And it gets darker...

Fields and Farmhouse near Kuopio

So, my to do list is growing...and I'm procrastinating.  Apparently not much has changed since my undergrad...or highschool....or life inbetween.  That being said, blogging is on my list and I am currently accomplishing it.  Learning Finnish will never be off my to do list while I am here, unless by some strange event I start speaking it.  And some things just aren't getting done (room cleaning).  Oh well, here's my next (and slightly late) blog update!

Mmm...Thanksgiving dinner in the making! €8 for a pumpkin!

Since returning from Lapland, not a whole lot has happened.  A few hours of class every day, running around town, riding my bike through the cold fog, homework, and oh yes...social events.  Since I'm studying abroad, it would be irresponsible of me not to partake in social gatherings.  About a week and a half ago, April and I made a Thanksgiving dinner to share with some Finnish Friends.  It was amazing.  Last week, all the forestry students in Joensuu held a "Suomi Parti" at the local yacht club's house near the water.  "Yacht Club" makes it sound like a classy event...ummm, sure.  Dress code: anything finnish, blue and white, ridiculous, comfortable, or any of the above in any combination.  Welcome drink: vodka shot with a slice of cold hotdog on the rim, which was drizzled with hot sinappi (mustard).  Dancing was not ballroom: check out an example of the Fine Finnish Tunes that were played.  And, of course, there was a sauna.  :-)

A very colourful, slightly abandoned farmhouse

However, what was much more interesting was hunting this past weekend.  My friend Aku invited me to his home where he grew up, about 130km West of Joensuu.  I took the bus out on Friday night, we spent Saturday in the forest and came back yesterday, Sunday.  I would like to describe Saturday as the ultimate Suomi Saturday, the only thing it was missing was excessive quantities of coffee (I don't drink it).  It started with a light breakfast before sunrise, followed by a few practice rounds.

We then spent the morning trying to flush jänikset (rabbits) from the bush and into the field (preferably) where we would then (theoretically) take our shot.  It never happened, we didn't see a rabbit all day.  I did, however, run into 3 moose, but, alas we were not moose hunting.  Just before lunch, Aku tried his whistle for pyy (hazel grouse).  Success!  One came to the call and Aku got it with a clean shot.  Nice.  We made a fire (nuotio) for lunch and roasted sausages (makkara).  Oh yes, and had a celebratory beer.  After a leisurely lunch we continued to look for pyy.  We had lots of success calling them in, but they all stayed out of sight.  And they got really quiet when a hawk cruised the forest.  We also ran into a fourth moose. Very cool.  I don't think I've seen that many moose in the bush in a day in Canada.  I have seen a lot more moose in a day, but from the road, which doesn't count.  Dusk started to settle in (it was 16:30) and so we headed back for the day.

mmm....pyy for dinner this week!

There was home-made moose soup waiting for us at home, which was fantastic!  We heated the sauna up (of course) and each took a turn basking in the heat.  Finally we wrapped up the day by heading into the town of Kuopio and having a few drinks.  Definitely a fantastic metsäterapia päivää, or forest therapy day.  That was something I made up - it's not actually a thing, though it should be.  A great break from school and general daily life in Joensuu!

Fields, birch and Norway spruce.  The only thing missing from this photo is a lake...it's just to the right about 0.5km

My Fun Finnish Fact for the week is about a product that is involved in many aspects of life in Finland and has been for centuries: terva.  Tar.  In addition to what we may consider "standard" uses, in Finland it is also used in medicine, saunas, food, alcohol...skin creme...candy...Really.  Seriously.  Don't believe me?  Wikipedia will confirm. After all, "if sauna, viina, and terva don't help, the disease is surely fatal."  This past weekend I enjoyed tar in a licorice-flavored candy and as a sauna water additive.  It was...interesting.  Kind of a smokey flavour and smell...but not like wood smoke and not like burning plastic.  Apparently, the EU is trying to ban it claiming that tar is carcinogenic.  Guess what the Finn's reaction is?  Of course: the crazy Europeans don't know what they're talking about - Why are we involved with those guys anyways?  It makes me laugh a little...or at least smile to myself.

They certainly grow large carrots here!!

I've been really bad about photos recently.  I haven't gone on that many exciting adventures in the past couple of weeks and I never remember to bring my camera into town with me.  I'll spend a day and take some more photos around Joensuu before the snow flies!