or some I brought along...
Photos taken on a lovely walk around Toolonlahti Bay in Helsinki.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Chess Anyone?
We could play with these pieces...
or some I brought along...
Photos taken on a lovely walk around Toolonlahti Bay in Helsinki.
or some I brought along...
Photos taken on a lovely walk around Toolonlahti Bay in Helsinki.
Crepes
Joey learned to make crepes and made us breakfast the other day.
Topped with jam and a bit of powdered sugar...they were delicious! (Especially since I didn't have to cook them!)
Topped with jam and a bit of powdered sugar...they were delicious! (Especially since I didn't have to cook them!)
Monday, June 18, 2012
Seurasaari
A few months ago, I asked my Finnish readers to suggest places we should visit before we return to the States.
And let me tell you, they were very generous with their suggestions! I made a list of the places we thought would be interesting for both adults AND kids and we have been visiting a few each week. Last weekend we visited Nuuksio and Hanko. This weekend we spent one very rainy day inside and visited the Seurasaari outdoor museum on the other day.
Seurasaari is (another) island in Helsinki that houses an open air museum. Old wooden buildings from many parts of Finland were transplanted to Seurasaari beginning in 1909 and now, visitors can wander through the island to see the buildings--some are open for inside viewing as well.
What strikes me most about these buildings is how similar they are to buildings built in the midwest in the 1700s and 1800s.
The buildings below were used for storage in Lapland (the area way up north in Finland in the Arctic Circle).
This little log building was a cow herders shelter.
No, Sam has not grown that much since we arrived here. The doorway was just really low!
In fact, we wondered about just how tall the Finns of yesteryear were because we saw many low doorways and short little beds like this:
Turns out, these beds expand. At night, you pull them out. During the day, you push them back in. Why don't we have something like this now?
And I'm sure there is some reason why stilts were available for use. There must have been some practical application for stilts back then. But I'll let you google that because I'm tired.
I'm pretty sure the stilts are not supposed to be crossed in the back, but hey it worked for Joey!
These are the stocks they would have used many years ago to hold someone captive so that they could have been ridiculed by the townspeople. Today, they are a good way to calm your children.
But my favorite photo of the whole day?
I seriously love this candle holder and sooooo want one of these in my house. Love it!
And let me tell you, they were very generous with their suggestions! I made a list of the places we thought would be interesting for both adults AND kids and we have been visiting a few each week. Last weekend we visited Nuuksio and Hanko. This weekend we spent one very rainy day inside and visited the Seurasaari outdoor museum on the other day.
Seurasaari is (another) island in Helsinki that houses an open air museum. Old wooden buildings from many parts of Finland were transplanted to Seurasaari beginning in 1909 and now, visitors can wander through the island to see the buildings--some are open for inside viewing as well.
What strikes me most about these buildings is how similar they are to buildings built in the midwest in the 1700s and 1800s.
The buildings below were used for storage in Lapland (the area way up north in Finland in the Arctic Circle).
This little log building was a cow herders shelter.
No, Sam has not grown that much since we arrived here. The doorway was just really low!
In fact, we wondered about just how tall the Finns of yesteryear were because we saw many low doorways and short little beds like this:
Turns out, these beds expand. At night, you pull them out. During the day, you push them back in. Why don't we have something like this now?
And I'm sure there is some reason why stilts were available for use. There must have been some practical application for stilts back then. But I'll let you google that because I'm tired.
I'm pretty sure the stilts are not supposed to be crossed in the back, but hey it worked for Joey!
These are the stocks they would have used many years ago to hold someone captive so that they could have been ridiculed by the townspeople. Today, they are a good way to calm your children.
But my favorite photo of the whole day?
I seriously love this candle holder and sooooo want one of these in my house. Love it!
Friday, June 15, 2012
Nuuksio National Park
We were so fortunate to be invited to explore Nuuksio National Park with a really cool Finnish couple last weekend. Eija, seen here on Rob's left (camera left) was a Distinguished Awards in Teaching participant with Fulbight two years ago in Washington DC.
Nuuksio was one of the places on our Finland "bucket" list so we knew we would eventually get there. But seeing it with Finns who know their way around (Olli Pekka is an arborist to boot so he was able to tell us about the trees and plants we encountered on the walk) was a special treat.
My kids are great hikers--they all started hiking as soon as they could walk. So we have always taught the kids be mindful hikers: stay on the trail, don't pick wildflowers, leave nothing behind...
