This is the third column I wrote for The Tangerine, the UC newspaper. I enjoyed writing it so much that I wanted to share it with you guys. I will maybe post the columns I write on my blog too, but I'll see about that later.
You know what I’ve noticed these last couple of weeks? That people become very proud of their home countries when they’re abroad. How many times haven’t I heard (or said) the sentence: “Yes, but Finland is good at this!” or “Serbia is so good at that!” or something equally patriotic. Before I moved abroad for the first time I just couldn’t wait until I could flee Finnish grounds, because everything sucked in my home country. I can safely say that after living in France for about five months, nothing sucks in Finland. Like who decided everything should be closed on Sundays and Mondays, so it’s literally impossible to get your paycheck on your bank account, the only day you’re off from work? Or who’s responsible for that my French social security number application finally got through one month before I was leaving the country?
After the five months abroad I learned to appreciate my country, it’s culture and it’s small quirks. Finland is pretty much a safe place to live in, paperwork goes through fairly easy, most places are open everyday and in cities you usually can walk everywhere if you want to. Even during the winter months we can fly wherever we want, because the airports won’t shut down due to a little snowfall, as in many other countries. Even though I appreciate my country, I still wanted to go abroad again and experience something new. So here I am. In Utica.
What I’ve learned so far about other countries is that Serbia beats everyone in many sports. Montenegrins have nice cars and fancy phones, even though they don’t have money for other things. In Ethiopia you can live a nice life if you have money, and Scotland is awesome, just because. I mean it is Scotland, okay! I love to learn about other countries and their culture, because it makes me more educated and also it forces me to break down those stereotypes you have of certain countries or areas.
One thing I’ve taken as a mission here, is to break all those weird presumptions about Finland. No, it’s not ice-cold year around, no we do not have polar bears as pets, and no we do not drink vodka for breakfast. What is true though, is that most of us loves sauna, which is a hot steamy room where you sweat your stress out. After that you cool yourself off in the sea or in the snow, and get right back into the hot sauna again. One way to ruin a Finns morning is to sit beside one in a bus or a train, even though there are lots of vacant places elsewhere. And also Finns seem to be in a hurry or have something work related to do all the time. And yes, our education at all levels is for free.
1. My hometown Hanko, summer 2013. (My picture) / 2. Winter in Finland (Source)/ 3. Finlandia Vodka (Source)/ 4. Cooling off after sauna (Source).
What I wanted to say is, that you should always be proud of where you come from, and also educate other people about your culture, so they have the opportunity to learn something new. Be yourself and live life with a smile. And drink vodka for breakfast. It’s much more fun that way. Just kidding.
Funny picture; U.S. vs. Finland. Haha.
(Source)
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