I would like to have a little discussion about this damn country. It was +1 today, which for all us Fahrenheit people, thats about 33 degrees. It snowed all day. However, it was warm enough for the snow coming down not to stick, but rather melt on top of the icey slush that is already covering the ground. There is a lovely 1/2" coating of ice most everywhere, covered with anywhere from 0-2" of slush. This means that you slip everywhere. Why people settled in this wilderness is beyond me. Its so cold that all the strollers are completely covered, or sometimes have a little viewing hole. Its so cold that people don't want to expose their children to it.
It wasn't quite dark when my class started today, that means the days are getting longer! Of course, being not-quite-dark at 4pm is still quite sucky.
I had my EU class today. What it actually was, however, was an hour and a half of USA bashing. Of, I'm sorry that we can't take the EU seriously. I mean with great military powers like the UK and France, and with your largest army being Finlands, how can we not quake in fear of you? You did all those helpful things when we started the war in Iraq, like the Danes sent a submarine! How thoughtful.
The lecturer is from Manchester, and has a healthy hate of France as well, so that was nice.
I actually don't hate it here as much as it seems. I think I will like it more once it gets warmer, but I can't see myself being too sad to go home. If nothing else, I have learned that I am a Southern girl at heart, and that big cities and divergence from my daily routine is not for me.

Nothing to report. I think I have tonsillitis. I'm getting better. Done nothing most of the week.

My bad.

I've been in a funk and not really wanting to write. Oops. Heres the rundown:
Swedish is awesome. Classes are good. Friends sometimes want to hang out. I miss home. I really miss sunshine. My knee is fucked still. I really want all my music from Skyler. I have mastered grocery shopping, almost.
The main thing I feel like writing about is driving over here. They drive on the correct side of the road, which is nice. I think its just the silly Brits who don't. But it seems here in Finland the rule is: if you can get a car on it, its a road. I see people driving on the sidewalk, or over the sidewalk, all the time. I have yet to figure out a rhyme or reason for it. Its Finnish, I reckon.
The mission for tomorrow is go to the S Market under the train station and buy some more Twinings English Breakfast. I am down to one bag. I bought some Ceylon-Assam off-band tea today, its not too bad, actually.
I am actually quite pleased with the weather, its much colder at home than it is here. It was a balmy 21 degrees here today, with a light blanketing of snow.
I bought a plant Friday. Its some sort of relative of the Cape Primrose, the leaves are very similar but the flowers are different. Its not the prettiest plant on Earth, but it makes me happy to see some green.
The girls are going to Ikea at 4, but I'm not in the mood to go and I don't really need anything. I am going to go next time though. I want to see it.

Swedis, sunshine! and saunas

Just got out of my first Swedish class, and it was so much fun. I think after 2 classes with him I will have a decent grasp of the Swedish language, for sure. I bought the book, 35 euro, but Asha and I are splitting it so its not so bad. The professor is incredibly eccentric and its great. He speaks in a flurry of Swedish, German, English, and his own language. Sometimes hard to follow but always entertaining.
This morning it was so cloudy I wasn't sure the sun had risen, but when we left Swedish the sun was shining! I didn't see it of course, it is only an hour to sunset, but still, blue sky! Senate Square was lovely in the sun.
I may be saunaing tonight with Asha, that should be interesting. The saunas in the building are SO nice. The one open tonight has a small pool attached.
Had History of Nordic Countries yesterday, it should be fun. Our first test in Feb. 3rd, but we got all the potential questions yesterday. 3 essay questions, and we got 8. Not too terrible, I reckon.
I've become such a coffee drinker. I get at least 1 cup a day at Cafe Portalli, which is next to the library. The coffee is so strong, I have to put a lot of sugar in it. After I make it drinkable it is quite good.
Class tonight, then Swedish the next 2 days. Don't know what is going down this weekend.
I may go to the Erasmus party tomorrow, but I don't think so. I don't really feel like dancing much. The year-long Erasmus people tease us because we are still in "training" because we can only make it until 2 or 3, instead of 10 or 11. Seriously. These people party like its thier job.

First day of classes, how did you get THERE?!?, and my cupboards are bare

I had my first class today, European Foreign, Security, and Defense Policy. I think it will be really interesting, I'm looking forward to it a lot. I'm at a severe disadvantage though because I know absolutely nothing about the EU or European politics in general. I'm the only American in the class, and the only native English speaker, so we shall see how that goes. Having English as my mother tongue is great when writing essays though.

My class wasn't until 4, but I was hungry early, so I went to Porthania for lunch. I was looking for noodles with minced meat, but they had fried whitefish stuffed with shrimp, which was so freaking amazing I almost died. My system needed the infusion of grease like you wouldn't believe. i ate lunch with Rafal, he happened to be eating already while I was looking for a seat. After that I went to the bookstore to price my swedish books, 50 euro. Not too bad, considering they are the only books I have to have. I also have to locate a Swedish-English dictionary, which should be fun.

