Magnificent Africa!

I was lucky to have the opportunity to visit some beautiful African countries at Easter time. This time I travelled in Namibia, Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe.  The nature was impressive as I expected.

First I wondered the life in Windhoek in Namibia. I stayed in a lovely pension. I also met some people who work for the church. They took me to the Easter ceremony at good Friday. The church was full of people and the priest told about different kings in Africa. Jesus was the kind but what kind of king. I liked the point of view. People song in different African languages and English. The church was filled with music and the sound of pages of Bibles that people carried with them to read the topics. After church we enjoyed the coffee and lunch at home of my new friends. They had a lovely small garden in their house.

The following day I joined the safari group that was a mixed group of different people from many countries. With them I travelled from Namibia via Botswana to Zambia. First I did not like our leader but I learnt to like him. He did the good job. Especially on the way I enjoyed sleeping in a busman's hut, experiencing the Delta by lying on the mokoro boat, having a meeting with a snake and contacts with elephants in a safari lodge and seeing the African animals on a boat cruise. At the end of our journey together we took the ferry across the river to Zambia from Botswana. The high point of Zambia  was the Victorian Falls. They were so impressive!

It was time to split and say good byes to the others. The previous night we had had the last dinner together. Some took taxis to the airport and some wanted to stay longer. I went across the border to Zimbabwe by myself. Everything went well. On the way I admired once again the Victorian Falls and the old iron bridge that links two countries and goes across Zambezi River. I stayed over night in a fantastic safari lodge that had a great panorama. There I was able to wonder vultures and hyenas. People were really friendly.

Unfortunately everything good comes to an end and it was time to return home. But I have many great memories and experiences from this trip in this corner of Africa.

The old Viborg

I visited Viborg at the beginning of December in Russia. Once that town belonged to Finland. Actually Viborg was established by Sweden because they built the castle in 1293. It belonged to Sweden for over 400 years. Peter the Great conquered the town in 1710. The Russian time started. The rest of the country (the eastern part of Sweden) was conquered about 100 years later.
Soon Viborg and the other eastern areas were united as a Finnish area which had the autonomy in Russia. Finland as a nation was created. People spoke Finnish or Swedish. So it was in Viborg. After the revolution in Russia Finland declared the independence in 1917. There was no longer Russia as a neighbor but the Soviet Union. Viborg was the growing town and it was the second biggest town in Finland when the winter war started (the second world war) with the population of almost 200 000. After the war it was lost to the Soviet Union as some other areas. About 220 000 people escaped to the other areas in Finland. My mother was one of them. She was about 20 years and had studied art at the Viborg art school.
It was lovely to walk at the streets that my mother had walked. I visited the art museum and school. Nowadays the town is populated by Russians but its roots are Swedish and Finnish.

Kekri ja pyhäinpäivä

Oli hienoa käydä syyspimeällä hautausmaalla, jonka valaisi lukemattomat kynttilät! Minä ja lukuisat muut muistelimme ja kunnioitimme siten poismenneitä. Olemme osa sukupolvien ketjua, mikä konkretisoituu hautakivien lomassa. Tunnelma on myös kaunis!

Aiemmin kävin luennolla, jossa kerrottiin kekristä ja sen perinteistä sekä pyhäinpäivän historiasta. Hyvin outoja tapoja on vielä sata vuotta sitten harjoitettu, kun on varattu ruokaa ja lämmitetty sauna vainajille. Erilaisia uskomuksia on omattu ja ne ovat juontaneet kaukaisilta ajoilta. Miten on nykyään? Muistammeko enää poisnukkuneita tässä hektisessä elämässä? Onko katseemme vain tässä ja tulevassa, muttei enää menneessä?

Competition affects us

Competition affects us everywhere nowadays. I face it when I am looking for a new job. There are so many good applicants there and usually only one person is chosen. Is she or he the best or just the best in the interview? How many good applicants miss their chance? The situation makes me think if we all are anymore needed in this global competition. What kind of values or qualifications has the suitable applicant?

Children at school must compete with each other. And not only at sport. The parents are often affecting at the background because they want to give their children the best future or to tell others how smart their kids are. On the other hand the girls are brilliant at school and the boys less but the boys succeed at work life. Maybe the girls could try less and a little bit relax. The learning should be fun and an adventure. I enjoyed learning and studying when I was at school, not just the best grades. And to be successful at school does not guarantee the success in work life. But studying and learning can make the life more meaningful. I never liked competition, not even in sport but I understand that there are some people who are fond of that :) I have noticed that especially the men like competition. Anyway, I like doing things and reaching targets.

We should more cooperate and work in teams, not just compete with each other. Different people together make this life rich.

Tiededokumentti: Oppiaineena fasismi

Katsokaa ihmeessä tämä dokumentti Areenasta. Se antaa uuden näkökulman fasismiin tämän yhdysvaltalaisessa koulussa 60-luvulla toteutetun kokeilun kautta. Miten helppo on houkutella ihmiset mukaan yhteisöön/joukkoon ja painostaa ryhmäkurilla? Lopussa kommentti siitä, että tulisi kuunnella sydämensä ääntä, on todella aiheellinen.
http://areena.yle.fi/tv/1653641

The Movie "Puhdistus"

Today I went to see this film based on the book that has the same name. The book I read about two years ago but I remembered the plot. The film was a very good realization. It was touching although very strong and violent. But the life has been hard in the far and near past in Estonia. It's genius how the fates of small people are entangled bigger changes in history. It tells on the strong way about human mind and emotions.

No doubt that his film is going to be noticed internationally, as the book did.
 

Holiday in Croatia

What a lovely holiday in Croatia! I had heard a lot positive about the country and I can agree. The Adriatic sea on the beautiful sailing boat was great, so blue and green! We were 14 travelers, guide and the crew. The cook prepared the excellent food. The sun was shining and it was nice warm.

Every day we were hiking 3-5 hours on the islands. So we discovered different landscapes. On the way we admired olive trees, wine yards, wild herbs and the mountain/sea scenery. The harbors were small, old towns filled with history.  Especially the period of venetian power and influence lasted for a long time. This time we found for example the childhood house of Marco Polo, one of the first explorers.

I could return to Croatia but I think that there are still many new places to discover.