My mini break from the blog was due to the resignation of my hard drive last week. Now, having rebuilt the system and due to the fact that most of our data went down a black hole, I have a brand new, empty hard drive that I can fill up with folders full of trivia.
After 14 months in Finland, these are currently my favourite things about life here.
The Libraries.
Not only do they have libraries everywhere in this country, (there are 3 within walking distance from where we are living) but their services and the choice of books and music are fantastic. They stock an amazing number and variety of books in English as well as quite a few other languages. Kirjasto 10 (Library 10) in Helsinki City boasts more than 40,000 CDs for loan, music scores, books on music, musicians, composers as well as musical instruments and audio-editing and rehearsal rooms where you can practice or record music. They also stage live concerts on weeknights on a regular basis. Last Thursday, I was quietly reading some international magazines when I was entertained by a Finnish trio who played the piano and sang beautifully. I ended up spending the whole evening there. The National Library of Finland is housed in a beautiful historic building that was built in 1836 and one of the best known examples of the late 19th century Empire style in Finland.
Communication.
It is so easy to live here because most Finns speak English so well and are not at all opposed to speaking the language. Another charming feature of the language is that they actually do use loan words from English, but make them sound and look so Finnish. If you walked into your local café and ordered yksi (one) cappucino, they will smile and immediately reply in English. Eventually I figured out that I had to order a Kapusiini. Of course, if you do speak the English language, it is a sneaky way to get them to speak English to you without having to ask. Maybe I should not have let the cat out of the bag.
Forests and Lakes.
Wherever you may find yourself in Finland, you are never far from a lake surrounded by forests. It is beautiful. I never tire of looking at those trees. They are beautiful throughout the four seasons. In the spring and summer they contribute to the dense green landscape. During autumn they shower you with gold and during the winter the white birch tree trunks with the black markings make a dramatic statement in the snowy winter landscape.
Endless Summer Nights.
Even when the sun does go down for a short while, the sky remains blue. You never need to go to bed and don’t even feel like it. It would be wasting valuable hours during the outdoors season. Definitely the best time of the year.
Foodies - 2 Favourites.
The natural peanutbutter, made from raw and not toasted peanuts. It tastes completely different and so much better than any other peanutbutter I have ever tasted.
Cardamom. Finland is the cardamom kingdom. They sell the most beautiful coarsely ground cardamom and make delicious cardamom-butter pulla (buns) to have with coffee. Sometimes the pulla has a blob of butter and sugar baked on top and other times it is just a soft round roll sprinkled with pearl sugar.
It has become such a serious addiction that I had to make my own.
I started searching the internet and found the recipe on The Fresh Loaf website. I opted for the plain version without the butter on top. Later I repeated the recipe with the butter option. They did not survive long enough to pose for photos .
Fridge Magnets.
Ok, that makes it 6 things, but I could not resist the cutest Reindeer and Moose magnets in the world.
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