We are like that only!

Every morning at least 8 to 10 people get off the bus at Nokia...Koreans, Chinese, Finns and some Indians...

Everyone walks on the pedestrian pathway…Oulu is known as one of the most friendly cities for cyclists and pedestrians.

Today, Suddenly I see this Indian, running across the road and the grass, cutting across from all corners to reach the office. The difference that this zig zagging made to the total distance is less than 10 steps!!!!

Pedestrian crossings exist at regular intervals on the street with several office buildings...Our man crosses the road bang in the middle of 2 pedestrian crossings!!!

Why are we like that only?

Karelian Rice Pies

Finally…traditional Finnish food…eaten the Finnish way!

These rice pies were served at breakfast in the hotel on my visit to Salo. I took one but didn't like it at all!!!

However, at a recent visit to a Finnish home, Sirpa warmed them and asked me to try it with butter or cheese or egg. I didn't want to hurt her so took half of it with some butter and it was yummy! Obviously I tried another with cheese and really…to enjoy traditional food one must eat it the way the locals do.

Team Outing - Hailuoto Island

When I first reached Oulu (in all that snow!) and asked anyone what is a  nice thing to do around Oulu they would suggest a visit to Hailuoto Island, but with a caveat…wait till Summer. There is a nice sandy beach and in Summer there is lot of greenery and its very beautiful…hmmm…it sounded like a must visit! Lot of bird watching also since migratory birds stop here on their way back home!

A pleasant surprise when the Jouni and Tero suggested that they wanted to show us Oulu countryside and the place they chose was Hailuoto Island!!! And on a Monday…even more exciting!!!

Hailuoto means "Shark Isle". There are no Sharks! but why it is called that I STILL haven't been able to figure out. Even Google wasn’t able to answer this one!!!

The island is accessible by ferry year round. In Winters, the  sea ice thickness reaches 40 cm and then you can DRIVE the car OVER the ice!!! That would have been interesting…as it is I couldn’t get over walking on sea…imagine DRIVING on sea!

But even in early May the ferry ride itself was very nice. It felt like a trip on an ice breaker crushing large ice floes. So I saved the *** euros that you need to pay for a trip on the Sampo Ice Breaker! This is a pic of the ice sea taken from the ferry as it breakes through the ice!

We drove right across the beautiful island to the most western point called Marjaniemi. There was a small exhibition there about the island. Its actually a very young island which came into being in the medieval period as a result of a rise in the level of the land. The island is continuously expanding and in a couple of hundred years it will be a part of the continent!

Some stuffed birds and salmons…I had seen these in Rovaniemi also and thought that they were fakes, but I was told by Jouni that they were real!!! Yikes!

Lunch at a restaurant there…I felt this could be my opportunity to try the traditional Finnish food as I would have the locals to help me out. But there was this fixed menu and the vegetarian option was vegetable au gratin. Unfortunately not terribly Finnish, but made well.

Fixed menus – a main course, some side salad and a drink- makes me want to mention one more thing.  This is the ONLY place in the world that i have seen adults – men and women drink MILK at lunch time!!! Milk is the drink option with the food here. No coke, Fanta etc!

After lunch we decided to walk along the beach. It was kinda funny as in some places the snow still hadn't melted and since it was still a bit chilly and windy so we were all packed up with jackets and caps…it was like a contradiction…walking dressed like that through snow to go to the beach!!!  The sea at the back is still a bit frozen…maybe another 2 weeks till it melts completely.

The Finns love their coffee breaks. In office itself, Tero was like I am prepared for our picnic today as he took a coffee mug out of his pocket! the plan was to stop off at a cottage and make a fire and enjoy the coffee and doughnuts.

That's another great thing. There are these cottages all over the island, where one can just go and use (for free). You can make a nice fire and just relax there.  No need for bookings, if too many people land up, the accepted rule is FIFO.  Its OK to camp there too. If I am here in Sept, this would be an ideal place to hunt the Northern Lights!

When we reached the ferry point, we realised that the next ferry was after another 1 hr, so we decided to go back…and maybe buy a reindeer!

