Many museums are free of charge... at least once year!

The national museum in Helsinki

Finland doesn't have very famous museums like Le Louvre in Paris or the Hermittage in Saint-Petersburg. It will change if the Guggenheim museum is built. Nevertheless the country counts a lot of interesting museums. It is always interesting to visit exhibitions and learn more about the past or discover new artists. There are exhibitions for all tastes! Nowadays, most of the museums are interactive and make the visit even more captivating.

Despite the fact that most museums have an entry fee (between 2 and 12€), it is possible to visit most of them for free, at least sometimes. On May 18th, almost all the museums are free of charge for the international museum day. For children, the admission is almost always free. Students, unemployed, those in military service and pensionners have special discounts.

Kiasma, contemporarymuseum in Helsinki

The most visited site in Finland is the fortress of Suomenlinna in the Helsinki's archipelago which is also considered as a museum. It is free to go there (you just pay the boat). You only pay for guided tours or for visiting indoor museums. The same principle applies to the openair museum of Seurasaari, also located in Helsinki.

My top list of museums:

• Kiasma, contempory art museum in Helsinki. Expect the unexpected!
• Siida, the Sami culture museum in Inari. Discover how the Sami people adapted to the arctic climate and their customs.
• Arktikum, the provincial museum of Lapland in Rovaniemi. A "must be visited".
• The spy museum in Tampere. Unique in Europe! Small but extremely interesting. Especially for all the conspiracy freaks!
• The city museum in Helsinki. Think you know everything about Finland's capital? You will know a lot more after your visit.
• Ski museum in Lahti. From the oldest pair of skis to the latest successes of the Finnish elite. You can try ski jumping, cross-country skiing and biathlon shooting!

Let's don't forget the castles. Personally, I've loved to visit the amazingly beautiful medieval castle Olavinlinna in Savonlinna. And cherry on the cake: the guided tour is free of charge! Turunlinna in Turku also worth a visit.

List of free museums

Helsinki

Always free: the museums owned by the city

• City museum
• Sederholm
• Hakaslmi
• Worker Housing museum
• Tram museum

Only the last Tuesday of the month:

• Design musem

Only the first Wednesday of the month:

• Ateneum art museum (after 5pm)
• Synebrychoff art museum (after 5pm)

Only the first Thursday of the month:

• Natural history museum (after 4pm)
• Kaisaniemi Botanic Garden (after 4pm)

Only the first Friday of the month:

• Kiasma (after 5pm)
• Tennis palace art museum
• Museum of Finnish architecture
• The national museum (after 4pm every Friday)

Espoo

• Emma, Espoo museum of modern art (Wednesdays after 6pm - includes 5 museums)
• Glims Farmstead Museum (Wednesdays)

Jyväskylä

• Alvar Aalto museum (Fridays from October 1st to December 31th)

Lappeenranta

• South Carelia museum (first Friday of the month from September to May)
• South Carelia Art museum (first Friday of the month from September to May)

Tampere

• Finnish boxing museum (volunteer admission fee)
• The police museum
• Media museum Rupriikki (Fridays)
• Malkki museum, contemporary art 
• Finnish labour museum

Turku

• Art museum (Fridays after 4pm)

This list is of course uncomplete. The article will be updated everytime I make another interesting discovery. Feel free to contact me and share your tips with others!

Indica is shining!

Shine - the second album for the international market

On Friday January 24th, the 5-girls Finnish pop-rock band Indica is releasing its 7th album in two languages: the Finnish version "Akvaario" and the international version "Shine". The band was created in 2001 in Espoo, but their first album "Ikuinen virta" was only available in 2004. Nevertheless, its stayed 30 weeks in the Finnish charts and the girls got a platinium disc. The band went two times on tour with Nightwish as a support act. In 2010, their first ablum sang in English was released.

Support act before the Nightwish concert in Basel (Switzerland) in 2009

The five fairies from the Finnish forests bring romantic and dramatic songs. A mixture between modern and classic with a touch of metal. The band is recognizable with its fashion style: neoclassic. It is also inspired by the Finnish mythology, the Kalevala.

The band will announce very soon the dates of their new tour "Shine".

A definite maybe - new single from the Shine album:

Älä kanna pelkoa - new single from the Akvaario album:

Precious dark - from "A way away", the first English album:

Vuorien taa - from the second album "Tuuliset tienoot":

Jonsu signing "Erämaan Viimeinen", originally "Last of the Wilds" from Nightwish:

Website of Indica (English-Finnish-German)
Follow Indica on Facebook

Too cold? It' time to watch a movie!

