The Iron Mines

As the cruise pulled back into Helsinki all of us traveled our separate ways back to our host families for the evening. Anna was excitedly waiting for me and I was really happy to see her. That evening we were going to have dinner with Saila, Anna's mother and my new host mom, at her apartment. After stopping in to just set our stuff down, Anna wanted to take me on a walk to show me around the area.

Very near by was a neat woods that actually had a little historic background on Finland behind it. The area used to be a mining zone and the unique landscapes left behind were scenic. The large crevasses and craters each went down several dozen meters and now looked like holes in the ground revealed as if they were wells.

Once the mining in the area was complete years ago, the holes were left with fences around them, and now pedestrians can stroll through the woods and park and experience their own special beauty. As time passed, many filled with water, and they appear as deep lakes or pools. The walk through the park was really nice, and I was impressed by the great surroundings to simply go for a social walk much like Anna and I did.

Dinner was very nice and there was much to say about Tallinn as well as just my family background. ( This was technically my second time doing something with my new host family, but they were such kind people and I felt at home immediately). I was able to learn a little more about their family as well as we discussed while making a favorite dessert that traced back to grandparents and ancestors of the family which consisted of blueberries and yogurt amongst other ingredients. Along with this I was also honored to partake in another family tradition. Many Finnish families enjoy the practice of a guest book, especially for their summer cottages, and the Kiukkonen family followed suit - except with their own special spin.

A few generations back a grandfather in the family started a table cloth where guests signed in pencil and then the signature would then be stitched in with the color of that particular year. The result generations later was a fantastic mural of colors and signatures. Anna had started one herself in which she will continue throughout her life, and I had great opportunity to add my signature to her guest book - and along with Finnish guests there were Chinese and many other international connections - very multi cultural! I was so happy to be part of this family's tradition, and it made me feel that I was associated and experienced in a Finnish custom in yet another way!

The evening was very nice and after the two day trip to Estonia, it was very relaxing. I definitely slept well that night since Wednesday started the continuation of the FUSYE scholar program!