Getting to Finland

    When we landed in Helsinki-Vantaa Airport, it was the weirdest feeling for us all. We had been waiting for so long to get to Finland, and it was actually happening. Our seats were spread all over the plane so when we all walked off separately, we could see each other walking off the gangway with the largest grins ever. The first thing I said in Finland was “I can’t calm my face down. I can’t stop smiling.” (True fact. I said it to my friend Molly. Ask her.)

    So at our gate, we YFU students did just what we usually do when we get off planes: use the bathrooms. And with using international bathrooms comes oodles of confusion. This time I opened the door the correct way. The soap dispensers were okay. The sink was automatic. To dry my hands… geuh. A lot of the hand dryers in Finland are a box with what looks like a towel hanging from it. To dry your hands, you pull the towel down and as soon as you let go, it pulls the part of the towel that was exposed to your filthy hands back into the box so nobody uses the same part of this continuous towel.

    One thing you should start knowing about Finland (it will probably be relevant a lot) is how Finns don’t chatter too much. When Finns talk, it’s generally quietly and straight to the point with no room for small talk. (Trust me, there are exceptions to everything.) So one of the first things we noticed when walking through the airport was how quiet it was. Of course people were talking, but our group of thirteen Americans was just a bit higher on the volume level than everyone else.

    So we met with our YFU Finland staff at the other side of baggage claim (without going through customs…hope I’m not illegal right now). Another student from Estonia was joining our group from this point because she was also doing the Finnish summer program. We were soon boarded on a small charter bus that would take us to Turku, Finland which is about two hours from Helsinki. On the bus they gave us some Finnish snacks and preparatory materials for our other orientation happening in Turku. And we were off to our first outing in Finland!

    That night, we ate dinner at ‘Restaurant Blanko’ on the side of the river in Turku, and throughout the whole meal, we just kept repeating “We’re in Finland” because it just felt so great to say. But the next day would really be the day of seeing and touring Turku.