What an Amazing Trip!

I saw off the last of our students at about 7:30pm yesterday at the airport. Jessica Kearns was still waiting for her dad, who was only five minutes away, when my wife came to pick me up. What can I say - God does work in mysterious ways. Rescheduling the trip four days later gave us tremendous weather for the duration of our stay in Helsinki. The vice principal of Sotunki Secondary School told me that the warm and sunny temperatures were somewhat of an anomaly but a welcomed one, especially when it had been raining, cold, and drabby the previous week.

Helsinki at dusk

What an amazing experience it was for all of us. As the instructor for this course, I would first of all like to personally thank Dr. Tom Schaefer for working with us on getting the trip scheduled again. I would also like to thank our students for being very cooperative and responsible throughout the trip. They displayed tremendous patience and maturity, and represented themselves well both as LRC students and American citizens abroad. I never had any problem with them abiding by the set rules, especially with the curfew that was imposed each night - Danielle became the unofficial notifier when the group walked past my room each night. Our group dynamics were also positive and strong, and we enjoyed each other's company very much throughout the whole travel. Kate was a blessing to have with me on the trip as she was extremely helpful especially in situations that required smooth coordination in managing flight check-ins, student safety and concerns, and travel planning. In order to fully follow our stay in Helsinki, please read our blog from the FIRST posting.

Several  junior students at Lauttasaaren Comprehensive School practicing for their farewell performance to their seniors who will be graduating in  a few weeks

This travel abroad was both a mix of a working tour and a cultural learning experience. We met and engaged in dialogues with education officials, Finnish schoolteachers, principals, and students. We also met and talked with ordinary people walking their dogs, in parks, on buses and trams,flea markets, and in bars and hotel.I think there were many people in Finland who learned and gained sufficient insight about us and our college as well. We certainly held the La Roche flag flying high wherever we went on our visit. I couldn' t have asked for a better group of people to go on our trip, and I hope that each of us will keep alive this memory of our travel to Finland and the experiences we acquired from it throughout our lives. To Rachel, Gene, Sheila, Jason, Laura, Jessica K., Jessica F., Putu, Christiana, Danielle, Rebecca and Kate, as the Finns say it "..kiitos!"

Final Touchdown

Our lucky group of 13 have arrived safely in Pittsburgh, after one last delay. We all have wonderful Finnish memories and are really glad that our trip could be rescheduled.

Stateside once again

We arrived safely on US soil, having just enough time to stand in line at customs and walk the entire length of Dulles to get to our gate.

I did enjoy the view from the window seat on the flight across the Atlantic.

All. Out. Meatfest

Yesterday we had the pleasure of attending the restaurant Kaarna, located within the heart of Helsinki.  As an appetizer, we received the Kaarna game platter.  Both myself and Gene thought that the platter was the entree of the meal, yet it only served as an appetizer.  We were able to try delicacies including smoked reindeer tenderloin, smoked elk, and a reindeer mouse.  All were very delicious and mouthwatering.  After the students devoured their game platters, we received a slow cooked beef brisket that needed no more than a gentle push of a fork to cut.  After we finished the entree, we received warm individual slice of blueberry pie and a scoop of salacious french vanilla ice-cream.  The consensus among most of the students was that this was the best meal of the course, one that definitely demonstrated the culture of food in Helsinki.

-Jason & Gene

Traveling back in time

We have successfully traveled back through one time zone, and are waiting in the Frankfort airport for our flight through the next six time zones!

Airport

Can't believe that the trip is coming to an end! I had so much fun going overseas for the first time! I learned so much about finlands unique culture and their education system. My favorite part of the trip was visiting the schools and meeting the students! I think their success is a result of the students motivation and flexibility within the system. Being able to pick your path in school will make you more willing to enjoy learning. 

Farewell Finland

We are all checked in at the Helsinki airport, awaiting our first flight back home. Since we had to leave the hotel at 5am, many of us are tired and hoping to get some sleep on the way home. As disappointed as we were that this trip did not work out on the originally planned dates, there were some advantages to our delayed timeline...especially the weather, which has been 80 degrees the past few days.  We never expected to get a sunburn in Finland, but many of us have red noses!

Finnish Fashion

Happy Birthday in Helsinki

I had a great time celebrating my birthday in Helsinki today. We had a wonderful "Farewell to Finland" dinner tonight at Kaarna. Some people said it was not only the best meal they have had in Finland, but it was the best meal they have EVER had!

We started with a smoked game plate...elk is on the top in this photo with reindeer mousse in the center and reindeer meat on the bottom of the picture. Most everyone at least tried these meats, some ate more than others!

