I <3 Turku

Two weeks ago, we went to Turku Castle to build sandcastles in the courtyard. On weekday afternoons during July and August, they bring in a bunch of sand, set up some building areas, and put out professional-level masonry tools for kids to use. Then on Wednesdays, at the end of the building session, they bring out slingshots and miniature wooden catapults and let the kids destroy everything.

Yeah, it was about as fun as it sounds (=SO MUCH FUN).

We ended up going a few times, including the last afternoon of destruction. As I watched the kids get to work on smashing their sandcastles, I got to talking with a Finnish couple. The wife asked me suddenly, "do you like Turku?"

I've been asked this question before, but I'm usually prepared for it. Visitors are in town and asking about Finland, or I'm officially checking in with my boss to see how things are going, or I'm talking with family back in the US.

But at that moment, I felt myself give a knee-jerk response, and that response was...yes! I do! I really like Turku (it could even be love!). How lucky are we to have ended up here? It's possible there's a city in Finland that I would like more - sometimes we wonder what it would have been like to go really big and move waaaaaay up north), but I find myself more than satisfied with this place. This city is small, but not too small. There's a river and a cathedral and an amazing library. It's easy to get to Helsinki and the bigger airport, but we have our own airport, too. There's no real traffic. We're right on the sea (something about myself prefers to live near large bodies of water). It's easy to bike and bus around town, even for the kids. It's sporty and outdoorsy and the accent here is distinct enough that my kids will be a novelty act for Finns in other cities someday.

Sometimes when you move somewhere, you have to learn to like it despite your true feelings. Turku of course has some downsides - it's a bit rough around the edges in areas (as is Finland as a whole, really). I mean, you would never mistake it for, say, Stockholm. (But you would never mistake its prices for Stockholm, either!) I'm happy to have found a city that I genuinely like, and to be blessed enough to live here!

(Also, yes, I re-did my blog a little! I've been meaning to do it for many months and I finally just went for it. Let me know if there are any issues.)