Finland (Finnish: Suomi, Swedish: Finland, ) is in Northern Europe and has borders with Russia to the East, Norway to the North and Sweden to the West. The country is thoroughly modern with well-planned and comfortable small towns and cities, but still offers vast areas of unspoiled nature. Finland has approximately 188,000 lakes (about 10% of the country) and a similar number of islands. In the northernmost part of the country the Northern Lights can be seen in the winter and midnight sun in the summer. Finns also claim the mythical mountain of Korvatunturi as the home of Santa Claus, and a burgeoning tourist industry in Lapland caters to Santa fans. Despite living in one of the most technologically developed countries in the world, the Finns love to head to their summer cottages in the warmer months to enjoy all manner of relaxing pastimes including sauna, swimming, fishing and barbecuing.
Regions
Finland is divided into the following provinces (lääni):
# Southern Finland — the southern stretch of coastline up to the Russian border, including the capital Helsinki
# Western Finland — the coastal areas, the old capital Turku and Finland's number two city Tampere
# Eastern Finland — forests and lakes by the Russian border, including Savonia (Savo)
# Oulu — the former province of Ostrobothnia (Pohjanmaa) and Kajanaland (Kainuu), named after the technology city of Oulu
# Finnish Lapland — tundra and reindeer above the Arctic Circle
# The Åland Islands — an autonomous and monolingually Swedish group of islands off the southwestern coast of Finland
While a convenient and unambiguous bureaucratic division, the provinces do not really correspond to geographical or cultural boundaries very well. Other terms you may hear include Tavastia (Häme), covering a large area of central Finland around Tampere; Uusimaa (Nyland), centred on Helsinki; and Karelia (Karjala) to the east, the bulk of which was lost to the Soviet Union in World War II (still a sore topic in some circles).
Cities
Other destinations
Understand
History
Finland was a province and then a grand duchy under Sweden from the 12th to the 19th centuries and an autonomous grand duchy of Russia after 1809. It finally won its complete independence in 1917, although the country promptly plunged into a bitter civil war between the conservative Whites and the Communist Reds, eventually won by the Whites.
During World War II, Finland was attacked by the Soviet Union in the Winter War, but fought them to a standstill that saw Russia conquer 10% of Finnish territory. Finland then allied with Germany in an unsuccessful attempt to repel the Russians, but was defeated and, as a condition for peace, had to turn against the Germans instead. After the war, Finland fell into the Soviet sphere of influence, but maintained a studied policy of official neutrality and managed to retain a free market economy and internal political freedom. In the subsequent half century, the Finns made a remarkable transformation from a farm/forest economy to a diversified modern industrial economy featuring high-tech giants like Nokia, and per capita income is now on par with Western European countries.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Finland joined the European Union in 1995, and was the only Nordic state to join the euro system at its initiation in January 1999.
Geography
Unlike craggy Norway and Sweden, Finland is mostly low, flat to rolling plains interspersed with lakes and low hills, with mountains (of a sort) only in the extreme north and Finland's highest point, Mount Halti, rising only to a modest 1,328 m. Finland has 187,888 lakes (about 60,000 of them are big lakes) according to the Geological Survey of Finland, making the moniker Land of a Thousand Lakes actually an underestimation. Along the coast and in the lakes are (according to another estimate) 179,584 islands, making the country an excellent boating destination as well.
Finland is not located on the Scandinavian peninsula, so despite many cultural and historical links, it is technically not considered a part of Scandinavia. Even Finns rarely bother to make the distinction, but a more correct term that includes Finland is the "Nordic countries" (Pohjoismaat).
Climate
Finland has a cold but temperate climate, which is actually comparatively mild for the latitude because of the moderating influence of the North Atlantic Current. Winter, however, is just as dark as everywhere in these latitudes, and temperatures can (rarely) reach -30°C in the south and even dip below -50°C in the north. The brief Finnish summer is considerably more pleasant, with average temperatures around +20°C, and is generally the best time of year to visit. July is the warmest month with temperatures up to +30°C. Early spring (March-April) is when the snows start to melt and Finns like to head north for skiing and winter sports, while the transition from fall to winter in October-December — wet, rainy, dark and generally miserable — is the worst time to visit.
Due to the extreme latitude, Finland experiences the famous Midnight Sun near the summer solstice, when (if above the Arctic Circle) the sun never sets during the night and even in southern Finland it never really gets dark. The flip side of the coin is the Arctic Night (kaamos) in the winter, when the sun never comes up at all in the North. In the South, daylight is limited to a few pitiful hours with the sun just barely climbing over the trees before it heads down again.
Culture
Buffeted by its neighbors for centuries and absorbing influences from west, east and south, Finnish culture as a distinct identity was only born in the 19th century: "we are not Swedes, and we do not wish to become Russian, so let us be Finns."
The Finnish founding myth and national epic is the Kalevala, a collection of old Karelian stories and poems collated in 1835 that recounts the creation of the world and the adventures of
Väinämöinen, a shamanistic hero with magical powers. Kalevalan themes such as the Sampo, a mythical horn of plenty, have been a major inspiration for Finnish artists, and figures, scenes and concepts from the epic continue to color their works.
While Finland's state religion is Lutheranism, an unforgiving version of Protestant Christianity, the country has full freedom of religion and for the great majority everyday observance is lax or nonexistent. Still, Luther's teachings of strong work ethic and a belief in equality remain strong, both in the good (women's rights, low corruption) and the bad (conformity, high rates of depression and suicide). The Finnish character is often summed up with the word sisu, a mixture of admirable perseverance and pig-headed stubbornness in the face of adversity.
Finnish music is best known for classical composer Jean Sibelius, whose symphonies continue to grace concert halls around the world. Finnish pop, on the other hand, has only rarely ventured beyond the borders, but heavy metal bands like Nightwish and HIM have garnered some acclaim and latex monsters Lordi hit an exceedingly unlikely jackpot by taking home the Eurovision Song Contest in 2006.
In the other arts, Finland has produced noted architect and designer Alvar Aalto, authors Mika Waltari (Sinuhe) and Väinö Linna (The Unknown Soldier), and painter Akseli Gallen-Kallela, known for his Kalevala illustrations.
Bilingualism
Finland has a 5% Swedish-speaking minority and is officially a bilingual country, so maps nearly always bear both the Finnish and Swedish names for eg. cities and towns. For example, Turku and Åbo are the same city, even though the names differ totally. Also many other things bear two names, such as streets, roads and suburbs. Roads, for example, can be especially confusing - what first appears on a map to be a road that changes its name is, in most cases, one road with two names. This is common in the Swedish-speaking areas on the southern and western coasts, whereas in the inland Swedish names are far less common. In far north Lapland, you'll almost never see Swedish, but you will occasionally see signage in Sámi instead.
Holidays
Finns aren't typically very hot on big public carnivals; most holidays are spent at home with family. The most notable exception, in the university cities at least, is Vappu on May 1, as thousands of students (and a few diehard communists) fill the streets. Important holidays and similar happenings include:
Typical vacation time is in July, unlike elsewhere in Europe, where it is in August. The midsummer time is also vacationing time. During these days, cities are likely to be less populated, as Finns head for their summer cottages.
Get in
Finnish foreign ministry has a page on Entry documents required of foreign nationals. Finland is signatory to the Schengen treaty, see the article on the European Union for details.