We ended the meal with Finnish blueberry pie...I had special birthday decorations on mine. 

To "Finnish" a fabulous evening, we saw a rainbow as we walked back to the hotel. It is still light here at 10pm.

Fazer Souvenirs

Some of you who are reading this post may be lucky enough to get some souvenirs from this place...if they survive the plane ride home! If there are delays again, I cannot guarantee that my entire allotment will survive!

Finnish Animals

During our free time this afternoon, I took a ferry over to the Helsinki Zoo since it was another beautiful day to be outside. The zoo was very nice, with several baby animals on display that had just been born this spring. Here are some native Finnish animals that I saw...see if you can identify them.

Our group had all ready noticed that the rabbits here are HUGE!

Finnish School Visit #3

We took the scenic route to visit the third and final Finnish school on our tour.

This school was on a small island just west of the city. We took a city bus and then walked in the park to get there. Lauttasaaren Yhteiskoulu is a school building that includes the upper grades of the compulsory school in Finland. So the classes we saw today had students aged 13-15. We saw the students cleaning the kitchen areas for the end of the semester and heard some students practicing a farewell song, which was appropriate for our group today. 

One of the foreign language teachers, Heikki, gave a brief presentation on the school and answered our questions very well. Heikki was pleased with the La Roche pennant and picture frame that Azlan presented to him as a small thank you, or as they say in Finland, "Kiitos!"

Day 3: Visit to Fiskars; and Day 4: School Visits

On Sunday, we took a drive to Fiskars, the home of the famous scissors. The village has been rejuvenated into a tourist magnet since the iron industry left . Some photos of Fiskars not already uploaded are posted below:


A pretty picture of a waterfall

 

There's always a place for kids to work off their energy

Back in Helsinki that evening, I left the students with Kate for dinner while I met up with some members of the various minority and refugee communities at the Dakwah Multicultural Center in a northern suburb outside the city. I had earlier contacted them to arrange for my visit and they obliged by giving up their Sunday to meet me. I managed to involve myself in very fruitful and informative two-hour dialogue on the various challenges and experiences of this group as they struggle with their present situation and prepare for their future lives in Finland.

DAY 4: School Visits:
On Monday, we took a tour of Vantaa Vocational College just outside of Helsinki. Like elsewhere in the world, vocational training carries the stigma of being less prestigous than the upper scondary track, where students would likely enter university in Finland. Nevertheless, the country has invested a lot of money to keep their students from falling off the radar and into some form of technical training. According to many Finlanders I have personally met however, they now favor the vocational track for their kids since there is  a surplus of overqualified graduates in the country. With free healthcare and generous social benefits, a secure technical and service-based job would only make sense since this sector has increasingly grown in demand.

Presenting Ms Veera Lanttola of the Vantaa Vocational School with a La Roche souvenir after taking us around for a tour.

Our group poses for a photo in one of the vocational classrooms.

 After this visit, we went on a tour of the Sotunki Secondary School, also in Vantaa. We had a nice lunch at the cafeteria, visited their sports activities, library, maths and home economics classes, as well as a couple of English classes. We also had interesting conversations with students in the school on topics ranging from culture to politics to sports. Here is a photo of me and Rebecca with a couple of 16-year olds, who earnestly presented us with information on the country's social security system.

Sauna

Yesterday I tried the sauna in Finland. I've gone to a sauna before at the gym I belong to, but I had to try it here!  Saunas are a huge thing in Finland.  Many of the people we have met here have said they use a sauna a couple times a week.  Some do a couple times a day. Most of them have them in their houses!!  The temperature was comfortable for Jess and me, but apparently a lot of the other La Roche students had temperatures a lot higher than we did! 

School visits picture

School Visits

Today I had the opertunity to visit to different types of schools. In Finland you must decide what path you want to take at the young age of 15. You can decide between vocational school or upper secondary. My favorite part was talking to the students. I learned everything from the truth about Santa Claus to real Finnish cuisine! I think that these students are so successful because they are given the opertunity to make their own choices about their education. Even though deciding your future at a young age would be difficult I think the two school choices offer many flexible paths and supports. Here is a picture from the vocational school. These students are painting marble. 

Picnic in the Park

Everyone enjoyed a picnic dinner in the park across the street from our hotel tonight.

Visit to Finnish Schools

Today we were able to visit two different schools, to get some first hand experience with Finnish education. In Finland, the compulsory school is for students aged 7-16. Then, students can choose to continue their education at a vocational school or at an upper secondary school for an additional 3-4 years (about 90% of students choose to continue, since both options are free.) We had the opportunity to visit a school from each option.

