August 2, 2011
It is exactly two weeks since I left Finland. I've already spent a lot of time sorting my hundreds of photos!
My flight home was uneventful. My Finnish friend, Anne picked me up promptly in time for my bus to Helsinki & we both were a little teary saying "good-bye." I don't think we ever had spent this much time together before, not even when she lived with us in 1999-2000. Our adult friendship is now, certainly, cemented. I look forward to sharing my photos of her children and town with my family. I hope to show Aleksi & Jenny our town and WNY area when their parents visit us again.
My flight home was uneventful. My Finnish friend, Anne picked me up promptly in time for my bus to Helsinki & we both were a little teary saying "good-bye." I don't think we ever had spent this much time together before, not even when she lived with us in 1999-2000. Our adult friendship is now, certainly, cemented. I look forward to sharing my photos of her children and town with my family. I hope to show Aleksi & Jenny our town and WNY area when their parents visit us again.
This (return) FinnAir flight felt shorter than previous trans-Atlantic flights. Good thing, because my excessive wait at JFK for my connecting (Delta) flight was extended & I didn't leave NYC until after 11pm. Mark, my loving husband of 31 years, was patiently waiting at the Rochester Airport and I finally got to bed after 2AM (9AM Finnish time) on July 20th. I'd been up since 6 AM Finnish time on July 19th which, I think, made my total trip time ~ 25 hrs.
The big negative for me about arriving so late was that Mark was scheduled to leave for a business trip by noon on the 20th. So, we did not have much time together before we were separated by our schedules, again! But, as several Finnish friends observed, that gave me a few days to (very quietly) "transition" back to life here in Conesus, NY.
Here are my (almost) final thoughts about my adventure in Finland this summer.
Lasting impressions: Finland is a very "family-friendly" country and I would not hesitate to recommend it for a vacation for tourists of all ages & abilities. Except for the medieval-era buildings, it is generally super accessible for those with disabilities as well.
What I loved: the small towns and the forests. Although I am a museum-hound, and I saw a couple of nifty ones in Rauma & Turku respectively, it is the smell of the sea air and the trees I will remember most vividly. Finns REALLY do love their well-managed forests and every housing complex or "development" in Rauma, anyway, had some "woods" incorporated into the neighborhood. That was how my friend Anne could actually (for real!) pick mushrooms, for her pizza, a block from her suburban house.
I loved how the little churches (in the small towns I saw in south-western Finland) were perched close to & within view of the sea.
I loved how well the cemeteries were cared for and the other public garden projects. Every little town had a big flower bed close to the town entrance arranged to look like their town coat of arms or other municipal, floral "logo." They must use greenhouses extensively: I saw thriving, established-looking annuals in full bloom (mid-June through the 3rd week of July) planted EVERYWHERE in cities & towns, on light posts, in flower boxes, in plots on lawns.
I loved how Finns embrace BOTH supermarkets AND outdoor, farmers' markets for local produce. Every town I saw has, if not a historical market "square", a central, accessible area where farmers' produce is sold. Their supermarkets are generally owned by just two large companies: Prisma (the "S" chain) or CityMarket (the "K" chain.) The "Prisma" chain also owns & runs the largest department stores in the country (like "Sokos") as well as a hotel chain and god-knows -what-else. Anne told me you can tell which company runs what by the presence of an "S" or a "K" in the names. It took me most of my time there to get the drift of that.
I loved how their supermarkets are a lot like mini-malls, with clothing, liquor, hardware, and jewelry stores clustered in the same building complex with the food stores. The ones in Rauma also had florists, family-restaurants, and cell-phone company stores. The Post Office I used for 5 weeks (with the helpful, mostly English-speaking staff) was located at the CityMarket within easy walking distance of my B&B.
I have to say, I REALLY loved IKEA.
The old churches I saw in western Finland rivaled the decorative detail I remember seeing in Italy. The decoration was different, hand-painted rather than mosaic, but often as old, and very well cared for. The Finns' reverence for wood was obvious everywhere, in contemporary furniture and floors in private homes, as well as in public spaces of all eras.
I LOVED Vanha Rauma. I loved the architecture and the cobblestone streets. I loved the marketplace and Café Sali (thanks for the free wifi!) I loved getting lost in a place where the same buildings were there 500 years ago.
So, now it's time to bring this blog to an end. I'm home now & already boring people with stories of my trip. It was nice to go to church today & hear everything in English. I'm making plans for a busy August.
"Kiitos" to my Finnish friends for a wonderful experience. Thanks to my family for indulging my vacation fantasy. My daughter Kate said that 5 weeks was "a little" excessive. I don't think so. I'll just have to take her with me next time...