By plane
Finland's main international hub is Helsinki-Vantaa Airport near Helsinki, and both Finnair and Blue1 use it as a hub. Around 30 foreign airlines fly to Helsinki-Vantaa.
There are limited regional services to other cities and, in the winter high season, occasional direct charters (especially in December) and seasonal scheduled flights (Dec-Mar) to Lapland. Ryanair flies to Tampere. It may also be worth your while to get a cheap flight to Tallinn and follow the boat instructions below to get to Finland.
By train
VR has several direct train services daily from Helsinki to Saint Petersburg and Moscow in Russia. There are no direct trains between Sweden or Norway and Finland (the rail gauge is different), but the bus over the gap from Boden/Luleå (Sweden) to Kemi (Finland) is free with an Eurail/Inter Rail/Scanrail pass, and you can also get a 50% discount from most ferries with these passes.
By boat
One of the best ways to travel to and from Finland is by sea. The boats to Estonia and Sweden, in particular, are giant, multi-story floating palaces and department stores, with cheap prices subsidized by sales of tax-free booze: a return trip to Tallinn including a cabin for up to four people can go as low as 50€. If travelling by Inter Rail, you can get 50% off deck fares. The best way to arrive in Helsinki is standing on the outside deck with a view ahead.
Estonia and the Baltic states
Helsinki and Tallinn are only 80 km apart, making this the busiest route in the country. Viking , Eckerö and Tallink operate slow but cheap and full-service car ferries all year round (around three hours, although some travel overnight and park outside the harbor until morning). Tallink Autoexpress , SuperSeaCat , Nordic Jet and Linda Line offer fast services that complete the trip in 1.5 hours, but charge quite a bit more, have comparatively little to entertain you on board and suspend services in bad weather and during the winter. If the weather is looking dodgy and you're prone to sea sickness, it's best to opt for the big slow boats.
There are no scheduled services to Latvia or Lithuania, but some of the operators above offer semi-regular cruises in the summer, with Riga being the most popular destination.
Germany
Finnlines operates from Helsinki to Travemünde near Lübeck and Hamburg, taking 27 hours one way. Superfast Ferries runs ferries from Helsinki to Rostock.
Poland
Polferries has terminated its services to Gdynia.
Russia
Scheduled services to Russia are stop-and-go, being at the moment (August 2005) stopped once again. Kristina Cruises and Silja Line still offer cruises from Helsinki.
Sweden
Both Silja and Viking offer overnight cruises from Helsinki and overnight as well as daytime cruises from Turku to Stockholm, usually stopping in the Åland islands along the way. These are some of the largest and most luxurious passenger ferries in the world, with as many as 14 floors and a whole slew of restaurants, bars, discos, pool and spa facilities, etc. The cheaper cabin classes below the car decks are rather Spartan, but the higher sea view cabins can be very nice indeed.
Note that, due to crowds of rowdy youngsters aiming to get thoroughly hammered on cheap tax-free booze, both Silja and Viking do not allow unaccompanied youth under 23 to cruise on Fridays or Saturdays. (The age limit is 20 on other nights, and only 18 for travellers not on same-day-return cruise packages.) In addition, Silja does not offer deck class on its overnight services, while Viking does.
In addition to the big two, Seawind operates car ferries on the Turku-Stockholm route, and FinnLink offers the cheapest car ferry connection of all from Naantali to Kapellskär (from €60 for a car with driver).
Get around
Finland's a large country and traveling is relatively expensive. Public transportation is mainly well organized and comfortable. The domestic Journey Planner helps to search for the best connections between any two locations covering all domestic coach and train lines.
By plane
Flights are the fastest but generally also the most expensive way of getting around. Finnair and some smaller airlines operate regional flights from Helsinki to all over the country, including Kuopio, Pori, Rovaniemi and Ivalo. It's worth booking in advance if possible: on the Helsinki-Oulu sector, the country's busiest, a fully flexible return economy ticket costs a whopping 251€ but an advance-purchase non-changeable one-way ticket can go as low as 39€ (from Blue1.com), less than a train ticket. You may also be able to get discounted domestic tickets if you fly into Finland on Finnair.
There are two competing airlines selling domestic flights:
Also there are some smaller airlines, which fly flights for Finnair; their tickets can be bought from Finnair. FinnComm Airlines, however, also sell some seats on their own website cheaper than through Finnair.
By train
VR (Finnish Railways), operates the pretty extensive railroad network. The train is the method of choice for travel from Helsinki to Tampere, Turku and Lahti, with departures at least once per hour and faster speeds than the bus. The trains are generally very comfortable, especially the express services, and amenities usually include toilets, a restaurant/cafe car and on some trains even have play rooms for children.
The following classes of service are available, with example prices and durations for the popular Helsinki-Tampere service in parenthesis.
Pendolino and IC trains have restaurant cars, family cars (IC only, with a playpen for children), power sockets and smoking sections. Other trains, including some short-distance IC2 services, do not. Additional surcharges apply for travel in first class, branded "Business" on some trains, which gets you more spacious seating, newspapers and possibly a snack.
Overnight sleepers are available for long-haul routes and very good value at 11/21/43€ for a bed in a three/two/one-bed compartment; note that one-bed compartments are only available in first class.
Finland is a participant in the Inter Rail system, and is located in Zone B along with Scandinavia (see ). Finnish Rail passes are also available for International guests to Finland. There are discounts (50%) for students who study in Finland and have a VR student card or a Finnish student card that VR recognizes. However, foreign student cards do not give eligibility for student discounts.
By bus
Matkahuolto offers long-distance coach connections to practically all parts of Finland. Fares are generally slightly higher than trains. Speeds are usually slower than trains, sometimes very slow (from Helsinki to Oulu), sometimes even faster (from Helsinki to Kotka and Pori). Student discounts are available also for foreign students by showing valid ISIC card at Matkahuolto office (located at every bus station) and getting Matkahuolto - student discount card. (price: approx 5e)
See also expressbus.com timetables, fast driving busses to get around between cities using main highways.
Bus is also the way to travel in Lapland, since the rail network doesn't extend to the extreme north.
By car
Car rental is possible in Finland but generally expensive, with rates generally upwards of € 80/day, although rates go down for longer rentals. If you opt to buy a car in Finland instead, make sure it has all annual taxes paid and when its next annual inspection is due: the deadline is the same day as the car's first registration date. All cars must pass emissions testing and precise tests of brakes etc. Police may remove the plates of vehicles that have not passed their annual inspections in time.
Traffic drives on the right, and there are no road tolls in Finnish cities or highways so far. Roads are well maintained and extensive, although expressways are limited to the south of the country. Note that headlights must be kept on at all times when driving, in and outside cities, whether it's dark or not. Drivers must stay very alert, particularly at dawn and dusk, for wild animals. Collisions with moose (lethal) are common countrywide, deer (survivable) cause numerous collisions in South and South West parts of the country, and half-domesticated reindeer are a common cause of accidents in Lapland. VR's overnight car carrier trains are popular for skipping the long slog from Helsinki up to Lapland and getting a good night's sleep instead: a Helsinki-Rovaniemi trip (one way) with car and cabin for 1-3 people starts from € 215.