We boarded a bus with fancy conference tables and headed north of the city, approximately 30 minutes, to Vantaa.

At Vantaa Vocational College Of Varia, Veera gave us a brief overview of the vocational options available to students and then we took a tour of the facilities.

In the classroom...

Possibly the most important vocation to learn in Finland...how to install saunas. 

Next, we visited an upper secondary school, Sotunki. The English teacher at this school had arranged a wonderful afternoon of interactions with the students, starting with lunch in the school cafeteria...burritos!

It was 80 degrees in Finland today, so we enjoyed soaking up the sun as we watched a gym class play Finnish baseball...quite different than the American version. Some of us even got in the game...

The best part of the day, though, was the chance to talk with small groups of Finnish students (16-19 years old). Each group of students had prepared short presentations about Finnish schools and Finnish culture.  We learned about everything from how they schedule classes to sports at the school to how saunas work and even about Santa Claus! This also provided the Finnish students with a chance to practice speaking English. The interactions that I had with these students will probably be the highlight of the trip for me.

"If it looks good... eat it" Andrew Zimmern. This a quote from one of my favorite Travel Channel show "Bizzare Food".  Finns really know how to cook their seafood! I am going to miss this part of this beautiful country...

Santa Clause

Although we didn't get a chance to go see where Santa Clause lives in Finland, we did get a chance to go to a Chistmas store today which was really cool! It was full on Santa Clause figurines and ornaments. It was interesting to see how their image of Santa differs from ours in the USA.

- Rachel and Sheila 

Fiskar's Village

Another beautiful day for a walk, this time in the Finnish countryside. We traveled by bus to Fiskar's Village, which is an 80 minute drive northwest of downtown Helsinki. Fiskar's Village used to be the industrial center that manufactured the famous orange handled scissors, but now it is an artist community. The scenery was spectacular...the perfect backdrop for many photo opps today. 

A Day by the Water Photo

Walking Tour Photo

Walking Tour

Although my feet are sore from walking so much I had a wonderful day exploring and sight seeing Helsinki Finland. I had good pasta and macaroons in the outdoor market. I even got to take a ferry ride over to summenlinna Island.  The sights were gorgeous as well as the weather today.

A Day By The Water

I really loved being by the water today! We had nice weather, which made the Ferry ride more enjoyable. There were boats in the water and every site was beautiful. Also loved walking through the market and seeing the different stands for souvenirs. There was a ton of food and desserts that I  wanted to try. I got a lot of exercise today!

Suomenlinna Wedding

Walking around Suomenlinna we saw a wedding party coming out of the church! We rode the ferry with some of the guests on the way over to the island so it was nice to be able to watch the group leave the church!  I think we are even in some of their photographs... 

Suomi Walking Tour

Thankfully the weather made up for our delayed trip. The weather is simply beautiful. I was amazed at how the city set up pop-up restaurants. They were all different nationalities and some even wore traditional dress. It was wonderful to walk through the square and smell all the different foods. I thoroughly enjoyed taking a ferry ride and getting to see the city from the water. 

Pizza party

Walking Tour

I had so much fun walking around the city of Helsinki today. The market was amazing. I love shopping! 

Handmade sterling silver necklace bought at the market

Second day Helsinki: Senate Square, Waterfront,, and Suomenlinna - UNESCO Heritage site

In the morning,we walked over to the famous Senate Square which houses, among other things, the Finnish senate building. The weather was gorgeously mild and very sunny. Central Helsinki was bustling with activity. There was food, festivals, and multi-cultural performances. Finns took to the streets and enjoyed the day at parks and cafes as well as the waterfront to eat, hang out and shop. This afternoon, the group visited the UNESCO world heritage site of Suomenlinna, off Helsinki. A fifteen-minute ferry ride got us there to explore the island. Below are some photos:

 

The group at the steps of the Senate building in Senate Square

 

Central Helsinki was a hive of activity today

All kinds of local dishes sold on the waterfront

 

Ferry ride to Suomenlinna Fortress

 

Happened to catch a wedding group walking to church on Suomenlinna island

 

a choir performance by a visually-impaired group on Suomenlinna island

 

Wooden quay near fortress courtyard

Helsinki Highlights

We had beautiful weather to take a walking tour of Helsinki today, as you can see from the clear blue sky in this photo of Senate Square.

Some of us were adventurous and ate an entire plate of small fried fish for lunch...heads, tails, bones and all!

Look...it's all gone!

We also took a ferry out to Saumenlinna Fortress and walked some more!

There were tunnels in the fortress...

And cannons, too! 

We had a wonderful day exploring this waterfront city, but now everyone is glad to relax for the evening.