Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Polar Bear Sauna: the greatest thing ever! Incase you didn't know already, the Sauna is very important here in Finland.  nearly every apartment complex has one (including mine).  I can only assume that this is because someone decided a sauna would be the most delightful and relaxing way to thaw out after being outside in Finish winter (who ever decided this was right).  in addition to being readily available to the public, saunas in finland have been incorporated into various other activities such as yoga (haven't tried this) and swimming.  which brings me to one of my new favorite hobbies, going to the polar bear sauna.  Basically what you do is change into a bikini in a dressing room located 10 feet from the hottest sauna on the planet, sprint to it (because its -20C outside), and sit in it for 20 minutes.  once you are sweating from every single area on your body and feel as if you could breath fire, you casually walk out to the icy lake with a hole drilled in it and plunge yourself into the hole.  you repeat this process about 3 or four times and after doing so you feel more refreshed and cleansed than you ever have before!! I have done it twice already and plan to do it either every sunday or every other sunday from now on!!

Poker: not much to say about this activity because i am sure that most people are familiar with texas holdem but thought that I would mention it because it was a lot of  fun playing w 5 of my friends at the bar while watching the hokey game (hokey is really popular here).  Held my own for 2 and 1/2 hours until it was down to me and my German friend Phillip who ended up kicking my butt!!


International Music Night: later that week I went to a free event that was organized by the exchange student org.  Various exchange students from the university (and a few Finish students) performed music from both their own countries and other countries as well.  a few people sang, some played piano, others played guitar.  It was a very cultural experience and I am glad I went.


Sledding:  Haven't done this in years, and when approaching the hill with my friend's Aly and Mattiss, I felt slightly reluctant to partake in the activity since we were the only people there above the age of 5.  however once i went down the hill I was glad that I did.  And actually after about an hour of being there more people that were our age showed up so I felt less creepy! after nearly 3 hours of sledding, me and Aly went to meet our German friends Maja and Marekie for coffee and cake at this adorable coffee/pastry shop here (will add an image of coffee shop after my next visit)!