Sylvia's Journal

We are on one of the islands in the archipelago in Finlands’s southwestern corner. It reminds us very much of Maine, except for the signage with long words that contain lots of vowels. The Finnish summers are short and intense with daylight that pretty much lasts throughout the night. It never gets dark. It is lovely, now, but the price paid for that is the opposite during the winter, much darkness and very little light.

We have exchanged our home and car with a Finnish couple for two weeks. Most of that time we are spending near the old capital of Turku, an old sea port that faces Sweden. We are not only exploring the country side and the city of Turku, but also Finland’s history and its complex relationship with its mighty neighbor. And then of course there is the cuisine: fish, in particular salmon and herring prepared in countless different ways, baby potatoes, fresh peas, countless varieties of the sweetest strawberries (so many hours of daylight makes for the most amazing berries), delicious pastries and all things licorice (ice cream, gin, aquavit, sauce for over ice cream).

When you exchange house and car you end up saving much money which can then be used for splurging on lunches (our breakfasts and dinners are made at home) and occasionally on a hotel when we make an outing that takes us away from our base. We’re right now on the archipelago trail, going from island to island, near the mainland by bridge, further into the archipelago by ferry, mostly short and free, sometimes longer and paid.

Even though it is summer and the schools are out, compared to New England what we have seen of Finland so far feels empty. Hotels and B&Bs have rooms available on a very short notice, traffic is sparse and we have yet to experience a traffic jam. Even on our ride from Helsinki to Turku on the E18 (which connects Saint Petersburg with Kristiansand in the south of Norway) we saw very little traffic, making us wonder where everyone is. But then again, everyone means only 5.5 million people (by comparison, Massachusetts alone has 6.5 million people). Still, in this summer paradise, where are the people? With summers this short and sweet, why would you want to go anywhere else?

The best part of this vacation is the continuous downtime, something I have not had for years, maybe even decades. I am not checking email, doing my portable jigsaw puzzles, and reading actual paper books. As a result I fall asleep easily, sleep well (even though it never gets dark), wake early and go to bed late.