Renta Santa ...

Tonight is Christmas Eve and in millions of households across Finland, Father Christmas will be visiting to deliver presents to all the good little girls and boys. Which helps answer one of the conundrums from my childhood:

Q: How does Santa visit every home to deliver the presents in just one night?

A: He starts earlier in Finland, because it is closer to Lapland, where he lives.

For us growing up in England, Santa visited in the middle of the night, but only if you were asleep. Of course, now in the wisdom of parenthood, we understand that this is a ploy to get the kids to bed so that mum and dad can breathe a small sigh of relief, eat the mince pie and drink the whisky left out for Santa and then wrap the final presents.

But in Finland, Joulupukki visits while you are awake. And sadly, it seems, so often at just the moment that dad (or grandpa) has nipped outside to empty the bins, or some such pressing activity.

For the older children, such a ruse is easily be seen through and so there is a seasonal opportunity to hire a Santa. My most recent Finnish lesson included a few tips on what to look for in the small ads for Joulupukkipalveluita, or Father Christmas Service. A sample is show in the image, you may need to click to make it large enough to read. (The handwritten notes are my own from the lesson).

First, a good word to look for is kokenut, meaning experienced, isokokenut denotes very experienced. Next, autoleivat is a good idea, meaning they have their own car - a good idea as it means they are likely not to be drinking too much of the koskenkorva which is offered at each house they visit. To be certain, raitis means they don't drink at all. Luotettava means they are trustworthy, something to consider when entrusting them with your little treasures. If the ad states lauluttaa then they sing (I would certainly want to see sobriety combined with that one, just to avoid off colour lyrics).

The most impressive, though, is the display ad with the picture. This is for a genuine Santa from Korvatunturi in Lapland, the genuine home of Santa.

So, should you ever find yourself in need of a rental Father Christmas in Finland, I hope this information will be of some help. As for me, I shall be waiting for Christmas morning to open the presents with my family. Until then, I wish you Hyvää Joulua.

Season's greetings ...

This was the electronic card I received from the relocation company who moved me to Finland last year (which I have used with their permission). I include it to give you a seasonal greeting in Finnish.

The most common wish at the moment is hyvää joulua - literally good Christmas. The word used here, rauhallista, means peaceful, also an important sentiment especially in Finland.

Back in the UK, our TV rituals for Christmas Day include the Queen's Christmas message. In Finland, the Declaration of Christmas Peace from Turku seems to have a similar place in people's hearts. According to the city of Turku's website, this has been read out in Turku almost every year since the Middle Ages. In addition to watching on Christmas Eve on TV, radio or the Internet; thousands of people arrive at Old Great Square to hear the words ring out from the balcony of Brinkkala Mansion.

"All of Finland settles down for Christmas as the bells resound through the square. At Christmas travellers can also find a moment’s peace in Turku.The bells of Turku Cathedral and city’s other churches toll the joy of Christmas, and on the night of Christmas Eve the cemeteries of the city are brightly lit with candles people have brought to the graves of their loved ones."

This evening, I am flying back to the UK for two weeks. I wish all of you reading this blog the same as I am looking forward to...a happy and peaceful time with those you care most about. Rauhallista joulua!

Shopped out ...

This weekend was planned as a shopping trip for Stephanie, but unfortunately she is ill and so has not been able to travel.

I felt it my husbandly duty to still make a pilgrimage to the St Thomas Christmas market on Esplanadi on Saturday. That was a mistake.

Not because there was nothing to see, quite the opposite. With over 120 stalls selling handicrafts as well as food and drink, there was no shortage of things to look at, smell or taste. No, it was trying to do this on a Saturday afternoon when the whole population of Helsinki seemed to have had the same idea. I have never heard the word anteeksi (excuse me) used so frequently.

I didn't drink glögi (mulled wine) this time, but did have "Kuusamo fishes", as the English translation read. These are pretty popular fast food here at markets and the like - usually called Vendace, they look like (and taste like) Whitebait, but are a different species of fish. They are served hot, fried on a large, flat pan and often with a garlic sauce.

I hope to make it back during Sunday, perhaps a little earlier than I did today, to get a few final gifts for the family. I will be flying home for the holidays next Friday, trying the new service from Helsinki to Gatwick with EasyJet. For those who have been considering a visit to Helsinki but concerned about the cost, this is going to provide a great option. I hope to report on the trip in a future post.

Knightly news ...

December 6 is Independence Day in Finland and among the news items associated with the day was the award of honors by President Tarja Halonen. This year's honorees included several of my work colleagues.

A member of my unit management team was awarded Knight, First Class, of the Order of the Lion of Finland (the picture shows the star of the order). Congratulations, Timo!

Finland’s institution of knighthood stems from the holy orders that the Catholic Church established in the Middle Ages. There are three official orders in Finland; in addition to the Order of the Lion of Finland there is the Order of the White Rose of Finland and the Order of the Cross of Liberty. The President of Finland is the Grand Master of all three orders.

As a Brit, I am rather more familiar with the honours system in the UK, ranging from peerages through knighthoods to commanders (CBE), officers (OBE), and members (MBE) of the order of the British Empire - my neighbour Paull at home has an MBE. If you are knighted in the UK, as one of my former bosses was, your first name formally changes to be Sir xxx or Lady xxx. Here in Finland, there is no such recognisable designation. Nor is there the invitation to a royal palace to have your honour conferred in person by Her Majesty or her representative. Instead, the organisation that nominated you (most likely your employer) makes the presentation instead.

The administration of these honours is carried out from the House of the Estates (Säätytalo), on the same street as my apartment in Helsinki, so now I know what they do in there. Also notable is that recipients pay a fee based on the level of the award, to defray the administration costs (though my source notes that this is usually paid by the nominating organisation). Now that is a "cash for honours" scheme that the UK might like to consider!

He knows where you live ...

...but do you know where he lives? Everyone in Finland does - Father Christmas (or Joulupukki) lives in Finnish Lapland. On Sunday he was visiting Helsinki, though; I passed him meeting with some members of his fan club in Senate Square on my way to lunch.

My Finnish friends have their Christmas presents on Christmas Eve, unlike us in the UK, where we open presents on Christmas Day (in our house, this normally starts pretty early in the morning). It must be because he starts so much closer to all the Finns, who get their deliveries before he traverses the skies over the Baltic en route for the North Sea and landfall somewhere around Harwich.

What's in a name?

