Helsinki life under the coronavirus

I almost stopped this blog when, suddenly, the coronavirus scare made it seem disrespectful to offer up observations on life in Finland. And the end of the scare is far from over. In addition, who knows if I will even be allowed to stay – or want to stay – until the end of my term in mid-June. However, I should continue, at least for the time being, out of gratitude to my host country.

So how is Finland dealing with the coronavirus scare? The response seems to be calm but concerned. Everywhere has appeared hand sanitizer in strategic locations. Posters on proper cough etiquette have shown up in trams, restrooms, elevators, etc. Public events are cancelled. University classes are going online. Very mild stocking up has occurred (...but nothing on the level of what is occurring in the US. There is milk, toilet paper, meat, etc. easily available at the local store. As well as herring, salmiaki, and the ryest of rye breads. One could survive on the latter foods, if desperate.) The Finns have always been great at social distancing well before this crisis, as any glance at a bus or tram stop during busy times would confirm. They don’t wave their arms around and take up a lot of unnecessary space. Or make unnecessary noise such as talking to strangers. Nothing more than needed. So all seems set in place for a long siege.

What to do in Helsinki when you want to avoid crowds, malls, etc? Just step out your door and start walking. There are trails everywhere. Finns get out and walk. They respect strangers and don’t bunch up. They don’t care if it is cold and the wind chill is unwelcoming. Children are strolled (appropriately clothed) at temperatures that drive Americans indoors. And the children are often wearing protective sunglasses. The Finns have felt besieged many times before in the past, and this is another opportunity for them to prove their sisu (stoic and proud determination mixed with courage).

The following weeks should prove interesting.

My survey on doors is *not* complete

Last time I wrote: "My survey on doors is complete. Every American I asked confessed to having trouble with Finnish doors."

I was wrong. I should continue the survey.

I was with some of my students as I struggled to unlock our classroom door. The students were all international, but no Americans. Several students mentioned, with no prompting, that Finnish doors were difficult. We then shared our common struggles with Finnish doors. How enlightening.

Some time back I had realized that I was not the only one who suffered this incapacity, but I then I considered this problem with doors to be unique to Americans. This Finnish door-fail situation appears to be international in scope! It is just something we all don't admit.

There is only one solution to this portal paranoia that seems to obsess me: printed instructions in several languages on every public door. Those are the only doors I feel confident using.

My survey on doors is complete

My survey on doors is complete. Every American I asked confessed to having trouble with Finnish doors, but no one admits it willingly because they feel that this issue is unique to them. My comprehensive research has proven that the capability to easily open a door can often be culture-specific. In brief, Americans struggle in Finland with ingress and egress. Those terms make our inability to go through Finnish doors sound a bit more worthy of understanding rather than deserving ridicule.

So, in conclusion: On some doors you push. On some doors you pull. And then on some doors....

I encounter doors that open automatically for me when I approach. And they look exactly like the doors that do not open by themselves but rather force me to think (Have I been through this door before and perhaps can remember? Are the hinges visible to supply a hint? Is there a button I push to engage the door? Do I really need to go through this door?). And then there are the doors in public places you are sure will open by themselves when you approach, but…which…don’t (doors for department stores, train stations, etc.). Then you try to pretend that you really stopped before that door for a reason other than the royal expectation that doors open upon your approach. But wait...I also encounter doors that appear to be normal because handles are present -- but you need to press a tiny button cleverly concealed on the door frame. And then the door may just open for you! No need to touch that useless handle.

My most embarrassing door moment thus far this time in Finland: I came to a door to enter a quiet work room. I tried to pull the door handle. The door would just jiggle a bit. I tried then to push the door. More jiggling. All I ended up doing was rattling the door enough to alert the people in the quiet work room that there was someone at the door who could not figure out how to get in (because the room was all glass enclosed, there was no anonymity afforded me, and the Finns inside were certainly thinking what they would never actually say out loud). Of course, a moment later, a nice Finn on the outside with me came over and slid the door open for me without a word before walking away. Because there was really nothing to say at that point, and I hope that is all I have to say on the topic of doors for awhile….

Kekkonen, Kekkonen, Kekkonen...

Sometimes you just “get it.”