This was an interesting sign that we had seen on the way. When we reached this place it seemed very quiet. Even when we parked the car no one came out or anything. We ventured out and into the persons backyard, where we actually saw some reindeers.

But the place had this eerie atmosphere…I had this feeling, that this guy is gonna come out with a shot gun and shoot at us for trespassing! Maybe it was the after-effects of doing a project for the Mexico factory!

No one around, very very quiet place …and then we noticed a key in the back door. Probably the owner had gone out. Now I agree…this is one helluva safe place!

But this also meant…We couldnt buy the reindeer ;-)

Bussing around!!!

I know the bus numbers that go home...and as far as I knew No 3 doesn’t go home. But someone mentioned casually that it goes till a certain point (Toripakka), from where I knew that I could take the smaller city bus (Linja C) which leaves me just short of the door step.

So a couple of days later as we waited at the bus stop, I see No 3 coming along. I suggested that we try this bus out, because we can take the Linja C home. Other buses leave us at a point from where I needed to walk 1Km to reach home. Jayanthi told me to ask the bus driver if it actually went to the Toripakka but I was quite sure it would go.

Not that I was wrong!!! It went to Toripakka, but only till Toripakka P and not Toripakka E which is the next stop. At Toripakka P as it turned right instead of left I casually informed to the 2 girls with me that looks like the bus doesn’t go to our stop...the glare I got said it all. Anyway we got off at the next bus stop and thought we would cross the road and take another bus back...only it was some kinda main rood and there was no pedestrian crossing! No jay walking here! So we had to trudge back to the last bus stop…my 2 colleagues with their laptop bags!!!

Just as we were approaching the bus stop I saw No 9 approaching. I ran to flag the bus down...oh yeah that’s the other thing in Oulu – you need to flag down the bus as they will not stop at all stops!!! But I guess he was already in the other lane and so didn’t stop. Immediately behind it was No 1. One day as we waited at the bus stop few days back, an old man struck up a conversation with us. He was waiting for No1 and wanted us to check the number on the bus for him as he wasn’t able to see too well. So I was like…that fella was waiting for this bus, so let’s get on to it.

I was aghast as the bus turned the wrong way again!!! I suggested that we take a round trip on the bus...it has to eventually come back. This way we get to see some more Oulu. Jayanthi gave me such a dirty look. And then started sulking!!! Harsha agreed and so off we went.

I had assumed that the round trip won’t be too long as buses seemed quite frequent at that time. Soon we noticed that we seemed to be going out of town as we were greeted with a signboard – Oulu 6. I thought…ok maybe after some time. Oulu 11, Oulu 15, Oulu 17...my sense of direction ain’t very great but somehow this time I felt I was correct. Every time I thought now he should turn left or right to go back towards Oulu he would take the other direction!!!

I started getting a little psyched. We had been on the bus for quite some time. What if the bus goes to some last stop and there is no return bus today!!! We were definitely NOT in Oulu anymore. So much for adventure!!! Oulu 21...that is it...now I thought that Jayanthi will probably murder me!

By now all the people had got off and we 3 were the only ones on the bus. The driver stopped the bus and turned around and said something in Finnish, which I guessed was...’so where the hell do u wanna go, u seem to be on the bus for a long time’. I said Oulu centre...we seem to have got lost. He gave me such a weird smile and shake of his head and said...OK, I go Oulu centre.

And I heaved a sign of relief!

Being myself

is my greatest strength.

Mediterranean Cruise – July 2009

It started off as plans to travel around in Spain…several of my WOW friends were interested but Gowri was planning to use her Club Mahindra membership so the group size had to be limited to 4. Somewhere along the line it changed to Barcelona and a Mediterranean cruise.

I had agreed to go along…and then people started saying…cruises aren’t so much value for money if one wants to really explore the county as you get to visit only the ports and that too for a short time. A cruise is a must once in a lifetime, but it should be for the sake of the cruise alone. A new port everyday...hmmm not such a great idea.