My Finnish lessons continue, with my instructor Mimmu showing patience above and beyond the call of duty. By the end of the hour and a half we spend together, I feel that I am making progress, but after a couple of weeks, the next lesson feels more like a remedial class.

However, some of it sticks and I was able to identify colours by their Finnish names whilst touring Ikea today. Punainen is red and Valkoinen is white - those are easy to pick up from a wine list, of course. Today I also recognised Keltainen (yellow) and Musta (black).

I also learned in this week's lesson the origin of the name of the area of Helsinki where I live, Kruununhaka. It apparently dates back to the days when Finland was part of Sweden and this was an area populated by the nobility. Kruunu means crown, the haka part refers to a fenced area where the horses are kept. So, I live in the King's paddock. I feel rather more posh now!

In the bleak midwinter ...

OK, so it isn't really midwinter. But it feels like it back in Helsinki, after a few days away in the UK and California.

I landed last night at Vantaa at 23:40, only 10 minutes later than scheduled but in a ghostly white landscape, several centimetres of snow on the ground and temperature of -5C. After my customary speedy exit and dash through customs, I waited for my luggage to hit the belt. And waited. The cold weather was slowing down the usually speedy ground staff and eventually, after an hour of waiting, my suitcase arrived.

Then outside to grab a cab. But there was a long line of passengers waiting for taxis and a rather intermittent supply. Forty five minutes later, I was inside a warm Volvo and on my way home. After an object lesson in why the Finns make such excellent rally drivers, we slid to a halt outside my apartment, just two hours later than my normal return time, and four hours sleep before heading to work this morning.

My only consolation was that, had that much snow fallen in the south of England where the rest of the family live, the infrastructure would have ground to a halt. And this morning, when I needed a cab to work, despite the still dreadful conditions, an SMS to Helsinki Taxi with my address got a reply within seconds even when the phone number was constantly engaged, then a cab arrived within 5 minutes. Driving home this evening, I was so glad I got the winter tyres put on before I departed for California. My only worry is how I'll drive on snow back in the UK, when I forget that my tyres don't have metal spikes fitted!

Finally facing my Waterloo ...

What to do on All Saints Day in Finland, a public holiday on a Saturday, when no shops are open? The answer turned out to be a triumph for Anglo-Finnish cultural exchange. We went to see the "sing along" version of Mamma Mia!, now the highest grossing British film at UK box offices. For those who've not heard of it, the film is based on the musical show, in turn based on the music of Abba.

We went to see the movie here at Finnkino in Kinopalatsi last time the family were over and enjoyed it, singing along in our heads. But the producers had an inspired idea and have issued a version of the film with the song words displayed, karaoke-style, so that you don't have to listen to your neighbours get them wrong.

This seems a stroke of genius for the Finnish audience. Karaoke is popular here; in fact, Finland holds the world record for karaoke singing, after they won the Eurovision Song Contest in 2006. In my neighbourhood there are two karaoke bars and I have been known to indulge myself, in true Finnish style (which involves the consumption of alcohol, purely to lubricate the vocal chords).

Behind us in the cinema was a group of already well lubricated students who were almost in tune and almost in time. The most hilarious moments included them singing along with Colin Firth trying to emulate his English accent. Funnier than this was when one of them, inexplicably dressed in a gorilla suit, tried to chat to my daughter's friend in Finnish. I'm not sure which was the most surprised!

If you think you can cope with the idea of Pierce Brosnan singing (badly) to Meryl Streep, then I recommend the film. If you like the songs of Abba, the plot does not get in the way of a good sing-along. And though I doubt that any UK cinema would allow the level of harmless fun that our good natured Finnish students were enjoying, it is definitely worth seeing this version of the film in a crowd. Preferably a very large one with very few people who know you!

Social climber ...

Today I took my visitors to Seurasaari to see the squirrels. For the second time, I had no treats for them but this did not deter them from coming to see us. Here, my youngest daughter is wishing she had a peanut or two.

It was cold today and we stopped at the kiosk for a hot chocolate. Sadly they did not sell nuts for the animals, but the girl behind the counter informed us that squirrels like Pulla. So we bought one, with every intention of feeding them on the way back to the car. Sadly, once my visitors discover they liked Pulla too, the squirrels lost out. Never mind, we've now bought some nuts and plan to visit them again. I hope we can find all the ones we had promised to feed today.

Twice as ice ...

The half term holidays are in progress in the UK, so my wife and daughter are visiting me in Helsinki with one of my daughter's friends. We managed to pick the weekend of All Saint's Day, which means that the shops will be shut all day on Saturday and so we will have to do something non-commercial then.

To make up for that, we hit the shops in the city centre yesterday and today have been to Itäkeskus ("east-centre"), one of the big shopping malls. This enabled my dear wife to indulge one of her favourite tastes here in Finland, for a dippi softis from Spice Ice. Today she had mixed chocolate and vanilla ice cream, dipped in liquid licorice which then sets hard, then dipped in licorice-flavoured sprinkles. I had the same ice cream combination dipped in toffee. Daughter #2 had strawberry and vanilla dipped in chocolate and covered in sprinkles and daughter's friend had chocolate and vanilla dipped in chocolate. Here you see the two girls enjoying the treat, before it got messy!

What's in a name ...

Several readers have asked me whether I will continue to blog when I return to the UK and, if so, whether I will keep the same name when I am not living in Finland. Of course, mine is not one of the highest visited online brands; according to Google Analytics I have had 81 unique visitors in the last 30 days, making 207 visits between them and viewing 1.33 pages each time on average. But it does deserve some thought. So when I passed this pub today in London, it did start me thinking. It is reasonably descriptive and includes a spelling mistake, so at least matches the current name.

However, it would not fit with my newly found sense of humility (a very Finnish trait), so I think I shall have to keep searching for ideas. All are welcome, though there is no rush, as I will be in Finland for some time to come.

A manor to which I could become accustomed ...

I am back at Sannås Manor near Porvoo this week (I blogged about my last visit in April), for a Cutting Edge course for 18 of the brightest stars in our communications constellation. I am looking forward to some engaging dialogue and insights from a truly global group. I am "godfather" to the course, which I believe involves making the participants an offer they can't refuse if they don't turn up on time!

Oops, I did it again ...

My tale this time is proof that lightning can strike twice in the same place. Well, maybe not lightning. And maybe not the same place, exactly. But the same victim.

