Unique Places in Finland

1 more image

All you need is a rod with line and a hook. This combination gives you right to use all man rights and you are free to fish almost every place. If you add a reel you need permission from the owner. Our lakes are mostly owned by small Water Cooperatives, but if you go to some fish equipment store (or a gas station on the country side) you probably can buy the permission (or the give you some guidance). First you need a government licence (week, month or annual), the annual price was 22:00€ year 2012. After that you need the licence from the owner. My fishing licence for lake Näsijärvi (unlimited rods) was 31,60€ for whole 2012. (The whole system is so complicated that it's impossible to describe, you almost need to be a layer. If you have Finnish friends they can help you, or ask from me, I can check your circumstances and most convenient solution.

If you have a boat, you increase the probability to get the big one.

There are a lot of choices what to get. Bass and pike are the most common, but salmon and pike-perch the most wanted. I fish only salmon and pike-perch, but mostly I get pike :)

PS. If you carefully inspect the boat photo, you can see from plotter that the is a fish school just below the boat :).

Autumn is one of our temperate seasons, it follows summer and is before winter. Most of us doesn't like autumn because it's known from rain and darkness. We don't have rain seasons, but if you ask, we answer: "Autumn".

You might think that Equinox (about 22nd September) is in the middle of the season, but mentally autumn starts from 1st Sep and continues to 30th November. Thermal terms are: starts when daily average temperature goes below 10 Celsius and stops (and winter starts) when it goes below 0C.

What it it when it's Autunm
- it's harvesting time.
- it's time for mushrooms (last one you can pick up late October).
- it's "Ruska" time (leaves and trees change color from green to orange, yellow and red before leaves drop out).
- It's time for bird migration.
- After Equinox the night is again longer than day.

It's time to go out and enjoy! It's not hot anymore, just cloth yourself carefully and go to pick up mushrooms, cranberries or lingonberries, take a walk or jog in the forest and you just love it!

4 more images

Summer is one of our four temperate season, it follows spring and is before autumn. Most of us say that the summer in The Season, everyone starts to live and all events happen in the summer. Even more, July is normally our hottest month and whole business life fade down and tourist events are on. You have to rush, everything happens here in a few weeks. If you ask what is the best season, we, at least 99,99% answer: "Summer".

You might think that Solstice (about 21st June) is in the middle of the season, but mentally summer starts from 1st June and continues to 31st August. Thermal terms are: starts when daily average temperature goes above 10 Celsius and stops (and autumn starts) when it goes below 10C. Solstice (Juhannus, after solstice) is quite common to start vacation.

What it is when it's Summer:
- Everything is green, blue and only clouds are white.
- late summer is time for picking berries (strawberry first and blueberry follows)
- it's time for everything to grow ().
- It's time for birds to feed fledglings
- In the moment of the Solstice the night is endless in the Polar circle (and up north)
- It is time to swim, boat and fish in one of our 180 000 lakes.
- It's a time to go to the summer cottages (mökki) and go to sauna (more than winter time :)

It's time to go out and enjoy! It's now hot, just forget your clothes and go to summer theatre, wife carrying world championships, Linnanmäki, Särkänniemi, Lakes, take a walk or jog in the forest and you just love it!

2 more images

Mushroom hunting or mushrooming is one of Finns autumn hobbies. There are plenty of forests even besides cities and towns to pick up this delicious food. The mushrooms are categorized to 6 main classes +++,++,+,*,** and ***. + means cross and +++ is the most poisonous and *** the most delicious mushroom.

We say: "get to know the mushrooms and pick up only those you know".

Never eat mushroom you can't qualify to ** or ***. Some mushrooms, like brain mushroom (korvasieni) are +++ AND ***. You have to know how to process these and selling of these kind of mushrooms is prohibited here (I think).

I hunt only two delicious mushrooms: chanterelle and funnel chanterelle (in photos). With these the process is simple, just take 2 liter of mushrooms, put to a pan and fry in low heat all water away, add 1-2 dl cream and spices and heat so far that the thickness is correct. Enjoy with potatoes, grilled fish or with what ever else you hunted from the forest :)

There are about 338 000 square kilometers land in Finland and only some 18 inhabitants per square kilometer, so there is a lot of more or less wild nature. The amount of people decrease to the north, the best and wildest areas are here like UKK Nature Park (Urho Kaleva Kekkonen's park, our former president). All man rights give you a lot of possibilities to walk, camp and wander around in our forests (but not open fire).

But you don't need to go far. I have wandered thousands of kilometers, seen a lot of animals, but suddenly today I faced FIRST time ever Black Woodpecker! And I faced it in my yard and I live in fourth biggest town in Finland.

I was so busy to search my camera, finally I found it from my car, I took the first (and only photo) through window and when I was tiptoeing closer, it of course escaped. So, sorry about poor quality, but I have an evidence!

1 more image

This is a Nordic phenomenom, you can walk and roam quite freely in our nature. We all have certain rights, meaning to pick up berries and mushrooms from forests, trek in wildmark and spend overnight in a tent. Of course you are free to swim and boat in the lakes, but remember, no open fire! Only if you get permission from the owner and that is quite impossible, it's difficult to find she or he. And no fishing, you need permission to fishing also! (There is some all man rights in fishing, but the system is difficult to explain. Ask your finnish friends, they know when you are here). So, our waters are better protected than forests, it might have something to do with fishermen's enviness!

But take photos, there are a lot of colorful things, at least in summer, on winter we have less colors!

2 more images

walking around on my last rainy morning in helsinki, finland drowned by the actual physical rain and my stress of having to take the train back to new york within hours I got up at 7am that morning and while waiting for the supermarket in KAMPPI(mall, but unlike any mall you know, its massive) to open I decided to walk. to walk until I was soaked and freezing.. I also brought along my minolta to see if I could take some last pictures of this second home I had travelled to.

And I did, when in doubt and your bored of all the usual cool touristy pics to take of a city you love.. walk behind all the dept stores and the apartment building museums cinemas and offices and you bet you'll find something damn worth taking a photo of and something that will bring some sort of enlightenment to your trip just when you need it.. this little trip did just that for me..

I walked around from Kamppi past the post office and past the post office museum and the museum after that and decided to go where I saw no people ..So i walked behind everything to look for good skate spots for my next trip to helsinki.. I walked and walked till I found a path that took me to train crossroads and some constructed situated in a gorgeous flowery walkway..yes i just said flowery..well it was beautiful for me..I just stayed there and sat on the rail tracks listening for trains and took photos of all the beauty I was about to leave..

I was glad that i walked away from the streets and went behind all the stores because I found my most worthwhile walk of the trip..hope you all find the chance to do it as well.

The first housing fair was held in Tuusula in 1970. The housing fair means that that Finnish modern homes and interiors are on display for visitors. It's a good way to see the latest ideas in living.

The housing fair is held every summer and it is open to the public for one month. It's a good event for the whole family. It has been said that in recent years an average of 200 000 guests have visited the fair.

The housing fair is a good way to spend your weekend.