They love to find and follow the markers for the trail we are following.
...but in Finland, "Everyman's Right" (freedom to roam) means that you don't have to stay on the trail and it's actually okay to pick flowers, berries and mushrooms (as long as you know they are not endangered, poisonous or in someone's backyard).
And the forest floor in Nuuksio is covered with low-growing blueberry plants.
So in late July when the blueberries are ripe, visitors to Nuuksio will be able to pick thousands of berries as they hike. I'm so jealous and I'd love to visit again in July, but I doubt we will get back there!
It started to drizzle just as we approached the shelter where we were going to have a Finnish style outdoor meal. As soon as we reached the shelter, it poured!
Apparently, we weren't the only ones who planned on "grilli" for dinner!
So after watching the hail come down from the safety of our shelter, we decided to head back to Eija and Olli Pekka's home for grilli and Finnish pancakes (yum!).
I'm not quite sure what was better...the delicious dinner, or the fascinating conversation with Eija, Olli Pekka and Leeza (their daughter who is studying political science in Lyon, France).
I really hope we will have some Finnish visitors in Chicago in the next few years! I can't wait to repay the wonderful hospitality we have been shown since arriving here.
Nuuksio was one of the places on our Finland "bucket" list so we knew we would eventually get there. But seeing it with Finns who know their way around (Olli Pekka is an arborist to boot so he was able to tell us about the trees and plants we encountered on the walk) was a special treat.
My kids are great hikers--they all started hiking as soon as they could walk. So we have always taught the kids be mindful hikers: stay on the trail, don't pick wildflowers, leave nothing behind...
They love to find and follow the markers for the trail we are following.
...but in Finland, "Everyman's Right" (freedom to roam) means that you don't have to stay on the trail and it's actually okay to pick flowers, berries and mushrooms (as long as you know they are not endangered, poisonous or in someone's backyard).
And the forest floor in Nuuksio is covered with low-growing blueberry plants.
So in late July when the blueberries are ripe, visitors to Nuuksio will be able to pick thousands of berries as they hike. I'm so jealous and I'd love to visit again in July, but I doubt we will get back there!
It started to drizzle just as we approached the shelter where we were going to have a Finnish style outdoor meal. As soon as we reached the shelter, it poured!
 |
| Eija and Sam soaked from our dash to shelter! |
Apparently, we weren't the only ones who planned on "grilli" for dinner!
So after watching the hail come down from the safety of our shelter, we decided to head back to Eija and Olli Pekka's home for grilli and Finnish pancakes (yum!).
I'm not quite sure what was better...the delicious dinner, or the fascinating conversation with Eija, Olli Pekka and Leeza (their daughter who is studying political science in Lyon, France).
I really hope we will have some Finnish visitors in Chicago in the next few years! I can't wait to repay the wonderful hospitality we have been shown since arriving here.
Thursday, June 14, 2012
It's "Summer"
The kids are out of school.
Tourists from cruise ships fill Market Square.
Hop On Hop Off buses are EVERYWHERE.
Boats to the island beaches are running every 30 minutes.
Ice cream stands (and seagulls flying above) dot the urban landscape.
The sun sets at about 11:00 p.m.
It's "summer" in Helsinki.
Since it's "summer" (I use that term loosely since it still hasn't hit 70 degrees for more than a day or two at a time), we decided to visit Hanko Beach--the "sunniest place in Finland!" But on the day we went to Hanko, it was most definitely NOT sunny and most decidedly NOT summer!
Some of our Finnish friends laughed and said, "it was chilly and overcast because you must go to Hanko on a sunny day in July." If I read between the lines, I think that means A. the really warm weather doesn't arrive until July around here and 2. Hanko is the sunniest place in Finland because people only visit it on the sunny days!
All sarcasm aside, we found Hanko to be a lovely little seaside village that, on a warm day (in July perhaps?) would be the PERFECT place to spend a day on the beach!
But what do you when you're at the beach, it's only 60 degrees and overcast and sometimes even a bit drizzly?
Well, if you're MY kids, you entertain yourselves with snails for what seems like hours. Honestly, I can't believe my kids got such a kick out of the snails that were everywhere we walked!
There was even a wedding for these two:
Lily loved collecting shells.
And we all enjoyed our trip to the top of the water tower.
Even in the dreariest weather, it's hard to beat the view of the sea.