Friends and family will know that when we moved into our current home around six years ago, it needed a lot of redecorating. The only room that didn't was the kitchen. Not entirely to our taste, but it had been recently renovated. So we were going to live with it, at least until I managed to set it on fire and then blow it up.

It's a long story, let's leave it at leaving a plastic tub full of shopping on top of a ceramic cooker hob (that bit is important) and then going out. On our return, the tub had melted, caught fire, burnt parts of the kitchen units, then two aerosols amongst the shopping exploded, fortunately blowing out the fire but at the same time, blowing out the window and door. Just the memory of it makes me cringe even now. The silver lining was that our insurer paid for a new kitchen and our neighbours saw an increase in their premium costs next time they renewed.

Fast forward to 2008, last weekend. I'd spent the weekend back home with my family. I returned to Helsinki with my LighterLife foodpacks in my favourite TravelPro flight case. I took it into the kitchen area and the only place to put it to unload was on top of the ceramic cooker hob. Yes, that's right. You would think I had learnt my lesson, but I was tired and in a hurry. I must have nudged the control knob when I put the suitcase on the surface, because a few minutes later when I was elsewhere in the apartment, I noticed a smell of burning. Returning to the kitchen I found clouds of smoke and moved quickly to get the suitcase off the hob and onto the balcony.

Here you see the aftermath. I got to the case before it actually caught fire, but it is nonetheless ruined. It's a shame because it has been with me on so many trips that I shall need to find a very similar replacement. Perhaps it could go on my Christmas list?

One unexpected benefit has been in a little variation in my diet. The LighterLife chicken soups now have a faint barbeque flavour...

Hunter gatherer ...

Today I fulfilled an ambition held since last Autumn; to go mushroom picking in the Finnish woods.

British friends will recognise this as a very dangerous occupation: we are trained from a young age that the only people who gather fungi from the forests are witches and foreigners. The BBC has been reporting deaths and illness amongst amateur mushroom hunters and a survey is now underway in Scotland to find out how many people are engaging in this activity. Apparently, the credit crunch is meaning that free food is more appealing than ever.

But here in Finland, it is a normal seasonal activity. My native guide had offered to trade their knowledge of the countryside in return for me driving there, so on a beautiful sunny morning, we set off.

The countryside here is full of colour at this time of year, easily matching any Autumnal display I've seen at home. After half an hour or so, we arrived at our destination (of course, this must remain a secret; the first of a few pointers I was given in mushroom etiquette).

The next pointer was to look really, really carefully. It takes a while for the eyes to become accustomed to looking for the fungi. Today, we were mainly after Cantharellus tubaeformis, funnel chanterelles. If you look closely at the photo, you'll find some (you may need to click to see the picture full size).

Tip number three was very understandable, given the size of the mushrooms. Even if they are too small to pick, don't tread on them, but leave them for the next hunters in a few days.

Of course, Sunday is really too late; we should have been out on Thursday evening to get the best of the crop. However, after a couple of hours my guide had a decent number in their basket and my Stockmann paper carrier bag held around a litre of chanterelles, so we headed back to the city.

The final challenge was what to do with them. Soup is a popular option, or a mushroom omelette, but I opted to dry the larger specimens. Here they are, threaded onto a length of cotton and hanging across one of the guest beds. I will let you know how long this option takes to dry them out, I am guessing a couple of weeks. As long as they are done by October half term, when the family are coming to visit, all should be fine.

With the smaller ones, I made a sauce with some sweated onions, cream and some seasoning. On top of toasted rye bread and finished with some shaved parmesan, they were delicious. And three hours later, I have no stomach ache or other symptoms, so I think they were probably safe!

For more photos from the trip, visit my mushroom hunting channel on Share on Ovi.

Serendipity ...

For my constitutional stroll on Sunday, I decided to turn right out of my building instead of left and ended up walking through Hakaniemi and then took a bridge over the railway line and ended up by a small kiosk selling coffee, five minutes before it closed at 7pm.

I found myself with a delightful view over Töölönlahti; the white building in the distance is the opera house.

It just goes to show that even in a big city such as Helsinki, you are never far away from nature here. I was listening to a Monty Python album as I sipped my coffee and enjoyed the view. Serendipitously, as I got up to leave and finish my walk, their Finland song began playing! It felt right, on a cold but bright(ish) autumn evening.

This paperless office idea will never catch on ...

HP have mailed me to say that from September 15, the HP Blog Printing service will be shutdown. I have therefore removed the printing icons from the blog. I know this will inconvenience at least one of my readers (sorry Mum), so have been investigating an alternative.

If you want to try HP Smart Web Printing, you can download an application to your Windows XP or Vista PC. It adds a button into your browser which then allows you to select part of a browser window (for example, one blog post) and clip that either for immediate printing or to print as one of a selection of clips. Once you have clipped it, you can resize it too (useful for those who want larger type). At first glance, this looks quite useful.

Please try it out and let me know what you think. I am going to be doing the same.

Going nuts in the woods ...

This is my travelling companion from today. He's a red squirrel, quite a rare sight in the UK but much more common in Finland.

I visited Seurasaari, an open air museum on one of the islands of Helsinki, around 7km from my apartment. There are a lot of old buildings which have been moved from their original sites, showing what homes in Finland were like in days gone by. During the summer months (which technically includes today, though it didn't feel like it) there are also folk in traditional costume who show how life was lived.

I stopped for a kahvi (can you guess what that is?) and noticed the smell of woodsmoke, which was coming from a public grill for makkara, the Finnish word for sausages. Cooking these over a wood fire is an important part of outdoor life here. Since I am currently doing the LighterLife programme, I did not linger once they started cooking! The programme is working; I've lost over 6Kg in three weeks. I have another 4Kg to go before I transition from "obese" to just being "overweight" - what an ambition! 2Kg after that will take me back to where I was in June last year, when I had just finished the programme and moved to Finland.

Because I am avoiding real food, I did not risk temptation and buy peanuts for the squirrels. It rather irritated the fellow in the picture, who, while I was getting the phone ready to take his photo, ran up my legs and onto my back. Fortunately, he was not in a vengeful mood and scurried off to the trees, posing for this shot before he disappeared.

A touch of brass ...

The Helsinki Festival is going on at present. Last evening was the Night of the Arts - my normal route to work through Senatoori was blocked by a huge stage, which last night was the venue for a concert including the five top songs from 1968, voted by readers of the Helsingin Sanomat. According to their pages, "Friday sees the Night of the Arts in Helsinki, a free culture'n'fun happening in in which museums and art galleries, bookstores and libraries all keep their doors open late, and more than 200 events are held throughout the city and suburbs. The hugely popular night on the town was first arranged in 1989, so this is the 20th celebration of the occasion." I was bushed, so didn't make it down there.