I started having second thoughts, but then somehow decided to go along. AND NO REGRETS!!! I had the most awesome time on board the MSC – Fantasia. Started from Barcelona , touched Marseille, Genoa, Naples, Palermo, Tunis, Palma de Mallorca and a week later we were back in Barcelona.

Can’t decide where to start from…the first view was awesome. This incidentally is a scan of a photograph that I won in a art quiz that the art gallery on board the ship had organized for the passengers!

I guess I never expected it to be so huge. Later on I was told that it can accommodate 3300 passengers and 1500 crew!!! I wondered what they needed so much staff for.

But as I spent time on the cruise I realised why. While breakfast and lunch was buffet system, dinner seating was 6 people to a table, and they had one butler and one helper for each table!!! By the end of the cruise we had become so fond of our butler, Marinela Seuleanu, that I am still in touch with her and she is my friend on fb too! She took such good care and made us feel so special. The whole meal with its 4 courses would be quite heavy so i would tell her to miss something out, but she would insist and say…’I get small helping for you…baby’. She was younger than me…but insisted on calling me baby! If i would wonder which dessert to order, she would say…’I get all for u!’ Ohhhh…she can still bring a smile to my face.

When I went up to the top deck, there were 4swimming pools and staff busy organizing some activities  for everyone…which included yoga, aerobics, jam sessions, dancing and what not!

18 decks…whew!!! 13 for passengers and what didn't we have on these 13 floors -  something I could never have imagined…a squash court, jogging track, sports centre, SPA, beauty salon, gymnasium, theatre, casino, discotheque, F1 simulator, 4D interactive cinema, wine tasting bar, sport bar, jazz bar, coffee bar, 19 bars, 4 restaurants, 2 cafeterias, pizzeria, shopping duty-free area, 4 swimming pools, 12 SPA baths, waterslide, sliding sun roof.

And all these bars had live performances in the evenings…jazz, soft romantic old numbers, piano performances, Mexican singers with their classical guitars…simply an amazing way to spend your evenings.

In one of the bars, they had a dance floor and there were some crew members who would take salsa, tango and other kinds of dance classes in the afternoon. Later in the evening, there would be dancing on this floor and these crew members would double up as partners for people who didn't have dancing partners.  I too enjoyed a salsa dance one evening. I kept insisting that I was born with 2 left feet and wouldn’t be able to dance but he insisted that he would lead me and I needn't worry. And I actually managed the whole dance without tripping over!!!

Late into the night they would have a performance in the theatre too, ranging from stand up comedy, to musical shows, acrobatics and what not...just not to be missed by a theatre freak like me. So I would go for a  shore excursion everyday and return and crash out for 2 hours so that I could stay up and enjoy the live music in the evening and then theatre at night.

The interiors were a bit garish…too much jhik jhak and bright colours, odd combinations…but when the ship came alive with all decked up passengers in the evenings it kinda looked appropriate.

Dressing up in the evenings for dinner was an altogether different experience. So unlike me to get all decked up…and that too when on a holiday!!! But it was fun!

Ahhh…they also have a safety drill. All hands on deck with their lifejackets. Very organised. Massi and I were tired and so tried to hide out in the room…but they made sure they came and got us.

What I like BEST was not having to lug my luggage around from one place to another. Settled into our cabin as we went from one place to another. Every morning I would take a guided shore excursion and return late afternoon to what soon seemed like a temporary home. And the cherry on the cake was getting to see so many new places in different countries!

Calvin!

Tallinn (Estonia)

One of my most unplanned and chaotic holidays ever!!!

An ex-colleague and friend now works for Nokia and was supposed to visit Oulu for work…since March. I had been eagerly waiting for him so that we could do some sightseeing and winter activities here, but his plan kept getting postponed and by the time he reached the snow had all melted and the plans I had made were no longer possible.

He always mentioned he would be coming for 2 weeks or so, so that when he landed here on Thursday I had no clue that he was supposed to leave Oulu on Sunday afternoon!!!

