How to Say "Hei Hei" to 30�

Do you ever have one of those days you think, "It can't possibly get any worse....but maybe it will?"
Yep - one of those - right here.

I was un-usually crabby today and was internally wanting to beat myself in the face with my little Finnish-English dictionary during what felt like a long day in class and was super happy when I got to the day-care that V�in� was napping in the double stroller.
Fantastic!

Ahti (youngest) was able to enjoy his snacks and a different movie other than Teletubbies in Finnish, while I started laundry, a load in the dish washer and did some tidying up.
Unfortunately, due to all this noise and the inner door of the flat being closed as well - I didn't hear V�in� scream when he woke up downstairs in the building's lobby.
Thankfully a neighbour from below came up and rang my bell and I rushed out - clumsily closing the inner door and hoping the outer door would stay open a bit so I could get back in (my neighbour looked pretty mad) quickly with V�in�.
No of course it couldn't be that smooth.
The outer door slammed quickly with the rush of air between the doors (Ahti opened the inner one) and I was locked out with an Autistic, screaming 3 year old...in my shorts and long-sleeved shirt - no socks and no shoes...no phone or keys.
Hubby wasn't due back for at least another hour or so...and I actually was calm about my 1.5 year old alone in a flat with the two dogs....the kitchen door was shut (=no knives, dishes or stove access) and the balcony door was closed (=reduces chance of a cold and eating dirt blown onto the balcony)...and a movie was playing....the dog's water bowl was the only thing I worried about actually!

I grab V�in� and start ringing doorbells of my neighbours - hoping SOMEONE would answer and speak English or understand my horrible Finnglish.
The neighbour beneath us did and kindly lent me her phone - so I tried calling my husband twice - no luck.  He wouldn't answer because it was a strange number and thought I was a telemarketer...I even called him once after another.  I didn't want to send a message and abuse the courtesy of my neighbour so she called the maintenance people and they came within 15 minutes to un-lock my door.
The flat lay-out is the same, however it was not home and V�in� was hungry and angry.
I thanked my neighbour profusely for her patience and help and believe it or not - her daughter got upset that we were LEAVING....shocker I know.  So I'll be leaving her some cookies tomorrow for her help.  She looks like the jogging/exercising type...hopefully she likes cookies though!

Signs I am possibly learning Finnish (in English):

Then the maintenance guy opened the door, I thanked him and thought he would leave.  He ended up walking into my flat - which was a total mess (I was working on that while V�in� was asleep!) and  stood there.  Finally he said the one word in English he knew after I asked him if he could speak English..."MONEY."
Well, how much because I don't carry cash and there was none to be found in my husband's desk...
30� (I'd be even happier if I mis-heard and it really was 13� - guess I'll find out later)...Okay well I don't have that amount and can't you send me the invoice? (I'm making square gestures by this point) and apparently that was a no-go.
So I told him flat out I don't have cash, I just have my bank card and he just stands there and stare at me waiting for me to pull the money out of my arse I suppose.
I figured out how to ask him if he could come tomorrow morning for the money and that I would have the cash then.
He understood and I double-checked everything and he finally left me in the peace and squalling of a 3-year old and a 1-year old retaliating against him with screams of his own.

It really depends who you rent from and the organization that provides the building maintenance because others in the Foreigners in JKL group have mentioned different prices and their companies DO provide an invoice...
I mean once you're in, would they actually ask you to leave since you can't pay in cash???

This is a FIRST since moving here that I've been 100% locked out...an experience not worth repeating or paying for - in case you were wondering.

How To Help And Offend...AT THE SAME TIME!

A couple weeks ago (I know - total slacker with my blogging...), Jyv�skyl� was a sheet of ice.  I'm not just referring to the lakes either!
The sidewalks were horrendous to walk on but as the sun peeked out more and more  - most of the side walk ice began to melt - yay!
But there were still a lot of rough and icy patches I assure you!  I have the busted up bruised knees to prove it.