Instead, on my afternoon constitutional today, I caught this brass band performing at the Espa stage on Esplanadi. It was a strange experience - in the midst of the more traditional pieces, they played a country and western number. I then noticed that they were using clothes pegs to hold their music on the stands and avoid the pages blowing in the wind. I started wondering whether the clothes peg was invented before some of the instruments. You can tell I have not been getting out much lately!

A week in Tuscany ...

So it doesn't sound as dramatic as A Year In Provence, but the therapeutic effect is not to be underestimated. We stayed about 20km from Arezzo in the middle of Tuscany (think of Italy as a boot and Tuscany is the front of the thigh). The picture shows the view from our villa.

It was our first time in Tuscany and won't be our last. We've been to Italy before - a great holiday in Sorrento, weekends in Venice, Rome and Florence and I've been to Milan several times on business. Each time, we have loved the warm welcome, the great attitude to life and, of course, the food and drink.

Italy was only unified in the late 1800s and each of the regions proudly reflects their contribution to the union. We were close to the Chianti region and after a day in Siena, visited Castello di Brolio, the home of Barone Ricasoli on the way home. One of the former Barons not only was prime minister of Italy but also devised the formula for Chianti Classico. Sadly I was driving, so had to break my normal rule when tasting wine. I usually don't spit at tastings, since my mother once told me it was rude to spit and I always try to be polite.

We spent a few days just chilling by the pool, barbecuing ourselves and some local produce, but also managed a few other days out. We tried two great restaurants in the main square - lunch one day at Logge Vasari, dinner the next at La Lancia D'Oro - the owners are brothers and the food in both is up to the same high standard. The degustation menu at the second left us waddling back to the cars. They share the same website and, as you can see from the photo, the same terrace facing the piazza.

A highlight for me was our last day, spent in Florence and then Pisa on the way back to the airport. We revisited Il Latini in Florence, where a four course Tuscan meal with some of the most delicious ham, pasta, roast meat and dessert cost only 40 euros a head, including plenty of their house Chianti. Our first trip here was with friends last June and the return did not disappoint. The pedestrian navigation feature of Nokia Maps got us around the city and we visited the Duomo as well as the market. Afterwards, we travelled one hour to Pisa and took the obligatory photos of the leaning tower.

When we checked in for our Ryanair flights home, we discovered the true cost of our bargain shopping. Our four cases were cumulatively 17kg over the weight limit of 15kg each. The low fares airline was charitable though, and only charged for 5kg at 15 euros per kilo. Ouch. Perhaps the biggest surprise for us with the Ryanair flights, though, was that Pisa Airport is less than 5km from the city centre. Somewhat closer than Stansted is to London, or Skavsta is to Stockholm!

Kippis ...

We had a lovely lunch in Tallin, a great Indian at Elevant. Although it took nearly two hours to finish, it was great and we experienced our first wild boar curry. Sally and Jess seemed to enjoy theirs too.

After drinks on the roof terrace at the Palace Hotel back in Helsinki, Stephanie and I went to a beer festival in the square by the railway station. Our favourite beer was the Pils from the Plevna brewery in Tampere.

Thank heaven that tomorrow is Sunday. I think a lie in is called for after a hectic few days. Let's hope that the beers were pure enough to avoid a hangover.

Space invaders ...

I'm having a great few days on holiday in Helsinki. My wife, youngest daughter and her friend are with me and we have been enjoying some of the city's leisure time attractions.

Yesterday we visited Linnanmäki amusement park. Unusually, the park is not owned by a commercial enterprise but by the Children's Day Foundation, which collects funds for child welfare work. The park was good value for money - we got onto all the rides we wanted with less than 10 minutes queueing for any of them. A highlight was the wooden roller coaster, originally completed in 1951. It was the first time I had ridden a wooden coaster and the smell of wood preservative added to the experience. The ride features a driver on each car, who appears to be responsible for engaging the cable which pulls the cars to the top of each slope and then braking them again if needed.

Today has been a shopping day; rather inevitable with three girls. Stephanie managed to buy two pairs of shoes in the first shop, so was happy.

Tomorrow we are off to Tallin, capital city of Estonia and 100 minutes away by high speed ferry, so I expect to have more to report in a couple of days.

Just one thing is concerning me. My shower is usually home to one bar of soap and one bottle of shampoo. At the moment, it has 9 visiting lotions and potions and two objects which resemble ping pong balls wrapped in net curtains. I am not asking what these alien items all are, just making sure I don't tread on any of them as I perform my ablutions. A small price to pay for such enjoyable company!

Improving cycle time...

No, don't worry, this is not an essay on business performance optimisation. I was directed to the YTV website, normally used for planning bus, tram or metro journeys in Helsinki, but which also has a cycling route planner. With its help, I was able to find a way to avoid that bl**dy hill in Lautasaari (the blue line on the map) and cycled in this morning, my last before vacation, five minutes faster than my previous best time despite the a headwind over the bridge from Ruoholahti.

Today is my last day before holidays; we start with a few days in Helsinki with my wife, youngest daughter and her friend. Then a villa in Tuscany beckons for a week, after which a few days catching up on the gardening back in the UK. Bliss! All I have to do is cycle back to the apartment and my holiday begins ... once I finishing tidying before the inspection party arrives. I think that might be my fastest cleaning cycle ever, too.

Anyone for tennis?

Saturday was Ladies' Singles Finals day at Wimbledon and I thought I would bring a taste of English culture to my colleagues in Helsinki, so I arranged a Pimms and Strawberries party. Just to be sure I had enough Strawberries (Mansikka) I bought this tray of 5 kilos of the finest Finnish fruit. They do taste as good as they look, we are at the height of the season here.

Of course, with Strawberries should go some cream. I know the word for cream (kerma), so felt confident looking for that in the K-Supermarket. A moment's challenge to work out which was whipping cream? Whipping isn't a word that has come up in my 3 Finnish lessons, in any of its meanings. So, check the can of spray cream - no, don't buy it, but look for a word that matches with one of the various cartons. That worked! A little Grand Marnier added before you whip gives a luxurious touch.

I had also decided to bake some Marmite whirls, so needed some frozen pastry. That had to be chosen by a process of elimination, using the pictures on the packets. Eliminate the filo, the pie crust and the pulla and I was left with a picture that looked like a salmon-filled strudel. That worked too (recipe below).