Thursday we made some plans about just hanging around in Oulu over the weekend since he had only till Sunday afternoon. However, Friday afternoon he pings me to say that due to the volcano in Iceland all flights are cancelled, so let’s plan something else. We decided that we would take a train to Helsinki and visit Tallinn in Estonia on Saturday and maybe Poorvoo on Sunday.

Till 2:00 PM we hadn’t decided which train to take. Everybody was warning us that due to the flights cancellations the trains’ will be very busy so we should get some reservations. But the VR site was facing too much traffic and it was getting very difficult to book tickets. Somehow we managed some train tickets and hotel bookings in Helsinki.

No planning, no clue as what to see where, no timings of the ferries to Tallinn, no bookings on the ferries…NOTHING AT ALL!

Raghu wanted to meet his friends in another hotel the next morning, so we went there first. He seemed to have an impression that there were several small boats that leave every half hr from the port to Tallinn. I did mention to him once that we need to be at the ferry point by 10:00 to catch the 10:30 ferry, but I guess he is used to the US ways. Things are different in UK and Europe, where most offices are closed on weekends. If you don’t have reservations better to reach in time and figure out how to go about everything. So we reached the ferry point at 10:15 and they WOULD’NT sell us tickets to board as they close the check in by 10:20. The next ferry was at 2:00PM. I WAS soooooooo disappointed. We actually begged and pleaded with the lady at the counter but she wouldn’t agree. She wouldn’t even help us with alternatives. We looked around for some information but couldn’t find anything.

Then we went back to the counter and found another lady, who was more helpful. She gave us details of another ferry company whose ferry left at 11:30 from another port. We charged to that place. Too much traffic on the way, but somehow we made it in time. As we entered we saw the place was sooooooo crowded. Went to purchase tickets and were told they were SOLD OUT and they would put us on waitlist. I was sure we wouldn’t get to Tallinn, but Raghu had this conviction that we would. After 20 mins or so, they opened reservations for people on waitlist and after a BMW and a BENZ cab ride we were finally ON OUR WAY TO TALLINN!!!!

We were late and I was wondering if we would be able to see Tallinn properly, but friends who had visited Tallinn told me that it’s a beautiful town, but you don’t need much time there. 4 hrs would be sufficient There are many museums there, but one doesn’t have to visit each one, to which I totally agreed.

Once on board the ferry, I looked for a Tallinn map and/or a guide. Managed to find something and started reading up as much as I could on what to see and do.

Tallinn is a very small town…it has a modern part to it…but the part to visit is what is called the ‘old part of town’. Narrow cobbled roads with churches and cathedrals at every turn, tiny shops selling handicrafts and cute stuff, girls in traditional clothes selling nuts in wooden carts, the old town wall and towers made me think that I was in some other century and soon I will hear clip clop clip clop as a horse drawn carriage approaches me.

The first street seemed to be a flower market. The colours and the sizes of the roses had me gaping. 

The one thing that I didn't want to miss was the Niguliste Church. This church boasts of a fragment of the Dance Of Death painting by Notke. They have converted this church into a museum and one can find detailed explanation of the painting and other sculptures in this church as well as other churches in Estonia. I thought the painting was very nice and that alone made the trip to Tallinn worthwhile.

After visiting the Town Hall we made our way towards the Patkul Platform - narrow cobbled staircase leading to the old city wall and a place where we can get a view of the town and the clock tower.

On the way we visited this shop where the lady had made the most amazing use of colours for making scarves and wall hangings on cloth.

Last stop was to be the Kadriorg Park and Palace. I should have guessed we didn't need to go there when we caught Bus No 3 instead of Tram No 3!!! Thank god that I have this habit of asking people if I am on the right track when I have even a wee bit of doubt. Otherwise god alone knows where we would have reached!!!

Anyways finally we reached the park. What a disappointment!!! Pictures look beautiful…but that is when the flowers are in full bloom. At this time of the year, the place is barren…with nothing interesting to see.

