Finland

Finland is a great country in Northern Europe and celebrating Independence Day every December 6th since 1917.

Places

Helsinki is Finland's capital and biggest city. Neighbouring countries include Sweden, Norway, Estonia and Russia. The Couchsurfer route usually includes Estonia (Tallinn) and/or Sweden (Stockholm) which are a just a cheap (and usually quite fun) boat ride away from Helsinki. Connections to Russia are not too bad either, St. Petersburg being just a few hours away, but the cost of visa (50€) is certainly not very welcoming for the most budget-minded travellers.

When it comes to cheap flights, Ryanair flies to Tampere, which is the biggest city outside Helsinki area.

Other cities are Oulu and Turku, which is the historical capital of Finland. Turku is easy to reach by ferry from Stockholm. Most of these ferries also stop by Åland, which is a small island between Finland and Sweden, a nice place for a bike trip.

On tourist's point of view, the Finnish nature is worth visiting. Besides the wilderness of Lapland, all the small lakes in the central and eastern Finland are beautiful. Tampere is the biggest city in the western lake district, but the most idyllic lakes are in the east, where you can find Savonlinna, Lappeenranta and Kuopio

Unfortunately trains are quite expensive in Finland, so budget travellers should do some planning.

Easy couches

If Helsinki seems all booked up, try the neighbouring cities Espoo, Kauniainen (small city of its own inside Espoo) and Vantaa. Connections within the Helsinki "metropolitan" ;) area are good and you can get to the center within one hour from anywhere on this area.

Happenings

• May 1st: Vappu (workers' day or whatever you call it...). Supposedly for marching around with political slogans and for high-school graduates from past years to parade their hat. What actually happens: the whole country is out on the streets getting wasted and causing all sorts of mayhem. Opportunity to mingle with the Finns when they're most open and approachable :P

• May 10-12 2007: Eurovision Song Contest. Finland won the Eurovision Song contest 2006 ("zero points" was a longstanding issue diminishing national self-esteem) so the next one is held in Helsinki, first (and possibly last) time ever. Expect Vappu-like behaviour from the Finns. If you plan on attending, make your couch-booking sooner rather than later. Tickets go on sale Sunday December 10th and only one sixth are available for non-Finnish citizens so if you definitely want to be there, be ready with your telephone...

• Summer solstice (Juhannus): best spent in summer cottage with friends, relatives, barbeque and sauna.

• Thursday in late August: Night of the Arts in Helsinki. Art is on display, to be heard, seen, experienced throughout the city for one night.

• Late August: Espoo Cine. International film festival taking place in Espoo, with free festival buses taking off from around the Helsinki Railway Station.

• September: Helsinki International Film Festival aka Rakkautta ja anarkiaa (Love & Anarchy) displaying mostly non-mainstream indie type films. Screenings are open for anyone who has funds to buy the tickets (around 10€ / movie, less if bought in series) but try to book ahead to get to see the movies you really want to see. Unique opportunity for Finns to catch non-mainstream films that might not end up in wider circulation after the festival.

• December 6th: Independence Day, national holiday. Includes a big ball at the presidential residency right by the harbor, that's televized is usually the most-watched television programme of the year on Finnish national television.

CouchSurfers

Trivia

• 6 degrees magazine April 2006: The hitchhiker’s guide to the(northern)galaxy
• Mondo Magazine November 2006 1
• YLE 1 Aamu-TV April 12 2007 ~8am: the clip might be available [www.yle.fi/yle24/videosali/?a=10&t=1 here] for the day

Tips

How to be a good guest

1. Always remove your shoes when entering your host's place.
2. Don't worry if your host seems a bit stiff at first - it might take some time for Finns to open up, but once they do, you've made yourself a loyal and trustworthy friend.
3. Honesty and straightforwardness are highly valued in Finnish culture - so don't bullshit your host...
4. Your host most probably has access to a sauna. Here's a sauna etiquette that might help you deal with the possibly awkward situation of sharing a hot space with naked strangers ;-)
5. Don't expect to smoke inside your host's place, even if she/he is a big smoker. Diving in the fountain in Picadilly square is definitely a more common view than Finns smoking inside a flat/house.csgroup:175

wikitravel:Finland hitch:Finland