The game itself was OK, but not outstanding, especially since I had needed to upgrade my Welho cable TV subscription to get the channel showing Wimbledon. Still, the same channel shows the Formula 1 racing, so I was at least able to watch Lewis Hamilton win at Silverstone on Sunday.

But, when I settled down to watch the Gentlemen's Singles Finals, the channel was not broadcasting it live. Instead, they chose to show the Boys' Singles Finals? Why, you might ask, would they eschew what has since been described as the best Mens' Final in history? Simple. Finnish junior, Henry Kontinen, was a finalist in the Boys'. Sadly for Finland, he lost. Congratulations, though, to Laura Robson from the UK, who won the Girls' Singles Final. A Brit who can win at Wimbledon? There's something worth raising a glass of Pimms to.

Marmite whirls

1. Open up the sheet of thawed pastry
2. Spread with Marmite
3. Sprinkle with grated cheese
4. Roll up tightly like a swiss roll
5. Cut 10mm slices and place on baking parchment
6. Bake at 150º C for 30 minutes
7. Allow to cool, if you can, before eating.

Hyvää Juhannusta!

Today is Midsummer, a public holiday in Finland, known locally as juhannus, named now for St. John the Baptist but in reality a festival which pre-dates Christianity, as a celebration of the longest day of the year. This evening, Finns will be enjoying Yötön Yö (the nightless night) with the traditional diversions of sauna, swimming, grilled sausages and some booze, with kokko (a bonfire). Many will have travelled to Kesämökki (summer cottage), either their own or a friend's, but it is apparently possible to celebrate Midsummer in the city too, according to the Helsinki Times.

Mimmu, my Finnish language teacher, has told me that she will be performing another juhannus ritual - picking seven different wild flowers and putting them under her pillow, so that she will dream of the man she will marry. If it works, then watch for news next year, as the weeks around juhannus are apparently the most popular in Finland for weddings.

I, however, am back in England. And with a huge inbox of email to deal with, I don't think I shall have too much time for celebrations today. But I will raise a glass this evening and wish all my colleagues and friends in Finland a good Midsummer. Hyvää Juhannusta!

Happy Birthday Helsinki

Thursday June 12 was Helsinki's birthday. I felt awful, as I hadn't got it a card or anything. But this weekend, there have been all sorts of activities going on around the city.

In Senaatoori Square, in front of the cathedral and close by where I live, there has been a regional exhibit celebrating the food and crafts of Pohjois Karjala, or Northern Karelia, on the border with Russia. As well as trying a simple dish made from lamb and barley, I bought some juice containing birch sap, rhubarb and lemon. It's quite refreshing and unlike anything I've tasted before.

Elsewhere in the city, there have been other live music performances and cultural events, making the most of the great weather we're enjoying at the moment. On Esplanadi yesterday, I am fairly sure that I was the youngest person watching the rock band playing in the bandstand opposite Kapelli. Never have I seen so many walking sticks tapping to the beat!

It's now nearly a year since I moved to Finland. On Friday, I started my Finnish lessons, a course of ten, ninety minute lessons. I look forward to reporting on my progress through the blog.

Grattis Ebba ...

We've just had a long weekend in Tranås, Sweden, with our friends Lars and Gunnel. Their daughter Ebba was graduating from Gymansiet (upper secondary school) after three years of studying and a big party for family and friends was in prospect.

As ever, we had a great time with them. We first met around 10 years ago through Round Table when my club, Basingstoke 93 was celebrating its 60th anniversary and Tranås 93 were one of the international twin clubs who joined us in the UK for the celebrations. Lars and I were chairmen of our respective clubs and we've been good friends ever since, visiting each other on several occasions and our kids have almost grown up together. For both families it has been a great opportunity to see how people live in different cultures, upholding the Round Table aim to "further the establishment of peace and goodwill through international relationships".

Stephanie and I arrived at Arlanda airport on Friday, she from Heathrow and me from Helsinki. An error on Hertz's part meant we ended up being offered a Volvo C70 convertible for the same price as our standard rental, which was a bonus on beautifully sunny weekend. A four hour drive and we were in Tranås and enjoying the evening sun overlooking Lake Sommen. This is the view from the deck of their stunning home. After a quick beer, we tromped into the neighbouring forest to cut young Birch trees to decorate the outside of the house, trimming them with balloons in blue and yellow, the Swedish national colours.


On Saturday, we travelled to the town where Ebba had been studying. By tradition, the graduating students have a final meal together and are ceremoniously set free at 1pm. Parents and friends gather outside with placards showing photos of the kids and then and hang flowers and other gifts around their necks, after which the students board a variety of farm trailers and commercial trucks, also adorned with Birch trees, and then are driven round the town. This picture shows Ebba in traditional graduation hat, with her younger brother Ludvig and a photo showing her first attempt at styling her own hair!


Here you see Ebba and her classmates letting their hair down (OK, so she trained as a hairdresser, what did you expect me to say!) as they set off for their parade.

After the ceremony it was back to Lars and Gunnel's place for the party.

On Sunday, we relaxed with a boat trip on Lake Sommen, a picnic on a secluded lake shore, a beer at the ferry terminal and then a visit to a friend's summer house before another of Lasse's delicious meals, this time barbecued salmon steaks. Monday morning came round all too soon and it was time to head back to the airport.

For Ebba, Monday was her first day of work as a qualified "frisor" at Gunnel's salon. We wish her a long and successful career. Ludde - good luck for your graduation next year!

Spring in Helsinki ...

This has been my first weekend in the apartment for a while and there has been so much to do. My first unscheduled task was repairing the window blind, the cord of which snapped when I was letting the sunshine in on Saturday morning. I was very pleased to work out how to fix it and where to get the replacement cord and got a feeling of satisfaction when the job was done.

After that, I visited Maailma kylässä, the World Village Festival, in Kaisaniemi park. The festival has over 300 partners, including 200 NGOs as well as educational institutions, museums, public authorities and businesses. The aim, according to the organisers, is to provide "a meeting point open to all presenting cultural treats and surprises from all over the world: music, dance, organisations and food, as well as a place to encounter new viewpoints on tolerant multiculturalism, development work and globalisation, as well as finding ways to influence things in daily life." It was interesting, I listened to a couple of bands, tried some Himalayan food and wandered around the stalls. After a while, though, the call of my own culture prevailed and I headed to Molly Malone's for a pint (well, a half litre) of London Pride.

