What do Finns do during a weekend?

Of course they go to their summer cottages. So last weekend I did the same with a bunch of friends. We have visited a friends cottage located on an island. We grilled, we lied on a pier, we enjoyed the beams of the sun through the shades of the tree leaves... We went to sauna, cooled down in the lake, we sat on the porch listening how wind plays with the leaves and grass, we enjoyed a warm rain... And when we felt tired we went to rest and sleep.

In the morning I was awaken by screams: "Selo, Apua!", meaning "Selo (name), help!". It turned out that guys took the nets from the water (they set them the day we have arrived) and there were over 20 fish to detangle from the net, grill, fry and eat for dinner: perch pikes, perches, and breams and even one mule.

The whole trip was very relaxing. But I will especially cherish the sauna night during long autumn evenings or when the freezing winter will arrive. This memory will remind me that there is something to look forward to.

Surprise

As I mentioned in the description Finland is a country full of surprises. One of them was summer this year, which was actually a proper, warm summer. Who could have guessed - warm summer? In Finland??

I know that it was hot all over Europe and people have been craving for some cooler weather, but usually the heat waves don't reach us here, in the far north. Even water in big lakes was exceptionally warm (actually it still is). For 2 weeks in my apartment there was 26-30 Celsius degrees and I have never complained, just enjoyed the weather, went to the beach, spent evenings outside, enjoying warm nights. I was lucky to have my holidays at that time :)
I didn't take any pics while being on the beach, but all beaches have been really crowded. But best proof ever that it was hot is this: a fan in the office where I work. Usually it is one of the most chilly places in the whole building and I'm freezing most of the year. It is now so warm that my workmates tried to cool down a bit by using the fan. It doesn't really do the trick, but my workmate said: flying papers at least give me an impression that the fan helps.

I am enjoying last warm moments, today most likely was the last hot day of summer. Next summer like this maybe in 20 years. Yey...

Kuopio wine festival

Summer is a good time to be in Kuopio - many events taking place. Just few days ago Kuopio wine festival has ended - more information here.

It was taking place 2-10th of July. I was hesitating long if I should go, because the entry ticket is ridiculously expensive - 24€ just to enter! The explanation might be concerts taking place in the area of the festival, but I haven't found any band that would catch my attention. Well, maybe apart from Samantha Fox ;) whose songs have been played from the playback anyway.
The last day I decided to go just to get an idea how does it look like. The star of the evening was Paula Koivuniemi - a star for those who are in their fifties :) I just didn't pay attention, chatted with a friend and enjoyed my wine.

I think that this was my first and last time buying the ticket for the festival unless:
- organisers will provide bigger selection of wines or
- organisers will provide extremely famous and delicious wine or
- organisers will find some music which suits more my preferences

Oh, and a tip for those who will in the future happen to be around July in Kuopio when the wine festival is going on: I've noticed that after the concerts bouncers would let people inside without tickets. So maybe that is the way - just to wait until the concerts are over and go to try some wines :)

Kuopio dance festival - been there, seen some

As I promised myself I have finally managed to go to Kuopio Tanssii ja Soi festival. I have seen three performances:
- Lost blanket - free entrance, for kids
- Skånes Dansteater - contemporary dance performance
- Ballet Argentino

I went to see the first performance because an acquaintance was performing there. I also thought that because it is meant for children I might be able to understand it :D The show was lovely. Main plot: a girl loses her favourite blanket and travels around the world with her "friend" - button to search for the blanket. So she visited snowy part of the world (picture), she travelled seas on a chest (picture), went to Africa to finally find her blanket and return home. There was live music - band and some vocalists making various sounds that created the atmosphere of different places visited.

Second show (by Skånes Dansteater) was quite a different one. Contemporary dance, at least as I have seen it in this show, is about creating a message to the audience with the bodies and music. So I couldn't make out any plot and focused on impressions. There were two parts. The first part of the performance was very dark and even frightening at some points. Dancers weren't like humans, there was something mechanical about them. Music was dark and gloomy. Second part was more lively, more dancers at the stage at the same time, but still it was not the most cheerful show I have seen.Maybe the reason for the dark, gloomy atmosphere was the fact, that one of the choreographers was Finn :)

The third show was my favourite: it was lively, with great music, at some points it was even funny. Smaller parts of the show were combined by a lady singing with a strong voice in Spanish. Unfortunately I was not able to understand her singing, but her voice conceived passion, love, tragedy on a different than linguistic level. If somebody has seen Mulholland Drive by Lynch there is also a lady singing in Spanish - the lady during the show was singing in a similar manner. Also in Almodovar's High Hills this motive has been used. It spices the show with emotions.

