Kathryn Piekkala - QLD to Finland

Mon 23 Mar 2009

Kathryn Piekkala, from Park Ridge QLD, is currently in Finland on a year program with Student Exchange Australia. She wrote to us so that everyone could read about what a fantastic country Finland is!

“Moi! (Hi!)

Getting on the plane to leave Brisbane, my friends and family for an entire year was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. After so many days countdown and so much anticipation, I was about as unprepared to say goodbye as was possible. But following many tears and a final gentle push in the direction of the gate I got on the plane to begin what was to be a very very long journey. Despite my many concerns about the ‘getting there’ part, the trip went smoothly and I arrived in Finland safely and was met not only by my host family but snow as well!

My host family have been amazing! From the moment I arrived at Turku airport (with no luggage and a full understanding of the term "jet lag") I have been simply an addition to the family and I couldn't possibly feel more at home despite being half way across the world. I have three host siblings here, Leevi, who is 12, Saara, who is 11, and Miina, who is 9. The kids all speak excellent English and are very willing to help me learn more Finnish. My host parents and siblings are all so enthusiastic about making sure I see, do and try everything Finland has to offer and really enjoy how awed I am at life here.

I am living in a small town called Raisio which is located in south west Finland, very close to Turku, a fairly large and very historical Finnish city. I attend the local school (Raision Lukio) which is about 2km from home and has approximately 450 students. I walk to and from school most days which I enjoy, except when it’s and icy and the roads are slippery. Finnish schools are quite different to Australian schools firstly because there is no uniform and there are only 3 grades, not 5. The subjects here change every six weeks which makes for a very confusing system sometimes. There is also no set start or finish time, for example, on Tuesday’s I start gym class at 8.00am (can I just add that I REALLY hate Tuesday’s) but on Friday I don’t have English until 9.25am so I can sleep in. The people at school all have varying levels of English (apparently everyone here can speak some English) but aren’t very confident and would rather speak Finnish if possible. Everyone was very shy initially, but I have made some great friends who were very interested to know if we had pet kangaroos.

On Monday’s I go into Turku to a special Finnish language class for exchange students. We have people from all over the world (Brazil, Mexico, Canada, Austria, Australia, Thailand, South Africa, and Japan) and it’s really nice to get to know people who had the same crazy idea you did. After class we all go for coffee together and make lots of noise with everyone trying to translate for each other into something everyone can understand. I also go to another Finnish class on Monday night that focuses more on Finnish grammar which I won’t even begin to explain because it is a horrible nightmare.

On Thursday’s I go to the local primary school to teach English to the most beautiful, polite, lovely children. The teachers say that it’s very beneficial for the kids to hear “native english speakers” and it’s amazing how fast they can understand. Last week I introduced them to “Green Eggs and Ham” which they found quite funny.

During my 4th week here (Raisio’s Ski Holiday week), my host family took me with them to Levi, Lapland which is about 1000km from Raisio, to try downhill skiing. We stayed for 6 days in the cottage my host family owns and while I certainly wouldn’t say I can ski well, I had the most fantastic time trying. We would wake up late each day, have a big breakfast and then head for the ski fields at about 1.00pm. When it finally got too cold we would all meet in the kota (a small hut with an open fire) to have sausages on the fire. At night when we got home we had snow fights and sled races (both of which I lost miserably) before having a sauna and watching a movie or playing cards. It was cold! The coldest I saw was -24 but the wind is the worst. The only time I found the cold unbearable was when it was -6 and windy, I had frozen eyelashes and everything!

Life here seemed kind of like it belonged in a storybook and I don't think I realised just how far I'd come until I found myself at Tuikku, this tiny, picturesque restaurant hidden between the ski slopes of Levi, clutching a cup of hot chocolate and listening to loud choruses of Finnish folk music. It is hard to believe that I am so far from home and everything familiar and that this really is reality. In the next couple of weeks, I am going on a trip to London with school and then heading back up to Levi with my host family for Easter. After that summer holidays will begin and I’m sure that I will be kept just as busy then as I have been now.

Finnish food is mostly very good. I love the bread and the strawberries are incredibly good as well! I have also become a fan of the sauna and find it really relaxing. When we were in Levi though, my host sister Miina dragged me out of the sauna into the snow to make “snow angels”. My host mum says that the cold shock is good for your body...but I couldn’t really feel anything after that!

I miss home a lot, especially when I am feeling a bit down but I am trying very hard to make the most of what I have here while I have it. I am hoping that the language will start to make more sense as I get used to it and although it is frustrating (and often daunting) not knowing what is happening a lot of the time I am learning more words all the time. I actually asked for my bus ticket in Finnish the other day which I was very impressed with.

I know that when I began to think of a student exchange as a real possibility I spent many hours reading the SEA updates page entertaining the idea that one day I might have something to add. I have been in Finland for six weeks now and already feel that I have gained a lifetime of experience and stories. I hope that the rest of my year will be just as wonderful and that this inspires other potential exchange students to see what I mean for themselves.

Moika

Kathryn”