French student in Erasmus in Finland

STORY OF TURKU Turku, or Åbo in Swedish, is the city where I spend one year for my study.  The city lost its status as capital in 1812 to Helsinki after two and a half centuries of hegemony over the Duchy of Finland. Tsar Alexander I, master of the country after Russia's victory over Sweden in 1809, considered the city much too close to Stockholm. Helsinki therefore emerged as the new administrative and political centre. Nicknamed "Finland's little Paris", the city is built on seven hills linked by wide avenues and is also considered the culinary capital of the country. With 187,637 inhabitants in 2017, Turku is the fifth largest city in the country. Active, culturally dynamic (it was the European Capital of Culture in 2011!) and very student oriented (about 1/5 of the population), Turku is still very much oriented towards Sweden. The cathedral (Tuomiokirkko) and Turku castle (Turunlinna) in particular both date from the 13th century. The very orthogonal aspect of...

BACKGROUND Finland is aware of its isolated geographical location and its very little-known language, which is why it has implemented a very effective education policy over the long term. This policy affirms the will to ensure equal access to education for all citizens of all ages. Indeed, Finnish education can be followed at any time of life and continuing education for adults is highly developed.  PISA TEST According to the OECD's 2018 Pisa survey, Finland scores very high. Indeed, Finland ranks third and scores well above the OECD average in all dimensions of learning: in science 522, mathematics 507, or reading literacy 520. GROUP WORK Finland also scores very well in group problem solving and is once again at the top of the ranking. This is a very big advantage as this ability is becoming more and more demanded by employers. Having spent a year studying there myself, I realized that there is so much more group work there than in France. THE GRADING  ...

THE ATMOSPHERE   I participated to a "seat dinner" with the University of Turku. It was on the evening and every student from Turku could enroll and pay to come and participated to this typical event of Finland. You eat typical food and at the same time there is a typical show with song in  Finnish. The atmosphere was really fun and really nice, because you are exchange students mixed with Finnish people and they learn you there traditions during the dinner. THE ENTRANCE For the  entrance  I ate what we call in Finnish "karjalanpirrakka", which are the unavoidable gourmet specialties of Finland. In the Finnish cuisine, they are often found, and often at breakfast or appetizer as for the dinner of that evening. They are rye tarts topped with rice porridge.  They are often found with egg butter. With a small slice of smoked salmon on Archipelago bread. If you come to Finland, you should not miss to try the smoked salmon. Compa...

A COLD COUNTRY First of all, it should be noted that Finland is a country where the climate is cold in winter. And you have to be prepare for it ! Mentally and physically. Because I was prepare physically with hot clothes but I was not prepare mentally. The annual cycle generates the most visible contrast. The lakes where you swim and sail in summer become an equally extensive skating rink or cross-country ski area in winter. The bright and warm summer nights give way to snowy scenery topped by a blanket of darkness.  In the middle of winter, the average temperature of the coldest month, February, is about -7oC in the south and -13oC in the north. A VARIETY OF LANDSCAPES Finland's landscapes are very changing. The forest, fields and water, closely intertwined, are the main elements. I'm from the south of France, Montpellier so I have to say I was not use to see this kind of landscapes. Finland's landscapes are very changing. The forest, fie...

Hello, my name is Fanny Maille, I come from France from the city of Montpellier and I will spend a year in Erasmus in Turku, Finland.  I am very interested and intrigued by the culture of this country because I simply find it magnificent and completely different from that of my country of origin. During my year here I'm going to try to discover more about it and and I will use this blog to share my knowledge with you.