My first week in Finland.
I slept in dorms at a Finnish Language
Proficiency Camp in Karkku (about an hour drive from the nearest city,
Tampere), met about 110 other amazing Finnish exchange students, ate the
traditional Finnish meals, and made some wonderful friends.
I also have noticed some small (but
nonetheless apparent) differences between life in Canada and life in Finland.
In stores, the price you see is the price
you pay. In restaurants and also in
general, no one gives tips. When I spent the day in Tempere, I bought some
Finnish berries from a farmer’s stand with another exchange friend, they cost
1.50 euros each and us foreigners gave her 2.00 euros each and she was shocked
when we told here she could keep the change, where as in Canada, it wouldn’t be
an uncommon thing to give someone an extra 50 cents.
With regards to the language, there are
some aspects that I find slightly easier than other languages, and also
interesting. In Finnish there are no articles (the, a), instead they are
included in the word. The vocabulary is original and unfamiliar to other
languages, but also consists of a few international words; taksi, hotelli,
musiikkki, banaani. The hardest part is that there is no word for “please” in
Finnish, being a Canadian, manners are engrained in our minds from day yksi
(one), this will take some getting used to. My favorite part about Finnish, so
far, is that the Finnish language uses a conveniently large number of compound
words, so now knowing only three words I am able to
make a plethora of vaguely translated words that are understood by all Finns:
word + book = dictionary
sana + kirja = sanakirja
book + lots of = library
kirja + sto = kirjasto
word + lots of = vocabulary
sana + sto = sanasto
Additionally to the words being easy to
combine, there is logical meaning to many of the words, making them easier to
remember, and more interesting to learn. For example, Wednesday = keskiviikko,
which literally translates to “middle of the week” and it doesn’t end in “ai”
like the other days of the week, making it the only day I remember. So if
anyone asks me, keskiviikko is my favorite day of the week.
The culture is also different, but it
couldn’t possibly fit my personality any better. Finnish people are always
punctual, even if you will be five minutes late; you let everyone know that you
will be late. On the buses in Finland, you shouldn’t sit next to anyone because
that would be too forward, and they are very quiet, no one talks unless they
are talking on the phone. In Finland, you learn to enjoy the company of the silence,
Finnish people do not interrupt, small talk does not exist and conversation is
very direct, because of this, it is understandable that a Finn means exactly
what they say. In Finland the line-up (jono) before doing anything is
considered a sacred system, you always wait your turn and never butt in front
of anyone, if someone does cheat the system; a Finn would be considerably
unimpressed, but would be too shy to say anything. With regards to eating
habits, Finns drink a lot of coffee, and everything from the potatoes to the
desserts, tastes delicious.
My first week at school.
The year is split into five jaksos
(periods); which are usually six weeks each with one exam week. In each jakso a
student is able to have a maximum of eight classes. A normal school day can
have up to five classes, but depending on your course load that may not be the
case.
I attend an arts school (Oulun Suomalaisen
Yhteiskoulun Lukio) where academic courses are offered but art classes are
mandatory. My school looks like Hogwarts (only for muggles) so all day I feel
like I’m on a Harry Potter movie set… Maybe I should look into drama classes to
get the full effect? In all of the classes the students are always given time
to do their homework, and the project guidelines are very broad giving
the students a lot of room for self expression.
The students are very welcoming and are
always willing to lend a helping hand. I am so thankful for this because of the
multiple times I was lost in the basement…
I’m hoping to start language classes as
soon as possible so that I can start taking harder courses in school. Even
though art class is the highlight of my day, I miss my vigorous math studies. I
realize how weird that is, but school won’t be complete for me if I’m not
engulfed in algebra.
My entire support system here in Finland is
incredible, I have someone to come to for help in any situation, from finances
to education, there is someone to advise me. My favorite part about my Rotary
club is that: as excited as I am to be here, I think my club might be slightly
more excited. :)
They say that the first month of your
exchange will be the hardest but honestly this week with my host family, school
and friends has been wonderful. If the rest of my year goes anything like these weeks have, I will never want to come home! I love Finland and everything it has
to offer.
Looking forward to my future experiences
this year.
Mackie
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