Week 5 31/01/11 – 07/02/11

This week was very special as I was able to meet a huge Finnish icon.  Father Christmas is Finnish, according to the Finns, and he lives in Lapland and not the North Pole.  As this week I travelled (with 90 other exchange students) to Lapland I noticed that there is a huge distance between villages and towns when in the country.  On the way up I learn more about the Finns from the ESN organisers.  Helena, who was originally from Lapland, explained that the remote life in the country is a highly desirable goal for many Finns.  She also explained that you are able to travel 70kms to meet with someone and they will almost always be home when you arrive.  70kms would not be that great a distance to travel just to meet up with someone or to get to work or school.  Because of the long distances folks travel and long working hours Finns will enjoy their weekend by going to their cottages.  She explained that there is also a sixth sense amongst the rural community, she told us that the family would know if someone was coming to visit even if they had not arranged to met.

After walking at night in search of the Northern Lights, on the bus back to Turku, Helena told us that there are bears, wolves and wolverines in the country and that meeting one of these animals wouldn’t be a good thing.  She told us that when she was in high school there was a bear in the town centre and she couldn’t make it to her school on time.

The Finnish people in Levi, Lapland did seem more open and approachable than those from the cities.  I think because of the large amount of tourists in the village the residents are more welcoming.  This is the same with the Sami people who are native to Lapland, who have a colourful attire.

Whilst inside the Arctic Circle I tried a reindeer sandwich, it is difficult to describe, it was rather tough to bite through and did not have much taste.  I heard of reindeer pizza, elk and even bear meat however I never got to try them. 

Picture: Me with a Reindeer at Santa's Village