Winter driving can be somewhat hazardous, especially for drivers unused to cold weather conditions. Winter tires (M+S) are mandatory from 1 December through the end of February. The most dangerous weather is in fact around the zero degree mark (C), when slippery but near-invisible black ice forms on the roads. Finnish cars often come equipped with a block heater (lohkolämmitin) used to keep the engine warm overnight, and many parking places have electric outlets to feed them. Liikenneturva, the Finnish road safety agency, maintains a Tips for winter driving page in English.
Finnish speeding tickets are based on your income, so be careful. A Nokia VP who'd cashed in some stock options the previous year was once hit for $204,000! If you are not from Finland, the Finnish police has no access to your tax records, so a speeding violation will probably be around 100-200 Euros. You have the right to respectfully say "that information is private" if someone tries to ask what your salary is, as that information is protected under European Union law. A blood alcohol level of over 0.05% is considered drunk driving, so think twice before drinking that second beer.
By thumb
Hitchhiking is possible, albeit unusual, in Finland, as the harsh climate and sparse traffic don't exactly encourage standing around waiting for cars. The most difficult task is getting out of Helsinki. Summer offers long light hours, but in the fall/spring you should plan your time. The highway between Helsinki and Saint Petersburg has very high percentage of Russian drivers. See Hitchhiking Club Finland for further details if interested.
Buy
Finland adopted the euro (€) on January 1st 2002 and the Finnish mark (FIM) is now obsolete. Finland does not use the 1 and 2 cent coins; instead all sums are rounded to the nearest 5 cents. The coins are, however, still legal tender and there are even small quantities of Finnish 1c and 2c coins, highly valued by collectors. It is common to omit cents and the euro sign from prices, and use the comma as a decimal separator: "5,-" thus means € 5.
Getting or exchanging money is rarely a problem, as ATMs are very common and they can be also operated with Visa/Visa Electron. Currencies other than the euro are generally not accepted, although pre-2002 Finnish mark notes may be accepted on an ad-hoc basis and can be exchanged into euros at Bank of Finland branches until 2012. Money changers are common in the bigger cities (the Forex chain is ubiquitous) and typically have better rates, longer opening hours and faster service than banks. Credit cards are widely accepted but you must show your ID for purchases above 50€.
Costs
Declared the world's most expensive country in 1990, prices have since abated somewhat but are still steep by most standards. Rock-bottom traveling if staying in hostel dorms and self-catering costs at least 25 €/day and it's well worth doubling that amount. Even the cheapest hotels cost closer to 100€ per night. Instead of hotels or hostels, look for holiday cottages, especially when travelling in a group and off-season, you can find a full-equipped cottage for 10-15 € per person and night.
Note that a VAT of 22% is charged for nearly everything, but by law this must be included in the displayed price. Non-EU residents can get a tax refund for purchases above 40 € at participating outlets, just look for the Tax-Free Shopping logo.
Shopping
As you might expect given the general price level, souvenir shopping in Finland isn't exactly cheap. Traditional buys include the Finnish traditional knife known as the puukko, handwoven ryijy rugs and every conceivable part of a reindeer. For any Lappish handicrafts, look for the "Sámi Duodji" label that certifies it as authentic.
Popular brands for modern (or timeless) Finnish design include Marimekko clothing, Iittala glass, Arabia ceramics, Kalevala Koru jewelry, Pentik interior design and, if you don't mind the shipping costs, Artek furniture by renowned architect and designer Alvar Aalto.
Beware of limited Finnish shopping hours. For smaller shops, normal weekday opening hours are 9 AM to 6 PM, but most shops close by 2 PM on Saturday and are closed entirely on Sundays. Larger shops and department stores are generally open until 9 PM in the weekdays and 6 PM on saturdays. During the summer months and the month before Christmas, stores are allowed to be kept open on Sundays until as late as 9 PM.
If in desperate need of basic supplies, gas station convenience stores are usually open on weekends and until late at night (some of the gas station convenience stores are open 24/7), as are the supermarkets in Helsinki's Asematunneli (underneath the Central Railway Station). In Asematunneli, stores are open until 10 PM every day of the year, except on Christmas Day (December 25th), when they are closed.
Eat
Finnish cuisine is heavily influenced by its neighbors, the main staples being potatoes and bread with various fish and meat dishes on the side. Not exactly a gourmand's paradise, some Finnish specialties worth looking out for include:
Bread (leipä) is served with every meal in Finland, and comes in a vast array of varieties. Typically Finnish ones include:
There are also regional specialties, including Eastern Finland's kalakukko (a type of giant fish pie) and Tampere's infamous blood sausage (mustamakkara). Around Easter keep an eye out for mämmi, a type of brown sweet rye pudding which is eaten with cream and sugar. It looks famously unpleasant but actually tastes quite good.
From the end of July until early September it's worthwhile to ask for crayfish (rapu) menus and prices at better restaurants. It's not cheap, you don't get full from the crayfish alone and there are many rituals involved (most of which involve large quantities of ice-cold vodka) but it should be tried at least once. Or try to sneak onto a corporate crayfish party guestlist, places are extremely coveted at some.
For dessert or just as a snack, Finnish pastries abound and are often taken with coffee (see Drink) after a meal. Look for cardamom coffee bread (pulla), a wide variety of tarts (torttu), and donuts (munkki). In summer, a wide range of fresh berries are available, including the delectable and expensive cloudberry (lakka), and berry products are available throughout the year as jam (hillo), soup (keitto) and a type of pudding or porridge known as kiisseli.
Finnish chocolate is also rather good, with Fazer products including their iconic Sininen ("Blue") bar exported around the world. A more Finnish speciality is licorice (lakritsi), particularly the strong, salty kind known as salmiakki, which gets its unique (and acquired) taste from ammonium chloride.
Places to eat
Finns tend to eat out only on special occasions, and restaurant prices are correspondingly expensive. The one exception is lunchtime, when thanks to a government-sponsored lunch coupon system nearly every restaurant in town offers set lunches for around 7€, usually consisting of a main course, salad bar, bread table and a drink. University cafeterias, many of which are open to all, are particularly cheap with meals in the 2-4€ range for students, although without local student ID you will usually need to pay more.
For dinner, you'll be limited to generic fast food (hamburgers, kebabs and such) in the 4-10€ range, or you'll have to splurge 20+€ for a meal in a "nice" restaurant. For eating on the move, look for grill kiosks (grilli), which serve sausages, hamburgers and other portable (if not terribly health-conscious) fare late into the night at reasonable prices. In addition to the usual hamburgers and hot dogs, look for meat pies (lihapiirakka), akin to a giant savoury doughnut stuffed with minced meat. Hesburger is the local fast-food equivalent of McDonald's, with a similar menu. They have a "Finnish" interpretation of a few dishes, such as a sour-rye chicken sandwich. Of course most international fast food chains are present, especially McDonald's, which offers many of their sandwich buns substituted with a sour-rye bun on request.
The buffet table (seisova pöytä), is the Finnish version of smörgåsbord. Typically a good-sized selection of sandwiches, various meats and pastries. Though not very common in a restaurant setting, if you are fortunate enough to be invited to a Finn's home, they will likely have prepared a spread for their guest, along with plenty of coffee. Do not refuse this hospitality out of "politeness"; even if you are not hungry, eat!
If you're really on a budget, you can save a considerable amount of money by self-catering. Ready-to-eat casseroles and other basic fare that can be quickly prepared in a microwave can be bought for a euro or two in any supermarket. Note that you're expected to weigh and label any fruits or vegetables yourself (bag it, place it on the scale and press the numbered button), and green signs mean possibly tastier but certainly more expensive organic (luomu) produce.
