French student in Erasmus in Finland

MIKAEL HED I found out that this video game where angry birds catapult themselves onto pigs that have pricked their eggs (Angry Birds) was actually created by a famous Finn named Mikael Hed. FAMOUS IN FINLAND It is all the rage in Finland: in three years, it has been downloaded a billion and a half times! Since then, the reputation of these angry birds has spread beyond the country's borders and it's impossible to escape the flood of all the derived objects! Amusement parks were also created in 2012: in Kuusamo, Vuokatti, Saariselkä and Lappeenranta in 2013.  NEW GAME FROM FINLAND The other phenomenon that is currently raging on mobile phones is also Finnish: the Clash of Clans by Super Cell, which is on its way to becoming one of the most lucrative games in the history of telephony.

DO Men, like women , shake hands for introductions.  Drink plenty of water, as the climate is dry.  Provide mosquito repellent in the summer.  Take off your shoes when entering a house, except in the country. Check the outside temperature before going out in winter. It can change very quickly.  Book hotels, restaurants, excursions, leisure activities, etc. in advance.  Say thank you after a meal. It is considered impolite not to say thank you (kiitos) to your hosts at the end of the meal, but saying bon appétit is not compulsory. DO NOT Believe a joke when they tell you that the toilet in the country house is outside: it's true.  Refuse an invitation to the sauna unless medically contraindicated. Another possible excuse for women: you are already brushed and made up (yes, yes!).  Cut off the speech. This is not in Finnish culture, you listen patiently to the person you are talking to and then you talk.  Go hiking alone and ...

THE COUNTRY Official name: Suomi - Finland (in Finnish and Swedish). »  Capital: Helsinki, Helsingfors in Swedish.  Area: 390,905 km2, of which 10% is water, 72% forest and 8% farmland. » Head of state: Sauli Niinistö elected since 1" March 2012 (conservative party).  Type of state: parliamentary republic.  Main cities : Tampere and Turku and Helsinki  (628 208 inhabitants in 2015) Religions: 73 per cent Lutheran Protestant, 1.1 per cent Orthodox (60,000 members), 1.6 per cent other religion, 24.3 per cent non-confessional or unknown.  FLAG MONEY Currency: the euro.  THE POPULATION  Number of inhabitants and surface area: 5.5 million inhabitants for a density of 18 inhabitants per km2 (2015). Urban population: 83% (2011).  Natural growth rate: 0.01% (2012). Languages: Finnish (88%) and Swedish (5.5%).  Sami population: 6,400 inhabitants living in Finnish Lapland.  Life expectancy: 83.3 years ...

BIKE IN FRANCE In France to get around by bike depending on the city where you are is not always very convenient, you sometimes have to ride on the road with cars because there is no bike path and it can be very dangerous. That's why we generally see very few people on bikes, or else it's for bike rides but in a particular place or for a particular event. BIKE IN FINLAND What shocked me the most in Finland is the fact that EVERYBODY is cycling to do EVERYTHING at ANY time. There are much more bike paths than in France.  And Finns have a great respect for people who are on bikes: pedestrians don't walk on the bike lane, cars stop immediately when a bike wants to cross the road. Whether it rains, snows or goes shopping at the supermarket, Finns use bicycles. I've never seen that in France. Cycling in Finland is part of everyday life for Finns. There are hundreds of kilometers of cycle paths, including between cities. It is therefore not uncommon to see Finns ...

WHERE IS IT ? I went there completely accidentally but it's a really nice place that you should go if you staying in Turku. It's in a building with shops in the center of the city. You have to enter in the building and take the elevator to go to the last floor of the building and there is the  Walo rooftop bar. There, you can drive very nice drink but also very expensive... The atmosphere is really nice an really cosy. WHAT IS SPECIAL ? It's more than a bar you hav a  Wonderfull point of view of all the city. There is two floor, one inside and an other on the top, top, outside. You will get an over view of all Turku with all the importants monuments. There is also a map in the bar which can explain to you what are the building that you are watching. You can do int on the evening or during the day both experiences are amazing.

YOUNG CULTURE I went for a walk in the Museum of Modern Art in Turku and looked for information about the history of art in Finland. It is important to know that Finnish culture is relatively young. It is still developing intensely. Between the second half of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century, artistic creation crystallized around the cult of national identity. It was still necessary to get rid of the Swedish traditions conveyed by an omnipresent Swedish-speaking elite. The painters were therefore inspired by the Finnish regions of expression, such as Karelia, the cradle of the Kalevala.  NATIONAL ROMANTICISM National Romanticism, the Nordic counterpart of Art Nouveau, found its most brilliant spokesman in the painter Aleksis Gallèn-Kallela (1865-1931), who drew the essence of his work from the Kalevala. Writers and composers alike find inspiration in the Karelian forests to uncover their authentic Finnish roots. The large canvases of Gallèn-Ka...

THE SAAMI When I went to Lapland I learned a little more about the Saami and their traditions. First of all, you have to know that the Saami are a people of Lapland, an area that covers the north of Sweden, Norway and Finland as well as the Kola Peninsula in Russia .  THE  REINDEER It is said that the Saami used to use reindeer as beasts of burden, especially to pull their sleds. Milk and meat were a highly valued source of food, while the skins were used for clothing and protection in makeshift dwellings. The kota was a kind of tepee covered with reindeer skins.  THEIR CLOTHING In the clothing department, their taste for colour is reflected in the making of clothes with often very bright shades of blue, red and yellow. Reindeer fur is still used for coats, leggings and mittens.  CHAMANISM In these boreal latitudes, where mankind is fighting an incessant battle against the elements, it is not surprising that shamanism has found favourable grou...