The Eternal City

Our children had 3 week days off from school in October for autumn break so we decided to visit Rome, Italy.  I was very psyched to get back to Rome, which I consider one of the greatest cities in Europe and definitely one of my all-time favorites.  Walking around the historic center of Rome feels kind of like walking through a time-capsule that dates back 2,000 or more years.  Not only does Rome feature amazing ancient architecture, but it also showcases masterpieces from the Renaissance period.

Trevi Fountain

We rented a little apartment near the Campo De Fiori square in the historic center of Rome.  I have never been to Rome in October before and was first surprised how warm it still was and secondly how many tourists were there.  My first two visits were in 1993 and in 2000, both during the summer. I remember the city being crowded then, but that was the summer. I expected October to be a bit more mellow, but judging by the crowds it seemed as if it was still the high season.  Campo De Fiori square is situated very close to the Tiber river across the bridge from trendy Trastevere neighborhood and also a short walk from the touristic Piazza Navona.  The first day was spent just getting orientated with our new surroundings and then eating some nice pizza and gelato.  It seems that every day we ate well, indulging on thin crust pizza, nice pastas and other Italian specialties.

Day 2 was spent taking a nice tour of the Colosseum, Palatine hill and Roman Forum.  We entered the Colosseum first with the tour guide who nicely explained the history and use of the Colosseum.  It was amazing to think about how much blood was shed during the days of the gladiators and to think how long this structure has existed.  It was my third time visiting this awesome structure but it still felt very interesting and inspirational.  We had another guide during our visit of the Roman Forum who explained the importance of all the buildings around the Palatine hill and Roman Forum.  We learned that back in those days the simple spices of salt and pepper were like gold and were stored in safes.  Having a supply of salt was the key to storing your food back then since there was obviously no refrigeration.

The Colosseum

On day 3 we entered into a different country.  Well, if you consider the tiny Vatican City another country then yes. We followed the Tiber river just 1 mile north from our apartment and ended up smack in the middle of the center of Catholicism.  We soon joined hordes of tourists ready to enter the largest cathedral in the world that is St. Peters in the Vatican City.  It might have been smack in the middle of October, but this is actually still high season in Italy and the line to get in St. Peters was about 45 minutes from the time we arrived.  We walked a bit around and marveled at the grandeur and beauty of this place.  The showcase of St. Peters is the La Pieta sculpture by Michelangelo which is featured just inside the cathedral.  Later my daughter and I decided to climb up the 320 + stairs to the dome at the top of the cathedral.  We raced up the stairs challenging each other to see who could keep the pace longest.  Once we reached the top we were rewarded with some of the best views in the entire city of Rome.  We marveled at the horizon and all the majestic buildings below us.  This was truly a special place to visit and won't soon be forgotten.  Once back down, we rewarded our stair climbing efforts with some tasty Italian gelato and planned our visit to the very popular Vatican Museums. This is another place I have visited in earlier trips to Rome, but it would take a lifetime or more to see all the exhibits.  The main reason most people visit the Vatican Museums is to see the incredible frescoes on the ceiling of Sistine Chapel.  This was Michelangelo's masterpiece and he spent 4 years of sweat and tears completing it.  We trudged through the Vatican taking the shortest path towards the Sistine Chapel but it seemed that everyone else had the same idea and we were following the crowd like sheep being led to the slaughter. We did see some interesting pieces of art and sculptures along the way, but since I was carrying my son most of the way, I really just wanted to get to the Sistine Chapel.  We eventually reached the Chapel and arrived there with a huge group of tourists.  Words cannot really describe this place, one must visit on their own.  I can say this, whether you appreciate art or not you will find the painted ceiling magical beyond words.

St. Peter's basilica Vatican City

On day 4 we would take a bit of a break from the major museums and large groups of tourists.  We walked up past the famous Spanish Steps to the Borghese Park.  The Borghese Park is a large, sprawling park just North of the historic center which features a villa, a famous art gallery and lots of open space for taking a break from the busy city.  We took a brief visit to the famous Borghese gallery, which features work by Raphael and Bernini.  Soon after that we decided to rent a four person bike and pedaled all around the park, which was great fun and the family thoroughly enjoyed the break from the museum lines.  I highly recommend this park which is a nice respite from the busy city.