Choose your seat

Temperature are far below zero since a couple of days. Everything is frozen, and going out (even for a cigarette break) looks like a polar expedition. It's the perfect time for enjoying a movie at the cinema. In Finland, all movies are shown in original version with Finnish and Swedish subtitles. Only movies for children are dubbed. Finnish movies have unfortunately no English subtitles. In 2012, Finns went about 1.6 times to the cinema. Almost all the theaters have now the 3D equipment.

In some countries, after getting the ticket at the cashier, people are running to the room to get the best seats. In Finland, buying a ticket is very easy and convenient. It can be purchased on the Internet or at the cashier. Seats are chosen, and the number of the row and the seat are printed on the ticket like for the airplane's boarding pass. With this system, there is no rush. No one will seat at someone's else place.

A large choice of candy

Who do Finns take with them in the dark room? Popcorn is very popular as almost everywhere in the world. But what they like most is to fill a paper bag with candies. A lot of candies. Some of the bags weight one kilogram!

Superday advertisment in Lahti

My tip: Finnkino, the largest chain, is having a "superday" almost every month where all 2D-movies cost 6.50€ and all 3D-movies 7.50€. Popcorn (3 liters) costs only 3€. 

January 22nd, 2014 is the next superday.

Link to "Finnkino Superday"

The elite of the Finnish cross-country skiers in Vantaa

All the best Finnish cross-country skiers of the country who getting ready for the next Olympic Games in Sochi (Russia) will compete in Hakunila (Vantaa) for the Finnish championships this weekend. The lady stars are: Krista Lahteenmäki, Kerttu Niskanen, Aino-Kaisa Saarinen and Anna Kyllönen who were successful in the last tour de ski. For the men, the World Champion Matti Heikkinen is on the startlist as well as Sami Jauhojärvi and Iivo Niskanen. The program includes on Friday sprint races for both ladies and gentlemen. On Saturday, 10km classic for the women and 15km for the men. Finally, on Sunday, there will be a team sprint (pairs).

Competition will be held in Luotikuja ,Vantaa (Hakunila):
Drive through Kehä Ring III or take bus 740,741,741k,741n,742(Helsinki) or 68,69 (Tikkurila)

Website of the event (only in Finnish)

It's time to plan your holiday!

Finnair flight crew 2005

What a better place to do it than while visiting the biggest Nordic travel fair since 1936 in Pasila, Helsinki? Exhibitors from the whole world will present their most attractive programs and sights: North, South, East, West, summer, winter,... everything!  Many shows will happen on the different stages along the weekend. But you will not only look at nice posters and brochures. It's also a great place to discover different cultures. Handicrafts and local food are also sold. In the Finland area, you can have a sauna (no, it's no joke)! Don't forget to participate to the numerous competitions. You may win a free trip!

A Sàmi at the fake railway station of Helsinki

Website of the fair

Opening hours:

Fri 17 Jan from 12:00-19:00

Sat 18 Jan from 10:00-18:00

Sun 19 Jan from 10:00-18:00

Admissions:

• Adults EUR 16 / person

• Children (7–15 years), pensioners, conscripts, students EUR 10 / person

• Group tickets (at least 10 persons) EUR 10 / person

• Full-time ticket EUR 30 / adults, EUR 20 / children, students, pensioners (these tickets only at the cashiers)

• Family ticket (max. 2 adults and children under the age of 16) EUR 37 

• Under 7-year-olds free of charge

• Under 12-year-olds must be accompanied by an adult.

The pictures were taken in 2005 with my 3 mega pixels camera. That's why the quality is poor.

Dress like an Olympic athlete

The Olympic winter games in Sochi (Russia) are beginning in about three weeks. It is no secret that Finns love winter sports, and are waiting for medals from their athletes. Everyday there are articles in all newspapers and on the TV channels. Since D-100 days, a giant clock is showing the countdown until the opening ceremony in the main lobby of Helsinki railway station. The fever is definitively raising!

Jacket that the athletes will wear at the opening ceremony (129€)

The official clothing supplier is Catmandoo, the adventure brand established in 1974. The Olympic collection was presented last October in the railway station of Helsinki by chosen athletes. Since, the items are on sales on the website of Catmandoo and in selected shops.

My tip: some of the items from the Olympic collection are on sale at Prisma shops (here the pictures were taken at Sello shopping mall in Espoo).

