Yeah, we’re going to Finland! Visiting a new country is always exciting; you prepare yourself to discover so many things. Let me share you some info about Finland.
The Republic of Finland is a country located in Northern Europe. It’s an independent land since the 6th of December 1917. December 6 is therefore a holiday. Finland has been a parliamentary republic since independence from Russia, with Helsinki as its capital.
Finland is a Nordic country like Denmark, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden. This particularity is visible at the Nordic cross on its flag:
As you can see in the map below, Finland is covered by 10% of lakes, rivers or ponds. We can count approximately 188,000 lakes. Furthermore, a quarter of the land is located above the Arctic Circle.
From “Map of Finland-en” by Oona Räisänen, 2009 (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Map_of_Finland-en.svg). In the public domain.
Finnish people are very different as French ones. They are around 5.5 million, mainly in the south of the country. They have a reputation for being very calm and introverted. However, they are very warm and sincere. That doesn’t take away their taste for heavy metal. Finland is the country with the most metal bands in the world!
Finnish food is very simple and fresh. The vegetables are seasonal and the dishes are not spicy. There is no room for frills. Take for example the Lohikeitto. It’s just a Finnish salmon soup with cream or milk and seasonal vegetables. Very healthy!
From “Finland Food: The 20 Different Traditional Finnish Food You Must Try” by Evan Kristine, 2020 (https://www.prettywildworld.com/traditional-finnish-food/).
While eating your Korvapuusti (cinnamon rolls), you are probably wondering what to do in Finland. Calm! I’m here to guide you. Finland is known for its landscapes and you’ll probably enjoy doing a ride in the snow with a husky sleigh or hike in one national park; Finland has 40! If you want to go north, you’ll be able to see Santa in his village in Lapland or see the Northern Lights in the sky. And if you want to be a real Finnish, you should try to go in a sauna and plunge just after in a frozen lake. Brrr…
You are now ready to go on an adventure in Finland with us.
See you soon!
Clément
Sources:
- EVAN, K. (2020, January 3). Finland Food: The 20 Different Traditional Finnish Food You Must Try. Retrieved from Pretty Wild World: https://www.prettywildworld.com/traditional-finnish-food/
- VisitFinland.com. (2020). 10 Best Things to do in Finland. Retrieved from VisitFinland.com: https://www.visitfinland.com/article/10-best-things-to-do-in-finland/
- VisitFinland.com. (2020). WHAT ARE THE FINNS LIKE? Retrieved from VisitFinland.com: https://www.visitfinland.com/article/what-are-the-finns-like/
Erasmus to Seinäjoki 
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