French student in Erasmus in Finland

MY REPORT It is a very surprising fact that Finns are among the world's biggest coffee drinkers, a situation that has been going on for decades. And every Finn has his or her own reasons for loving coffee. After all, you will see many Finns drinking a LOT of coffee. Not that in France we don't drink it, but here I was really shocked by their relationship with coffee. For example in the canteen at the end of the meal it's self-service and everybody takes some, I've never seen that in a canteen in France. Also a lot of shops are essentially places to drink coffee, that exists in France too but they are rarer or we drink our coffee in a bakery or a bar.  WHY ? However, the question remains: why are Finns such great coffee lovers?  Some Finns find it difficult to explain their passion for the hot drink. Part of the reason could be that they live in a cold country, so they need to drink hot and nourishing drinks.  But there is also another, more sentimental...

A HOFSTEDE DIMENSION The fundamental question addressed by this dimension is the degree of interdependence that a society maintains among its members. The question is whether people's self-image is defined in terms of "I" or "We". In individualistic societies, people are expected to care only for themselves and their immediate family. In collectivist societies, people belong to "groups" that take care of them in exchange for their loyalty. RESULTS According to G. Hostede, a criterion determines the relationships that individuals in the same community have with each other. Communitarian societies favour time spent in groups, whereas individualistic societies favour time spent by individuals for their personal lives. G. Hostede established a link between economic development and individualism, the most economically developed states having a strong relationship to individualism. The results of Hostede's study are as follows: Finland 63, France ...

HOW TO GO THERE ? First you have to go to Helsinki by bus or by train as you want and next you take a ferry which bring you directly to Tallinn. On the the big ship you spend 2 hours before to arrival there is quite very fast because you can do a lot of things in the boat.  There also I did a free walking tour, you just have to go to the tourism office and ask about it ans they will give you the different times. ABOUT TALLINN Tallinn, the dynamic capital of Estonia on the north coast, is also the main port on the Gulf of Finland, just a stone's throw from Helsinki. It is the historic centre, classified as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO and grouping the upper and lower town, which will attract your first steps in this city, between cobbled streets, ramparts, beautiful Hanseatic residences and aristocratic residences. Tallinn also boasts some remarkable museums, which will provide you with an insight into Estonian history and art. ALEXANDER NEVSKY CATHEDRAL I found thi...

SOME TIPS I couldn't spend a year in Finland without visiting the capital! Moreover, Helsinki is very close to the city of Turku, about two hours by bus, and the prices are very affordable. Also, you can book a free city tour that shows you the most important monuments here's the link :   link here ABOUT HELSINKI Helsinki is the capital and largest city of Finland with 642,045 inhabitants in the municipality and 1,456,619 in Greater Helsinki. The city has the highest immigrant population in the whole country. There are more than 130 nationalities residing in the city of Helsinki. It is spread out on a peninsula surrounded by a large number of islands and is strongly characterized by the presence of water. Helsinki is a merchant port open to the Gulf of Finland. Its inhabitants are called "Helsinkiläiset" in Finnish and "Helsingforsare" in Swedish. HELSINKI LUTHERAN CATHEDRAL With the free walking tour we first visited the Helsinki Lutheran Cath...

A HOFSTEDE DIMENSION This dimension is about the fact that we are not all equal in a society. It deals with how culture acts towards these inequalities between individuals. Power distance is defined as the extent to which the less powerful members of a country's institutions and organizations expect and accept that power is unequally distributed. RESULTS According to Hostede, geographical position is the most influential element in this criterion. Thus, he observed that the countries closest to the equator had the greatest hierarchical distance. Similarly, countries with a small population have a greater propensity to have a low hierarchical distance. Finland scores 33 on this criterion. In comparison France scores 68. This score seems to be in line with the distance to the equator of these countries. It can be observed that Finland has a population of 5.4 million inhabitants and a population density of 17.9 inhabitants per km², in comparison France has 67 million inha...

THE UN CLASSIFICATION Several times I have heard Finns say that their country is the happiest in the world. So I did my little research on the subject. Indeed, Finns are the happiest in the world according to the latest World Happiness Report, published by the UN on 20 March 2019. The ranking of the 156 countries in the "World Happiness Report" is based on several indicators including GDP per capita, perception of corruption, life expectancy and generosity of individuals. Finland was already at the top of this ranking last year. As for France, it is in 24th position, losing one place compared to 2018. In this ranking, it is mainly the Nordic countries that are at the top of this ranking. BUT WHAT EXACTLY IS HAPPINESS? To understand this ranking, first of all it would be good to remember the definition of happiness. Happiness is "a very subjective concept but at the same time very much linked to certain objective criteria, such as material comfort, respect, interpe...

ESN TRAVEL During my stay in Finland I went one week in Lapland with ESN. Erasmus Student Network or ESN is a European-wide student organisation whose aim is the reception and integration of international students during an Erasmus-type exchange as well as the promotion of international mobility.  ESN organise several travels during the year in Lapland, Russia, Norway... You can to all of them. ABOUT LAPLAND Lapland is a region straddling the territories of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia, whose indigenous people are the Sami. It is located largely beyond the Arctic Circle. The climate there, as you might expect, is very cold in winter, if you go there, so make sure you are well equipped beforehand. The temperature in Lapland can vary from -40 °C in winter to +27 °C in summer. The local vegetation consists mainly of taiga and tundra. The region is bordered by the North Atlantic and the icy Arctic Ocean and "intersected" by the Baltic Sea.  ...