Finn at the balls

Yesterday it was a great day. It was great to see everyone again and to hang out together. We all also looking forward that I'm returing again in Kokkola January. I felt a little bit sad for the other Dutchie because he is only in Kokkola for this weekend. But still we had a great time.

We went in for bowling after breakfast. We had two lanes so every lane futeres 2 Finns and 1 Dutch. After 2 hours of bowling, we were really nailed by a girl with a dysfunctional arm at this moment. Because she hurt it during training. But still she was far better then me and the other Finn. I don't dare to think how hard she would beat us when her arm was fully functional. But now she had more then 110 points the us. The other lane I don't discuss here, but let state it this way: But by coincidence the persons who are good at bowling and bad at bowling where seperated.

After that, we had the honor and plesure again to enjoy the great cooking skills of the husband of the woman we are staying. While the rest had rendeir, I enjoyed salmon. It is funny that rendeir is so popular here. I've been in a lot of countries, but in non rendeir is so popular is in Finland. It also touches me that Finns are so insecure while they don't have to. His cooking skills are great and the food was delicious. Every one was very silent during the eating so it was good. Normally we talk on every occasion.

After the food I went to my first volleyball match ever. Of course I've played vollyball before, but I never went to an official match. The local team, Kokkolan Tiigerit are the deffending national champions and the were playing against the rivals. So the match was pretty exited, although it was just a normal match in the legue. I was in the fan section so the crowd got really exited every time the team scored a point. I really enjoyed, the match, the vibe, everything. I also contributed my part by waving the big Kokkolan Tiigerit flag. Eventually they won with 3-0. After the match we went home to enjoy more food and spent the night in the centre. A event during the match worth mentioning is that during the break, the husband of the woman we stayed was named as tiger of the month. Because he has done so much for the club: they ask, he makes. And thats makes that they make him tiger of the month. As first one who isn't member of the board of the club or fanclub. Of course we went all crazy for that and gave as reason to party that night.

Going Kokkola

Altough I go in January for a whole month to Kokkola to get some practical training in the Finnish social welfare system. I already am there now to have a little reunion with some friends. Not I only met the Finns I know frome an exchange project, but also a Dutch fellow student of the same project who studies also in Finland. Seinäjoki to be precise.

Before I was in Kokkola, I had to take the train from Turku. The journey itself takes 5 hours with 15min trasfere in Tampere. This fact is already amazing for me. In the Netherlands you never have to sit in the train for that long. We are not that big... Also that there is a restaurant on board jn the train is amazing. I understand why, because if you are hungry or thirsty you need to eat or drink something, especially on long distance trains. But still I find amazing. What I also find remarkable, is that the conducter memorizes if he already has checked your ticket or not. In the Netherlands he checks your ticket everytime when he is doing his round. But in Finland, he does only once because he reconizes your face and I think that is great service and professionalism.

The last 90min I was joined by my fellow Dutch student. We discussed how we experienced our time in Finland and adventures we had here. When we arrived in Kokkola it was one explosion of happiness. It was so great to see our Finnish friends from Kokkola again. After some shopping we returned to one of our friend home, where we'll stay the whole weekend. There, her husband made a full course dinner for us. I forgot what a great cook he is, because I already visit them once, but he deffently is. I still have to get used to the fact that in Finland you have to cut your own part of the cake. While in the Netherlands, the hostes does this for you. The rest of the evening all of us relived memories from our exchange project in Belgium and how our lives went on after that.

Night of the Finn

Yesterday I failed to write a blog because I had a little party with 3 Finns, a German and Swiss. So we where a pretty cultural group that evening. We decided that even we are in Finland we dont gonna spent the night Finnish way. We just drank some drinks and being social. Social we were because enjoyed each others company till 4:45. For the Finns it felt quitte uncomfortable they we want it to be social, not end up drunk. But they are social Finns so they managed. Here and there we had some cultural diffrences but it amazese me how much Finns and Dutch have in common. The German and the Swiss tought I was rude too a Finn at a certain point. But me and the Finn didn't felt that way. We Dutch and Finns are very straight forward in to saying what we meen. This is something what is not shared with our Swiss and German friends, so they were suprised we didn't felt it like rude. We tought it was normal.

