thinking of going next year

taint never been

Been 3 times.

Where are you thinking of going? Helsinki? Or more woodsy artic circle kind of place?
What time of year? Summer or winter? I can also give you some info on a nice / reasonable ski resort. (I can also give you one in Norway that almost killed me it was so hard. Their blue hills were like our double black diamonds.)

I visited Helsinki on a DJ/record release tour in 2002 on my way to Estonia. Played a bunch of gigs and met some really great people. BEAUTIFUL city, even more BEAUTIFUL women.

looking to go for a week or so next summer. probably split our time between woodsiness and big city. is it expensive there? is cheap but quality lodging easy to come by?

it'll probably be mostly hiking, shopping, looking at shit, eating finnish food

It is expensive as shit there, but the lodging should be top notch because they take pride in their buildings and homes.

Eat some makara and ranskalaisi. (Not sure about spelling but it sounds the way I spelled it. It means hot dog and fries.) Also don't forget to get some Megapussi when you are there.

Over there summers are mosquito filled due to all the lakes. (That's where Minnesota get's their nickname from, and also the Lakers.) You will be in dire need of some Off! and mosquito nets, even in doors if you are camping. Helsinki has some cool shit. I recommend the bus tour around town. It's a few hours but hits some really cool highlights, especially a monument built to honor some famous Finnish composer.

megapussi you say?




thanks timmyjoe42

also, why were you there 3x? you like it so much?

Wife is Finnish.

i'd be so pissed if i heard a guy singing on my bus

Whoa!

Yea, the women are pretty hot. Mostly because they haven't succumbed to the fast food sensation. The Finns tend to be pretty active and don't lay around watching reality tv all day. They are a very polite and reserved people and usually will not say "it's nice to meet you" because they know that they don't know shit about you after spending only a few minutes together. I love that they don't have that American "Oh I love you" mentality with all the fake hugging and the "Oh, call me and we'll hang out. OK, I will." B.S.

Also, they can drink some major vodka quantities and then become a bit more unruly and outgoing.

really looking forward to this trip now...

any pointers on the best way to find affordable lodging? we're open for those house-sitting/swapping things, if that makes sense

My wife did all the house finding via websites where they post photos of the places. I think a lot of the ski resorts have homes around them which the Owners rent out. Everything is negotiable and they are usually pretty accommodating.

I'll try and find out the websites she was searching.

The good thing about traveling to Finland is that almost everyone speaks better English than most Americans.

toots is now wife hunting

see if you can bring a new one back for me, too, toots

found this one

i'd like to go there sometime since that's where my grandma was from.

A few years later....

when i took the ferry over to Estonia from Finland, these Finnish Metalheads, who were heading over to Estonia for a weekend of debauchery (Estonia is incredibly cheap, and the women are hands down the most insanely gorgeous I've ever seen), so they started asking me questions after hearing me order a beer in English. they ordered me up vodka and beers (Olvi), so when the Estonian promoters picked me up after the ferry arrived, i was pretty shitfaced. after a week in Estonia, i headed back to Finland to fly back to NY, and one of the dudes i was drinking with was on the ferry. we shared a few more beers, and he's still a good friend to this day (one of my sources for Scandinavian Metal).

toots, i cannot recommend heading over to Tallinn, Estonia enough. it's a truly incredible experience.

awesome. that's former soviet bloc, no?

yes. Tallinn is a medieval city, surrounded by a wall. really rich character. some of the outskirts are not so nice.

"i'm waiting for you toots"



you'll see women like this selling postcards on the street. seriously.

< i'd by that for a dollar