Order the clothing online

Winter sales at VR

Sales are everywhere at the moment. VR, the national railway, is having very interesting disounts on numerous lines sold between 8 and 25€ until January 23rd. The travel time have to be between January 24th and February 6th. Hurry up, there are only a few tickets available per day and per destination. The offer works on both directions.

Some of the offers

At 8€: Turku-Tampere, Helsinki-Turku
At 15€: Helsinki-Imatra, Helsinki-Jyväskylä
At 20€: Helsinki-Kuopio, Oulu-Tampere
At 25€: Helsinki-Rovaniemi, Helsinki-Kajaani

Link to the offer

Have a nice and cheap trip!

First snow!

Thin layer of snow

After long wet and dark months, snow is finally arrived until Southern Finland! The ground is now recovered by a thin white layer and the temperature has dropped to minus 9 degrees. The difference with the previous days in big: it is much brighter and also much more beautiful. Today while walking, people looked much happier. What a change with the depressing month of December. Days are getting longer but the sun still sets around 3:30pm. Of course, in Northern Lapland, the sun is much more shy or even doesn't rise at all. When the sun never rises, the phenomenon is called Kaamos.

Frozen pond

Icy road

Everything is on sale!

Almost everything is on sale at Halonen

The word of the week is "ale", sales in Finnish. After the Christmas season, shops have a huge stocks to get rid of before receiving the spring collections. In order to seduce the customers, the discounts are massive: up to 70% in most of the shops! Some design shops like Marimekko have smaller discounts (up to 40%), but it is much higher than the previous years.

Take 3, pay 2 sportswears at KappAhl

It is time to do your Christmas shopping for December 2014 or simply to buy something that you need or dream of. It is also a good opportunity to buy winter equipment which is quite pricy. If you are going to Lapland and do not know what to buy, visit a sports or outdoor shop. The salesmen are very professional and will present the best products for you. If you are an amateur of parlinéschocolate, you will see many packages at -50%. But be quick. You are not the only one to fond for food ;)

Girls shopping quietly at Seppälä

Finnish people are not behaving irrationally like in some other countries when there are sales. They just take their time. They stay calm in every situation. Of course, on Saturday afternoon there are much more people, especially in the large shopping centers. People are queuing at the cashier and at the changing rooms. Don't even try to cut the line! It is very rude to behave that way!

Have a peaceful and thriving shopping moment!

For a smooth departure

The international Helsinki-Vantaa airport is the busiest in Finland. Built in 1952 for the Olympic Games, it has constantly grown to reach in 2011 a number of over 14 million passengers. The airport is the most important gateway for travelers willing to visit Finland. Since a couple of years, the airport became an important hub for all passengers travelling between Europe and Asia. Effectively, Finnair offers direct flights to 14 destinations in Asia. Its slogan is "the shortest route between Europe and Asia". Therefore, it was important for the airport to develop services to help the long distance travelers to relax before or after their trip.

While visiting the airport, I have noticed two new services that are really helpful. The first one was in the café in front of the souvenir shops (sorry I don't remember its name). On the tables, passengers have the opportunity to recharge their mobile phones using an interesting interface wire-free. If you have a Nokia Lumia, just put it over the picture and the phone will automatically be recharged. If you have any other mobile phone brand (Samsung, iPhone, HTC,...), you can buy or borrow a little key that you connect to your phone, and recharge it while you are enjoying a cup of coffee and a sweet bun.

Recharge your smartphone wire-free

The second new service is simply amazing. How often do you need to wait for hours for your connecting flight and don't know what to do? Or where to relax? In Helsinki, just walk to the crossing between the gate 31 and the passport-security check for the flights outside the Schengen area at the terminal 2. A newly open relaxing area offers different options to the travelers: silent chairs if you wish to work on your laptop or pad, sleeping tubes, beds, fatboys in a very Finnish atmosphere. The highlights of Finnish nature such as an ice wall and Northern Lights will definitively help you to relax. I have particularly liked the sleeping tube (the kind of egg in the middle of the picture). Basically, you lay down on a chair with 3 different adjustable parts and you can close the curtain. But always keep an eye on the clock and don't miss your flight! the room is free of chrage and open 24/7.

The new relaxing room

Helsinki airport has been voted 5th best airport for its comfort, conveniences, cleanliness and customer service by sleepinginairport.net travelers.

Have a pleasant flight!