Turku (July 1 - 2)

Friday July 1


8:15-9:00 Breakfast
 During breakfast, Marika went over with us three (who missed all of
 yesterday due to our unfortunate travels, to be posted later on) the information about
 yfu policies that we missed yesterday. 


9:15-10:30 Workshop on adjustment and culture shock (yawn)


10:30-11:30 Walk to and tour around Turku Cathedral
 It was a nice cathedral, where a yfu voulteer told us
 intersting information about the cathedral itself as well as the
 history of the coffins there and such.


12:00-1:00 Lunch at viking-style restuarant
 Food. again. although it was quite good actually (like everything
 else we have eaten

1:00-3:00 Guided tour of Trun Linna (old castle/fort)


3:15-4:15 Exhibition: Tuli on irti! (Turku on Fire)
   This exhibition was organized because Turku is the culture capital of Europe for 2011         and because Turku was burned to the ground 31 times. It mainly focused on fires (great fires around the world, games based around the theme of fire, history of fire) and there was also a small area dedicated to football/soccer and it´s history.

4:15-6:30 Free time in Turku
    I went to the mall and ate ice cream with Morgan and Arely

7:00-10:00 Time at Lake, Sauna, and Barbeque
         THis was our first experience in the sauna, and in a strange way it was actually   enjoyable to sit in a 72C room (about 180F I believe) except for the fact that it was hard to breath (it kindo of burned). Nevertheless, when we had enough, we would run out and jump into the lake (excpet me of course since I had my contacts in). Eventually we went to eat sausages, salad, and this amazing Finnish chocolate (Fazer). Oh and before we were let out to go to the sauna, the yfu staff made us try some (unpleasant) Finnish foods. It included some fermented cow milk, some type of yogurt, sticky brown stuff (that looks like mashed up dates) made from bread yeast, and little black pieces of salted licorice (reminded me of some type of medicine a doctor would shove down your throat and watch you with a smirk as you try to consume it as fast as possible with tears coming down your eyes). 

10:00-11:00  Headed back to the hotel with a few of my friends (most stayed and would return to the hotel on a later bus). We walked around Turku a bit, noticing how the nightlife was just beginning to wind up.




 Saturday July 2


    We woke up excited and nervous at the same time since today was finally the day twe would meet our host family. We ate breakfast, checked out of our rooms and spent 2 hours in the conference room talking about Finnish family life and expectations and stuff. After that, we went off to eat lunch on a boat and after spent time in a medieval market in Turku. It was nice to walk around since there were people dressed up in medieval costumes and there were several stands selling wooden items, different clothes, jewelry, (etc.) and food with a medieval-Finnish flair (salmon, sausage in lettuce, caramel apples/pears). After an hour or so we met by a bridge and quickly walked back to the hotel; it was time. We arrived to the lobby and were lined up one by one, ready to walk into the dining area, were we would meet our family. Everybody was quite uneasy and anxious, unsure of how to act when we see our family yet excited to finally meet them and see how they're like. I was the second to last in line, but no worries, the line moved up pretty quickly; after one went to the dining area they soon returned to the lobby with their family to retrieve their luggage. Finally it was my turn, and I walked in nervously; there I saw my new family walking towards me, Sandra and LIna looking exactly as I pictured them from Facebook. I was unsure whether I would hug or greet my family with a handshake since Finns are known to be more modest and shy, but I ended up hugging every family member. We got my luggage and headed to the car. What I expected to be an awkward  2 hour car ride was actually an enjoyable ride where we talked and it generally passed by quite fast. When we got home, I went off with Lina to Tampere to play soccer with a few of her friends. We played for 1.5 hours or so (leaving he house around 5:30pm) and then we returned home. I enjoyed meeting her friends and it was a lot of fun playing soccer with them since there isn`t really that type of opportunity at home (or maybe it´s just because we Americans are jut to lazy for that sort of thing) Oh, and my team won, if anyone was interested in knowing. We ate dinner when we came back home and soon went off to bed since I had not yet gotten a good night´s rest after my long gruesome plane ride to Finland.