Dietary restrictions
Traditional Finnish cuisine is rather vegetarian-hostile, but vegetarianism (kasvissyönti) is increasingly popular and well-understood, and will rarely pose a problem for travellers. Practically all restaurants offer vegetarian options, often marked with a "V" on menus.
Two ailments commonly found among Finns themselves are lactose intolerance (laktoosi-intoleranssi, inability to digest milk) and coeliac disease (keliakia, inability to digest gluten). In restaurants, lactose-free selections are often tagged "L", while gluten-free options are marked with "G".
Kosher and halal food are rare in Finland and generally not available outside very limited speciality shops and restaurants catering to the tiny Jewish and Islamic communities. The Jewish Community of Helsinki runs a small Kosher deli in Helsinki.
Drink
Thanks to its thousands of lakes, Finland has plenty of water supplies and tap water is always potable. The usual soft drinks and juices are widely available, but look out for a wide array of berry juices (marjamehu), especially in summer, as well as Pommac, an unusual soda made from (according to the label) "mixed fruits", which you'll either love or hate.
Coffee and tea
Finns are the world's heaviest coffee (kahvi) drinkers, averaging 3-4 cups per day. Most Finns drink it strong and black, but sugar and milk for coffee are always available and the more European variants such as espresso and cappuccino are becoming all the more common especially in the bigger cities. Oddly, Starbucks hasn't arrived in Finland yet, but Helsinki has had French-style fancy cafes for quite some time and modern competitors are springing up in the mix. For a quick caffeine fix, you can just pop into any convenience store, which will pour you a cuppa for €1 or so. Tea hasn't quite caught on in the same way, although finding hot water and a bag of Lipton Yellow Label won't be a problem. For brewed tea, check out some of the finer downtown cafes or tea rooms.
Dairy
Finland is one of the few societies on Earth (the other being Mongolia) where it is considered normal for adults to drink milk (maito) as an accompaniment to food. Another popular option is piimä, or buttermilk. Viili, a type of curd, acts like super-stretchy liquid bubble gum but is similar to plain yogurt in taste. Fermented dairy products help stabilize the digestion system, so if your system is upset, give them a try.
Alcohol
Alcohol is very expensive in Finland, although low-cost Estonia's entry to the EU forced the government to cut alcohol taxes by 33% in 2004. Still, a single beer will cost you closer to 5€ in any bar or pub, or 0.5€ and up in a supermarket. While beer and cider are available in any supermarket or convenience store, the state monopoly Alko is your sole choice for wine or anything stronger. Also note that alcohol is only sold in shops between nine am and nine pm even though some shops may be open later! Drinking on public places like market squares or parks is always prohibited.
The legal drinking age is 18 for milder drinks (to buy hard liquor from Alko, you need to be 20), ID is usually requested from all young-looking clients. Some restaurants have higher age requirements, these may be up to 30 years, but these are their own policies and are not always followed (especially at more quiet times).
The national drink is not, as you might expect, Finlandia Vodka, but its local brand Koskenkorva (or Kossu). The two drinks are closely related. Kossu is 38% while Finlandia is 40% and Kossu has a small amount of added sugar, which makes the two drinks taste somewhat different. Even more lethal is Salmiakki-Kossu, prepared by mixing in black salmiakki licorice, whose taste masks the alcohol behind it fearfully well.
Beer (olut or kalja) is also very popular, but Finnish beers are mostly nearly identical, mild lagers: common brands are Lapin Kulta, Karjala, Olvi, Koff and Karhu. Pay attention to the label when buying: beers branded "I" are inexpensive but almost alcohol-free, while "III" and "IV" are stronger and more expensive. In normal shops you will not find any drinks with more than 4.7%-vol. alcohol. You may also encounter kotikalja (lit. "home beer"), a dark brown beer-like but very low-alcohol beverage. Imported beers are available in most pubs and bars, and Czech beers in particular are popular and only slightly more expensive.
The latest trend is ciders (siideri). Most of these are artificially flavored sweet concoctions which are quite different from the English or French kinds. The ever-popular gin long drink or lonkero (lit. "tentacle"), a prebottled mix of gin and grapefruit soda, tastes better than it sounds and has the additional useful property of glowing under ultraviolet light.
During the winter don't miss glögi, a type of spiced mulled wine served with almonds and raisins which can easily be made at home. The bottled stuff in stores is usually alcohol free, although it was originally made of old wine and Finns will very often mix in some wine or spirits. Fresh, hot glögi can, for example, be found at the Helsinki Christmas market.
Finally, two traditional beverages worth looking for are mead (sima), an age-old wine-like brew made from honey and yeast and consumed particularly around May's Vappu festival, and sahti, a type of unfiltered, usually very strong beer often flavored with juniper berries (an acquired taste). Like kotikalja, sima and sahti sometimes include marinated raisins.
Talk
Finland is officially bilingual in Finnish and Swedish, but in practice Finland is largely (93%) monolingual in Finnish. Swedish is the mother tongue for 5.6% of the Finns, and in continental Finland the Swedish-speaking communities are mainly in smaller rural municipalities and along the Southwest coast. There are no large cities with a Swedish majority. Many towns and road signs on the coast use alternate Finnish and Swedish names, so one must be careful reading the road signs there. The small autonomous province of Åland is exclusively Swedish-speaking. Because Swedish is mandatory subject in schools, everyone is supposed to speak and understand it. In reality, this is not the case unless you are travelling on areas with significant Swedish speaking population! Workers in hotels and restaurants are usually capable to communicate in Swedish.
Most Finns also speak some English. In larger cities, nearly all people you could possibly meet as a tourist, speak English very well. This is especially true with younger people even in the most rural locations. Note that Finns might be shy to speak English, even though they might understand it quite well. Besides English, a significant proportion of Finns can speak German and French, other secondary languages being rare. Reading signboards can also be difficult: Finnish has relatively few loan words from common European languages, and as a result it is very hard to guess what words in Finnish mean.
TV programs and movies are nearly always subtitled. Only children's movies get dubbed into Finnish. Tv broadcasting is going to be digitalized fully at end of July 2007, digitalized televisions usually are able to switch subtitle languages in most programs (at least Finnish and Swedish) and some also dubbing.
Sleep
Accommodation in Finland is expensive, but many large hotels are cheaper during the summer. One of the few ways to limit the damage is to stay in youth hostels (retkeilymaja), which have a fairly comprehensive network throughout the country and usually cost less than 20€ per night. Another cheaper option is to take advantage of Finland's right to access, or Every Man's Right (jokamiehenoikeus), which allows camping, hiking, and berry and mushroom picking as well as simple (rod and hook) fishing on uncultivated land.
Hostels
Learn
Finland's universities are generally well-regarded and offer many exchange programs, although the country's relatively high price level and the prospect of facing the long, cold Finnish winter mean that the country is not a particularly popular choice. (The upside is that applicants usually find it fairly easy to get in!) While lectures are usually conducted in Finnish, most universities offer the option to complete all courses through assignments and exams in English. Many universities also offer the option to study Finnish at various levels. According to NewsWeek, Finland offers the world's best education (both at university and comprehensive level) .
