Everything is going quite well here in Helsinki. This weekend I stayed in the city to
visit a museum and the island fortress and also to see a music festival that was
here. Last Thursday, Canada Day, I had a work review with my bosses and they were
quite pleased with my progress thus far. Then I went out and partied with some of
the other Canadians here, we went to a bar in Canadian clothes and sung OCANADA on
the stage for the crowd. Time is going by so fast, I cannot believe I have spent 1/2
of my time here already.
To answer one of the questions you had in a previous
letter, IAESTE is the international exchange which I am taking part in. The
organization in Finland has many regular events and weekend trips organized so it is
easier to meet other students from abroad.
I wouldn't totally agree with what your friend has written, I don't really think
that people have such hard feelings towards the Russians and the Swedes. I works
side by side with a Russian and he is well respected within the company. There is a
strong rivalry between Sweden and Finland in hockey and other sports but I don't
think many hard feelings exist toward visitors from Sweden. Perhaps in the older
generation, definitely not the younger generation that I've spoken with.
It is amazing how technologically advanced Finland is though. They have the highest
penetration of mobile phones - about 60% - virtually everyone between the ages of 17
and 40 has one. They also claim the highest Internet access penetration. Another
great thing about Finland is the level of education. Finnish and Swedish are the 2
official languages, but most people also speak English and have studied other
languages as well - French, German, Italian. Education is free and students are subsidized
to find living accomodations.
Everyone is very friendly and the social support system ensures that there are very
few beggars or homeless people on the streets. I think it's a wonderful place - more
vacation time and higher value placed on family and leisure than in N.America, I
think. In some ways, the Finnish culture reflects Asian culture in that people say
what they mean and don't waste words. They are good listeners and very modest -
something I see in Asian culture a lot.
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