It was now getting time for the ferry back to Helsinki so we started moving towards the port. But I hadn't bought my fridge magnet yet!!! I really wanted to, but looked like there was no time. If I had been on my own I wouldn't have gone…but Rags also wanted one and he was like…I will kill you if we don't get a magnet. This was because initially he wanted to stop at some shop and pick up a magnet and i wouldn't let him. I was like we’ll buy in the end. Now lets move fast towards the Niguliste church.

Luckily we crossed a market on the way to ferry point and quickly bought our magnets!

Unknown Lands!

The gladdest moment in human life is the departure upon a distant journey into unknown lands.

Sir Richard Francis Burton

CRABBY OLD MAN

A simple, but very eloquent poem…

When an old man died in the geriatric ward of a nursing home in North Platte, Nebraska, it was believed that he had nothing left of any value.

Later, when the nurses were going through his meagre possessions, they found this poem. Its quality and content so impressed the staff that copies were made and distributed to every nurse in the hospital.

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What do you see nurses? . . What do you see?
What are you thinking . . . . when you're looking at me?
A crabby old man, . . . . . not very wise,
Uncertain of habit . . . ... with faraway eyes?

Who dribbles his food . . . . . ... and makes no reply .
When you say in a loud voice . .. . . "I do wish you'd try!"
Who seems not to notice . .. . the things that you do.
And forever is losing . . . . . . . a sock or a shoe?

Who, resisting or not . .. . . . lets you do as you will,
With bathing and feeding. .. . . the long day to fill?
Is that what you're thinking? . . Is that what you see?
Then open your eyes, nurse . . . you're not looking at me..

I'll tell you who I am. . . as I sit here so still,
As I do at your bidding, . . . as I eat at your will.
I'm a small child of ten . .. with a father and mother,
Brothers and sisters . . . . . . who love one another.

A young boy of sixteen . . . . with wings on his feet
Dreaming that soon now . . . . . a lover he'll meet..
A groom soon at twenty .. . . .my heart gives a leap.
Remembering, the vows . .. . that I promised to keep.

At twenty-five, now . . . . . I have young of my own.
Who need me to guide . . and a secure happy home.
A man of thirty . . . . . . My young now grown fast,
Bound to each other . . . With ties that should last.

At forty, my young sons . . . have grown and are gone,
But my woman's beside me . . .. to see I don't mourn.
At fifty, once more, . . babies play 'round my knee,
Again, we know children . .. . My loved one and me.

Dark days are upon me . . . .my wife is now dead.
I look at the future . . .. . .. shudder with dread..
For my young are all rearing . . . young of their own.
And I think of the years,. and the love that I've known.

I'm now an old man . . . . . and nature is cruel.
Tis jest to make old age .. . . look like a fool.
The body, it crumbles ... . grace and vigour, depart.
There is now a stone . .. . where I once had a heart.

But inside this old carcass . . . a young guy still dwells,
And now and again .. . . . my battered heart swells.
I remember the joys . . . .. . I remember the pain.
And I'm loving and living . . . . . . life over again.

I think of the years, all too few . .. . gone too fast.
And accept the stark fact . . . that nothing can last.
So open your eyes, people .. . . .. . open and see.
Not a crabby old man. Look closer .. .. see ME!!

SPRING!!!

Finally spring is here…can’t decide if I like negative 13 with the sun out, shining on the pristine white snow or do I prefer the positive 2 with cloudy, drizzly days and dirty, blackish ice!

The Monday morning that I first realized that the snow has started melting, the pedestrian pathway was like an ice rink…so slippery. I walked more horizontally than vertically… searching for patches with either snow or no snow at all and trying to avoid all icy patches. It wasn’t easy and the 10 minutes’ walk to the bus op sttook me nearly 25 minutes, with lots of balancing and break dancing steps in between.

Obvious case of Murphy’s Law – I had a client meeting that day at 8:30 AM. Managed to logon by 8:35, only to find that the client had cancelled the meeting!!!

While returning in the evening, as I crossed the bridge I saw some ducks…where there was a frozen stream till 2 days back, there were now some playful ducks enjoying themselves. As I stopped and looked around, I saw several birds on the trees.

Same place…Winter and Early Spring!!!

