So I (Krista, Kailey's sister) am using Kailey's blog to document my Finland trip as so many people have asked for photos! I'm usually good about taking photos but not so much on sharing them. I figured this way would be easier to share and explain along the way.
Jeff and I left August 7th from Portland to Helsinki with a layover in Reykjavik. We had Johannes Hagman and Bianca Keteri with Gabby on our flight- fun coincidence!
All packed and ready to head out- the small suitcase was full of stuff Kaia requested.
Waiting at the airport- Jeff loves selfies;)
I've flown many times over the mountains here but never have seen them so well- even in all the smoke from the wildfires, they looked so neat!
This was the sunset over Greenland- it didn't get much darker than this! Gabby commented that she didn't like it when there wasn't a night.
I had sparkling water the first time the flight attendants came through with the beverage cart so I wanted to try something else. I asked Jeff if he thought the tonic water would be good- he figured I shouldn't try it. I decided to anyway so he told me to save it and open it later- that way if it was gross, I could dump it out. I still didn't listen and took a sip. I thought it tasted fine and poured the rest into the cup. I took another big drink and hoo-eee! That stuff was wretched! The rest got dumped down the sink in the bathroom while Jeff laughed at me the whole while.
This was really neat- I'd never watched the moon rise above the clouds. You could see the whole moon and could tell where the shadow was cast from the sun.
Starting to pull out all the games and distractions this far into the flight- the classic Minesweeper!
The sunrise- probably an hour or two after sunset.
Supper in Reykjavik Airport- Iceland is crazy expensive. I think this meal was $23.
Gabby and I waiting for the next flight to Helsinki
Landed in Helsinki around 3 p.m. local time and hopped on the train from the airport to Helsinki. We then waited there for an hour or two for our train to Bennas- which is around a 3 hour ride. At this point, I may have gotten an hour of sleep the whole time and was feeling ready for a bed!
Arrived in Bennas at 930 p.m. where Kaia and Ronnie met us- only 20 minutes from their house.
We visited a little and I went to bed at 11 p.m. and slept great!
First order of business the next day- grocery shopping. It was interesting to see the different systems they had. You bag and weigh your own fruits/veggies and print out a sticker for them to scan at the register. The carts are used by inserting a coin before taking them and after you bring it back to the one "corral", you can take the coin back. No people rounding up carts there!
Stocked up on my favorite gum and tried out a few different kinds as well. Also got my first bag of Finnish candy- yum!
This sounded delicious- and after reviews to the negative, I decided to get it anyway. I thought it was good!
I discovered a great snack before bed after getting home after three every night during the big meetings- rye bread with butter and cloudberry jam(my fave!) with some cheese on top! Also after the first good night of sleep, I only slept from 1130-3 the next night. I read until 9 and then got a few more hours. My first experience with jetlag and I think it took about five days for it to get straightened out! Of course, the late nights didn't help matters. I was also informed it's not as bad coming home- this, however, does not seem to be true for me. The first morning was 645(not bad) but this morning, I was wide awake at 3 a.m.!
Typical meal at the conventions- stew or rice pudding with love soup. They have a sign with what to pay for meals which is how they pay for the food. There's also bread/butter and beverages at every table. I tried a drink the Finns seem to like- it's like a non-alcoholic wine and that's just what it tastes like-yuck!
Cool sky one night at the young gathering.
Sunday morning- trying to show how big these meetings are.
We were in the 12th row of one field- double lines and about this long. They have young men out there directing traffic to get everyone parked nice and straight to fit everyone in.
Pretty scenery- one of the first things I noticed about Finland is all the tall, red houses!
Summer house in Bosund where some of the young kids hung out one night after church.
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