Anyways, I decided to get my hair cut after my Finnish lessons one day and then grab the bus to head to a knitting group.
While waiting for the bus, I dug out the latest Sookie Stackhouse ("True Blood") novel and was enjoying trying to figure out who killed so and so...and what will happen with Eric and Sookie...or Bill..or Tara's pregnancy!
Sorry, did I get side-tracked?
This little old lady came walking over and there was a huge patch of ice in front of the bus stop and I noticed she had a cane with a rubber bottom - she didn't use the metal pick attachment.  Brave lady.
I kept an eye on her to make sure she got to the bench safely and she did.
After a couple minutes she asked me a series of questions in Finnish - I don't dare to try to write them down IN Finnish but my guesses in English instead, along with my responses in Finnglish.
*Please note:  When I hear Finnish now, I pick out the words I DO know and try to string them into a sentence to figure out what is being said/asked!  Also, please excuse any poor spelling in Finnish or Finnglish.*

• What book are you reading?
  "Englangtia!" - me so proud of myself...
• Oh English.  I have 2 boys and one lives in America and married an American (amerikkalainen) and they have children.
  "Joo.  (Me being super brave and thinking "maybe I'll use some of the Finnish I learned today!")
  M� olen kanadalainen."  (My inner Finnish-learning goddess does a happy dance since I repeatedly said this at least 20 times that day in class).
• "MIN�!" she screeches at me.
  *BANG*  There goes all my confidence...a quickly deflated balloon floating to the patch of ice on the ground...
  "Oh.  Min� olen..." I whisper meekly...but I double checked with other Finns later and they think it depends where she's from and perhaps "Min� olen" is the old-fashioned way...and my schoolwork still says "M� OLEN"...so there.  (Perhaps it's an issue of written versus spoken..anyway - clearly I'm still learning!)
• "Is your husband Finnish?"
  "Ei, kanadalainen." (Confidence slowly building...)
• "Does he live in Finland?"
  "Joo, asun Laajuavuoressa!" ("Yes, I live in Laajuavuori!" WAHOO - I'm getting there!)

Insert some quiet Finnish silence...then I dip my toes in the water again...
"Mulla on kaksi lastaa." (I have two children.)
She then continued to converse with me and all was fine in the world.

THEN the bus came.  

I flagged down the bus and she dug out her bus pass in her right hand and held onto her cane with her left.  I shuffled on the ice then turned back to help grab her RIGHT elbow to help her across the ice.

Well, she clearly thought I was going to rob her of her bus pass...because she had a look of fear on her face.

SERIOUSLY.

So I pointed to the ice and the bus and showed that I was trying to help her - not steal her freaking bus pass.
She then snootily told me that she did not need my help.

Fine - I got on the bus and that was it.

After sharing this experience on Facebook, some Finnish friends advised me to not take it too seriously or to heart that I was rejected to help her NOT break her bones because older Finns tend to be pretty darn un-grateful at times of need.
One friend mentioned that she helped this elderly lady carry her groceries X flights of stairs and made sure she got into her apartment safely and the lady didn't even thank her.  Just slammed the door in her face and that was it.
Not that my friend expected anything more than a "Kiitos!" (Thanks!) which takes all of 2 seconds to muster the courage and say it...and is free.

Thankfully, I do not use that bus stop very often - if at all.

The Palapeli Experience!

Sorry I haven't been writing much...first it was the flu...then the ski holiday - where I didn't actually ski...and then my kids went back to day-care only to end last week with a nasty case of Noro Virus which hit all of us in some way or other...and since STARTING this post over a week ago - my oldest kid got hit with ear infections in both ears...
Anyways, pretend with me that you're reading this the beginning of March!

I had been prepping for the Palapeli Finnish language assessment week.
A friend of mine had already completed this 5-days long assessment so I sort of knew what to expect.
There would be some basic math, writing components, learning a bit and some tests at the end to see what you know.  Both a spoken test and a written one.
In Finnish.

Hmm - well then.

I arrived there last Monday (4th of March) and the group of people were divided based on language spoken, as there were translators available from English to Chinese, Spanish to Persian, Russian to Swedish...
We were treated with a slide show explaining why Palapeli exists and what will be done in the assessments.
Here's the quick version of it (my words):

• You're separated into the 2 or 5-days assessment.  
• 2-Days assessment (I didn't do this one) is for people who:
• Speak multiple languages (not necessarily Finnish)
• Have graduated college or university. 
• Have studied Finnish in the past.
• 5-Days assessment (I did this one) is for people who:
• Recently moved to Finland.
• Do not know any or very little Finnish.
• Have not studied or completed post-secondary education.
• Have not studied Finnish before.
• I'm sure there are other criteria to distinguish the two but really - you're all on equal grounds by the end of it!
• Everyone is an equal in the long run.  (This was emphasized a hundred different ways in a span of 40 minutes...)
• Once you've completed your testing then you return for your results or you can call and get them over the phone.
• This assessment determines not only your Finnish language skills (if any and I assure you - many people DON'T have any!) but your basic math skills, memory and writing/reading skills. 
• If you are not very good at any of the above - do not worry or stress about it!  The big thing is that they can find you the help you need so when you are ready to look for a job in Finland, you will be employable.
• This is NOT a test of your IQ - but to see what is the best Finnish language course for you to be placed in and if you require any other help in the other areas they cover.
• Bring a pencil and an eraser and your exercise booklet when you go there.
• Don't be late because if you are - you may not be able to get into your classroom and you'll have to start over at the next assessment - which is every 2-3 months.  (Not sure how true this is because one fellow was late and he still got in on the 4th day...and this presentation was due to start at 9am and did not start until almost 9:30....so...take it for what it's worth?  Besides, it's polite to be on time/a bit early!)