The trucks had been to town and removed all the ice during the day so it was much easier to walk now. And then I saw the road towards my house…first time without ice or snow. It was full of potholes!!! I could have easily mistaken it for a BANGALORE road!

Snowmobiling in Rovaniemi!

Snowmobiling at night in search of the Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights…when I first read the brochure for Winter activities in Finland, I knew instantly that this was a must. But somehow couldn’t make the plan to do that in March when the chances of seeing the Northern Lights are more.

Long Easter weekend …finally I gathered the courage to try it out. The sky was clear when we started out at 7:00 PM but by the time we reached the forests there was just too much mist…not the perfect conditions to view Northern Lights!

The snowmobiling experience at night by itself was fantastic. Initially as we geared up in our thermal suits, helmets, goggles etc, I started getting apprehensive on whether I would be able to drive the snowmobile. Unfortunately, my team member too wasn't very confident. They advertise that there will be a short lesson…but that turned out to be just the guide telling us the very basics for 5 mins. When I enquired whether we get a trial lesson…he was like…no..WE JUST GO!!!!

There were 2 more snowmobiles in our safari, apart from the guide and they had all tried snowmobiling before. That kinda scared me even more.

Nervous as hell, we started out.  The snowmobile has skis, so if you don't maintain the right speed it tends to go haywire. Moreover, I somehow couldn't get the hang of the accelerator. I would speed up and let go and then we would slow down. It was some jhatka ride!!!

The guide had told us that the locals use snowmobiles here for transport and tend to be fast so we should remain on the right side of the track…not very easy for an Indian!!! No matter how hard I tried, it kept going to the left!!

After about 20 mins or so, I started getting a hang of it. Its not very easy as we need to hold the handle very hard to make sure we go straight, I could feel the strain in my upper arms.

Then came a snowmobile from front. Somehow managed to take the snowmobile to the right corner. The 2 snowmobiles behind me were not so successful…as in the local had to go a lil off the track to cross them. The guide now stopped for a sanity check and gave me a thumbs up…and a good job comment. Now my confidence started increasing. At that point there was also a change in drivers. My friend took over and we started off again.

Somehow she couldnt get the hang of it at all. She was like zig zagging all over the track…from one corner to the other. So we had to change again and I took over.

Confidence levels up, I started checking my speed…can I make it go a wee bit faster..a lil more…most of the times I was at about 24Km/hr…but vrooooooooooooooooooosh I did manage to touch 38km/hr sometimes. I immediately thought of my friend Poorvi… she would have freaked out and definitely touched 55km/hr at least.

Finally we reached the point which is considered to be the best for watching the Northern Lights. Till then I had been concentrating on driving that I didn't realise that there was so much mist around. So no Northern Lights :-(

But we stopped for a camp fire under a typical Finnish tent, where the guide brewed some kapi and made sausages and tikkis(for the veggies).

After about 30 mins it was time to return. My friend wanted to drive but the guide said, that while returning it is a little difficult for 10 mins and she could take over after that. Ab to I was flying in the air…I am toooo good I thought!

The so called difficult section was a steep downhill, but I managed that quite easily, so by now I thought I was a heroine.  Then my friend took over. But again she had problems and she took us over the side, from where we couldnt get the snowmobile back. The guide had to help us out!  So I had to take over again. Ab toh heroine was in fulltosh form.

There came a very steep turn to be taken under a bridge…the guide indicated that we should slow down…I did, but only a wee bit. You know what happens when you get overconfident and are too fast…YOU CRASH!!!

I could see the crash coming, but it didn't strike me to stop the accelerator or press the emergency button!!! And DHAM…we had turned over. I had nimbly jumped off and was on the side. But my friend lay on the snow. As I called out to her, she didn’t respond. I shook her and still NO RESPONSE.

My heart started beating really fast. It was maybe only 2 mins, but seemed like ages to me. The people at the back came over and one ran to call the guide. Everyone was looking so scared. Suddenly she raised her hand and said…’gimme a hand up’ oooooffffffffffffffffff…thank god.