EU citizens can simply enter the country and register as a student after arrival, while students from elsewhere will need to arrange their residence permit beforehand. CIMO (Centre for International Mobility) administers exchange programs and can arrange scholarships and traineeships in Finland, while the Finnish National Board of Education offers basic information about study opportunities.
Work
There is little informal work to be found and many jobs require at least a remedial level of Finnish.
Citizens of European Union countries can work freely in Finland, but acquiring a work permit from outside the EU means doing battle with the infamous Directorate of Immigration (Ulkomaalaisvirasto) . However, students permitted to study full-time in Finland are allowed work part-time (up to 25 h/week) or even full-time during holiday periods.
For jobs, you might want to check out the Ministry of Labour . Most of the posted jobs are described in Finnish so you may need some help in translation.
Rapidly growing in Finland is the trend (especially of the younger generation) to work for 'placement agencies'. Although there has been a massive surge of public companies going private in the last ten years, this trend seems to be fueled by the increased demand for more flexible work schedules as well as the freedom to work seasonally or sporadically. Due to the nature of these types of agencies as well as the types of work they provide, it is common for them to hire non-Finns. Some agencies include Adecco, Staff Point , Manpower and Biisoni .
Stay safe
Finland enjoys a comparatively low crime rate and is, generally, a very safe place to travel. Use common sense at night, particularly on Friday and Saturday when the youth of Finland hit the streets to drink, get drunk and in some unfortunate cases look for trouble. It is statistically more likely that your home country is less safe than Finland, so heed whatever warnings you would do in your own country and you will have no worries.
Pickpockets are rare, but not unheard of. Most Finns carry their wallets in their pockets or purses and feel quite safe while doing it. Parents often leave their sleeping babies in a baby carriage on the street while visiting a shop, and in the countryside cars are often left unlocked.
In case of Emergency
112 is the national phone number for all emergency services, including police, and it does not require an area code, regardless of what kind of phone you're using. The number works on any mobile phone, whether it is keylocked or not, and with or without a SIM card. If a cellphone challenges you with a PIN code, you can simply type in 112 as a PIN code - most phones will give a choice to call the number.
Stay healthy
There are few serious health risks in Finland. Your primary enemy especially in wintertime will be the cold, particularly if trekking Lapland. Finland is a sparsely populated country and, if heading out into the wilderness, it is imperative that you register your travel plans with the authorities so they can come looking for you if you fail to show up. Dress warmly in layers and bring along a good pair of sunglasses to prevent snow blindness, especially in the spring and only in Lapland and only if you plan to spend the whole day outdoors.
A serious nuisance in summer are mosquitoes (hyttynen), hordes of which inhabit Finland (particularly Lapland) in summer, especially after rains. While they carry no malaria or other nasty diseases, Finnish mosquitoes make a distinctive (and highly irritating) whining sound while tracking their prey, and their bites are very itchy. As usual, mosquitoes are most active around dawn and sunset — which, in the land of the Midnight Sun, may mean most of the night in summer. There are many different types of mosquito repellants available which can be bought from almost any shop. Another summer nuisance are gadflies (paarma), whose bites can leave a mark lasting for days. A more recent introduction to Finnish summers are deer keds (hirvikärpänen), that can be particularly nasty if they manage to shed their wings and burrow into hair (although they rarely bite as humans are not their intended targets, and mainly exist in deep forests). Use repellent, ensure your tent has good mosquito netting and consider prophylaxis with cetirizine (brand names include Zyrtec), an anti-allergen that (if taken in advance!) will neutralize your reaction to any bites. Topical anti-allergens in the form of gels and creams are also available as over-the-counter medication. A flea comb can be useful for removing deer keds. To this day there are no known deaths caused by mosquitos, so they are more a nuisance than a health hazard.
In southern Finland, especially Åland, Lappeenranta-Parikkala-Imatra-axis and areas near Turku's coast, there are ticks (punkki) which appear on summertime and can transmit Lyme's disease (borreliosis) and viral encephalitis through a bite. Although these incidents are relatively rare and all ticks don't carry the disease, it's advisable to wear dark trousers rather than shorts if you plan to walk through dense and/or tall grass areas (the usual habitat for ticks). You can buy special tick tweezers from the pharmacy (punkkipihdit) which can be used to remove a tick safely if you happen to get bitten. You should remove the tick from your skin as quickly as possible and preferably with the tick tweezers to reduce the risks of getting an infection. If the tick bite starts to form red rings on the skin around it or if you experience other symptoms relating to the bite, you should go visit a doctor as soon as possible.
There's only one type of poisonous snake in Finland, the European adder (kyy or kyykäärme), which has a distinct zig-zag type of figure on its back, altough some individuals are almost completely black. The snake occurs across Finland all the way from the south to up north in Lapland. Although their bites are extremely rarely fatal (except for small children and allergic persons), one should be careful in the summertime especially when walking in the forests or on open fields at the countryside. Walk so that you make ground wibrate and snakes will go away, they attack people only when somebody frightens them. If you are bitten by a snake, always get medical assistance. If you are planning to travel in the nature on summertime, it's advisable to buy a kyypakkaus ("Adder pack"), a medicine set which contains a couple of hydrocortisone pills). It can be bought from any Finnish pharmacy. It is used to reduce the reactions after an adder bite, however it's still advisable to see a doctor even after you've taken the hydrocortisone pills. The kyypakkaus can also be used to relieve the pain, swelling and other allergic reactions caused by bee stings. If you see an ant nest in area, ants have quite likely taken care of all snakes there.
As for other dangerous wildlife, there's not much more than a few extremely rare encounters with brown bears (karhu) and wolves (susi) in the wilderness. Both of these animals are listed as endagered species. Contrary to the popular belief abroad, there are no polar bears in Finland, let alone polar bears walking on the city streets. The brown bear, which occurs across Finland has been spotted on a few very exceptional occasions even in the edges of largest Finnish cities such as central Espoo, but bear encounters are usually rare and a bear tries to avoid humans whenever possible. The brown bear hibernates during the winter. In least densely populated areas near the Russian border, there has been some rare incidents of wolf attacks - mainly lone, hungry wolves attacking domestic animals and pets. During the past 100 years there has been one recorded case of a human killed by a large predator. In general, one shouldn't worry about dangerous encounters with wild beasts in Finland.
Tap water is perfectly safe, fresh and tasty. Finland is ranked as having the best water in the world.
Respect
Finns generally have a relaxed attitude towards manners and dressing, and a visitor is unlikely to offend them by accident. Common sense is quite enough in most situations, but there are a couple of things one should keep in mind:
Finns are a famously taciturn people who have little time for small talk or social niceties, so don't expect to hear phrases like "thank you" or "you're welcome" too often. The Finnish language lacks a specific word for "please", so Finns sometimes forget to use it when speaking English, even when they don't mean to be rude. Also lacking in Finnish is the distinction between "he" and "she", which may lead to confusing errors. Loud speaking and laughing is not normal in Finland and may irritate some Finns. Occasional silence is considered a part of the conversation, not a sign of hostility or irritation.
All that said, Finns are generally helpful and polite, and glad to help confused tourists if asked. The lack of niceties has more to do with the fact that in Finnish culture honesty is highly regarded, and one should only open their mouths if they really mean what they are about to say. A visitor is unlikely to receive many compliments from Finns, but conversely, they can be fairly sure that the compliments they do receive are genuine.
