Joyeux Noël! Merry Christmas! Hyvää Joulua!

Thanks to everyone for the cards and gifts :D So far Christmas has been wonderful. God bless you all!

Hey Everyone!

Well the ones that are still reading my blog. haha. I see the numbers of views have gone down. I guess I haven't been writting anything to intersting latetly. My life here is just starting to become ordinary which is a good thing. It means i'm really getting adjusted :D. The only thing that could make my exchange better is if I could just learn the language. I thought it would be easier then it is but really finnish is so much different, and I guess its difficult making myself learn it because I don't really have to speak it. Of course i'm learning a lot of new words and I understand a lot of what the people are saying its just that I can't find all the words to express myself. I speak a lot of Finglish :P. Christmas is in only 4 days! I can't beleive its already time. I thought the coming of Christmas would be so difficult but so far it's not that bad. I guess all the holidays so far are celebrated so much differently here that I don't even think of it being the same holiday. 

The weather here has cooled of a lot. Last week it was +1 and now its going from -5 to -20. I guess I shouldn't complain much because I heard in Saskatchewan you have been getting -40. BRrrr. Not missing that at all. haha. I still wish I could be in a warm country at the beach sometimes but instead I get to skate on the frozen sea beside my house :).

School is going great. I had my last day on Friday. I like having holidays but I think I will find it long. After the break I move into my second host family. I'm really sad to move because I really love where I live and my host family is so awesome. I know that things will be great with the next host family too though. Its just that I think it will be difficult moving. I guess I can't complain it's not like i'm moving in with a skinning knife collector. haha. 

Well anyways I hope everyone is enjoying themselves and take care. Pray for me!

À la famille: Je vous aimes de tout mon coeur!

Soph.

Lapland!

So i'm very sorry, I know its been really long since my last blog but I haven't forgotten about you! I just get really busy and forget to write sometimes. I've done lots of new stuff but what I want to tell you about is my trip to Lapland. At around 17.00 on the 27th of november we left for Lapland. Little did I know the trip was going to last about 18 hours. The bus zigzagged around the coutry picking up exchange students. Once we arrived in Muonio it was already day again so we hit the slopes at around 14.00.  It was so horrible having barely slept on the bus and then going skiing the whole afternoon was tiring. Later in the evening we had an outdoor candle lit dinner. It was very beautiful but very cold. We had warm salmond soup and bread, and for dessert we had blueberry pie. On Sunday we finally got to relax a little. We went skiing in the morning but we had almost all afternoon to relax and visit. We were aloud to go to sauna of course and then we had another very good supper but this time it was inside. :D On Monday we headed out to Pallas tunturi and to a reindeer yeard where we learnt a bit about the lappish customs and traditions. We then got pulled by the reindeers in a sled, we also went dog sledding and snowmobile sledding. The days were nice and long filled with lots of activities but unfortunetly we had to leave on Tuesday. I was really sad to leave the exchange students but I was warmly welcomed back to Hamina by my friends. 

School is going very well and everything else is going ok. I will for sure miss christmas with my family but I know it will be a good experience to learn a new way of celebrating christmas.

Miss you all.

God Bless!

Soph xxx