This is Finland - Part II (famous Finns)

Finally we have another post from the “This is Finland” series. This time I want to present to you some Finnish personalities that are well-known around the globe. So let’s start.

1 Formula One drivers

There are nine Finnish drivers in the history of F1 so far. Kimi Raikkönen (aka The Iceman) is my favorite one. I’m so glad that he came back to Formula 1 after a 2-years break (and managed to finish the 2012 season in the 3^rd place!). Besides him, Heikki Kovalainen and Valtteri Bottas (who was recently promoted to a race driver for Williams) are going to race in 2013. I’ve heard Finns are excellent drivers because they have to drive in difficult conditions like the icy roads. And that might be true, since Finland has produced more world champions per head of population than anywhere else. There are three Finnish Formula One World Drivers’ Champions: Keke Rosberg (Williams – 1982), Mika Häkkinen (McLaren – 1998/1999) and Kimi (Ferrari – 2007).

2 Finnish Bands

When I tell someone that I’m moving to Finland, most of my relatives and friends only know that it stays in Europe (although they don’t know exactly where) and that it’s a cold place. But some of my friends have their eyes sparkling when I tell them that hoping that I’ll send them a CD of their favorite Finnish band. Mostly heavy metal bands. I’ve heard few Nightwish songs and a version of Chris Isaak’s “Wicked Game” by HIM, and a nice song by The Rasmus. But that’s it. It’s not my favorite music style, but in Brazil these Finnish bands are pretty famous among heavy metal lovers.

 

3 Sibelius

 

I’m not a connoisseur of classical music, but I always see something about Jean Sibelius (1865-1957) when I’m researching about Finland. The Finnish composer’s work comprises world classical music favorites such as Valse Triste and Finlandia, as well as the most recorded violin concerto of the 20th century. It also includes a symphonic cycle of seven symphonies that has become one of the most esteemed and popular cycles since Beethoven. Sibelius composed small and easily accessible pieces, but also unique masterpieces of great depth, such as Luonnotar and Tapiola. The Finnish 100 mark bill featured his image until it was taken out of circulation in 2002.

4 Angry Birds

Ok, the next famous Finns are not real people, but they’ve recently became very popular all over the world. I’m talking about the cute characters of Angry Birds, a video game franchise created by Finnish company Rovio Entertainment. In the original game, players use a slingshot to launch birds at pigs, with the intent of destroying all the pigs on the playing field. The combination of addictive gameplay, comical style, and low price is the key to Angry Birds’ success. The characters of the game have been featured in many situations, my favorite were the “HockeyBird”, the official mascot of the 2012 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championships and the “IceBird” in Kimi’s cap.

5 Santa Claus

Last, but not least, we have: Santa Claus! Christmas has already gone… but I’m still in Christmas mood, so I couldn’t leave Santa out of this list. Yes, Santa Claus exists and he lives in Finland, more precisely at Santa Claus Village at the Arctic Circle in Rovaniemi, Lapland. In Finnish he is “Joulupukki”, which literally means Christmas goat or Yule Goat. One interesting thing is that in the 30’s, the Coca-Cola Santa Claus picture used in advertising was designed by a son of Finnish emigrants, Haddon Sundblom.

First time in Finland

My Finnish Residence Permit has just arrived!
=D
I'm very happy about that!
So now it's time to share some pictures of my first trip to Finland in September last year.
I wasn't there as a tourist, so I couldn't explore Helsinki as much as I wanted. But my employers provided me with a nice trip to the city to see some highlights in a hop-on hop-off bus.
I loved my first trip to Finland, especially because it was also my first time abroad!
The weather was nice and we finished the tour with a lunch at a typical Finnish restaurant. I ate reindeer for the first time and I loved it!

Stockmann, famous department store

Beautiful Uspenski Cathedral

Senaatintori (Senate Square)

Fresh berries

View from my hotel room: sunset at 8pm

NY Trip and Visa Approved

Today I received the news that my Finnish Residence Permit is ready and they already sent it to the Finnish Embassy here in Brazil. It might take a couple of weeks before getting here, but I’m so happy that it was approved!

Last week, I was in NYC and it was an amazing experience! I’m in love with the city. It was even better than I had imagined. Luckily, we choose December for our first trip to NY and it was a great choice, since the entire city had that Christmas’ atmosphere, soooo beautiful!