We checked her up and she seemed ok…so we had to start out again. I thought I wouldn't be able to drive now and even  considered asking one of the people at the back to change places with me. But somehow, I felt that if after the crash I don't drive again, I would have a permanent fear…so I got on and we drove.

But yes, I couldnt speed. Went on the perfect 24km/hr and nearly stopped at all the turns. But reached back in one piece.

Arctic Circle / Santa Claus Village

Only 200kms away from the Arctic Circle…it became absolutely necessary for me to make a visit and cross it, which I did when I visited Rovaniemi.

A very beautiful local bus…Santa’s Express takes you to Santa Claus Village which is just about 8kms from Rovaniemi. The Arctic Circle goes right through the village. And for all touristy purposes, it is nicely marked out so that you can take some pics!!!

Santa Claus Village…very Christmassy even at this time of the year! I actually thought it was December when I entered the place, with the ‘Jingle Bells’ playing in the background, Christmas trees all lit up and the snow which had not yet melted. It was nice to meet Santa Claus and his office was quite nicely done up. Only in all the excitement I lost my beautiful pink mitten :-(

Money making scheme there…you are not allowed to click snaps with Santa with your own cameras. They click the snap and you can buy it. I STILL cant believe i shelled out 25 euros for a snap!!! I’m just gonna blame it on Santa.

Apart from that nothing new to do there…the usual reindeer rides and snowmobiles but it is shopaholic’s paradise. Quaint little shops…one after the other selling all kinds of souvenirs! Even if you don’t want to buy, you feel like browsing because most of it is very traditional Lapland handicrafts. Very beautiful but quite expensive too.

Arktikum in Rovaniemi is supposed to be a museum cum science centre. Someone had raved about the movie that they play there on the Northern Lights. Since I missed seeing the Northern Lights on the night safari the previous night, I decided to go to Arktikum to at least enjoy them on screen. It is a nice place…though the movie could have been better. I have seen better snaps and movies on the net! 

I actually enjoyed the exhibition on the Lapland culture more, especially since I could relate a lot of stuff that I saw with what Irene had told me. They had a lot of stuffed animals that are found in Lapland…and when I saw the size of the moose I realised why Irene said that the man gets killed! They are HUGE!

There is a room where you can lie down and watch a simulation of the Northern Lights…very nice. I sat or rather lay through that twice!

Rovaniemi - Kangasniemi Hornworks

In several of my earlier posts on Finland I have been raving about how warm and nice the Finnish people are. Well the Lappish people take the cake…that too a blackforest one with the cherry on top!!!

On my recent trip to Rovaniemi, I met the 2 most wonderful people…in fact amongst the nicest people that I have met in my life!

Irene and Ari Kangasniemi have a handicraft company called Kangasniemi Hornworks. They run a program called Secret of the Antler Programme wherein they tell you how to make handicrafts from different renewable natural raw materials like Reindeer antler and leather, birch bark, silver pine and bur. Everyone has a chance to make their own souvenir to take it back with them.

They not only welcome you into their studio, but after you are done with making your souvenir, they welcome you into their home.

The visit began with Irene telling us about Lapland and their culture. Then she told us about Reindeers and what an enlightening session that was.

• Reindeers have 20 types of antlers only! The male antler can grow upto 2cms per day!
• There are 3 reindeers for every human being in Lapland!
• Rudolf, the red nosed reindeer is actually white! He is a true albino deer which is a white deer with pink eyes. So much for Hollywood always showing Santa with brown coloured reindeers on his sled!
• While crossing the road, if a reindeer hits a car, the reindeer dies. But if a moose hits the car it is for sure that the man will die.
• Reindeers are very, very intelligent. They have a thick coat of fur, and each hair is hollow. So they walk against the wind in winters so that nothing gets trapped inside their fur and they don’t get cold. In Summer they walk in the same direction as the wind and so the wind gets trapped in their fur and they don’t get too hot!!!
• Reindeers have a very interesting cycle for their antlers …as in when it grows, how much it grows, when it is shed based on the need and whether they are male or female. Every sentence Irene said had me wowing!

