Still Winter

Forecast 28th March 2009: Snow Storm in Helsinki

These pictures, however, were taken one week ago when a sunny day brightened up the frozen lake we walked around.

After a long walk in a winter day: a good Spanish stew

Put it on you, Put it on him

Helsinki-urban pictures

These postcards show real pictures of different places in Helsinki that I know very well. The postcards are found in turistic places...It is clear that Finns take the alcohol issue with humour and I like humour as well. I have shown beautiful landscapes from this wonderful country. It is fair that I also show this not-so-nice side of Finland. Thanks Sandra for the pics that I borrowed from your blog. I apologise if any of you recognise yourself in the pics. Please do not feel insulted by my comments!!!! I rely on your sense of humour !!!!

You might think that the guy from the picture above was sunbathing. I have not seen such a blueish sky in Helsinki for ages. The picture was modified with photoshop and the guy is terribly drunk.

Finns enjoy nature. Feeling mother earth is within their basic instincs. That guy is doing so...or maybe he's trying to check from the ground if indians are coming or not. I definitely think he's having a nap. I thought that the siesta (that short nap in the afternoon) was a Spanish invention but Finns found out the benefits of that some centuries ago. There you have an example.

Who said that Finns do not care about the fellow man??? There you see a girl checking if her boyfriend is still alive.

"Daddy, daddy, what happened to that gentleman???" "Nothing sweety, probably he's lactose intolerant and drank coffe with a touch of milk" That's a real problem in Finland, really.

Ain´t that beautiful? The photographer is a genious. Roses in oposition to Humalainen. The beauty and the ugly from a country of contrasts. By the way, I used to go the doctor to that round building...To the family on the left we could say: "Trip to Helsinki from somewhere else in the world: 500-1000 euros, Hotel Sokos in the city center for 5 days: 700 euros; Makkara-peruna in the market-place: 5 euros; Finnish coffe: 3 euros and several visits to the WC; Decide with your family where to go and what to visit while noticing the scent of poop and pee from the Humalainen beside you: PRICELESS.

This is a bunch of friends waiting for the bus in Rautatientori (the heart of Helsinki).

This is my favourite. The weirdo: fat and disgusting guy, old-fashioned nylon underpants, lots of alcohol, lots of dirt and attempted sexual abuse. The real sick in this story is the one who tried to abuse this poor guy taking advantage from his pathetic situation.

Humalainen

Yes, this moment had to arrive. It is something I should have done before. Talk about humalainen, drunkard, borrachos, burrachuzos. "Humalainen" is probably one of the first words that foreigners learn while living in Finland. It becomes a necessity to describe these essential components of the Helsinki urban-landscape. Mónica re-baptized these people as "humanoide", a Finnish-Spanish word that perfectly describes what they are: not yet something very different from human beings although you hardly recognise that individual as somebody belonging to your own specie.

The situation with alcohol in Finland is serious and also complex. The consumption rate is considerably high for reasons we all know. The situations of unemployment and complicated personal situations (unsuccessful marriages, violence...) are worsen here in Finland for the high rates of loneliness and social adaptation failure. Needless to say that the long and unbearable winter darkness has something to do as well. I suppose that Finns (as well as people from other Nothern countries, Russia, Ireland, Iceland, Canada...) found in alcohol the way to evade from their pathetic lives. In Spain, it works differently cause pathetic people usually evade from reality by using drugs and/or alcohol but their eventual relief implicitly involves doing harm to somebody else. Finnish humalinen are mostly harmless. In fact, it is generally known that drunk people are more sociable, talkative and even more polite than sober Finns. In Spain, drunk people are dangerous while in here they are funny. Sometimes, however, I am quite pissed off by these guys cause I think: if they were sober, they would ingore my presence, even if I needed something from them...but for some reason now I have to tolerate their stupid funny things just because they are drunk. There are different types of humalainen, and there are some specific humalainens (the majority, I should sadly admit) that are not funny at all. They are really sick people, they look like (or are) homeless, they are always very dirty, and smell like cat's pee. In Finland, it is VERY COMMON, to see those at any time of the day, every day in almost every place. The other day we met three in a row, crowling like zombies in search of blood, while we were fetching the bus for going to work (Tuesday, 8.30 a.m). In Spain drunks are socially despised (we usually think: shame of you!!!) and are not allowed to get into the bus, for instance. Here, it is, in a way, a normal situation, to see all kinds of drunk people (business guys wearing a suit or housewives) in the bus, walking the dog, or even going shopping!!!!