Today I did not much special things. I write some reports for my school in the Netherlands and that was pretty much it. But in the evening I had something planned I do every week with my Swiss friend, and this week we did it even twice. In our opinion it is one of the best things Finland has to offer to the world: sauna. I really enjoy it and it is always something I look forward to, everytime again. It really helps me to get rid of the stress of the week and to relax. I surely want to have one to in the future, but for now I'm more then satisfied with the one hour of sauna I have each week. Although I wished I could go more often. Even now, when I was there twice this week, I'm looking forward to go to sauna next week.

Let's talk about...

Today we had our last class of aggrissive behavior. I'm really gona mis this one, because it was the only real class we had in social services. The other class, Finnish, is a common course so it has not much to do with social services. Altough I like Finnish also. During this course, I really felt like a true Dutch, constantly talking and always knowing things better. At the same time feeling frustrated that you have to talk so much and others are way to silent. In case of this classes it happend quite naturally. I've the most experience in working with youngsters and people with aggressive behavior and I'm always willing to share my exeperiences. Unfortunaly for me, other didn't had that experience or where more reluctent to share it with others. This resulted in that I had quite often had very good discussions with our teacher, unforuntaly other students didn't join the discussion. I just hope that the learned something new from it. What I liked about our teacher is that you can noticed that she is very skilled and has a great knowlegde of why people show aggressive behavior or what you can do to prevent it. I really gonna mis our discussions because for me they where the most usefull during the entire course.

Also at my practical I shocked the Finns with some good old Dutch tabooless conversations. The youngsters wanted to play a board game which also is used in sexual education. This sparked the discussion between me and two workers overthere about sex in general and how it should be educated to the youngsters. In the Netherlands we prefere to enter this conversations with an open view and to be as honest as possible. This is possible because there is almost no taboo about sex in the Netherlands. While I was telling al this I noticed that the workers turned a little bit red. When I made the comment "Don't say Finnish man doesn't like sex" it was to much for them. For me it was a completly normal question even when the youngsters around. But for the two workers it was somewhat diffrent. They say that the Finns want to be as sectret about sex as possible. Of course they have no problems with it in a didactical setting, but they use the bordgame to avoid indepth discussions about it and keep it is real as possible without personal emotions. This suprissed me again because one of the cornerstones in Dutch sexual eduaction is that the teacher, or who ever is giving it, express that sex can be good and it doesn't matter if you are straight, gay, lesbian, bi or aseksual. Sex is good and fun if you do it in a safe way. The Dutch mantra is: for sex you need two persons, so be sure they both liked it so you can do it together more often. They laughed about it, but finded it a good mantra. But then one of the workers began that we Dutch have strange habit towards gays and lesbians and he is supprised that we find it so normal they are there and we even incoperate it in our sexual education that the teacher also explains how they can have save sex. Something I (as a Dutch) find completly normal, because it is good to know for the youngsters what viaries there are in world and they know wat to do if they wanted to experiment with it. But the 2 workers findend it strange and tried to make jokes about it. Which I slammed down. Because why be shy about sex and all it's viarities when you go naked into sauna on every occasion you get?

Islanded in a stream of stars

I made a deal with myself to write a blog every day about my adventures and discoveries in the mythical and magical place called Finland. But I notice more and more that this deal is sometimes hard to held up. I don't experience something exited every day. Sometimes I just go to practical and that is it, nothing happend there. Just the normal day in a social work students life. Or I go to school, not that  have much school. After tomorrow I only have Finnish, the rest I have no school anymore.

Today I did litterly nothing special. I went to practical training and the youngsters were behaving nice. I helped them with some schoolwork and explained a thing or two about the English language. After that I played cards with them and I learned a new cardgame. Although there English skills aren't that good, they do their best to talk to me or invite me into games. The affort I greatly appriciate. We Dutch appriciate atemps more then someone who is showing off. I tell the this the youngsters everytime but still they are a little shy.