Today I got on my bike for a ride around the city. I stopped at Carusel for an iced Latte and possibly the world's best chocolate brownie. This now brings the number of restaurants I have reviewed at eat.fi to 30.

After that, I cycled to the flea market at Hietalahti, which was open for the second time this year. I managed to visit it on the last Sunday of the 2007 season in September, so it was good to see it bustling today. The panoramic view is another one taken on my Nokia N95 with Panoman software, it's worth clicking to see it full size. It's made from 3 shots, see if you can spot the join!

Then, back home and time to wash the car and change its floor mats from the winter rubber ones to summer carpet, another ritual I have to get used to. Now, only the ironing awaits ... which is why I am writing the blog!

A feeling of resignation ...

It is twelve months to the day that I resigned from Motorola and started the current chapter of my working life. I was 46 then, quite a respectable age and one at which many people might already consider that the big changes in life are all behind them.

Not so for me. I have probably experienced more change in the last 12 months than the previous 12 years put together. I have moved company, moved home and certainly moved on.

My new life has meant making a new home away from home, new colleagues and new friends and new challenges. Working in a different, European company culture has been interesting and I am still learning about the differences.

Through all of this, one thing has remained constant, the love and support of my family. Though we may be spending more time apart than we are used to, the days we spend together are more precious for that. I'm looking forward to our summer holidays soon and the chance to spend a little longer than a weekend together.

To my friends and colleagues old and new, who have been reading this blog and encouraging me to write, my thanks too. It is easy to wonder whether the effort is worthwhile; then a note from one of you reassures me that it is indeed. Please do keep the comments and emails coming, I appreciate them all.

My girl works down the chip shop ... and I met Elvis ...

For those familiar with the songs of Kirsty MacColl, a couple of this weekend's events together put me in mind of her 1981 single, "There's a guy works down the chip shop swears he's Elvis".

We've been in the East Riding of Yorkhire for a wedding and, on the evening we arrived, the hotel was in the middle of an Elvis night. Parked outside was this rather amazing vehicle, the ride of Steve Caprice, the evening's entertainer. It was rather a surreal experience to be sitting next morning at breakfast and to see Elvis arrive for his full English dressed dressed in skin tight jeans and a very, very frilly satin shirt. Even more suprising was, when the waitress spilt some tea, to hear Elvis exclaim "oopsy daisy" in a broad Yorkshire accent.

The other item in the title refers to my youngest daughter's news. She has just got her first job, as a customer service operative in a traditional English fast food outlet. I am proud of her, she has been determined to find a part time job and have some independent income rather than rely on her parents for everything. At her age, I was selling ice creams from a kiosk outside Butlins holiday camp on the seafront in Bognor Regis. I am glad to see her following in the family tradition of food retailing, which dates back to my Nan. She had a sweetshop in Brighton's Preston Park district for many years which I remember visiting as a child. It seems from the web that a few other people do too, this one remembers my cousin Anne.

Under the influence ...

May 1 is a public holiday in Finland, known locally as vappu. According to the Helsinki Times article, "These days the vappu celebrations already start on the last day of April when the Finns let their hair down and celebrate the coming of springtime with large quantities of alcoholic beverages."

I decided this year that I would spend the May Day holiday at home in the UK, after all, I don't need to be in Finland. After all, as I come from a country which could probably get Binge Drinking recognised as an official sport for the London Olympics in 2012, I figured I wouldn't learn much staying in Helsinki. So, instead, I visited my parents and had dinner with my Ex-Round Tablers' Club - it was good to catch up with all of them.

After a pleasant weekend helping my amateur dramatic group set their stage for this week's performance, I flew back to Helsinki on Sunday. Driving out of the airport there were Police officers standing in the road, stopping every car. For the first time in my life, I had to take a breathalyser test. As I had not drunk on the plane, I had no problems. But as I drove away afterwards, I did wonder whether they might actually have been checking that I had enough alcohol in my bloodstream to be allowed back in to the country!

Drip drip drop little April showers ...

I've been enjoying a week living back with the family in the UK.  When my time comes to return permanently from Finland, I think we will need a programme similar to those devised for returning captive bred animals to the wild, otherwise those I love may never recover from the shock!

The first thing I have noticed (well, actually, it has been pointed out to me) is that I am rather loud, especially in the mornings.  Whether this is male pattern deafness setting in, I am not sure, but there was a lot of shh-ing going on this morning from my wife and younger daughter, lest I wake the sleeping beast that is our eldest.  Since she has been known to create holes in doors simply by throwing a hairbrush, I suppose it was wise counsel.

Secondly, I am remiss in completing my "honey-do" list, a concept introduced to me by a former colleague with an American husband, for whom such things are apparently part of the marriage contract.  Normally, my visits to the UK involve a lot of changing of light bulbs.  This time, I have at least managed to drain, clean and refill the hot tub.  Since it is raining at the moment, I am not sure whether I shall get to enjoy the benefits before I return to Helsinki at the weekend.

Tomorrow is Vappu in Finland, the Labour day holiday.  As I speak, I suspect many of my Finnish friends and colleagues may already be in a state of total lubrication, ready to spend their day off recovering from a hangover.  I wish them all a happy holiday.  I will be visiting my parents on the South coast of England.  I am hoping that today's relentless drizzle will abate and I might actually get to see the sea.

The weather does remind me of the Channel Islands weather forecast which Stephanie and I were given when we visited Jersey a couple of years ago (that's the original Jersey, for my trans-Atlantic readers, rather than the New one).  It was very simple.  "If you can see France, it's about to rain.  If you can't see France, it's raining". 

Blazing Saddles...

I am feeling rather smug. I have just returned from my first bike ride in nearly five years and managed to cycle the route I would take from home to the office.

A friend once remarked that middle age is when a broad mind and a narrow waist change places. I hope that the mind is not narrowing, though if it is, I shall simply say I am becoming more focused. However, the challenge of keeping one's weight in check does seem to become more difficult as one gets older. At least, it does for this one! So, I resolved to purchase a bike and, after a visit to the K-Citymarket in Ruoholahti, this blue Maxim 26" hybrid bike found its way back to my apartment block. I really liked the 28" bike which had even more whizzy features, but I couldn't sit on it without falling over, as my legs didn't quite reach the floor.