Early morning job near the Tiber river

Day 5 was our final full day in Rome and we decided to visit the famous underground tunnel burial system known as the Catacombs.  These Catacombs were the burial place for many popes and Christians during the time of Christian persecution from the Romans during the 2nd and 3rd centuries.  It is actually an amazing piece of history that could easily be overlooked when visiting Rome. Just when you thought you had seen all that Rome has to offer, there is always something else lurking around the corner.  These Catacombs are a bit out of the way for many people so they must be visited either by city bus down the famous Via Appia Antica or by a tour bus.  We decided to take a regular city bus which took around 45 minutes from the center.  The Appian way is one of the most famous roads in Italy, if not all of Europe. It is the main road which took people, including Roman soldiers, back to Rome after their conquests.  It is still a very neat looking road, mainly of cobblestone. The San Callisto catacomb we visited was 4 levels deep (20 meters total) and 20 kilometers of total space.  So, as you can imagine the underground system was immense and buried a total of approx. 500,000 people.  The tour guide, who was a visiting priest from India, took us below and we walked around a small portion of the vast system.  He took us to the famous crypt of Popes, where St. Callisto himself was beheaded by the Romans. Another day in Rome and another amazing piece of very old history.

Near the
 Catacombs and Appian way

The eternal city is an amazing place to visit and probably one of my favorite cities in all of Europe.  There is so much to see and do for just about everyone.  It is a city of arts, ancient history, food and so much more.  However as much as we enjoyed Rome, I would probably not take young children there for more than a few days.  While it is a great city, it is not loaded with many children's activities besides eating pizza and gelato.  :)  With that said, I have no regrets and thoroughly enjoyed this visit.  Since I threw a coin into the Trevi fountain, I will definitely be coming back to Rome again.  

The frustrating art of predicting Finnish weather

If there has been one thing that I have learned after living in southern Finland for nearly two years, it would be the unpredictable nature of the weather.  The first winter we lacked snow in December (2011) and didn't have a white Christmas and everyone complained.   I guess the snow gods woke up because the rest of the winter brought loads of snow and by April people were wishing for spring.  Then the 2012 summer arrived or did it?  May was pretty decent, then June rolled around and the rain started.  I had mentioned to a good friend of mine that Midsummer (summer solstice) would be the best time to visit Finland.  You would think late June with its eternal sunshine would also be the safest chance for good weather on a visit to Finland.  Wrong!   I took him and his family to Linnanmäki amusement park on a rainy day.

At the park the umbrellas came out, but the rides didn't stop.  This is Finland and here people just go on with their days.  We made the best out of the day and enjoyed our time at the amusement park despite the conditions.  Looking on the bright side, the rain meant the ride lines were about half the size of normal.  Spring 2012 was promising, but the summer was one of the coolest that locals could remember and that had everyone complaining and thinking that they needed to get out of Finland for the next summer (2013).

The year flew by and then again old man winter was upon us again.  The winters in Finland can seem a bit like Bill Murray's character in "Groundhog's Day". This time a blizzard came during the final weekend of November dumping snow everywhere. Snow came a month earlier this winter and assured everyone of a magical white Christmas that was sorely missed the prior year.  The winter of 2012-2013 turned out even longer and brought more snow than many had imagined.  The final snow storm didn't arrive till the first week in March and the snow lasted on the ground until just about May this year.  It was quite a long and cold winter.  Interesting enough, March 2013 had many days around -10 Celsius (15 F) and was considered the coldest March in 50 years.  April was still a bit cool and then Vappu (May 1st "May Day") came.  Vappu wasn't that warm, but since it was sunny it was deemed a success.  Which brings us to Mother's Day (May 12, 2013), the day I wrote this post.  What can I say, yesterday it was 22 Celsius in Espoo (71 F) and it is predicted (if one can actually predict weather in Finland) to be quite warm next week, with temps rising past 23 C (73 F) by the end of the week.  Surprisingly enough, this little warm streak in early to mid May will perhaps make it a much warmer month than last June of 2012.  May, June, July, August.  In Finland these months could be cold or warm, stormy, or sunny, you just never really know.  The summers in Finland can be outstanding, but they are typically short and sweet.  According to the calendar summer is from June 20th - September 22nd, but in my mind, I would have to say Finland's "summer" is July 1st - August 15th, plus or minus a week on either side.  :)  So after suffering through 4-5 straight months of cold, snow and ice, the pay back is 1-2 months of summer.  Now you can understand why Finns cherish the long, warm summer days.  That is life at latitude 60' North, and one should never have any expectations about the weather because it will be an exercise in frustration.  The key to happiness and success here is just to go about your day and forget about the weather and the predictions.