The alcohol situation in Finland affects your daily life even if you're not into that stuff. For instance, it is not possible to order beer, wine or any other alcoholic drink from the University restaurant. Why? Alcoholic drinks are seen as a source of fun and trouble and University is a place where you are suppose to be focusing on work issues. And that's my problem. In Spain people get drunk as well and we have humalainen, of course. But the situation is totally different: beer or wine is considered "food", and as such, is found and available in every single place for your pleasure (including McDonalds and the University restaurant, as examples). It is your responsability to behave properly and decide, as a mature person, which amount is apropiate for a lunch at work and which amount is good for getting drunk with friends during the weekend, if you want to do so. I understand that some Finns, at the presence of alcohol, might be attracted by a supernatural force and have no option but drinking until they loose their heads in that Uni restaurant, but what happens if I am used to drink one beer or one cup of wine during my lunch??? I am screwed. The fact that alcohol is banned at University tells me about the idea that Finns have of their self-control. You cannot decide about your preferences cause you are not able to do it wisely and the University decides on behalf of you. And it is sad, from my point of view. Actually, ethanol (that is used as a reactant in the lab for experiments) must be always locked and only very few people have direct access to the warehouse where high amounts are stored. In Spain, ethanol is, as any other chemical, not restricted at all. At first I did not understand why: nobody would mix pure ethanol with cola at work! I thought. And then one of my colleagues told me: "but somebody could take it from here and make business by selling ethanol to Humalaninen somewhere else"...ok, cool, I thought.

The alcohol is charged with high vat rates and it is, in Finns' opinion, a self-restriction method cause low prices for alcohol would lead to a self-destruction of the country (exact words from one of my colleagues). The Finn's attitude regarding this issue is variable and sometimes confusing. They generally admit the problem and tolerate drunk people very nicely. In contrast, they show no patient at all in other situations. Two Spanish students told me that in one occasion, they were requested by an old Finnish woman to speak in a low voice (or even keep quiet) while travelling in a bus: "This is Finland, we do not speak so loud, you are bothering people here!", the well-educated woman claimed. Believe me: if the Spanish students had been drunk, they would have been very politely tolerated, the woman would have watched to a different place and act as if they were not there. Most Finns only show clear intense emotions in front of strangers (a funny coversation followed by a big and cheery laughter, for instance) if they are drunk, are very young teenagers, or have some kind of mental disorder. Very rarely have I seen people laughing out loud in a bus, for instance, without fulfiling one or more of the previously mentioned requirements. That is why I am carefully analysed by Finns when I get into the bus laughing with Sonia for some reason. They check if I am drunk or crazy (it is clear that I am not a teenager any more...). Then, they realise that I belong to the fourth group of people who show emotions in public: I am foreigner. Some other Finns just ignore the problem and act as if drunks would not exist in Finland, as if Humalaninen were a urban legend. A Finn told me once: "is it true that you meet so many humalainens in Finland???" As if I had a special ability to discover drunk people amongst sober ones...and I said: "well, I suppose that I see as many as you...). But talking about this topic I have to say that something different should be done to try to rescue these sick people from their terrible situation and reintegrate them back to the society. Some Finns may have clear conscience by thinking that those professional drunk people (the real sick ones) recieve some kind of salary from the state. Those Finns support this social benefit for safety reasons. They are thinking about their own safety, naturally not the drunks' one. Cause drunk people with enough money for buying cheap beer don´t need to steal that money from somebody else. I still think that I would invest the money from their salaries in more adequate medical treatment and rehab programs...but that's only my opinion.

Finally, security guards in Finland suck. Let me tell you why. In general, those people are well known for having less brains than a shoe but regarding security staff and humalainen, I have seen pathetic situations that deserve a brief anecdote. Once I saw a security woman (one of those who has more male hormones than a whole ice-hockey team) kicking one humalainen out of a metro station. That day it was particularly cold outside and the drunk guy was trying to behave properly (trying no to fall over) just trying to go unnoticed. But he did not succeed. The bully woman approached him and caught his attention by saying something I did not understand. The drunk guy, still making the performance "I-am-a-normal-passenger", looked at the bull, distracted, like saying: are you talking to me? The bull showed no mercy and kicked the guy out. The sad soul started to walk, staggering, with no clear direction until he disappeared into the cold night. I had liked to approach the bull and shout at her that the humalainen was doing nothing but hiding from the freezing tempertures. But I was a coward. She could have slapped my face and send me to the same place where the Humalainen was: the cold street. Everyone there acted cowardly cause nobody said nothing. Probably, some of them would have sweared that no humalainen was there at all. I still have that special power to see what some others can't see...

My Love is Like the Wind

...and wild is the wind.



Love Me, Love Me,
Love Me, Love Me
Say you do
Let me fly away with you
For my love is like the wind
And wild is the wind
Wild is the wind

Give me more than one caress
Satisfy this hungriness
Let the wind blow
through your heart
Oh wild is the wind
Wild is the wind

You touch me
I hear the sound of mandolins
You kiss me
With your kiss my life begins
You're spring to me
All things to me
Don't you know
You're life itself!

Like the leaf
Clings to the tree
Oh my darling cling to me
For we're like
creatures of the wind
And wild is the wind
Wild is the wind

You touch me
I hear the sound of mandolins
You kiss me
With your kiss my life begins
You're spring to me
All things to me
Don't you know
You're life itself!

