Outlandish

Loneliness. Doesn't have quite the same ring to it in English as it does in Finnish. In Finland loneliness has been in headlines for a while now because it's becoming a huge social problem: 400 000 lonely people in a country of 5 million. Scientifically explained loneliness is an involuntary experience and emotion. For a lot of people in the world this might sound incomprehensible, but even in a metropolis you can be completely alone. I would know.   As a Finn I enjoy being on my own every now and then. Nothing beats a lazy Sunday alone at home or in a café with a book. During busy weeks or months I see those lonely days as a bit of luxury. But a human being, especially me, has a limit with the voluntary loneliness. For some that limit is just a need to ask an opinion or telling someone what happened to them today. The simplest thing, but it can be devastating if you don't have anyone to ask or to tell. Others, like me, have the limit much lower: just the need to s...

Europe is in complete panic with hundreads of thousands of people flooding from Africa and Middle-East into our lands. Even if EU forced its member countries to receive these people (which it didn't do but instead made it voluntary) the European countries still could not take in all the people coming here. Nobody knows what will come from all of this, but people are fearing the worst. For example Slovakia just announced that  it will only receive Christians . Quite a tricky thing that and very short-sighted. But that's because they have never in their history taken in refugees. This country is very racist but only because they don't know any better. People are always afraid of everything new and strange. Also in Nordic countries people seem to be more racist. But I don't believe they are. But the few racists can now make a lot of noise through different medias and thus make it look like there are a lot of them. In Finland we've been following how in Sweden thei...

My long-time dream has been to go see a classic ballet performance. And what would be a better place for it (after Russia maybe) than the Slovak National Ballet performing Swan Lake. I had proper clothing crisis before going there and I had about an hour after work to figure out my hair and what I could wear. Eventually I had to be very happy for the blazer I found in Zara earlier this year because it makes any outfit look good, with high heels obviously. What I really like about Slovakia is that Slovak people want to look good and they understand the unspoken dress codes in different events. For ballet people dress up. Maybe not in a ball gown but people had definitely put some effort in their outfits: men wearing suits and women cocktail dresses or office chic outfits. I approve! When in London we went to see the Phantom of the Opera I thought that the dress code would be similar to what I saw this Wednesday at the ballet. I can't describe how horrified and disappointed ...

Summer has arrived in Bratislava. Or at least it did for couple of days. This week we've enjoyed absolutely wonderful weather with Sun every day and temperatures between 20 and 26 degrees. As a person who cannot handle cold and cloudy climate I can honestly say I fit here quite perfectly.  Even though I have totally enjoyed myself when it comes to weather I have also been putting a lot of thought on a simple thing called helping. Something that in Slovakia can almost be taken for granted but which can't be expected from almost anyone in Finland.  I have received help a LOT in my life time especially in my travels. Whether I took the help that I was being offered is a different thing. But even if, while struggling in the tube in London with two huge suitcases I said I can handle it on my own, I've always appreciated the fact that people at least offered to help. In Finland there was never any need for refusing help because nobody ever offered it. There...

Another funny thing came into light again this week where Finns and Eastern-Europeans differ a lot. OK, I can't say this applies to most Slovaks but definitely to most of my team here. Holidays.  In Finland we work for the sole reason of having a long, lazy summer vacation. I started here last summer and people were being   told  to use their vacation days from 2013... I can't imagine how that is even possible?! And still, before Christmas people were really being told that you   absolutely HAVE to   take days off. I mean, if people here really aren't that eager to have days off I volunteer to help them by taking those days from them! But anyway, we had a funny incident in a grocery store this week with my neighbour/colleague: we were queuing behind an elderly woman talking in English, of course. When the woman got to the counter she started talking to the salesperson about us. My neighbour translated to me: according to the woman it is so important...

So far I've seen Slovaks and Finns to be very similar in culture and behaviour. But on Friday I had a cold reality call when it turned out that the salaries were nowhere to be seen. And what in Finland would end up in big headlines is taken with complete ignorance here. Ever since our teams were outsourced there have been problems from switching between work systems to salaries. Last month the salaries were late for one day and we were ensured that it would never happen again. Of course we believed it. Now it turns out that we shouldn't have: salaries were late for days. In Finland you go to work, remember it's the pay day, check your account and if it turns out that the salary hasn't even been transferred yet, you would turn on your heels and return home... Who would work without being paid? Apparently Slovaks would.  I was so furious I couldn't concentrate on anything, it was just so against all my principles to keep working when other people i...

Autumn in Central Europe means wine and beer festivals. Best known is obviously the Octoberfest in Germany, but Slovakia has its own alcohol-related festivities as well. September was the time for the local wine makers to provide their range of local wines to people in the multiple wine festivals around Slovakia. Unfortunately I did not attend any of them. But last weekend the beer fest came into town! If you ask Slovak people, many of them will recommend Czech beers over Slovak beers. I don't know much about beer since I never drank it before moving here. But out of the three beers that we bought at the beer fest I could easily identify my favourite. And that was all I was actually able to get out of the festival because after the first beers a colleague of mine (with whom I went to the fest) all of a sudden fainted. I was able to catch her before she hit her head on the gobble stones, thank goodness. She had barely hit the ground when there were people swarming ar...

There was a lot of buzz in the social media and in yellow press  in Finland about a middle-aged woman insulting a mildly handicap girl in a café. In another article  a man described how in France traveling with a wheelchair is much, MUCH easier than in Finland because people are always willing to help. These caught my eye because I have been thinking about basic manners since moving here. I once had coffee with a man who had lived in Finland for a year and he said that as much as he liked Finland as a country he couldn't stand the fact that Finns have absolutely no regard for manners. Out loud I completely agreed with him, on the inside I cried because I couldn't think of any defence for my countrymen: the man was right.   Here in Bratislava it's a completely different story. Even though many Slovak people have told me that Slovaks are rude, unfriendly and jealous I can't but disagree. I have never been to a country were basic manners are such an everyday,...

I can't remember ever having a culture shock. Every time I've moved abroad the first night/morning is always terrible (missing mum and thinking what the hell did I come here for!) but that's got nothing to do with culture shock. Culture shock means disorientation and confusion when moving to a foreign country and the habits and customs are not what you have been used to. Well, I haven't lived in such exotic places but Finland is rather different from most European countries culturally.   Here in Bratislava I've felt quite at home from the beginning. The city is maybe a bit smaller than Helsinki, and most of the time the architecture and the nature reminds me of Greece. But the thing that feels the most familiar to me are the people. Slovaks are not exactly the warmest kind of people at first but all of the Slovaks I've had the priviledge of spending time with have turned out to be absolutely wonderful. Chatty, super helpful, funny and always worri...