Before coming here, I thought there would be very challenging weather and I would feel alone because I didn’t know anyone or anything here, especially in Pori. Also, I thought a lot how I would survive, what would happen after arriving, how will the Finnish people be and many more. Literally I made a virtual Finland in my imagination. But after arriving here so many of my thoughts have changed already. I feel that it’s not like I thought. For example, I can talk about weather, people and so on.
WEATHER CHALLENGE
Before applying Finland, I knew that as a European country maybe there is cold weather most of the time across the year. But it’s not like that I thought. There are four seasons such as summer, autumn, spring, winter and weather is very nice here except for four to five months winter. I am from a warm weather country so it’s very challenging for me to adjust in winter as expected. But now I am feeling that I can easily adjust in Finnish weather and it’s giving me a good vibe. Already I enjoyed it a lot in summer and feeling good in autumn.
IS IT TRUE THAT FINNISH PEOPLE ARE INTROVERT?
Normally I heard that Finnish people are self-centered, not friendly, introvert until reaching here. But after reaching here, that thought has also changed. They are very friendly people and very kind to others when there is any need.
For example, in Helsinki VR station there is a man who helped me to understand how I must go and what I could see in the journey. Another incident was when I was running in a park, and a Finnish old man told me how to survive here, how is Finnish people thinking, what is Finnish culture and many more. That discussion was very effective for me to understand Finnish life and culture.
It’s true that Finnish people like to maintain their personal space, but they are not self-centered at all. They take time to understand opposite person, and they behave like what they see. Also, they are not introverted as we thought but punctual.
A FEW LAST WORDS
In conclusion, I like to say that overall experience in Finland till now like reality vs expectation. Before arriving here, a lot of myth and misunderstanding going on my brain about Finland and Finnish culture. But after reaching here now I am feeling much more comfortable than I never expected.
Moreover, I am feeling safe all around in Pori and I can go whenever I want and there is no one to judge me. I believe that everything depends on how I am adjusting in a new place and how I am thinking about next days. When I was in my country, I thought a lot about many topics but here most of that thinking has changed and gives me a positive vibe.
Text and pictures: Tanzid Amin, student of International Tourism Management