One year anniversary living in Finland

With nervous anticipation I left San Francisco with my son and a one way ticket on August 15, 2011 to join the rest of my family in Finland.  Today marks the one year anniversary of my move from San Francisco, California to Finland. What a year it has been!  I cannot even imagine all that has happened during the last year, it feels like 5 years were packed into one.

When I left San Francisco, I had ditched most of my material possessions, except for a few of my favorite items including my trusty road and mountain bikes.  Would Finland wait for me with open arms?  It would be a year of many adventures, ups, downs and cultural learnings.  It is definitely a year that I will cherish for the rest of my life and will never forget.  When I arrived in mid August, I was still working for a US company and worked remotely from home.  This "work from home" job situation would last till the end of the year.  During the later months of 2011 as the rain started to pour down and darkness reared it's ugly head, I was officially introduced to my first Finnish winter.  Would I survive having heard so many horror stories about the cold, ice and darkness?  I used several survival tactics which I wrote about in an earlier article on my blog.  I took the winter head on, by spending time outside the house cross country skiing, swimming and working out in the city gyms and writing my blog.  I absolutely was not going to spend my time locked up in the house, depressed, staring outside into the darkness. 

Trips were plentiful this year and first one included a visit to Stuttgart, Germany to see a friend and the Alsace region in France.  Later in 2011 a family trip to see Santa Claus in Rovaniemi, Finland.  Then in 2012 we went on several more trips taking full advantage of the convenience of living in Europe.  Trips included a beautiful "kids-free" weekend getaway to Paris, France in the Spring.  Later when the summer finally arrived, trips included St. Petersburg, Russia, Sweden, Norway and Barcelona, Spain.   I have stated in my blog before, even though it has been a wonderful and rewarding year in Finland, it is nice to take advantage of the convenient flights and go on some adventures elsewhere.   I hope to continue to be able to see more of Europe and the world using Helsinki as a base.  

The summer, even though a bit cooler than previous Finnish summers, (so I was told by many people) was still magical.  People were relaxed and the downtown work life was much slower than normal.  The BBQs started to pop up and everyone just had a better outlook on life it seemed. I even recall one night riding my mountain bike home at 3:00am and it was kind of bright outside because of the midnight sun and while riding through the forest,  I had  reached a total peace of mind.  The summers are great, just wish they were a bit longer and less wet. It seems that when August rolls around people are already talking about autumn season.  In California, August and September are clearly summer months and October kicks off the autumn season.  I am keeping my fingers crossed because it looks like the summer has returned to Finland during this mid-August week.

The past year has been a transition from working for a US based corporate company to working for a Finnish start up company.  I have been very enthused about the opportunity to work for a Finnish company, because I think to fully absorb and integrate into the society it is better to work for a local company.  I am still learning how the Finns do things and there are some slight cultural nuances that are different in Finnish leadership and management style.   I am here to observe and learn from the differences, not complain about them.  Though I do feel that it does definitely take a long time to gain full trust from a Finn,  once that trust is gained, you will probably have a friend for life (so they say).  That applies to co-workers and friends.

I have already written many entries in my blog about the differences between living in the United States versus living in Finland.   Of course there is no perfect society and I have some complaints about how Finns do things and how they never seem to want to bend rules, but I also respect their policies and the secure and safe society.  The key to learning to live in a new country is to acknowledge the differences and accept them for what they are.  Basically, when in Rome, do as the Romans do.  You should never move to a foreign country and live inside a little "bubble".  Try to practice the local customs, get involved, and try your best to assimilate into the society.  Even learn the language if you feel it is necessary, but good luck with that if you live in Finland.  :)   The first year in Finland has been highly rewarding, I have no regrets and can only hope the next year abroad goes as well as the last.