Day 1

I was placed in group 1 of the 5-days assessment group (which there were 2) and there were no translators - we all spoke and understood English to some degree.
However, the teachers did not speak English when teaching us - it was all in 100% Finnish, which is a good thing!

We had our math test that morning and were given a piece of paper with 50 mixed math equations that had to be solved.  Multiplication, division, addition and subtraction...and you had 4 minutes to complete as many as possible.  When the timer went off, the teachers/assistants marked on your sheet where you finished and then we were given an extra 10 minutes to finish the test.
Yes, one girl in the group finished all 50 in 4 minutes...I made it to question 42 by the time the first timer went off - thanks for asking! :)

Day 2
A test of memory.  We learned some bits of Finnish and had to do a memory test.  As well, we learned how to say "My name is ____".  Along with some other super simple phrases.

Day 3
We learned more Finnish..."I'm married/I'm not married", "I have __ child(ren)", "I have __ sisters, __brothers, mother/father..."

Day 4
We had a speech test.  We were taken individually into a room with 2 teachers - one using the computer and typing your answers I guess, while the other asked you the questions.
Everything they ask is stuff you covered....but if you've lived in Finland for awhile or have studied prior to that assessment, they'll throw you some curve balls.
I was asked, "Kuinka vanha olet?"  I stumbled big time.  I apologized in Finnish (Anteeksi?) and she repeated it again.  My little brain fairies went through every filing cabinet in my head regarding the Finnish language and I recognized that "kuinka" meant how many or how - something!
But what?!
Finally I gave up (this was all in a span of 20 seconds) and she said in English,

"How old are you?"

Insert the brain fairy pulling out the image of Homer Simpson screaming, "D'OH!"
I quickly responded my age in Finnish and then they asked me (in English):
"What else do you know in Finnish?"
Well, that's not really a good question considering I've been here almost four years.  So I quickly said I knew mostly food, baby-related things and some conversation and craft terms.
That was that.

Day 5
The written test day....
We were allowed to correct our exercise book that we had been using for the past week, with one of their correct-answers-already-filled-in copies - so I had assumed the test would be a blank copy of our exercise booklet.
No - not true.
The first half I understood easily and flew through it...the second half was more challenging and that was a good thing for me.  I was able to push myself and see what I could answer.  I admit to using the process of elimination multiple times until I got the proper answer (so I hoped).

Once that was done, I had to wait about a week to go back (or call) to get my results.
I opted to go in person to get my results because the un-employment office had no idea I finished the assessment and they wanted a copy of my results and proof that I did it all.

It took a few minutes to explain to the person working in the office that SHE had the results and I was there to get them and that SHE needed to send a copy of my tests to the un-employment office...but after 5 minutes of blank stares and me pointing and making weird gestures and speaking repeatedly slowly...she got it.
And I found out that yours truly will be learning Suomea (Finnish) as of April 2nd for a 2.5-months long course!!  I'm excited and will be in the "Beginners Fast Paced" program.

I'll keep you updated as I struggle with all the joys of learning Finnish!

**Kortepohja Flasher!**

Hey folks:

This is a pretty serious post, especially for those that live in the Kortepohja Jyv�skyl�-area!
There have been reports of a man going around showing children dirty videos and flashing himself (dropping his pants or un-zipping them) to girls ages 7-10 years old.  He is described as a small man, a foreigner with a tanned complexion and is most active in the afternoons.
Not sure if it's the same fellow but a friend of mine has also seen a man shooting videos at a nearby school...

The police have not caught this man and do not have a firm description unfortunately - due to the cold weather - I'm sure this fellow is quite bundled up too!

Anyways, please keep an eye out and warn your children about this guy and for them to call for help and try to remember anything about him that may distinguish him - so the police can catch him!

In Finnish:
Kortepohjan itsens�paljastaja on taas liikenteess�. Olkaa vanhemmat ja lapset valppaana ja soittakaa poliisille havaintonne!