We arrived there on Sunday afternoon, went to our hotel to leave our stuff and then had lunch at Brother Jimmy’s (great place). After that we bought our metro card (with unlimited rides for one week) and went to Times Square! At first, it was a bit overwhelming with so many people and all the billboards, but it’s a wonderful place where you can actually realize that “yes, you’re in New York”.

We left the city on Friday, and below are some highlights of our trip.

Monday

We bought the NY citypass, so our itinerary for the whole week was partly based on the attractions included in the pass (which were the ones we wanted to see the most, anyway). Early in the morning we went on a boat trip to see the Statue of Liberty. Amazing experience! Then we had lunch at Times Square and went to the Grand Central Terminal (which turned out to be one of my favorite spots of the city). After that, we walked to the St. Patrick’s Cathedral, which was under some renovations. Then we went to the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) and spent few hours there. In the end of the day we did some shopping nearby and came back to the hotel.

From left to right: Statue of Liberty, Newlyweds at Times Square, Big Clock at Grand Central Terminal, Pietá at St. Patrick's Cathedral, The Scream at MoMA

Tuesday

After a quick trip to Grand Central Terminal we took the bus to the Upper East Side and walked to MET (Metropolitan Museum of Art). We didn’t know that it was so big and so full of interesting stuff. We could stay there the whole day. We had lunch there and left in the middle of the afternoon. We crossed Central Park, enjoying the walk and the beautiful views of the park in this time of the year. Our plans included the American Museum of Natural History, but it was a bit late, so we decided to leave that for the next day and went to Macy’s.

Coffin at MET, Sister having lunch at MET with Central Park view, Giant Bubble at Central Park

Wednesday

We woke up early and went to SoHo for shopping. The stores there wouldn’t open until 10am, so we had breakfast in a café there and waited until they open. After that we went to our hotel to leave our bags there and took the bus to the Upper East Side and then another one to cross Central Park. At AMNH we had quick lunch (it was already 3pm and the museum would close 5.30pm) and visited some of the wings like the dinosaur wing, the Hall of African mammals, etc. There we saw the Lucy skeleton, the Star of India sapphire and the Easter Island head, so nice! After the museum we went to Rockfeller Plaza and up to the Top of the Rock! Amazing views of the city, and you can actually see the Empire State from there. Plus, they had that giant Christmas tree at the Plaza. So magical!

T-Rex at AMNH, Amazing view from Top of the Rock

Thursday

This was one of my favorite parts of the trip: Crossing Brooklyn Bridge! It was a great walk with wonderful views of the city. We also enjoyed the best pizza ever at Grimaldi’s right after we crossed the bridge. In the afternoon we went to Century 21 located in Downtown Manhattan to buy some things. I really liked the store (and its low prices). I remember I read some comments that it was too messy, but I thought it was pretty ok. In the end of the day we were supposed to go to Empire State, but unfortunately, we had to go back to SoHo to return a pair of boots that I bought in the wrong size. And after that we were so tired that we all agreed to leave the Empire State for the next trip to NY. But that’s ok; we had already seen amazing views from the Top of The Rock on Wednesday.

Sister and I at Madison Square in front of Flatiron, Brooklyn Bridge, Welcome to Brooklyn!

That was our lovely trip to NY. That’s a memory I’ll keep forever.

Next week I’ll come back with some pictures of my first time in Finland!

Getting ready for the cold (in NYC)

I’m going to New York this Saturday, with my mother and my sister and I’ll take advantage of this trip to buy some things that I’ll probably need to face the cold weather in Finland, when I arrive there in January.

Such cold is something I can’t even imagine, but I’ll have a preview in New York.

I made a list with some winter essentials, but I know I shouldn’t worry about this, since it will be easy to find good winter clothes and accessories in Finland. But, anyway, I’ll need something to start!

1 Good Coat

This is the first thing that comes to my mind when I think of how summery and typically Brazilian my current wardrobe is. I don’t have any coats that could save me in negative temperatures. I will definitely need one of those down coats.

2 Waterproof Winter Boots

I’m so afraid of slipping in the icy floor… It seems silly, but I really am. So I’ll look for some boots that provide traction on snow and ice. I also want them to be waterproof. I don’t know if that’s really necessary. But I won’t take the risk of having my feet wet in such a cold weather.

3 A Nice Camera

Ok, this is not a winter accessory. But I couldn’t move to a different country without a good camera to register everything I’m going to see there and that I might want to share with my family and friends. I am not even close to being a pro, so I believe a mirrorless camera is enough for me. (Actually, I’ve already purchased that camera – Sony NEX-5N – and it’s already waiting for me in my hotel. I’m looking forward to having it in my hands!)

