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.

25 and next steps

Today is my birthday! Yey! It seemed a good day to start a blog. So here it is! And happy birthday to me!

:)

Not so much to celebrate when your b’day fall on a Monday and you’re not getting any younger. But it’s definitely a day to be grateful for all your accomplishments and the loved ones that give you a tight hug or call you to say kind words or even those who send you a short message on Facebook.

This time in particular I have so many things to be thankful for. I just turned 25 and I have already finished my master course, I have a job that I love, a wonderful family that is so supportive and dear friends. In addition, I feel so blessed to be given this opportunity to move temporarily to Finland and I want to take the most advantage of it in many ways, even though that means I’ll be distant from my beloved ones.

All in all, this is part of a dream, so I can only see positive things about it. The challenges are just minor things when I see the big picture.

Since I’ll probably move in January, I have less than 2 months to prepare for this huge change in my life and I don’t know how to start. In fact, I know I should prepare my bag with really warm clothes and I have to take care of the bureaucratic stuff. Besides that, all I can do is to keep a positive mindset. And read, read, read. That helps me a lot. I couldn’t find any books about Finland here in Brazil. But there are so many blogs out there of people who lived similar experiences, and many webpages about Finland. So I have plenty of reading material to feel more confident for this new phase of my life.

The first step I took (besides the reading part) was to apply for a residence permit at the Finnish Embassy in Brasilia. Of course I had previously collected all the necessary documents and paid the fees. The procedures there were really quick. I stayed at the Embassy for less than one hour (and during that time I almost entered the Finnish Ambassador’s home by mistake).

Good thing was that this was my first trip to Brazil’s capital and it was a nice (although short) experience.

Rainy day at Finnish Embassy

This is Finland! Gift from the Embassy