Morjes!

Welcome to my blog. I write about fitting in, sticking out, and missing the motherland as a serial foreigner.

Everyday procedures in Finland

Here are a few observations I've made recently.

1. Finland doesn't use 1- and 2-cent coins. They exist, and they're technically legal tender, but they aren't used. Everything is rounded up or down to the nearest 5 cents.

2. Finland speaks the language of weeks. Every week has a number, and people know them and use them. Right now we're in Week 43. I've really warmed up to this - it's a more precise way of scheduling things (consider "let's meet in week 45" vs. "let's meet at the beginning of next month"), and it helps me think about time in a different way.

3. Finland also speaks the language of the 24-hour clock. Fortunately, so do I, so this hasn't been a problem (though Magdalena is struggling a little).

4. Finland loves coffee. As a non-coffee drinker who loooooves the smell of coffee, I am a happy woman at work, surrounded by that smell all day long. They take their coffee (and coffee breaks) very seriously. I join in by drinking hot chocolate - the ritual is almost as important as the drink itself.

5. Finland is OK with you blowing your nose in public, even in a classroom, even when everything in the classroom is quiet and the only sound is you blowing your nose. Also, Finland doesn't say "bless you!" when you sneeze.

6. Finland is serious about the weather forecast. A co-worker showed me the website of the Finnish Meteorological Institute when I first moved here, and I am never going back to any other source.

October 23rd, outsourced

Finnish vocal fry, and other adventures