This is very sad and unfortunate that someone wishes to do these things in public and to children  (or do it at all)!!  I hope he's caught and I sincerely hope that Finns do not think all of us foreigners/expats behave in such a disgusting fashion!

Fig-a-no.

Recently I went on a date with my husband, which was fantastic as we haven't had a date in ages.  By ages, I mean at least 6 months.
It's not easy finding someone that is able to care for our children but we lucked out with a couple of friends and happily rushed to downtown to eat somewhere.
In previous years, we've gone to Harald - the Viking-style restaurant.  But since Tim has been to a few other restaurants with work-related meetings, he thought we could try something new.
We had looked online at some different places and opted to go to Figaro.

Figaro is fancy and fairly high in price but we figured an anniversary date/valentine's date/my birthday dinner all in one - justified a fancy place...that and a date for the first time in over 6 months - yep let's go!

We were greeted by servers dressed in black and advised them that we do not have a reservation.  They quickly found us a table, we were handed large black (single-sided) menus, served water and after a few short minutes took our order.
We started with the "Overcooked Lamb Shank with Allspice Ice Cream".  I advised the waitress that we could share this and she nodded and left with our order of Grilled Wild Boar and Beef � La Figaro.  We also ordered two glasses of wine and decided we would have our wine with our meal.
The waitress must have misunderstood because she showed up with two identical appetizers.  Of course the food could fit into my hand, the portion was so petite and the plate was rectangular and large.  Go figure - fancy food.
We didn't say anything about the mistake in ordering once we realized how small the portion was.  There was a TINY piece of lamb, a small brick the size of my pinky finger, a tiny blob of mustard, a bit of greens, a slice of a tortilla and a small scoop of this Allspice Ice Cream.  I honestly had no idea what to expect with this ice-cream and when you hear the word "ice-cream" you usually think of something sweet.  It looked like chocolate..with black specks...that's right - pepper.  And it tasted different - like spicy and soya sauce or Worcestershire sauce mixed in there...you really couldn't taste anything "dairy".  A very odd combination and not something I would eat again - and I'm pretty open to trying new things!

After we were served our meals, I decided to wait a couple minutes to see if our wine would arrive.  Tim began eating his meal right away and suggested I do the same before it got cold.  We ate our delicious food and I noticed that the wine probably won't be arriving any time soon, despite the fact that our waitress was still working and our table was beside the bar.
When we were more than half-finished with our meals, we managed to get a different server's attention and asked if we could have our wine that we had ordered.  He was surprised that we had ordered wine and immediately got us our glasses.
The server never asked us how our food was during our meal - which I figured would have been a good idea and a good oppourtunity to see if we needed anything - like our wine...
And the female waitress that we had at the beginning no longer served us after we got our main course - I'm not quite sure why because our table location never changed and she was still working the other tables - so who knows.  Perhaps she was a hostess but she didn't wear anything that distinguished her as different than a waiter(ess).

Oh right, the food - so Tim said the wild boar platter was really tasty and he seemed very happy with it all.  I thought it looked kind of plain sitting on a top of a puddle of sauce but he was super happy about it so I'm glad!
My steak was cooked perfectly medium, the bacon was nice and smokey and the jalapenos really complimented the steak, bacon and aioli.  The potatoes were fantastic and had a strong garlic flavour - so if you order this dish, make sure you have some gum or a mint afterwards!
And the Italian wine that went with the meal was fantastic and much easier to drink with the food!! (I'm not a huge wine drinker and can't have wine without food...)

So in short?  Figaro's food is impressive but the service is lacking.  I'm not sure if it was because we didn't dress to the nine's for our date or because we weren't much older than our first server that she decided to ignore us (not looking in our direction either)...but take it for what it's worth.  And yes, there were people dressed more casually than us - more suitable for a house party or club...but anyways!
If you don't care about excellent customer service during your meal but you care about fancy, expensive food of (slightly) odd combinations - definitely try Figaro.

Oh and another example of Figaro's poor service (based on a friend's experience) - my friend went there for a Christmas work party one year and they had pre-ordered their food, had a reservation and so on -  and when they arrived, nothing was available except water for at least an hour.  Then they were asked what they would like to drink, alcohol-wise, and then the food arrived almost 2 hours after they arrived.  My friend was quite disappointed by the whole experience and I can't blame her!

Next date night will be held elsewhere...same with next anniversary date night too.
Sorry Figaro - but it was more of a Fig-a-no.

Yet Another Restaurant Day!