We have a locked bike storage room on the ground floor, so I don't have to drag it upstairs. Tonight, after checking the Helsinki Metropolitan Area Council (YTV) website, which has a cycling route planner showing all the bike paths, I set off. An hour and a half later, I returned, tired but happy.

Now, gentle reader, you may ask, why did it take so long? After all, plotting Snellmaninkatu to Keilalahti on the website suggests that the 8.5 kilometre journey should take 30 minutes at their default speed of 17 km/hour. So, the round trip should only have taken an hour.

Ah, well. Three reasons. First, even with 21 gears on the bike and a noticeable lack of mountains, I don't think I am averaging that speed yet. Second, I had a little navigation incident caused by forgetting my reading glasses even though I had the map (I must ask the Nokia Maps team when they will add a cycling mode!). It was only a short detour; eagle eyed locals will notice that where I took the photo from is not actually on the direct route!

And the third? I had to stop half way to buy a spanner (a wrench, for my American readers). Before setting off, I hadn't checked that the the nut underneath the saddle was properly tightened, which meant that the saddle kept slipping and pointing upwards. At the risk of offending those of a delicate disposition, this does have rather profound effects on the nuts above the saddle. So if you see me walking like John Wayne in the next few days, you won't have to ask why!

To the manor borne ...

Over the last couple of weeks, I have had the chance to stay in two Finnish manor houses, now converted to training centres and hotels.

The first was Sannäs Manor, about 10km east of Porvoo, a town I had already visited with the family when they were over. Sannäs dates back to the 15th century and became a manor in the 16th century. The present main building (where we had my team building days) was built in 1836-1837. It was designed by Carl Engel in the Empire style. The appearance has been changed in the 1880s and 1890s. Some of outbuildings including the gate and the granary were also designed by Engel.

The second was Hirvihaara. The history of Hirvihaara Manor dates back to the 16th century, though the present main building was built in 1918. It served as a war hospital during the Second World War, and the tower was used for air surveillance. The manor house is used as a hotel and restaurant at present. This one had the added benefit of a traditional smoke sauna, which was a great way to chill out after playing my worst ever game of pool. We were playing on a quarter size snooker table, with rather narrow pockets. At least, that is my excuse for a game of doubles that lasted nearly an hour and a half.

Finland has a number of these manor houses and I hope to explore more during my time here. This useful web site will be a handy reference and also has a number of other buildings of note.

Clearing up ...

I have spent my first Sunday alone in over a month tidying, ironing and doing the chores. It appears I am not the only one, as the city is working to get rid of the accumulated snow from the last week.

For the last half hour or so, this digger has been working up and down my street, shovelling up the mounds of snow into a couple of trucks. I shall be interested to find out where they take it to, there being no equivalent of a rug in the middle of the room to sweep it under.

Just the ticket ...

I spotted this driver's novel approach to the parking challenge mentioned in my last post- how to deal with the big piles of snow? Park on top of them. Of course, you need a big 4 x 4 vehicle to be sure of success.

However, I noticed as I walked past that the owner had a surprise to come back to. One of Helsinki's finest traffic wardens had left a parking ticket under the nearside windscreen wiper. As I can't read Finnish, I was not able to see whether it was for parking too far from the surface of the road. I suspect the truth is more down to earth, as the car was within 5 metres of a pedestrian crossing (you can see the sign just behind the car).

's no parking ...

Gunther (my Audi A3) has been spending a lot of time under the snow this week. The photo shows him on Sunday after we got back from lunch, but by Wednesday he was parked further up the street under about 10cm of snow.

One of the challenges when it snows is that some of the parking spaces end up full of the snow which has been cleared by the snowploughs. On Tuesday evening I had only one choice of spot and didn't notice that about 1 metre of Gunther's rear end was overlapping a restricted parking zone, where you may not park between 8am and 5pm.

When I went to drive to work on Wednesday at around 8:30am, I was excited to see that there had been a further fall of snow overnight. However, it had not deterred the Finnish traffic warden from writing me a ticket and reaching through the drift to secure it under my windscreen wiper; I was somewhat less excited to find that as I brushed the snow off the car.

It is only my third parking ticket, at €40 a time, since I moved here. If I add the €36 for each six months that I pay for an on-street parking permit, it still costs me less than renting a garage. But I can't help feeling a grudging admiration for Helsinki's traffic wardens, who don't let these adverse weather conditions deter them from their noble work. Yet another example of Sisu!

Easter in Helsinki ...

So, we had a blissful few days over the Easter weekend. Good Friday and Easter Monday are both public holidays in Finland, as they are in the UK, so my wife and daughters flew over on the Friday and arrived in time to get settled in the apartment before venturing out for dinner at Ateljé Finne. Stephanie tried the Licorice Creme Brulée.

After dinner, we walked through the very cold wind to Esplanadi and stopped for a reviving drink at Kappeli, a favourite spot. Following that, we walked home and saw the illuminated cathedral, as mentioned in the last post.

Saturday, as the only day that the shops would be open, meant some serious retail therapy for my girls. For dinner we visited Sundmans Krog, right on the South Harbour close to the market hall. The food was excellent and we walked home happily full, just missing the end of the Easter performance in Senatoori square in front of the cathedral.

On Sunday, we walked to the tram stop, in just enough snow to cause trouble for those of us with little experience of wintry conditions. We caught the 3T tram to Kapteeninkatu to take lunch at Sea Horse, a well known restaurant offering traditional Finnish fare. Their Salmon Soup was excellent, followed by a selection of traditional entrées. Somehow, Ellie's vegetarian cabbage rolls were filled with meat and Stephanie's Pike-Perch fillets had a few too many bones, but Sally's meatballs and my Scandinavian hash were excellent.

Returning to the apartment, we had our traditional Easter egg hunt with a twist - having no garden meant that we did this indoors, but Easter would not have been the same for any of us without it. We then tried a few Finnish traditions, eating mämmi, an oven roasted, malted barley porridge. It tasted a little like liquidized malt bread and is an acquired taste. We also tried pasha, a dessert of Russian origin. But rather than me try to write it all up, I recommend the article from the Helsinki Times which goes into much more detail. We did also try the Mignon eggs from Fazer, possibly the most palatable treat of the day!

On Monday we had a walk, a coffee and then I cooked Salmon for lunch, before we finished watching series 6 of Scrubs (probably our favourite TV show) and then drove to the airport for the flight home.

It was a lovely weekend. We reflected that back in the UK, we would not have spent so much time just being together as a family. So much has changed for us all in the last twelve months that it was good to take the chance to think about what we have to be thankful for and enjoy each other's company.

