Summer is here! One thing I truly like in Southern Germany compared to Northern Europe is that the summer arrives earlier and it last longer. Did you know that in Northern parts of Finland the winter can last for 7 months!

I made a presentation in the class today. We all present our native countries in turn and now it was time to introduce Finland to my classmates. The title could have been: ” See, Sonne, Schnee –  Sauna und Santa Claus”.

Here’s some facts about Finland that raised some discussion in the class:
– Finland is about the same size as Germany but has only 5 million inhabitants
– Finland has over 60 000 lakes
– In the very north during the summer months the sun stays above the horizon for 3 straight months! However, during the winter you cannot see the sun for 51 days
– Finland has over 3 million Saunas
– Santa Claus lives in Finland

Everybody was curious how one can cope with the extreme seasons. Well, I have lived now in 5 different countries and let me assure you that the everyday is pretty much the same everywhere. You get to work, make your daily pasta dish for the family, buy the cartons of milk and watch TV. It’s not that different. In Finland we may get more snow than here and it may be colder, but we are used to it. The country does not go on hold when there is a bit of snow around. And we know how to dress warmly enough.

But now the glorious summer is here and we can forget all about the snow! The Biergarten might be calling me again after the class today…