys don't go to daycare (which is weird for me), they are generally very freely educated and I have to have patience to accept that. Hopefully I will become better at this, I am just afraid because the other au pair goes away in a few days. There are two boys, 3 and 5 years old and we are two aupairs for some days, so it can be divided, but I have no idea what I will do with them alone, if they want all different things and they both start crying / hysteria... 

 

So, this is the big Finnish reality. This is needed for peace. This stuff is all around and there you can see the road leading away from the farm. 

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So just you know what I talk about when mentioning the darkness... This was shout around 1 a.m. yesterday 201406071191.jpg

Szólj hozzá!

Suomifinlandperkele - the beginning

2014.06.07. 22:39 Vitzus

szerző: Vitzus

My journey started at 15.57 in Komárom when I got on the train to Budapest, then took a metro, another one, and a bus, all the way to the airport, with a 20 kg suitcase being there all the time. At the airport we had lots of time and we discovered a praying room. It's nice there, silence, and calm and of course a guestbook full of international entries, Vicastuff. :)

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Around 19:40 I said goodbye to mum and a relative who also came to us. 

After that I quickly went online from my laptop, posted the 'travelling to' status update to Facebook - because what isn't on Facebook, hasn't happened. Replied some friend messages and my laptop battery died... it is shitty beyond words. But anyway it was time to start moving to the boarding gate... I guess there I actually had to start realising what's happening with me... : 

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The boarding went easily... the bus took us to the plane... a bus filled with Finnish people. Suddenly I got scared as fuck, usually I love to hear Finnish speech around me but this was a very sudden, scary change, haha. And almost everybody was blond and ALL.THE.GIRLS.LOOK.THE.SAME. :D

I had to take a picture at the airport, of course:

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After boarding I quickly found my seat and found out I will be alone, there are 3 seats on each side and fortunately noone was sitting next to me, I was rather happy about that fact. :D I spent the journey by eating, drinking, listening to some music (it especially feels great right at the takeoff, my takeoff song was Insomnium's Weather the Storm), and talking to a Hungarian guy who I met at the airport and it turned out he also studies Finnish at the unviersity where I do and he also goes to Finland to work. Then we talked some with him, and we were already coming close to Helsinki. A part of the sky was still light orange-red-ish, it was just beautiful!

Around midnight the plane landed but there was some trouble so we were stuck in the plane. There was something with the ..bridge.. stairs.. what do I know... But after maybe 10 minutes we could go out and get into the terminal. I found my bag and went out and hoped there will be somebody waiting for me, and a friend who I met online some months ago, Petri, was luckily there and we left to his place. I could not believe my eyes, when around 1 a.m. I saw that in Helsinki it is not pitch black like it's at home already at 10-11 p.m., but the edge of the sky is pretty much light... And it was! Then by the time we arrived to his plac, maybe roughly an hour later, it was lighter... It was getting light before it could get dark..! O_O Mindfcuk. Yep, that's Helsinki after midnight.

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It was of course hard to sleep because of the new place and sunlight but I tried to gather some energy because the next day there was Helsinki and Suomenlinna sightseeing! The city is great (and expensive as hell, I am glad, relieved, thankful that I don't have to spend money in this country, because it's simply insane), I liked it very much, the weather was beautiful, sunshine, warm, I even got tanned a bit! 

Here is stuff from "Soomenlinna". Wild ducks are too mainstream, there are wild geese here instead, and a shitloaaad of lilac bushes, it smells godlike because of that. And yeah, that's me, with zero photogenity (is this a word in English or did I just mirror translate it to Finnish?) whatever. 

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After this we went back to the city, walked a bit, ate at a Nepalese restaurant, it was quite nice, and then went for a 'sight-seeing for lazies', in a tram, and stopped by the club Nosturi I know from band DVDs, haha. 

Then we walked some more and went to the bar On The Rocks because there was an open mic night and Petri had a stand up show there. From the speech of the MC I understood very much, I laughed a lot, then I got a few jokes from the other performers... Some of them were quite bad and nobody laughed but others, including Petri told a good couple of nice stuff. 

We came out of On the Rocks around 23.00 and it was daylight outside, I still couldn't believe this... 

Then the next day we had to wake up early, I packed my stuff, we drank coffee and listened to metal, then we left to the bus station Kamppi, and I quickly bought some food for the travel. Here they have Lidl as well and fortunately there I found a liter of pear juice for a super shockingly surprisingly awesome 80 cents! In this country of super high prices this was a caress to my heart, but in some minutes I bought a cinamon bun for 2,30, a korvapuusti, so there went my happiness. And then quickly bought some postcards, and went on the bus.

The journey was three hours but it didn't really seem that much, I spent a lot of time listening to music, and basically just following the road and looking at Finnish nature was super beutiful in itself. When coming closer and closer, my last songs were all awesome. My mp3 is on shuffle mode, and this time it was very intelligent.. it knew...!! The first time a lake appeared in front of my eyes (you know, this is the lake territory), and when the road sign of Sysmä appeared, I was listening to Huuto by Moonsorrow, then came Ensiferum's Lai Lai Hei and then Korpiklaani's Midsummer Night, and all of these are important, memorieful (yes, new word) and very emotional songs for me! 

The bus was 7-15 minutes late but it arrived in Hartola on time where after an SMS the mother and I found each other. I am going to call her Emmi, it is not her real name, for not making stuff too public. Emmi drove me to their place, to the farm, ~2 km from Hartola. And this is already the subject of another post... :)

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