Snow at Easter ...

Last year at Easter, the family enjoyed a chilly outing to the Dancing on Ice show at Wembley. This year, we were performing ourselves, though less coordinated than the ice skating celebrities, as we have been walking around Helsinki in the snow. The snowfall has not been heavy by local standards, but it was been enough to help my long legged girls to do their impressions of a newly-born Bambi.

We've had a great few days together. More details to come, but I wanted to share this stunning shot of the Lutheran Cathedral, with graphics projected on it as part of the Easter celebrations here. We saw this walking home after a drink at Kapelli on Friday night.

Home from home...

When we set up the apartment in Helsinki, we wanted it to feel like a family home, even though most of the time I am here on my own. One of the things we love at home is the garden; we are fortunate enough to have a decent size lawn. A couple of years ago, our collection of sheep (which started as a joke in the kitchen) spilled over to the garden and we now have a small flock of half life-size glass fibre sheep, which look quite at home in the English countryside.

In Helsinki, I have no garden, but I do have a small balcony. Big enough for two chairs and a wine bottle, it was a pleasant place to watch the world go by from during the summer. But it was a bit shabby, with a very tired straw mat on the floor.

Now, it is transformed. A lucky find at Bauhaus (a Finnish version of B&Q) means I have the look of an English lawn, albeit 1.2 by 1.8 metres! The sheep has been here for a while, but looks much happier now.

As I look out on a snowy Helsinki, I can now dream of summer, sitting on my balcony with a glass of Pimms and thinking of home!

Light sleeper...

My Finnish colleagues had warned me that the dark here in Helsinki was tough during the winter. I dismissed this initially, as back home I was used to going to work and coming home in the dark for a few weeks, but somehow here it seems worse. Perhaps it's because I am the only one in the apartment.

For a while, I relied on the alarm on my Nokia N95. But after a couple of times of turning it off while only half awake and then falling back into a deep slumber, I decided I needed a better solution. I tried having a second alarm in the bathroom, so that I had to get up, but found that when desperate I could ignore that one as it was not loud enough.

A couple of weeks ago, I bought a Philips Wake-Up Light Alarm Clock, which gradually lights up the room over 30 minutes and then wakes me with birdsong. It has worked really well, I then feel more awake when my phone alarm goes off and am ready for the next part of my morning ritual.

One of the things I've missed from home has been listening to the Today programme on BBC Radio 4 in the mornings. Of course, I can listen over the internet, but at the time I am normally getting up, Radio 4 is broadcasting the farming programme, not a lot of use to me. So, I have been using the podcasting client on my Nokia to get the two or three interviews that the BBC podcasts each day, automatically downloaded to my phone overnight through the wireless LAN in my apartment.

So, my morning routine goes something like this ... tweet tweet ... beep beep ... "This is a download from the BBC". And just to make the experience as authentic as possible, I play each interview two or three times while I am getting ready for work, just like they do on the real programme!

Zero degrees sea...

I had been told that the sea usually freezes in Helsinki in winter and was looking forward to this spectacle. Having grown up by the sea on the South coast of England, this is not something I had ever experienced, though sometimes even swimming in the English Channel in summer feels cold enough to scare a brass monkey.

On Saturday, I walked to the Kauppahalli (market hall) at the South Harbour to buy fresh Salmon steaks to cook for dinner, as my wife and youngest daughter were flying over for a few days. On the way, I noticed that the water around this old sailing ship, moored at the harbour as a restaurant, was solid enough for birds to walk on.

When I looked more closely, I saw that the ice on the surface was still moving and had taken on the appearance of "crazy paving", a popular finish for patios in my youth. I assume this is due to the conflict between the tendency of the ice to freeze as a flat sheet and the effect of the motion of the water cracking the sheet. Whatever, I found it intriguing. I am looking forward to when it is solid enough for people to walk on out to the islands in the harbour. Rest assured I shall not be the first one testing the ice!

Career progression...

Well, I am back from Barcelona and the pinnacle of my career in PR, directing pedestrian traffic from another press conference to ours. Those of you on Facebook may already have seen this picture, currently my profile photo on there.

This was my seventh Mobile World Congress. Actually, technically it was the first as the name changed from 3GSM World Congress this year. Whatever the name, the show is pretty much the same; the great and the good of the mobile world assemble to share views on the future of the industry (and a few bottles of Cava). The rest of us drink beer, in my case perhaps a little too much London Pride at the City Arms, a Taberna Inglesa! It comes to something when an Englishman, resident in Helsinki, has to travel to Spain for a pint of bitter brewed in Chiswick.

After six years of duty on the batwing booth, it felt like I had crossed the floor, as the politicians would say. I saw several of my old buddies from that company and caught up on their news. To those I missed, please do drop me a note, via email or on Facebook or LinkedIn, whichever you prefer.

Soupe du jour...

If I head North from my apartment instead of South, I come to Hakaniemi, another of the major market places in Helsinki. It's about the same distance to walk, but whereas the market at the South Harbour is "touristic", as my former colleagues in Germany would say, at Hakaniemi it seems somehow more authentic.

As well as the outdoor stalls, there is an old market building, inside which are stalls selling all manner of fresh meats, fish and vegetables, as well as cakes and cheeses. A visit there today gave me a wonderful selection of fare, as I am cooking for one this weekend.

One of my friends here had recommended the soup seller Tapaste at the market. He is quite a character and has a busy business. It's a very simple setup. I had the choice of two soups, Bortch (his spelling) with bacon or Bouillabaise. I opted for the beetroot soup as I am the only one in the family who likes that vegetable and so take any chance I can to enjoy it. While I waited, a dish of olive oil with fresh green herbs was presented, into which I could dip the fresh bread until the soup was served.

I was not disappointed. Instead of the usual thick, blended soup this was a broth filled with julienne-cut beets and carrots, with a huge dollop of sour cream on top. The rich, smoky Paprika flavour took me back to our holiday with Graham, Barbara, Jim and Linda in Budapest a few years ago. It was delicious and I understood why, even at only 11 in the morning, his stall was busy. I was lucky to get a seat, as several people who arrived after me had to wait for 10 minutes or so for a table.

After that, I enjoyed choosing a Salmon steak for Sunday lunch and a piece of steak for this evening, my reward for two weeks worth of ironing. Tomorrow I will be off to Barcelona for Mobile World Congress, so I am enjoying my last few hours of peace and quiet!