Over the past few months, I enjoyed one of the most epic and enriching summer breaks of my life. The adventure started a few days after finals in May. I boarded a flight from Washington DC to Fukuoka, Japan to visit my father in his hometown and house for three weeks. The flight with layovers totaled a womping 25 hours, but once I finally arrived, I was thrilled to see my Dad after a long four years. While in Japan, it seemed as if I had one exciting and life-changing moment after the next. I loved getting to know my culture and spending time with my Dad after so long. From trying authentic versions of my favorite Japanese foods, to visiting bamboo forests deep in the mountains, and visiting my grandparent’s temple and shrine, I had such a memorable time getting closer to my heritage and culture. Take a look at a few of my pictures!
The original Ippudo comes from Fukuoka
Matcha, matcha, matcha
Girls in Kimono outside of Starbucks and Kokura Castle
I also had an internship at an English tourist magazine called Fukuoka Now. Everyday for two weeks, I commuted an hour and a half by bus to my 9 am-5 pm internship to Tenjin in Fukuoka City. The office taught me a ton about Japanese work-culture and general office etiquette. The opportunity also provided me with the chance to independently explore one of the largest and more fashionable cities in Japan. Read more about my internship in my interview with the VCU Commons here.
After Japan, I headed home to prepare for my next big trip to Europe. I anticipated visiting one of my Finnish best friends from high school, Jasmina. I planned to stay at her family’s home in Finland. Jasmina and I would also travel to a few cities throughout her country and visit the country of Estonia together.
Soon enough, I was in the air and on my way to Helsinki, the capital of Finland. Much to my delight, the flight (with one layover) was only 11 hours long. I arrived with very little clue about what to expect from Finland. My initial observation was that there were more white people and blondes in one place than I have ever seen before. According to a Genetic Map from Europedia, Finland and other Nordic countries have the largest blonde population on the continent of Europe. It was very noticeable even at the airport. On the day I arrived, I also saw a huge demonstration of over 40,000 people in Helsinki’s city center that made it to international news. A few days later, Helsinki was live on Snapchat. It was pretty cool to see Finland get so much international publicity while I was there!
However, my trip really started when I arrived in Pori and saw my bestie Jasmina! She picked me up from the bus station and took me to her home where I met her parents, sisters, and Moona (their awesome doggie). For the next week, I felt completely at home and totally emersed in the everyday life of her family. They hosted me with the warmest hospitality and delightfully fed me Finnish meals from sunrise to sunset every day. I was even welcome to use their sauna, a part of every Finnish home.
Jasmina introduced me to a few of her girlfriends as well, making the trip even more exciting. We went shopping together and saw a Finnish rap concert in the city of Turku. Interesting enough, we started our girls night around 10pm, which is still daylight in Finland. We spent our “night” on the water, on a boat, surrounded by chic and beautiful people.
On top of delicious meals and great company, I had the pleasure of seeing Finland’s beautiful countryside. Natural wonders are everywhere in Finland. From the Gulf of Bothnia to the Baltic, along with wildlife and forests full of flowers, vegetables and berries, there are so many natural wonders to see.
One day, Jasmina, her sister Sarriana, her dog Moona and I went blueberry picking to bring home for the family. The next day, her mother had a delicious blueberry pie made for us. I loved being able to pick so many blueberries (for free!) to take home for snacking and cooking with. It was totally different from the states but completely awesome.
Jasmina in the Gulf of Bothnia
Blueberry picking!
After Pori and Turku, Jasmina and I ventured off for four nights in Estonia and Helsinki. First we took a ferry to Tallinn from Helsinki and arrived in a uniquely different country and culture. Tallinn is the capital of the small Eastern European country of Estonia. The city has an Old Town that is popular amongst tourists. The Old Town has medieval castles and historic cathedrals and architecture, and excitingly, the cost of mostly everything is marked at astonishing Eastern European prices. The culture of Estonia is considered Slavic since it is right next to Russia (and was under Soviet rule until the 1990s).
Ferry to Tallinn, Estonia
We spent two days in Tallinn then went back to Helsinki for two nights. Our Airbnb was in the trendy and stylish district of Eira. Our apartment for the next two nights was very artsy and oriental, a unique place to rest our heads. In Helsinki, I took a European tram for the first time and explored neat markets, parks, and tried trendy restaurants and cafes. On the final day, my last activity was sitting on the steps of the Helsinki Cathedral, known as the Helsingin tuomiokirkko Suurkirkko in Finnish, listening to the church bells ring and overlooking the city with my friends, reflecting on everything I learned and all of the wonderful people I met that summer.
Streets of Eira
Checking out Helsinki markets
Finnish breads and pastries are so worth breaking your diet
Since being home (well back at college), I have finally understood how experiences are more valuable than things. My trips abroad this summer were fully immersive and diverse experiences where I learned about my family, made new friends, gained international resume experience and adopted life-changing perspectives. The memories I made will be with me forever. Truly, I feel blessed to have experienced such an epic last year of college. I am thankful for all of the people who made it possible. It was an amazing summer!
Until next time!
HCXO <3