So apart from the entertaining part with some ladies-gentlemen plot there was a room for a bit of thinking, consideration. Therefore I think this was the best show I have seen. Taking pictures was forbidden so I didn't take any, therefore unfortunately I have no visual material to share with you. All in all it was worth to go and see different dance styles and different ways of creating atmosphere with music and dancing people. Hopefully next year there is also an interesting programme to choose from.

I hope you liked my report! Until next post!

Sporty Finns, part 3: Kuopio dance festival

Finns are sporty all year round, although the sportiness in the summer time is often concentrated around grill :) Some, though, cannot afford this kind of sport as they are getting ready for one of the most important events organised in Kuopio, namely "Kuopio dance festival" (Kuopio tanssii ja soi in Finnish).

This event attracts many visitors and performers from around the world. Among performers this year there will be a ballet group from China, performers from Sweden, Iceland, Argentina, Denmark, and Norway not to mention numerous groups from Finland. Some shows have an entry fee, some are free of charge. For more information in English visit: http://www.kuopiodancefestival.fi/eindex.html.

Despite being here already 4 summers I have never succeeded in getting myself to go to see even one performance so I hope I will see some of the performances this year.

The festival is near so the dancers are in shape practising, and we - those sporty ones in a different manner - are marinating food for the activities around a grill awaiting great performances during the festival.

Sporty Finns, part 2: Show on ice

As I mentioned before Finns seem to be a very sporty nation. There are numerous fitness clubs, sports associations, hobby clubs etc. The most popular sport is ice-hockey - no doubt. But because ice-hockey is so popular there are many ice-rinks and ice-halls to train other forms of ice-skating related sports.

Today's post will be about something related to my hobby - figure ice-skating. There are two big clubs in Kuopio where you can learn figure ice-skating: KuTa and KuLs. Additionally KuLs offers a possibility of joining speed-skating team or synchronized skating. Both of those clubs organise various types of events throughout the year. In the spring it is time for the show on ice. Last year Cinderella was enacted, this year's topic was Circus. The show took place last Sunday, 18th of April.

Anyone who wanted to act in the show was welcome, all of the groups could have their part: amateurs and professionals, children and adults, synchronised and figure ice-skaters, no matter what the skill level or intensity of trainings are. The point was to get together, do something nice and have fun. And maybe also show parents that their kids are doing great :)

On the Circus show you could see almost anything that circus has to offer. There must be the circus director naturally, clowns, and various animals (a bear is a must). Respect for all "animals" who had to perform in furs :) Being on ice in skates is already a challenge, but being in skates, wearing special animal "overall" and still make the jumps and spins is amazing. I hope I can upload some pics soon when I finally get them.

The show itself was nice, but my absolute favourites were bunnies. 5 little girls in white bunnies' outfits with pointy ears and round scuts were adorable. Watching them jumping, spinning and playing around with their carrots just made me grin all the time.

The second best part in my opinion was the part with precision skaters, all dressed in black, with white masks on. The music choice was perfect, the movements and choreography were full of drama, tension and kept me staring and wanting more. The whole performance was brilliant, like on a stage of a good theatre. Really well done!

This kind of ice-show is an annual event therefore I can't wait to see what kind of show will the next year bring!

Until next post!

Plane crash in Smolensk, Russia

This note is a bit off-topic, but being Polish I just could not leave it without any comment.

The air-plane crash in Smolensk, Russia with top Polish politicians, army representatives and many other respected people is a big tragedy. The reaction of the political leaders from all over the world sending words of sympathy is consolatory - Poles are not alone during those sad days.

I also think that the reaction of Russia and Belarus when it comes to visa policy for relatives and other people to investigate the reasons of the crash means more than political discussions on the top level. Visa's for relatives and investigators will be given without much formalities, queuing and fees. I think that for those families this gesture means more than million words and contributes significantly to improvement of Polish-Russian relations. I hope that this unfortunate event will be a lesson for both sides and a big step forward to improve relations between Russia and Poland.

Words of sympathy are coming from so many countries, so many newspapers are describing people who died yesterday. Political divisions disappear. It is good to see that in the face of such a tragic event people, nations, and countries are supportive towards each others. This makes me believe that we still didn't fail as a human race. The sad part is - why can we sympathise and cooperate flawlessly only when such a tragedy takes place? Why can't we be the best of our human being nature in normal circumstances as well?