Polar Bear Pitching - Ending Death by PowerPoint

Let’s face it, we have all been on the receiving end of overly long and boring pitches and presentations, delivered by someone with the charisma of a sloth on Valium.

But help may be at hand for us poor victims. And it comes from Finland.

The Best Finnish App for Christmas

This time last year, I was celebrating Christmas in Lapland, having an amazing time that included a sauna on a frozen lake, a hot-tub under the stars and the Northern Lights on Christmas Eve.

That trip was also the first time I heard about one of the most useful Finnish phone apps.

The Finnish Festive Spirit

There are some things I feel that, as a foreigner, I will never quite understand about Finland and the Finns.

One of those is the Finnish Christmas spirit.

An Unfortunate Loss

This week, the winter returned with a vengeance in the UK. Temperatures have plummeted, and the weather forecasters are getting ready to roll out the hyperbolical meteorological clichés (Arctic conditions, Siberian winds, etc.). It was actually +2C/36F in Southern England today, but then what do Brits know about cold, huh?

Anyhow, for some unknown reason, I was reminded today of an anecdote involving my early fumblings with the Finnish language.

Same Procedure As Last Year?

New Year's celebrations are over for another year. And so is the broadcast on TV of one of the most successful piece of British comedy ever. You know... The sketch that has been shown on TV over 250 times since it was first broadcast. No, not Monty Python's "parrot sketch"... The one starring the British actors Freddie Frinton and May Warden...

My guess is, if you are from the UK, the US or virtually anywhere in the world, you have no idea what I am on about. Freddie who?

My Cool Reino Slippers

When I left my job recently, I was touched to discover that my Finnish co-workers had clubbed together to get me a present: a pair of Reino slippers filled with Finnish Fazer milk chocolates.

Now, I understood clearly the significance of Fazerin Sininen, as I could never resist those chocolates when they were in the vicinity. But the Reino slippers? I wasn't leaving to retire, so why?

The Moose Test

It’s been very cold and very snowy in Helsinki this week. Good thing that I am a fully-fledged winter rally driver then!

Guest Blog: Santa Writes to the Children of the EU

Dear Children of the European Union,

Greetings from Finland! Yes, I am Finnish, despite what you might have heard from people on the other side of the Atlantic. And yes, they do call me "Christmas Goat" (joulupukki) here, but it's got nothing to do with how I smell, OK?

Anyhow, I wanted to write a letter to you, because I think I need to set expectations this year.

Lucia

Last Tuesday, as I walked down Helsinki's main shopping street, Aleksanterinkatu, I stumbled across a short procession that appeared at first gance to be a tribute to The Crazy World of Arthur Brown.

Melancholy Season

This week marked the official start of melancholy season in Finland, aka November.

November is the time of year where the weather in Finland is garanteed to be miserable. It is also noticibly darker, and the snow has not yet arrived to bring a bit of luminosity.

Winter vs Summer in Finland

Friends often ask me about the light in Finland. Is it dark all the time in winter? Is it light all day during the summer?

Just found this great video, which illustrates the difference between winter and summer in Helsinki.

An Unimpressive Story

A couple of years ago, I had a little misshap down an unlit country lane in the UK. It was a bit of an unpleasant experience, yet when I related this story to a Finnish friend shortly afterwards, I received no sympathy.

The story is as follows....

Spring has Sprung

I have just returned from a lovely weekend at a mökki (summer cottage) on the river Kokemäenjoki, some 200km (120 miles) West of Helsinki.

And it was springtime! Apparently.

There's No Business Like Snow Business

The winter is coming to an end in the UK, and so goes the threat of snow – thank goodness!

Having lived all my life in Western-European countries with fairly temperate climates, I always associate snow with chaos.