Because this is my third time in Finland (2011: 10 days, 2013: Aug-Dec, 2020: Jan-Jun) I realize almost every day that I am understanding some things without first being confused or having to think. Of course I have studied the language, read about the culture, examined the history books, and such. So I have prepared myself, and it eventually pays off. It is quite a pleasure to come across a situation where you just “get it.” Such events make you feel less like an outsider and more worthy to be here.

I often go by the former house of Finnish presidents, especially that of Urho Kaleva Kekkonen (1900–1986) who served almost 26 years as president and lived in that house from 1956 until his death. The house is now a museum (which I have visited), and on the fence outside is spelled out:

Kekkonen, Kekkonen, Kekkonen… 

-- which makes me subtly smile each time I pass. And that smile is because I “get it.” It is not that the museum needs to advertise itself by repeating his name several times. Instead, it is a popular culture reference that Finns share, unknown to others unless they are fortunate enough to “get it,” too.

Sorry, I am not going to explain it. It is worthwhile to earn such small insights, and I don’t with to ruin anyone’s chances to do so.

McVegan and Me

I just had to do it. I had to go to a McDonald’s to try a McVegan. But I had an excuse, or two. First, I have always been curious about this product since it debuted in Finland (in Tampere) in 2017 and has not yet made it to the U.S. The McVegan thus has an appeal to me because of its connection to Finland. And second, since I was on a quick trip to Rovaniemi, which is 438.02 miles north of Helsinki, and just a few miles south of the Arctic Circle, I had the “why-the-heck-not?” reason. After all, until 2013, the Rovaniemi McDonald’s was the northernmost McDonald’s in the world – until Murmansk in nearby Russia took that title. Murmansk is not on my to-do list, so I took advantage of Rovaniemi. 

I will apologize now for having gone to McDonald’s because, this time around, I have doubled-down on eating more traditional Finnish, and I have done well here even though I am vegetarian. But this is an aberration and will not be a habit. And now, back in Helsinki, I no longer have an easy excuse -- unless I get a desire to try that intriguing Piquant Veggie sandwich I saw advertised.

By the way, the McVegan was not bad, not bad at all.

• McVegan 
• Piquant Veggie

Another time around in Finland

I waited for over a month, but I will not wait any longer.

I last blogged on my August-December 2013 experiences in Finland on January 25, 2014. I did not expect to be back here as I am (from January to June 2020), in the same role as a Fulbright scholar teaching for Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences. And I never expected to continue this blog.

My original blog was all about the cultural lessons I learned, mixed with the observations I made. What else would I have to add now, after all these years and all my experiences since? After a month into my second stay, I need to renew this blog because I feel much more capable this time around – but I also can feel just as perplexed, just as confused, and ever so slightly embarrassed in many situations. Yet, I am also starting to understand more and to “get” more things (language, body language, customs, etc.). I am sort of in between.

However, I never expected to continue this blog by first…talking about doors. 

Finnish doors are again my nemeses: See September 21, 2013: "You have a 50/50 chance to succeed"

https://hellinghelsingissa.blogspot.com/2013/09/you-have-5050-chance-to-succeed.html

I still fail to open them correctly about 25% of the time (improved from my 50% average in 2013). Do I push? Do I pull? Do I turn that lock-like thing and push or pull? Does the door open automatically when I approach? Do I hit a button or bar on the wall? I have to ask myself all these questions almost every day unless I am fortunate to be in a tourist spot where doors are labeled  with clear instructions in Finnish-Swedish-English. Otherwise, I am again resorting to observation of others who precede me or memorization if I have come this way before.

Note: It is not just me. I know that for sure now. This month I have purposely observed other foreigners navigating unlabeled doors. They fail, too, and are just as frustrated! I have even observed a few Finns struggle with doors. I feel a bit better. It is the construction, in my opinion. Some doors do not have visible indications on the way they move. That must be it! How can someone of my age still fail so often at this basic task?

Well, I am back, and this time I am going to master doors of all shapes, sizes, and weights (yes, some Finnish doors are not made for the weak). In the next few weeks I will actively research this door phenomenon and report back later. In the meanwhile, my efforts to understand all around me will continue....