I could also write an amazing blog how I learn for Finnish right now. I study hard on introducing myself,  verbs, weather, colours, food, clothes, days, months and the time. But that would be boring. All I do is staring at my notes, repeat the sentences in Finnish and write it down in English or Finnish with only the oppesite language showing. In the meantime I listen to Finnish music. I really like the sound of the Finnish language and it never bores me. Also Finland has some very good artists in my opinion. Maybe I should write a blog about them very soon, because they deserve a little attention. But not now. They need their own blog, not a place in mine complaining blog how boring my life is.

Sometimes nothing happens but then you just have go with the flow. Dare to lie down in the river. Even a river that flows slow brings you somewhere. Keep you head up and you mind set. There is always a new story at the turn. But it takes some time to get there, if you are riding the slow flowing river. You can swim to make it there faster, but then you don't see the suroundings of you journey. Never forget that the suroundings of a journey makes the memories. Behonest, how many memories do you have of your own and how many do you have which futer other people. Just flow with the stream, sometimes it takes a while to make new memories. In the meantime, enjoy the ride and the view.

Dutch nightmares

The blog is inspired on the recently trent on social media, Finnish nightmares. You all should check out her blog: http://finnishnightmares.blogspot.fi/. But I was wondering what are the horrors we Dutch face when we encounter a foreigner or go abroard? What are our nightmares?

• People realise that we speak better German then we pretent.
• People realise our English is far more worst then we say
• We can't put sweet stuff on our sandwiches
• A foreigner has basic knowledge of Dutch
• People from other countries then the commonwelth of nations are idolate of the Brittish royal family
• People who don't find our Queen Máxima gorgous
• Foreigners who think that the Netherlands are a province of Germany
• Americans who think we speak German and let Dutch characters speak German in their movies
• Weed and prostitution are the first thing people think of when talking about the Netherlands
• People not knowing we are host to the international criminal court.
• That it's in The Hague like the international palace of peace and all countries contribute to the construction of it.
• Explaining our educational system to a non Dutch speaker.
• Have to explain the diffrence between Belgium and the Netherlands.
• Foreigns who don't get our fontness or the colour orange.
• People who don't like LGBT's
• People who don't talk about sex and related stuff.
• Seeing each other naked
• Too polite foreigners.
• People who don't get to the point.
• People who show their emotions instead of talking about them.
• We are constantly checking if our money is well spend and people think we are greedy because of that.
• The semi final of the Eurovision Song Contest. Will we get pas it our not. Most Dutch don't like the thing. But they all how close we where to the final. Or our placing in the final.
• The European and World Championsship of football as a whole. Somewhat we always end up traumatized by it.
• Encountrering a fellow Dutchie on holiday. We go abroard to avoid them...

Raw in the dipsauce

After been party hardy in Helsinki to explore studentlive there once again, I want back to Turku to explore and observe more of Finnish culture and costums. Because a movie night was awaiting for my, well it was more like a move late afternoon but who cares. There was a Finnish (musical)movie, there were 4 Finns, it took place in Turku Finland so it was a Finnish movie gathering. Although I very used to Finns and their habits, they never fail to amaze me.

For instance, they dip their vegatables in dipsauce! In the Netherlands dipsauce is exlucively used for chips, not for any other things. But they used it for the cucumbers, carrots and cauliflower. Which they eat raw! I repeat: they eat it raw! I'm used to eat it cooked or warmed in an other way like a oven. But not raw and unkooked, never! Never! NEVER! So you could all gues what I didn't eat. That's right, raw cauliflower or cucumber and carrots with dipsauce. Although I eat them without the dipsauce, I left the dipsauce dipping of vegatable to the Finns, they like the idea more then I do more. Lucky for me, they had also tortilla chips. So I dipped them in the dipsauce.

Speaking of the dipsauce, I find it funny that the Finns prepare it with a kind of sour cream. I knew this already from my past experiences in Finland, but still I find it different then I'm used to. In the Netherlands we prepare it with butter. We stir it as long as it as it is well mixed with the dipsauce package. Somethimes we heat the butter so it gets fluid, so it mix more easily and then cool it of again a little bit so it sticks better to the chips. But Finns do it with a kind of sour cream and I have to admit that I also like that viarity, as long I don't have to engage into weird practice of doining it also. I just leave that for the Finns and I stay with the chips.