Hey all... greetings from Helsinki, Finland!!
So after spending a couple of lovely sunny days with Sophia in Hamburg, I jumped on a plane to Finland via Denmark. Copenhagen airport is nice, at least for the first couple of hours... I got quite bored towards the end of my stopover. Walking around and around waiting for my departure gate to show up on the screen...
I arrived in Helsinki at about 11pm, and kinda watched the sunset from the plane.. even after sunset, it's still so light! The wonderful Iida, her mum and dad and little sister Hanna, came to pick me up from the airport and drove us to Iida's apartment in Espoo, a little way from Helsinki. We chatted about so much, we really just clicked back in to Belgium mode... as if we hadn't been apart for 4 years. We talked until the early hours of the morning until we had to call it quits so Iida could get some sleep before getting up super early in the morning to go to work.
Bus ticket in hand, I went into Helsinki and wandered about trying to orientate myself. I had no real idea where I was or what I wanted to do in Helsinki, I had a tourist guide in Swedish which had a map in it. I wandered about the shopping centres, shop after shop, it was really fun just window shopping, being mistaken for a Finn and being spoken to in Finnish and just smiling politely when I didn't understand a word of it. I met up with Iida after she finished work and we went out for dinner and kept chatting. I really have no concept of time here in Finland, because it is so light for so long - even when it's dark its not really dark. I think I would like to live here in the Summer, but definitely not in the winter when it is the opposite... always dark.
I accidentally stumbled upon the National History Museum and that gave me something to do, wandering around looking at artefacts and pictures from different points in Finland's history.
Iida had the day off on Wedneday so we went on an adventure, trying to find a lake in the middle of a national par- we got lost, but eventually found somewhere nice to sit in the sun and have a picnic and chat. it was really fun. We played a card game, once, before Iida and I had an argument because I didn't understand the rules and Iida didn't understand why I didn't understand, so we put the cards away and sunbaked instead :) Ah, Iida, I've missed you!
Yesterday I woke up at Iida's parents house, after a lovely dinner with her parents, two of her sisters and their exchange student, Patricia. I felt a bit funny, had a bit of a 'visual aura' happening from like when I was younger and got migraines. I thought I'd be ok, before we ran to the train and then my left had and side of my face went numb... uh-oh. So, I threw up on the train, luckily just before the stop we had to get off at, and with vomit pretty much all over me (I caught most of it in some paper towel) I wne to the bathroom, got changed and we went home. I felt really bad, because Patricia and her friends had planned a day at Suomellina, a kind of old fort thingy... just for me. I went back to Iida's parents house and slept the rest of the day.
Hanna and I are going to Heksinki again today and we'll meet Iida after work, and I think Iida and I are going out tonight until my plane leaves at 7am. Should be fun. Lucky I'm feeling better today.
Lots of love, can't wait to see my host family and Belgian friends again very soon :)
I'll be back in Aus in no time at all.
Much love and prayers <3
So after spending a couple of lovely sunny days with Sophia in Hamburg, I jumped on a plane to Finland via Denmark. Copenhagen airport is nice, at least for the first couple of hours... I got quite bored towards the end of my stopover. Walking around and around waiting for my departure gate to show up on the screen...
I arrived in Helsinki at about 11pm, and kinda watched the sunset from the plane.. even after sunset, it's still so light! The wonderful Iida, her mum and dad and little sister Hanna, came to pick me up from the airport and drove us to Iida's apartment in Espoo, a little way from Helsinki. We chatted about so much, we really just clicked back in to Belgium mode... as if we hadn't been apart for 4 years. We talked until the early hours of the morning until we had to call it quits so Iida could get some sleep before getting up super early in the morning to go to work.
Bus ticket in hand, I went into Helsinki and wandered about trying to orientate myself. I had no real idea where I was or what I wanted to do in Helsinki, I had a tourist guide in Swedish which had a map in it. I wandered about the shopping centres, shop after shop, it was really fun just window shopping, being mistaken for a Finn and being spoken to in Finnish and just smiling politely when I didn't understand a word of it. I met up with Iida after she finished work and we went out for dinner and kept chatting. I really have no concept of time here in Finland, because it is so light for so long - even when it's dark its not really dark. I think I would like to live here in the Summer, but definitely not in the winter when it is the opposite... always dark.
I accidentally stumbled upon the National History Museum and that gave me something to do, wandering around looking at artefacts and pictures from different points in Finland's history.
Iida had the day off on Wedneday so we went on an adventure, trying to find a lake in the middle of a national par- we got lost, but eventually found somewhere nice to sit in the sun and have a picnic and chat. it was really fun. We played a card game, once, before Iida and I had an argument because I didn't understand the rules and Iida didn't understand why I didn't understand, so we put the cards away and sunbaked instead :) Ah, Iida, I've missed you!
Yesterday I woke up at Iida's parents house, after a lovely dinner with her parents, two of her sisters and their exchange student, Patricia. I felt a bit funny, had a bit of a 'visual aura' happening from like when I was younger and got migraines. I thought I'd be ok, before we ran to the train and then my left had and side of my face went numb... uh-oh. So, I threw up on the train, luckily just before the stop we had to get off at, and with vomit pretty much all over me (I caught most of it in some paper towel) I wne to the bathroom, got changed and we went home. I felt really bad, because Patricia and her friends had planned a day at Suomellina, a kind of old fort thingy... just for me. I went back to Iida's parents house and slept the rest of the day.
Hanna and I are going to Heksinki again today and we'll meet Iida after work, and I think Iida and I are going out tonight until my plane leaves at 7am. Should be fun. Lucky I'm feeling better today.
Lots of love, can't wait to see my host family and Belgian friends again very soon :)
I'll be back in Aus in no time at all.
Much love and prayers <3
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