Laura's mom made us some amazing food. And while I am a vegetarian I had to try some Finnish food that included meat, therefore I named myself a cultural vegetarian. So if anyone ever gets a chance to have reindeer I highly recommend it. Also Tina makes the best cinnamon rolls, we even got to take some with us, and while Laura made us these before, it was good to try Tina's. Also it was fun to have squeaky cheese any time I wanted, thou this was not homemade it was great.
During our stay in Helsinki, I got to meet a few of Laura's friends. We went to a world festival that had some interesting people playing music and a lot of booths about different organizations. Though the best part was just talking to other Finlanders about their culture and government. For instance, I had not realized how integrated the government and religion were with each other. If one claims to be part of a church they have to pay a certain amount out of their yearly income to that religion. The only percentages I learned were Lutheran which is 1% and Mormon which is 10%. This taxation allows for the family to baptize children there, have first communion, get married, and a funeral service, at least in the Lutheran faith. Laura's friends also discussed the Finnish school and university systems with me and it was interesting to learn more about a government paid education.
Then it was on to Turku. Laura goes to the school here and it was the original capital when the Russians and Swedes ruled. Therefore we saw Turku's castle, another Doom church, the university, a few market places, and went bowling. Turku was a very relaxing city compared to Helsinki. And while Helsinki was much more relaxed than Ireland, it was still nice to just visit have more good food, check out shops, and watch movies. I really enjoyed Finland and know that I would love to go back there someday.
~DH
*coming soon* GERMANY!!!!
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