Yesterday was Restaurant Day (Feb.17th) or in Finnish - 'Ravintola P�iv��.'
The point of Restaurant Day is to sell food of your making or to experience little pop-up caf�s/restaurants for 1 day.  Restaurant Day occurs four times a year and I think it's a great way for people to share food from their culture - especially if they are foreigners!  In a small city like Jyv�skyl� (compared to Helsinki or Tampere), the amount of foreign food is very limited at restaurants and we do not have a North American-style bakery!  

Yesterday was my "one-year anniversary" of selling for Restaurant Day as "Hooked On Sweets" and I hosted it outside for the first time.  Normally I set up my shop in a yarn store (permission required) called Poppeli.  

But recently Restaurant Day has been alternating between Saturdays and Sundays and because yesterday was a Sunday - Poppeli was closed!

What was I going to do?!

Well, I decided to set up on a long red bench located in downtown Jyv�skyl�!  There was no permission required and the police didn't swing by until the last 10 minutes of my selling!   They sat a few meters away facing me in their super-obvious-it's-a-ghost-vehicle (aka solid grey and same shape as their vans) and didn't leave until I did!

I drew a sign clearly stating that it was Restaurant Day and people have been very welcoming of me selling at a downtown location.

I offered take-away only - although the bench was so long, anyone could have sat there to enjoy their goodies!  However, sitting on a metal bench during a windy February day might not be ideal!

I get asked a lot of questions during my times of selling and they're all pretty good questions, that you as a foreigner probably experience all the time!

1. How long have you lived in Finland for?
2. Why do you live in Finland?
3. What part of Canada are you from?
4. Did you bake this all yourself?
5. Do you make any profit off of this?
6. How do I set up a caf� myself?
7. I bought ___ pieces - can I have some thing for free?

1-3.  I've lived in Finland for 4 years and moved here because my husband is studying to do his phD here (also a Canadian).  We're from Nova Scotia - home of Ellen Page (actress - Juno and Inception) and Sidney Crosby (a hockey player that no Finn seems to know of but is supposed to be the next Gretzky), the blueberry capital of Canada, home of Jost Winery and we have a lot of humidity too.

4.  Yes I baked everything myself - I take about 2 days to bake everything and try to make it as fresh as possible for Restaurant Day.

5.  It is possible to make profit depending on what your prices are like.  As a stay-at-home mother currently, waiting to study Finnish intensively, this is my only source of income that I can make independently.  I also think that asking if profit and how much of it is being made is quite intrusive because it's really no different than asking, "How much do you make?"  It's not something I would ask another person - let alone a pop-up-caf� owner.  Then again, curiosity killed the cat...

6.  You can set up a caf� yourself once every 3 months and you must register on the Restaurant Day site (listed below) in advance.  I strongly encourage it because it's a great way to educate others about food from your country and if there aren't any regular businesses that sell food from your country - it's a great way to see if there is potential to open a business some day!!

7.  I don't know why this is becoming a common trend and the people asking me this have been Finns.  I don't think it's fair to ask for free food because this certainly would not work at a restaurant or any shop..."Can I have a free pair of sneakers since I bought a pair and some socks for my kids?"  Yep, sounds ridiculous as you asking me (or any other Restauranteur) for free food because you chose to buy X-amount of food.  Not that I do not appreciate your business - but I certainly don't enjoy being asked for my hard work to be given away.

One thing that was pointed out to me several times by customers - both new and regular visitors to Hooked On Sweets - was that there were not many restaurants set up yesterday in Jyv�skyl�.  And there wasn't - perhaps because of the colder weather or because it was on a Sunday - I'm not sure why.  In fact, there were two places that were registered that were already restaurants/caf�s prior to Restaurant Day.

Yes, they were promoting new foods or discounts for the special day but a lot of comments received from my customers were that it was not fair to the one-day restaurants that were open because they are open everyday of the week (minimum five days) and Restaurant Day is not like that at all.

Looking at the Restaurant Day map now, the day after, those two registered businesses are no longer listed on the map even though the other pop-up caf�s are.

As long as you respect the property you're selling from and clean up after yourself - it's pretty much a green light to sell anywhere.

For more information and rules - check out Restaurant Day's site.  They are also listed on Facebook but you register yourself via the website.

So take advantage of this oppourtunity, have fun and share your culture and love of food!!

Restaurant Day! :)

Tomorrow is Restaurant Day and I will be set up in downtown Jyv�skyl� between Sokos and Forum.  There is a long red bench if you start walking down the hill towards the bus stops and I'll be there from 12 pm-4 pm.

Here's my menu and prices.