Finnish Differences

Time is a funny thing. It seems to move in leaps and bounds at times and at times it moves slower than molasses. Right now it's doing both. I can't believe it's only been a week and yet I can't believe it's already been a week.

Sunset in Helsinki

This week I've been in Helsinki for our Fulbright orientation. We learned a lot of information and it would be impossible for me to fit all of it into a reasonable amount of space so I will leave that summary for another day. But a week has given me some time to notice some differences in how things work in Finland and how they work in the US. I thought I would highlight five here that encompass a fair variety of my experiences so far. I have to give credit to my friend Marie who helped me with this list. Many of these are her ideas.

1. Nature is Everywhere

This one is first because I think it is the most important one for Finns. Finnish people love nature and it shows in the way cities are built (at least the two I've seen so far). There are trees everywhere and small parks tucked away throughout the city. Both Turku and Helsinki are coastal cities so water plays an important role in forming the structure of the city. Of course, outside of the cities is where the real natural beauty is, though I have yet to explore that part of the country.

The River Aura that runs through Turku

The Fulbright team tried explaining the fascination that nature holds for Finnish people and I am going to attempt to do my best to explain it here. Many families here have summer cottages which do not have the usual amenities such as electricity and air conditioning. The idea is to get as close to our natural state as possible, back into the simplicity that once existed in our lives. This struck me since it is quite the opposite of what a relaxing vacation is for an American.

2. Bikes, bikes, bikes!

The hidden path I was supposed to take.

Virtually anywhere you want to go is accessible by bike or by foot. These paths crisscross the city and make biking a very convenient way to get around. Sometimes these paths are not very obvious, such as when I went to Ekotori, a second hand shop about three kilometers from where I live. Google maps lead me across a bridge but when I reached the other side I couldn't find the road I needed to continue down. It turned out it was a narrow path, barely wide enough for one person. But sure enough, it got me to where i wanted to go. You can see people of all ages riding their bikes around town, from the young school boys playing Pokemon Go while peddling furiously to the elderly going at a leisurely pace.

3. Peace and Punctuality

I love public transportation here (though I've only taken the train between Helsinki and Turku). This is for two reasons, the first being that it is punctual to the dot. If the train leaves at 8:37, it will leave at 8:37. This makes planning a route very easy since you can expect to get to places on time. Trains are also very peaceful. They hardly make a sound.

And both can be said about people too. While we were on our orientation, we were reminded what time to meet the rest of the group at least three times and this made it possible for everything to work like clockwork. One thing I never worried about was getting out late. As a people they are also quiet. For most Finnish people, there is no such thing as an awkward silence and they don't feel the need to fill in every moment with chatter.

4. Finnish humility

During our orientation, the Fulbright director took a moment to recommend some books that we could read to learn more about the Finnish way of life. During this time, someone mentioned a book that came out in the US called The Nordic Way of Everything by Anu Partenen. Our director hadn't heard of the book but she said that Finnish people would probably react to it by downplaying what it said. This humility has been apparent to me a few other times as well.

A phone booth in the Open Air museum in Helsinki

The first was during a reception we went to at the US ambassador's residence during our orientation. There were many important people invited, especially people who were important to each of us in our respective fields. Naturally, this meant some were in education. While I was talking to the director of a local vocational business school, she asked me why I had chosen Finland and I said it has one of the best education systems in the world. Her response was to say that people in Finland wouldn't say that out of humility.

Even Finnish history is quite humble. The small country spent World War II trying to simply stay independent and out of the way as much as possible. This didn't work out since the war came to its borders anyway. Even though Finland lost the wars, in many respects, it remained an independent nation and that was ultimately what mattered most.

5. Gender equality

I've been very impressed by the number of women I've seen in high positions of authority. It is impossible to say that here it is a man's world. The executive director of Fulbright Finland? A woman. The Minister of Education and Culture? A woman. Being a woman does not hold you down in Finland. In fact, the language doesn't even allow for speakers to use gendered pronouns. Instead, you have to say "the woman" or "the man."

Next week is my last week off before classes start. There are many miscellaneous tasks to get done before then. Nähdään myöhemmin!