Last days in Finland: August 18 & 19

Wednesday morning the children had an invitation to visit the local Primary school. (Minna, our Treasure Island host, is the principal). They were a little nervous, but had an interesting morning. Wayne and I went in with Eleanor to see what was what. Children start school at 7, and the first two years are the Montessori system. Eleanor had to take her sneakers off at the door! Stocking feet only for all students... I think you can wear shoes at high school.

In the evening, we went to Tuija's house for a walk and dinner. Tuija's husband is a keen cross country skier, so they bought a house that backs on to a special track. This gets sprayed with snow as soon as the weather is cold enough, and has lighting for skiing in the dark. Here we all are at the top of a hill behind her house.

On Thursday it was the grown-ups turn to go back to school. We had a tour around my old high school. I noticed that the teachers aren't on a platform at the front of the classroom any more. Every class was still full of very studious pupils. These students are 16 - 19, in the 'academic' stream. (Other students go to the equivalent of TAFE after junior high). It is almost like university, where you sign up for courses, and are not necessarily with age-mates. It seems to work!

We picked these berries from the front garden in the afternoon. I think they are redcurrants. There were a lot of gooseberries too.


That evening we took our hosts out to dinner. Minna and her daughter came too. Pekka didn't come- he was off to his summer cottage again, first to work with his colleague, then to do some duck shooting the next day. Worryingly, duck season was due to start at just about the time our plane takes off from Kuopio. I had visions of flocks of ducks taking to the skies in panic, and getting caught in our plane... (It didn't happen.)

Wayne and I ate duck for dinner, anyway. It was a 'game evening' - as in things you shoot - at the restaurant. The other adults ate elk. The girls boringly ate hamburgers and Jack had a mighty 'hunter's sandwich', but did try some fried 'muikku' (vendace in English, a freshwater whitefish ) as a starter. Here's Mette showing how it's (apparently) done in Holland. Good food, good company!

So, we flew home the next day and managed to get a train to Liskeard that afternoon. A terrific holiday!