“Those people are crazy,” I thought, watching through the steam of the hot tub as the rest of my group trekked into the snowy woods.
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Helsinki is Finland’s foodie capital, home to more than 1,000 restaurants serving everything from reindeer and Arctic berries, to fresh fish and pizza topped with pickles.
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Hands down, one of the best meals we had in Helsinki was at Konstan Molja, a small restaurant near the Kamppi shopping plaza that serves a mean all-you-can-eat buffet.
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In front of us is a plate of scrambled eggs, bacon and smoked salmon.
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“Let me sing an old-time legend,
That shall echo forth the praises
Of the beer that I have tasted.”
Finland’s most important piece of literature, its epic poem The Kalevala, talks more about the art of brewing beer than it does the origin of mankind.
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When asked how he gauged the quality of his work, Finnish artist Touko Laaksonen, more commonly known as Tom of Finland, once said: “If I don’t have an erection when I’m doing a drawing, I know it’s no good.”
Over the course of his career, Tom produced more than 3,500 homoerotic drawings of muscular and scantily-clad hunks that not only pleased their creator, the images also revolutionized the public perception of gay men.
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At one point in Finland’s history, everything had a soul.
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Within a few pages of any Finland travel guide, you’ll come across the word “Sisu.”
It loosely translates to “guts,” a reference to Finland’s resilience in the face of invading armies (Sweden and Russia haven’t always been the friendliest of neighbors), and harsh winters (we were there in March and trust me, it was harsh).
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