Another highly regarded virtue in Finland is punctuality. A visitor should apologize even for being late for a few minutes. Being late for longer usually requires a short explanation. 15 minutes is usually considered the threshold between being "acceptably" late and very late. Some will leave arranged meeting points after 15 minutes or 30 minutes (maximum). With the advent of mobile phones, sending a text message even if you are only a few minutes late is nowadays a norm. Being late for a business meeting, even by 1-2 minutes, is considered bad form.
The standard greeting is a handshake. Hugs and kisses, even on the cheek, are only exchanged between family members and close friends.
If you are invited to a Finnish home, the only bad mistake a visitor can make is not to remove their shoes. For much of the year shoes will carry a lot of snow or mud, and therefore it is customary to remove them, even during the summer. Very formal occasions at private homes, such as a baptism (often conducted at home in Finland) or somebody's 50th birthday party, are an exception to these rules. In the wintertime this sometimes means that the guests bring separate clean shoes and put them on while leaving outdoor shoes to the hall. Bringing gifts such as pastry, wine, or flowers to the host is appreciated, but not required.
In Finland there is little in the way of a dress code. The general attire is casual and even in business meetings dressing is somewhat more relaxed than in some other countries. Topless sunbathing is accepted but not very common on beaches in the summer, while going au naturel is common in lake saunas and dedicated nudist beaches.
Contact
By mail
Finland's mail service, run by Posti, is fast, reliable and pricy. As of 2006, a postcard to anywhere in the world costs 0,70€.
By phone
As you'd expect from Nokia's home country, mobile phones are ubiquitous in Finland. GSM and WCDMA (3G) networks blanket most of the country, although it's still possible to find wilderness areas without coverage, typically in Lapland and the outer archipelago. The largest operators are Sonera and Elisa (a Vodafone partner), but travellers who want a local number may wish to opt for DNA's Prepaid package (17€, including 10€ call time). Public telephones are nearly extinct, although you can still find a few in most train stations.
By net
Internet cafes are sparse on the ground in this country where everybody logs on at home and in the office, but nearly every public library in the country has free Internet access (although you will often have to register for a time slot in advance or queue). Wifi hotspots are also increasingly common.
Finland, officially the Republic of Finland (), is a Nordic country situated in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the west, Russia to the east, and Norway to the north while Estonia lies to its south. Finland is bounded by the Baltic Sea, with the Gulf of Finland to the south and the Gulf of Bothnia to the west. The Åland Islands, off the southwestern coast, are an autonomous, demilitarized administrative province of Finland.
Finland has a population of 5,282,583 people and ranked as the sixth happiest nation in the world by a subjective independent scientific study. According to the World Audit Democracy profile, Finland is the freest nation in the world, in terms of civil liberties, freedom of the press, low corruption levels and political rights.
The Republic of Finland is a member state of the United Nations and the European Union. Along with Estonian, Hungarian and Maltese, Finnish is one of the few official languages of the European Union that is not of Indo-European origin. Finland's second official language is Swedish, spoken by a 5.5 percent minority.
History
Prehistory (from 8500 BCE)
According to archaeological evidence, the area now composing Finland was first settled around 8500 BCE during the Stone Age as the ice shield of the last ice age receded. The earliest people were probably hunter-gatherers, living primarily off what the tundra and sea could offer. Pottery is known from around the 5300 BCE (see Comb Ceramic Culture). Scientists believe it is probable that speakers of the Finno-Ugric language arrived in the area during the Stone Age (see Finno-Ugric peoples), and were possibly even among the first Mesolithic settlers in Europe. The arrival of the Battle Axe culture (or Cord-Ceramic Culture) in southern coastal Finland around 3200 BCE may have coincided with the start of agriculture. However, the earliest certain records of agriculture are from the late third millenium BCE. Hunting and fishing continued to be important parts of the subsistence economy, especially in the northern and eastern parts of the country.
The Bronze Age (1500–500 BCE) and Iron Age (500 BCE–1200 CE) were characterised by extensive contacts with other cultures in the Fennoscandian and the Baltic region. The first verifiable written documents appeared in the twelfth century.
The Swedish reign (early Middle Ages to 1809)
The beginning of Finland's seven-century association with the Kingdom of Sweden is traditionally connected with the year 1155 and the 1150s hypothesised introduction of Christianity by Sweden's King Erik after a military expedition later dubbed as the First Swedish Crusade. However, archaeological evidence points to prior Christian influences in southwestern and southeastern Finland and include both western and eastern Christian artifacts. Historically verifiable date of the conquest is 1249 when Birger jarl conducted the so-called Second Swedish Crusade to Finland. Swedish became the dominant language of administration and education; Finnish chiefly a language for the peasantry, clergy and local courts in predominantly Finnish-speaking areas. The society was divided in four estates of the realm: nobility, clergy, burghers and peasants, who represented the majority, and the estateless.
In the sixteenth century the first written works were published in Finnish by Mikael Agricola, and during this time, the Swedish Empire converted to Lutheranism, the current mainstream religion. The Swedish kingdom systematically settled areas and built cities in Finland, particularly in the east, such as in Ingria and Kainuu. Governor General Per Brahe the Younger founded ten cities and the first university in Finland, The Royal Academy of Turku. The establishment of universal literacy and rule of law also dates to this time. Finnish people participated in wars of the Swedish kingdom, and Finnish warriors of Sweden's army became known as Hakkapeliittas.
The Swedish Kingdom strove to push the borders eastward, which led to wars of varying success with Novgorod. The expansion was halted by the unification of Russia and was eventually rolled back. During the eighteenth century, virtually all of Finland was twice occupied by Russian forces, known by the Finns as the Greater Wrath (1714–1721) and the Lesser Wrath (1742–1743). During this time "Finland" became the predominant term for the whole land area from the Gulf of Bothnia to the Russian border.
The earlier Finland – that is, the southwestern area – was from then on called "Finland Proper". The Finnish areas ceded to Russia in 1721 and 1743 (excluding Ingria) were called "Old Finland".
Finland as a Grand Duchy of the Russian Empire (1809–1917)
On March 29 1809, after being conquered by the armies of Russian Emperor Alexander I from Sweden in the Finnish War, Finland became a semi-autonomous Grand Duchy under the Russian Empire until the end of 1917. Old Finland was returned to the Grand Duchy in 1812. During the Russian era, the Finnish language started to gain recognition by both the imperial court and the governing bodies, first probably to sever the cultural and emotional ties with Sweden and thereafter, from the 1860s onwards, as a result of a strong nationalist movement, known as the Fennoman movement. Milestones included the publication of what would become Finland's national epic, the Kalevala, in 1835; and the Finnish language achieving equal legal status with Swedish in 1892.
In 1906, universal suffrage was adopted in the Grand Duchy of Finland, as the second country in the world. However, the relationship between the Grand Duchy and the Russian Empire gradually soured when the Russian government made moves to restrict the Finnish autonomy. Wishes for national independence gained ground, first among radical nationalists and socialists.
The Independent Republic and Civil War (1917–1918)
On December 6, 1917, shortly after the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia, Finland declared its independence. The independence was approved by Bolshevist Russia but the Civil Wars that followed in Russia and in Finland and activist expeditions (see Heimosodat), including the ones to White Karelia and Aunus, complicated relations.