I wandered the city for an hour or so after lunch. I walked down to the harbor through Senate Square. It kind of hit me that I am in freaking Helsinki, after 2 years of looking forward to it. The harbor was nice, and there were a few tents open in the market area. Mostly selling fresh fish, but there was a sketchy tent selling dyed fur stuff. Afterwards I went and got coffee and hung out in Alekandria until time for class.

After class I think I left the building out the wrong exit, and ended up completely lost, in Kallio(which is where, so it seems, Ville Valo's dad's sex shop is).  Thats about 2-3 miles from my apartment, a 20 minute tram ride. I walked through a residential area full of apartments and didn't see a soul for about 15 minutes. I eventually saw a tower in the distance that I recognized, and made myway back to there. I was across the lake from Kamppi, where I live. I didn't even know the lake existed.

But I made it back safe. Thank goodness Helsinki is nice and safe, since I was alone and it was dark out.

Nothing exciting tonight, just hung out with people. I'm not feeling incredibly social today.

On tomorrows agenda: grocery shopping. My apartment contains 5 tea bags, half a carton of milk, a package of turkey, about 20 sugar cubes, a shitton of butter and a half a loaf of bread.

Also on tomorrows agenda: going to Nordea and getting my damn internet banking straight, since I still haven't paid rent.

Also: getting a cell phone fron DNA.

History of the Nordic Countries is my only class tomorrow, but it should be fun. Woot.

New pictures up on Facebook from my excursion today. Go take a look. But be warned, I didn't go to pretty Helsinki, so they are kind of depressing.

It is overcast and depressing outside today, I think most of the students are holed up in the building. There were lots of Finns running though. I have no idea how. I was too bust trying not to slip on the ice and fall on my ass, and they were running in tennis shoes.

I tried to go to the beach but couldn't find it, so I just walked along the shore on the brick path. It was nice, but very very windy. I almost got blown over a few times.

I want to explore the cemetery, but I want to go on a day that is not so cloudy and windy.

I walked about two miles I think. Walking here is easy, even when it is cold, because everything is nice and flat.

I went to Valontatalo (the grocery) and bought a frozen pizza and a coke. I haven't had any soda since I have been here, its weird. But the pizzas are fantastic. I haven't been cooking, at all. I eat bread with butter and tea, and most times someone else feeds me. Like last night, I didn't know if I was going to get dinner, and a Croatian girl came by where Meeli and I were hanging out and offered me pasta with shrimp and zucchini. It was quite good.

The party downstairs last night was meh. I talked most of the evening to a guy from Australia named Josh. He is big and scary and has long black hair and a goatee and a septum piercing, but is quite nice. We talked about how I think philosophy is rubbish, and then about body mods.

Rafal knows him because they are in the same department, so I talked to him some too. he was much more animated in conversation, which was nice. He is a real sweetheart I think.

My room is never quite warm enough when I am the only one in here. Time to turn on the oven I think. Coco told us this trick to turn the oven on and open it and it will warm the room up nicely. Just have to make surenot to catch anything on fire.

Its Finnish...all roads lead to the train station and other musings

Here I am in Helsinki. I've been lazy and not writing, I know. an overview:
This city is confusing as hell. There are basically no street signs. Instead, there are little road markers on the buildings that are about a foot long and 8 feet high.
If you wander around lost long enough, you will eventually end up at the rail station. Everything looks the same when you don't speak the language and can't read building signs.
The Finns are kinda a bitchy people. They don't like to help foreigners, for sure. I know they are quiet, but this is different. There is a difference between not making small talk and going out of your way to be unhelpful, especially in a customer service position like bank teller.
Helsinki is a lot dirtier than I was expecting. There is a shitton of trash on the ground everywhere. It gets cleaned every night (God knows by who, probably Estonians and Somalians) but by noon the next day it is already starting to accumulate. 
Its also incredibly quiet. No sirens, no radios, very little street chatter or noise. It takes some getting used to.
Its really hard not seeing the sun. It doesn't go high enough on the horizon to be seen over buildings. I have seen the sun a grand total of once since I got here.
This whole sun rising at 9.30 thing is bullshit. I hate waking up in the dark.

Krista, who is a Latvian girl I have been hanging out with, has decided that everything strange around here can be chalked up to the phrase "Its Finnish". The refrigerator door opens from right to left, instead of the usual left to right. There is no way to turn the vent on the stove on. Groceries keep strange hours, and close for no good reason. The entire freaking country shut down on Epiphany. Everything is incredibly expensive. Its bad form to be late anywhere, but no one every shows up on time. Its Finnish.

I've also noticed my English is getting worse from almost exclusively talking to people who do not speak English as a first language. I find myself searching for words I know, and I have a bizarre accent--a commingling of Latvian, Scottish, and Italian. It is not becoming.

Its not as cold as I was expecting, which is nice.
All the Finns walk really damn fast.
I have seen lots of dogs, but not a single mixed breed. I could immediately identify which breed they were. Its weird.
The juice here is really good.
I'm getting in the bad habit of drinking. And staying up late. Like, really late.