A Finnish Thanksgiving

My Finnish Friends at school surprised me with the idea to throw a thanksgiving. It was decided we would. On Sunday we all met up at Miksu's house and started cooking together. The thing which was so special was it all Finnish food- Reindeer, karjalanpiirakka, and rye bread. I added some mac and cheese and chocolate chip cookies to the mix.

karjalanpiirakka and note my customary  measuring cup

oh look at that yankieness

Riita brought me a cookie

rudoph

my plate

famly

So Misku does not like people but she is one of the best people I have met. And after we ate our selves twice over i found her in her bed. She deserves a hug. 

The thing is. Yeah this wasnt the most normal of Thanksgivings. But is was one of the best. We went around the table talking about what we are thankful for and I could talk for ages of being thankful. But in this moment I am so thankful for the people around that table. They went out of their way to give me some bits of home. Thanksgiving is about being with family and friends. being thankful. and being happy. It was truly the best thanksgiving so far. Even if I ate reindeer (its tasty.)

Timetables, Political Discussions, and Book Stores... OHC

I am starting to notice that I either take a good ten minuets creating a title to each post or I just list a bunch of words, hoping it turns out artistic. Oh well. Tis life. Also, sorry for the late posting. Life has just been so busy and when I do I free time I want to sleep or watch Orange is the New Black. You get me.

Luis and I were able to make our new timetable for next section of the year. My classes include: Choir, Dance, French, Spanish, and English.

All of which start after ten except on wednesday. I may have planned this because lets all think about how cold it is going to get and if I go out side later it should be warmer. I walk a lot to school. I am just being logical and avoiding frost bite.

this girl is the sweets. she takes luis and I so well. 

 This post is about Monday. I was released at school at noon. So I had one and a half classes then I left. I went to this little coffee house on the Baltic. It is my top two coffee places. (the first one is my kitchen table here)

My friends Sam and Daniel came and we enjoyed about four cups of coffee each and about five hours of just sitting and talking. Talking about the current state of the EU and of the predictions of the future. What many people don't realize is how much we all keep on top of politics. I mean we are always being affected by it if we realize it or not.

We found this gem of a book store when Sam and me were walking.

I came home Tuesday to find a package from one of my many groups of people which I am privldged enough to have the opportunity to call family- The Oberlin Hertiage Center. These people- Liz, Linda, Mary-Ann, Pat, Jen, Bethany, Cesar, Monica, the whole gang- went out of their way to make my day, my week, and my year. And it isn't the stuff really it is (wait for it cheesy line alert) the thought behind it all. The letters they wrote made me laugh, cry, and smile bigger than ever. My host mom saw me today and said something along the lines of "Ansku, you have your own mug now. They sure do love you." And well I responded with- I sure do love them. 

above is just to remind you all of the definition of a struggle

This is why I like Sundays

I pushed my self out of bed this morning. I climbed out of bed. It was so early. I was in helsinki by 7.30. Same, Katherine and I all wanted to have coffee on Suomilna. It is by far my favorite place in Finland.

we all planned to meet up at the harbor or the island. I walked through helsinki. It was so quiet. No cars, no people. The metro was empty. The train station was quiet.
The city was asleep. The Sun was rising right when I passed the white church. The sun rarely comes out now.
I am so blessed for this moment. I felt so small in the best of ways.

waiting in the little building all alone, listening to bon iver, the smell of someone having coffee still lingered in here

sam and me off exploring. we geocashed on the island

we like clues like :worlds largest sauna 

we played and ran in the tunnels 

KISSA. this cat and I became friends and it followed me around. yeah. 

i look like a spy

We stopped and had coffee and lunch at this little cafe on the island. They had blankets so we ate outside. Met some people from London and had a nice chat.

We waited for my ferry. I had a meeting with my Rotary Club President. He is a doll! and an architect! He gave a personalized walking tour of the city. It was amazing. I have a new respect for the history of Finland and a new appreciation of the city. The passion he talked with made me fall for this city even harder. I don't think I will ever love a city more. Helsinki is home.

add to the streets the sounds of accordions and then you have helsinki

 After we had dinner at his house with his family. They are going to take me to Porvoo. They are so kind. They truly are.

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