In 1918, the country experienced a brief but bitter Civil War that coloured domestic politics for many years. The Civil War was fought between "the Whites", who gained support from Imperial Germany, and "the Reds", supported by Bolshevist Russia. The Reds consisted mostly of leftist propertyless rural and industrial workers who, despite universal suffrage in 1906, felt that they lacked political influence. The white forces were mostly made up of bourgeoisie and wealthy peasantry, politically more to the right. Eventually, the Whites overcame the Reds. The deep social and political dividing line and mutual enmity between the Reds and Whites remained.
The Inter-war era (1918–1939)
Despite the Declaration of Independence calling Finland a Republic after the Civil War, the parliament, cleared of its Social Democrat members, voted with a narrow majority to establish the Kingdom of Finland. Frederick Charles of Hesse, a German prince, was elected King, putatively with the name "Väinö I of Finland", with Pehr Evind Svinhufvud and General Mannerheim serving as Regents. However, Germany's defeat in World War I meant that the idea was abandoned. Finland instead became a Republic, with Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg elected as its first President in 1919.
The Finnish–Russian border was agreed upon in the Treaty of Tartu in 1920, largely following the historic border but granting Pechenga (Finnish: Petsamo) and its Barents Sea harbour to Finland.
Finnish democracy survived the upsurge of the extreme right and financial crisis during the early '30s. However, legislators reacted against Communism and the relationship between Finland and the Soviet Union remained tense.
Finland during World War II (1939–1945)
During World War II, Finland fought the Soviet Union twice: in the Winter War of 1939–1940 and in the Continuation War of 1941–1944 in accordance with Operation Barbarossa in which Germany invaded the Soviet Union. This was followed by the Lapland War of 1944–1945, when Finland forced the Germans out of northern Finland. After the wars there were land mine clearance operations in Karelia and Lapland plus the enormous task of naval mine clearance in the Gulf of Finland and the Baltic Sea during 1944–1950. The mines in Lapland especially slowed down the rebuilding and caused casualties.
Treaties signed in 1947 and 1948 with the Soviet Union included obligations, restraints, and reparations on Finland vis-à-vis the Soviet Union as well as further Finnish territorial concessions (cf. the Moscow Peace Treaty of 1940). Finland ceded most of Finnish Karelia, Salla, and Pechenga, which amounted to ten percent of its land area, twenty percent of industrial capacity and 400,000 evacuees, mainly women and children. Establishing trade with the Western powers, such as Great Britain, and the reparations to the Soviet Union caused Finland to transform itself from a primarily agrarian economy to an industrialised one. Even after reparations were fulfilled, Finland continued to trade with the Soviet Union in the framework of bilateral trade. Ultimately, the Soviet Union had a national debt to Finland. Russia assumed the debt after the dissolution of the Soviet Union and cleared it in 2006.
The post-war era and modern history
After the Second World War, neutral Finland lay in the grey zone between the western countries and the Soviet Union. The "YYA Treaty" (Finno-Soviet Pact of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance) gave the Soviet Union some leverage in Finnish domestic politics. This was extensively exploited, perfectly legally and constitutionally, by President Urho Kekkonen against his opponents. He maintained an effective monopoly on Soviet relations, which gave him a status of "only choice for president". There was also a tendency of self-censorship regarding Finno-Soviet relations. This phenomenon was given the name "Finlandisation" by the German press. However, Finland maintained a democratic government and a market economy unlike most other countries bordering the Soviet Union.
The post-war era was a period of rapid economic growth and increasing wealth and stability for Finland. In all, the war-ravaged agrarian country was transformed into a technologically advanced market economy with an extensive social welfare system. When the Soviet Union fell in 1991, the bilateral trade disappeared overnight. Finland was simultaneously hit by a "home-cooked" severe depression. This left a mass unemployment problem, but the economy survived and began growing at a high rate after the depression. Finland joined the European Union in 1995, where it is an advocate of federalism contrary to the other Nordic countries that are predominantly supportive of confederalism.
Etymology
The name Suomi has uncertain origins but a strong candidate for a cognate is the Baltic word zeme meaning "ground, earth, country".
The exonym Finland has resemblance with e.g. the Scandinavian placenames Finnmark, Finnveden and Finnskogen and all are thought to be derived from finn, a Germanic word for nomadic "hunter-gatherers" (as opposed to sedentary farmers). How, why and when this designation would have started to mean the Finns in particular is largely unknown. Among the first written documents mentioning a "land of the Finns" are two rune stones. There is one in Söderby, Sweden, with the inscription finlont (U 582 †) and one in Gotland, a Swedish island in the Baltic Sea, with the inscription finlandi (G 319 M) dating from the eleventh century.
Geography and environment
Topography and geology
Finland is a country of thousands of lakes and islands; 187,888 lakes (larger than 500 m²) and 179,584 islands to be precise. One of these lakes, Saimaa, is the fifth largest in Europe. The Finnish landscape is mostly flat with few hills and its highest point, the Halti at 1,328 metres, is found in the extreme north of Lapland at the border between Finland and Norway. Landscape is covered mostly (seventy-five percent of land area) by coniferous taiga forests, fens, and little arable land. The most common type of rock is granite. It is a ubiquitous part of the scenery, visible wherever there is no soil cover. Moraine or till is the most common type of soil, covered by a thin layer of humus of biological origin. The greater part of the islands are found in southwest in the Archipelago Sea, part of the archipelago of the Åland Islands, and along the southern coast in the Gulf of Finland. Finland is one of the few countries in the world whose surface area is still growing. Owing to the post-glacial rebound that has been taking place since the last ice age, the surface area of the country is growing by about a year.
Flora and fauna
Finland has a diverse array of flora and fauna. Both plant and animal species generally vary from region to region as a result of the differentiating climates of the northern, western and southern regions of Finland. There are over 1,200 species of vascular plant, 800 bryophytes and 1,000 lichen species in Finland, with flora being richest in the southern mainland and Åland Islands. Plant life, like most of the Finnish ecology, is well adapted to tolerate the contrasting seasons and extreme weather. Many plant species, such as the Scots Pine, spruce, birch and oak, spread throughout Finland from Norway and only reached the western coast less than three millennia ago. Therefore, it could be said that Finland has a relatively new ecology.
Similarly, Finland has a diverse and extensive range of fauna. Interestingly, all terrestrial animals were completely wiped out during the last ice age. The animals arrived in Finland about 10,000 years ago, following the retreat of the glaciers and the appearance of vegetation. Nowadays there are at least sixty native mammalian species, 248 breeding bird species, over seventy fish species and eleven reptile and frog species present today, many migrating from neighbouring countries thousands of years ago.
Of large wildlife mammals, the most common are the Brown Bear (the national animal), Gray Wolf, elk and reindeer. Other common mammals include the Red Fox, Red Squirrel, and Mountain Hare. Some rare and exotic species include the flying squirrel, Golden Eagle, Saimaa Ringed Seal and the Arctic fox, which is considered the most endangered. Whooper Swan, the national bird of Finland, is a large Northern Hemisphere swan. The most common breeding birds are the Willow Warbler, Chaffinch and Redwing. Of some seventy species of freshwater fish, the northern pike, perch and others are plentiful. Salmon remains the favorite of fly rod enthusiasts.