4,5,6 Winter Accessories

It’s a bit strange for a Brazilian to think of these accessories as something useful. Even during winter we use those mostly for aesthetics, not because you REALLY need them. But in very cold places these accessories prevent you from losing heat from your hands, feet, neck and head. So they are very important, and I’ll need a few sets of gloves, beanies, scarves and socks. They are also a good way to stay fashionable when you’re wearing so many layers of clothes that your body becomes shapeless.

7 Thermal Baselayer

People who are used to living in cold areas probably don’t need those in their daily lives. But I don’t want be shocked by the cold. So I’ll take one of these thermal baselayers with me. Even if it makes me look even more like an outsider.

This is Finland – Part I

The opinion of a foreigner about any country will always sound like…..

The opinion of a foreigner!  =p

But that’s the point here. To show some Finnish characteristics that pop up in front of the eyes of someone who’ve been there for the first time or those who do not know many things about Finland. (First thing you should know: in Finnish, Finland is “Suomi” ^^)

So this is the first post of interesting things of Finnish culture, nature, society, etc. Of course there are many other things about Finland, but in this series of posts I’d like to share interesting aspects of Finland in my foreigner’s point of view.

1 Sauna

This is where the blog name came from. And it is easy to understand why when you know how important the saunas are in Finnish culture. If you consider the Finnish population of around 5.4 million people, 2.5 million saunas is an impressive amount! Almost every house has a sauna. It’s not that Finns go to the sauna every day, but saunas are really important for socialization, for friends and family get together, have a conversation and relax. There are many saunas in Brazil, but I’ve never been to one. It might be an interesting experience (although I wouldn’t be brave enough to dive in icy water after a sauna bath), plus, it has many health benefits. Check them out here.  

2 Ice Hockey (Jääkiekko)

Finns are crazy about ice hockey! Being a Brazilian, I can totally understand that passion comparing to what soccer is for people here. This year, Finland hosted the world games (for the 7^th time!). Actually, Sweden co-hosted it with Finland. And same will happen next year. Russia won the gold medal this year (Finland won in the previous year, 2011). It seems that ice hockey is a very popular topic among Finns. Well, that’s very familiar to me.

3 Forests and Lakes (Metsä ja Järvien)

Seventy-five percent of Finland’s territory is forest (mostly pine trees, spruce and birch). That was the first thing I noticed when my plane landed at the Vantaa airport and on my taxi drive to my hotel. The landscape is beautiful! It was that view that made me realize that I was in Finland (in addition to the Finnish signs that I couldn’t read at the airport). Finland is also a country of lakes. Some people call it the land of a thousand lakes, although it has much more than that. There are 187,888 lakes larger than 500 square metres in Finland. That’s a lot, isn’t it?

4 Summer Cottage (Kesämökki)

Finns are very connected to the countryside. There are almost half a million summer cottages in Finland, where people go to relax in their vacation or holidays. They are usually close to water, whether it’s a lake or the seashore and it’s no surprise that almost all have a sauna. I read somewhere an old Finnish saying that goes: 'The ultimate happiness is to have a red cottage and a potato field'. I don’t know exactly what’s the importance or tradition of the red color, but many pictures I found were of red cottages indeed.

5 Dark Bread (Ruisleipä)

I once heard this: “The whiter the bread, the sooner you’re dead.” If that’s true, Finns won’t have a problem with that. That’s because the most popular bread in Finland, the Ruisleipä, is a dark, sour, dense and dryish rye bread. I’ve tried it when I was there and it tasted really good, very ‘rustic’, if that adjective applies. They have many other similar dark breads, and they are very different from the traditional “pãozinho francês”, a type of white bread with a golden crispy crust that we have here in Brazil.

 

 6 Coffee (Kahvi)

Brazil is one of the biggest producers of coffee in the world. But no one can beat a Finn in drinking coffee. Finns consume around ten kilos of roasted coffee (per capita) per year! It’s the highest consumption in the world! I know many Brazilians who drink a lot of coffee throughout the day (like my mother). But I guess the difference is that here it’s not a national consensus. Especially among young people, coffee is not so popular. Many parents think it is bad for the health of children, so they do not encourage their kids to try it. And many of them won’t get the habit of drinking coffee afterwards. But the thing here is that for Finns, coffee is more than just a morning pick-me-up.

 *This text is only my opinion of cerain facts about Finland. Sorry if there is some wrong information or misconceptions.