Like the leaf
Clings to the tree
Oh my darling cling to me
For we're like
creatures of the wind
And wild is the wind
Wild is the wind,
wild is the wind
Wild is the wind,
wild is the wind

George michael performes incredible vocals in this very old song. If were gay I would ask him to marry me and sing this song for me everyday before getting asleep . Sounds...a bit strange but is the truth. If you have time, please listen to the other songs below which are as impressive and moving as this one. The next song originally sang by Nina Simone is just delicious. The set of pics from the video is crap but the sound of the horn section behind the acustic guitar is a nice arrangement from the classic with Nina on the piano.

MY BABY JUST CARES FOR ME




My Baby Don't Care For Shows
My baby don't care for clothes
My baby just cares for me

My baby don't care for cars and races
My baby don't care for high tone places

Elizabeth taylor is not his style
And even ricky martin's smile
Is something he can't see
My baby don't care who knows it
My baby just cares for me

I wonder what's wrong with baby
My baby just cares for
He just says his prayers for
My baby just cares
For me

SECRET LOVE

Once I had a secret love

that lived within the heart of me

all too soon my secret love

became impatient to be free

so I told a friendly star

the way that dreamers often do

just how wonderful you are

and why I'm so in love with you

now I shout it from the highest hill

I even told you the golden dafodill

at last my heart's an open door

and my secret love's no secret anymore

And the best of all. After performing this beutiful song (one of my favourites ever) Brian May offered George Michael to become a member of Queen. I can imagine why. G. Michael declined. I can also imagine why: Freddy Mercury cannot be replaced.

SOMEBODY TO LOVE

Each morning I get up I die a little
can barely stand on my feet
take a look in the mirror and cry
Lord, what you're doing to me
I have spent all my years in believing you
bu I just can't get no relief, Lord!
somebody, somebody
can anybody find me somebody to love?

I work hard every day of my life
I work till I ache my bones
at the end I take home my hard earned pay
all on my own-
I get down on my knees
and I start to pray
till the tears run down from my eyes
Lord-somebody-somebody
can anybody find me-somebody to love

(he works hard)

everyday-I try and I try and I try-
but everybody wants to put me down,
they say I'm goin' crazy
they say I got a lot of water in my brain
got no common sense
I got nobody left to believe
yeah-yeah yeah yeah

oh Lord
somebody-somebody
can any body find me somebody to love

got no feel, I got no rhythm
I just keep losing my beat
I'm OK, I'm alright
ain't gonna face no defeat
I just gotta get out of this prison cell
someday I'm gonna be free, Lord!

find me somebody to love
somebody, somebody
can anybody find me somebody to love?

Lourdes

Never appeared in this blog before but she's a relevant starring in our current lives. Lourdes is cuban and has lived for around 15 years in Finland. The reason why she left her home country: diverge opinions with Fidel Castro, I guess. She and her husband are good examples of Cuba's excellent educational system at University: I known for certain that their knowledge of food chemistry and microbiology when they arrived to this country was higher than the average in Finland. This latter country provided, however, a bright future that was already denied in the Caribbean island. Everytime I think of her, I cannot help it but imagine the great efforts she had to make at the beginning in Finland. They ignored the language, the culture, the terrible burocracy of this country and had very little money...but they coped with all the difficulties and fought for finding a new place to live in Europe. She has told me several times how was it to arrive to this country in winter time with Caribbean clothes...Fortunately, they were not alone and found in Eero Puolanne and some other colleagues at University very good friends. And they lived and raised their family in this country. Why Finland???? I asked more than once, cause Spain would have been much easier for them: the language, the culture, the weather, the legal issues (their grandparents were Spanish and they would have found total free health-care assistance from the beginning, without job or even clear legal situation). They knew people here already...and that is making a big difference cause coming alone to this country under those circumstances is playing russian roulette. She was my main company and reliable friend at University the first time I visited Finland and I appreciate her so much. I am looking forward to recieving them as guests In Spain so that we can find our common Spanish background walking throught the historical old-town of Cáceres.

Resources

What do you do when the fridge is full and you still have some items (beer bottles i.e.) that need to be cooled? I have to admit that it was not obvious for me at the beginning, but somebody told me once: "why don´t you put the beer outside, in the garden?" Then, I saw the light: I have a huge refrigerator outside. It is actually a freezer but beer bottles don´t get totally frozen when it is -10ºC. So now I have beer and other products outside, they are cold and ready for the party 24 hours. These are the kinda' things you learn in Finland. Resources are called.

Skiers

I was reluctant at the beginning but I am happy now that Sonia convinced me to participate in a cross-country skiing lesson in Paloheinä. According to my experience, specially outgoing Finns are selected for teaching activities cause the teacher in this occasion was particularly funny (as my former Finnish language teachers). Not particularly fluent in English but he could speak a bit Spanish instead. And he insisted in using it all the time together with English. There was actually a Portuguese guy and a Romanian girl who spoke also my mother tongue and they also laughed at the teacher's accent speaking Spanish. In the end, it was really useful to learn basic techniques and develop our skills on snow. I broke my ass against the cold ice several times but I really enjoyed. "You have to move like panters on the snow to enjoy the essence of the Finnish wilderness", he claimed.