The Saimaa Ringed Seal, one of only three lake seal species in the world, exists only in the Saimaa lake system of southeastern Finland. It has become the emblem of the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation and only through dedicated work by conservationists has this amazing seal been saved from extinction. However, it is still an endangered mammal, under WWF protection; there are currently around 270 Saimaa Ringed Seals in existence. It has been estimated that the immediate threat of extinction would be alleviated if the population of Saimaa seals could be brought up to 400 individuals.
Due to hunting and persecution in history, many animals such as the Golden Eagle, Brown Bear and Eurasian Lynx all experienced significant declines in population. However, numbers have increased dramatically in recent years, mainly as a result of careful conservation and the establishment of vast national parks.
Climate
The climate in Southern Finland is a northern temperate climate. In Northern Finland, particularly in the Province of Lapland, a subarctic climate dominates, characterised by cold, occasionally severe, winters and relatively warm summers. The main factor influencing Finland's climate is the country's geographical position between the 60th and 70th northern parallels in the Eurasian continent's coastal zone, which shows characteristics of both a maritime and a continental climate, depending on the direction of air flow. Finland is near enough to the Atlantic Ocean to be continuously warmed by the Gulf Stream, which explains the unusually warm climate considering the absolute latitude.
A quarter of Finland's territory lies above the Arctic Circle, and as a consequence the midnight sun can be experienced – for more days, the further north one travels. At Finland's northernmost point, the sun does not set for 73 consecutive days during summer, and does not rise at all for 51 days during winter.
Provinces, regions, and municipalities
Provinces
The state organisation is divided into six administrative provinces (lääni, pl. läänit) The provinces are further divided into ninety state local districts.
The provincial authority is part of the executive branch of the national government, and has no elected officials. This system was created in 1634, and underwent few major changes until the redivision of the country into "greater provinces" in 1997. Since then, the six provinces have been (see picture on the right):
#Southern Finland
#Western Finland
#Eastern Finland
#Oulu
#Lapland
#Åland
These provinces are merely administrative divisions. Western Finland, for example, spans five major linguistic and dialectal areas (Ostrobothnian dialects, Southwestern dialects, Savo in mideast, Tavastian dialects in Pirkanmaa, and some Swedish speakers in the area around Vaasa).
The Åland Islands enjoy a degree of autonomy. According to international treaties and Finnish laws, the regional government for Åland handles some matters which belong to the province authority in Mainland Finland. Also, due to the same international treaties, Åland is the only part in the European Union where language discrimination is officially enforced: you must speak Swedish to own land in Åland.
Another kind of provinces are those echoing the pattern of colonisation of Finland. Dialects, folklore, customs, and people's feeling of affiliation are associated with these historical provinces of Finland, although the re-settlement of 420,000 Karelians during World War II and urbanisation in the latter half of the twentieth century have made differences less pronounced. The regions are subdivisions of these provinces.
The old provinces or counties (1634–1997) survive in the telephone numbering areas.
Regions and municipalities
Legally, Finland has two levels of democratic government: the state, and 416 municipalities (as of January 1, 2007). The municipality is the same as a "city" level of government, except that rural municipalities are not called "cities". Since 1977, no legal or administrative distinction is made between towns, cities and other municipalities. Although a municipality must follow the laws set by the state, it makes independent decisions. That is, the decisions of a municipal council, if legal, cannot be appealed. People often identify with their municipality, although their nationality is usually more important.
Municipalities co-operate in seventy-four sub-regions and twenty regions. These are governed by the member municipalities. The Åland region has a permanent, democratically elected regional council, as a part of the autonomy. In the Kainuu region, there is a pilot project underway, with regional elections.
Sami people have a semi-autonomous Sami Domicile Area in Lapland for issues on language and culture.
Largest municipalities
In the following chart, the number of inhabitants includes those living in the entire municipality (kunta), not just in the built-up area. The land area is given in km², and the density in inhabitants per km² (land area). The figures are as of January 1, 2007. Notice that the capital region – comprising Helsinki, Vantaa, Espoo and Kauniainen (see Greater Helsinki) – forms a continuous conurbation of one million people and is effectively a single city in economic terms. However, common administration is limited to voluntary cooperation of all municipalities, e.g. in Helsinki Metropolitan Area Council.
Foreign relations
The Ministry for Foreign Affairs is responsible for Finnish foreign policy. The current Minister for Foreign Affairs and Head of Office is Ilkka Kanerva. Finland's foreign policy is based on the membership of the European Union with its customs union, military non-alliance, and neutrality. Finland is also in the Nordic Council, and has long traditions of co-operation with the Nordic countries. Finland has good relations with all its neighbours, Sweden, Norway, Russia and Estonia, and is not involved in international conflicts or border disputes. The military doctrine is strictly self-defensive, and indeed, the Constitution of Finland allows participation only in military operations authorised by the UN or the OSCE. Public opinion is against joining any military alliances, such as NATO, although Finland is involved in the Partnership for Peace programme with NATO. Foreign trade is highly important, as about a third of the gross domestic product comes from foreign trade, and Finland depends on imports for most raw materials.
Defence Forces
The Finnish Defence Forces is a cadre army of 16,500, of which 8,700 professional soldiers (officers), with a standard readiness strength of 34,700 people in uniform (27,300 Army, 3,000 Navy, and 4,400 Air Force). Finland's defence budget equals about 1.4 percent of the GDP. A universal male conscription is in place, under which all men above 18 years of age serve from six to twelve months. Inhabitants of Finland's Åland Islands and Jehovah's Witnesses are exempt, but there are no other general exemptions. Non-military service for thirteen months is also possible. Since 1995, Finnish women have been able to do military service on a voluntary basis. The defence is based on a large trained reserve. During the Cold War, Finland could have mobilised 490,000 reservists in a conflict, but this number has since been reduced to some 350,000 due to ongoing budget cuts.
The Finnish Defence Forces are under the command of the Chief of Defence, who is directly subordinate to the President of the Republic in matters related to the military command. The current Chief of Defence is Admiral Juhani Kaskeala.
The military branches are Finnish Army, Finnish Navy and Finnish Air Force. The Border Guard is under the Ministry of the Interior but can be incorporated into the Defence Forces when required by defence readiness.
Energy policy
The Ministry of Trade and Industry is responsible for the Government's energy policy. Energy policy is of exceptional importance, for Finland needs a lot of energy because of its cold climate and the structure of its industry, but has no fossil fuel energy resources, like oil or coal. It has thus done pioneering work on developing more efficient ways of using energy. Also, Finland refines oil for export (thirty-six percent of chemical exports) and to cover domestic needs. The Finnish corporation Neste Oil has two oil refineries. Finland is connected to the Nordpool, the Nordic electricity market.
Until the 1960s, Finnish energy policy relied on the electricity produced by hydropower stations and extensive decentralised use of wood for energy. Finland's 187,888 lakes do not lie much above sea level – less than 80 metres in the case of the two biggest lakes, Saimaa and Päijänne. Consequently, Finland has less hydropower capacity than Sweden, for example, not to mention Norway.
Finland started planning the introduction of nuclear power in the 1950s. In 2001, eighteen percent of all electricity consumed in Finland was produced by the country's four nuclear power plants. Energy policy became a burning issue in Finland when industry applied for permission to build a new nuclear power unit, the country's fifth. On May 24, 2002, Parliament supported the application by 107 votes to 92. After the vote, the The Green League resigned from the government where they had held the environment portfolio. All the other parties were divided over the
