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Something I noticed while back in UK was that I have now been away long enough to notice and be surprised by things which were part of my everyday life not so long ago. Some examples:
- First, an obvious one - how busy, diverse, big and loud London is compared to Helsinki (remember the population of London is bigger than the population of Finland). Especially on the Underground.
- Cold and damp - walking to a gig in Portsmouth I was shivering, even though it was +3°C and I was well dressed. The cold, damp air was penetrating; give me -7°C here in desiccated Helsinki any day.
- Draughty houses; heating and plumbing. You know how the stereotypical American tourist laughs at our quaint houses and antiquated water heating arrangements? I stayed in three houses (between 50 and 150 years old); each was prone to cold, draughts, and running out of hot water. Oh for district heating, double windows (with triple glazing), and insulation to cope with -20°C. And mixer taps.
- The dark nights. A bit counterintuitive this one. When I was picked up from Gatwick I was taken aback by the dark: no snow. In Helsinki we have had snow since early November, so have missed out on those really dark days and long nights.
- Choice and cost. Shops with different products from each other. Specialist shops with myriad brands and ranges. Even with VAT up to 20% still cheaper than Finland in almost every case (except housing). Outlet shops. TKMaxx!
- TV adverts in English. Weird.
- Landscape. Rolling countryside, oak trees, hedges.
- New buildings. From the half-built 'Shard' in London to the Big Yellow storage in Camberley - I was only here a year ago right?
- Driving on the left again. Trying not to drive like a Finn at motorway junctions...
- Food - okay if you are French, Italian, (or quite a few other nationalities) you will be surprised that there is anything to miss on, but: Fish & Chips (preferably takeaway). 'Italian' pizza. British sausages. Sunday roast. Marmite. English full breakfast (not cooked by me!)
And the biggest surprise: after only a week I was starting to miss Finland.
7 comments:
Sure the houses are not draughty but we can't get the apartment warm here in Finland. What is up with the luke warm heaters. It is not just our current apartment but the previous one too. The only warm room in the house is the bathroom.
Believe me after living in Soho for 4 years I do not miss the hurried feeling.
Look out though!On Vappu things go crazy in Finland and it lasts for the whole summer.
One extreme to the other,cold to hot weather
iT GREAT TO GET INVOLVED AND MEET NEW faces
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@Skeptigirl: We have had the opposite problem - getting too hot! Maybe we are just lucky.
@Greg: I know what you mean about Vappu and Finnish summer festival craziness. Luckily there are kesämökit to escape to...
For me, the reverse culture shock on our annual trip back to the States is the sheer number of the morbidly obese.
@Skeptigirl - have you tried bleeding the radiators? It involves letting the air out with a little key. You may also consider having your maintenance company check out the valves. Both places where we have lived have been prone to overheating after proper maintenance.
@Willie: Good point about the radiators. Come to think of it we had problem with one of ours initially because the thermostatic valve was stuck closed.
willie, we had the maintainance come and do that to the one that was completely cold in our sons room and it worked. Ours do warm up, but not enough so I do not know if it is the same problem. Maybe we should call them anyway and tell them we can't take having to wear our coats inside anymore.
Again a little late to the party...
You may need to bleed the air out of the radiators more than once (per winter/autumn) depending on where you live. As people starting turning their radiators on, the whatever air trapped inside them may travel to the top of the building.
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