After that Irene showed us some of the antlers. That is her with a set of male antlers and me with the female antlers.

 

Next was the actual workshop…I wanted to make a Kuksa, which is a traditional coffee/tea cup. That’s me working with Ari in his workshop, and let me tell you, it is not as easy as it sounds! I actually began with a block of wood, went on to smoothen out the wood and giving it some rounded shape. Then came the handle…getting that curve and shape was quite a job… which I wouldn’t have managed had Ari not been helping me. Gently he would guide my hand on the machine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

And finally the proof of the pudding – my KUKSA!!!!

Once my Kuksa was ready, she wanted to pack it for me. She gave me such a beautiful pouch (at no extra cost!!!). She had heard me say that I went for a husky safari, so she packed it in the coffee pouch on which she has made a picture of a Husky Safari. How very thoughtful!!! And finally when I went to her house she gave a bag of Blueberry tea to put in the pouch along with the Kuksa.

Then she welcomed us into their traditional Lappish log home, where she opened everything for us. She wanted to tell us about the Lappish way of life and housing. She even took us to her bedroom and showed us some of her traditional dresses!!!

Blueberry juice, cinnamon rolls and Irene telling us about the Lappish way of life…a perfect afternoon! Cherished and fond memories are made of these.

From Irene’s talk, you could gather that she is very proud of her heritage and wants to preserve it and wants people to know about their culture and handicrafts. She just seemed to want to hold on to the old traditions and bring them back.  And I totally believed her as for the entire program they charge a meagre 25 euros!!!  They don't do this program as a business proposition, but because of their passion for their art and culture.

3 cheers for Irene and Ari

Fakir Manpreet!

 

The fakir on a bed of nails!

This snap was taken at a recent visit to the science centre Tieto Maa in Oulu. How easily I lay on the bed of nails and equally easily some people in India make a fool of the vulnerable villagers by saying they are performing feats of magic!!!

Anyways, to tell more about the science centre…it was really very nice. Science museums and centres can sometimes be very very boring as they have too much technical stuff. Even adults have difficulty comprehending all the details, forget the poor kids. Its quite a feat if you are able to spend a couple of hours there. But at Tieto Maa, it was an altogether different experience. Everything was explained by the way of a small game or task. e.g the Fakir bed – instead of just talking about mass, pressure etc, they had a bed of nails on which you could lie and test it for yourself.

Similarly for other laws that we have learnt in physics.

The one explaining centre of gravity was quite interesting. Several squares appear on a screen projected on a wall. A ball starts falling from the top and you have to move your body i.e change your centre of gravity to hit the boxes with the ball. As per the game I am not stable, with which I and some of my close friends would agree. I actually keep stumbling and falling!!!

There were several quizzes for different areas …again organized as a proper buzzer round for a quiz wherein upto 4 people can sit around and each one is given the same question to answer. I was looking at one of these and immediately 2 small boys came and sat on the other seats! And we had a quiz.

So many simulators…each one more fun than the other.  There was a 3D ski jump simulator, flight simulators, a time machine simulator. Another exhibit, not really a simulator, but still quite interesting. You stand on a high platform and jump onto a mattress. They then simulate and show you your jump in slow motion.

There was one whole floor called Sporttimus where you could try various sports. There was even a pit stop for car racing where you can actually try and change 2 tyres for a car. The turning wall was also quite popular.

Couple of things that I noticed -

• Everywhere there were small kids accompanied by parents – both categories having a blast.  One mom was busy playing a game herself, while her kids were playing some other game! 
  
• Teenagers (early as well as late teens!)…unaccompanied by adults.  It was like a group of friends who have come for an outing. This is very unlike western culture where teenagers just hang out! 
  
• I had gone alone and wanted to try the Dance Machine. It should be 2 people competing but I went on it alone. A girl in her late teens came up and asked me if she could join me. I thought that it was very considerate of her. She could have done it with her friends but realised that I was alone and just came up to me!
  
• And finally is possible to spend several hours in a science museum and not get bored. I spent close to 5 hrs and could have spent more time but it was closing time!