Hanko is known for its Russian villas--beautiful wood buildings that were built around the turn of the 20th century for people visiting the Hanko Spa.
Truth be told, while we enjoyed our trip to Hanko, we cut it short by about 5 hours because we were cold! Instead, we opted to come back to Helsinki and enjoy Sam's favorite--steamed Chinese dumplings--at a restaurant a friend recommended.
Tourists from cruise ships fill Market Square.
Hop On Hop Off buses are EVERYWHERE.
Boats to the island beaches are running every 30 minutes.
Ice cream stands (and seagulls flying above) dot the urban landscape.
The sun sets at about 11:00 p.m.
It's "summer" in Helsinki.
Since it's "summer" (I use that term loosely since it still hasn't hit 70 degrees for more than a day or two at a time), we decided to visit Hanko Beach--the "sunniest place in Finland!" But on the day we went to Hanko, it was most definitely NOT sunny and most decidedly NOT summer!
Some of our Finnish friends laughed and said, "it was chilly and overcast because you must go to Hanko on a sunny day in July." If I read between the lines, I think that means A. the really warm weather doesn't arrive until July around here and 2. Hanko is the sunniest place in Finland because people only visit it on the sunny days!
All sarcasm aside, we found Hanko to be a lovely little seaside village that, on a warm day (in July perhaps?) would be the PERFECT place to spend a day on the beach!
But what do you when you're at the beach, it's only 60 degrees and overcast and sometimes even a bit drizzly?
Well, if you're MY kids, you entertain yourselves with snails for what seems like hours. Honestly, I can't believe my kids got such a kick out of the snails that were everywhere we walked!
There was even a wedding for these two:
Lily loved collecting shells.
And we all enjoyed our trip to the top of the water tower.
Even in the dreariest weather, it's hard to beat the view of the sea.
Hanko is known for its Russian villas--beautiful wood buildings that were built around the turn of the 20th century for people visiting the Hanko Spa.
Truth be told, while we enjoyed our trip to Hanko, we cut it short by about 5 hours because we were cold! Instead, we opted to come back to Helsinki and enjoy Sam's favorite--steamed Chinese dumplings--at a restaurant a friend recommended.
Saturday, June 9, 2012
Boats
My kids are really getting used to travelling by boat.
Around here, boats can take you places...
...like the zoo
or a beach, or a cafe or an old fort or another country!
Guess you could say we're becoming regular seafarers.
Around here, boats can take you places...
...like the zoo
or a beach, or a cafe or an old fort or another country!
Guess you could say we're becoming regular seafarers.
Thursday, June 7, 2012
An early birthday
Joey and his band of buddies:
This is a really nice bunch of kids. As a group, they represent 9 different nationalities. Fortunately, they all speak English (which is why they were grouped together at school).
We celebrated Joey's birthday a bit early this year at an indoor mini golf place with an American theme. I'm not sure, but I think the mural on the wall was Chicago!
After golf, we had cupcakes and ice cream. This group of boys is really into juggling, which is fortunate because Joey taught himself to juggle (with a little help from his old mom--thanks to high school gym class) so he fit right in.
Actually, I'm not sure if this thing
the "diablo," is considered a juggling toy. But these boys are all crazy about their diablos.
In fact, Oskari and Ivan found an empty stage next to the place where we had ice cream. They put out a hat and earned a few Euros entertaining passersby with their tricks!
Here they are throwing their diablos to each other
and then catching them!
Who knows, maybe Joey will bring this trend to Peterson School!
This is a really nice bunch of kids. As a group, they represent 9 different nationalities. Fortunately, they all speak English (which is why they were grouped together at school).
We celebrated Joey's birthday a bit early this year at an indoor mini golf place with an American theme. I'm not sure, but I think the mural on the wall was Chicago!
After golf, we had cupcakes and ice cream. This group of boys is really into juggling, which is fortunate because Joey taught himself to juggle (with a little help from his old mom--thanks to high school gym class) so he fit right in.
Actually, I'm not sure if this thing
the "diablo," is considered a juggling toy. But these boys are all crazy about their diablos.
In fact, Oskari and Ivan found an empty stage next to the place where we had ice cream. They put out a hat and earned a few Euros entertaining passersby with their tricks!
Here they are throwing their diablos to each other
and then catching them!
Who knows, maybe Joey will bring this trend to Peterson School!
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