I get lots of junk mail – actually, it’s the only ‘real’ mail I get besides some free community newspapers. I read it all. I’ve always had a really hard time NOT paying attention to anything printed, and to me, this is interesting mail. I look at the adds for the new megastores that weren’t in the picture in my Finland. In the European Union’s free market economy, many stores have spread to cover the new Europe. There’s a Norwegian (now British owned) giant, Gigantti for electronics and appliances, a German Lidl  for food; they incidentally just opened their Christmas Market on October 15 – maybe ahead of Americans – no more old-fashioned European Christmases. Where do you get your ideas, Rick Steves? And then there’s Euromarket – which I just found out to be actually Finnish. Since they’re all megastores, they’re located outside towns, and carless I never manage to visit them. However, today, I decide to embark on a field trip to Euromarket. I couldn’t figure out how far it really is, so I take a bus. We first pass the ski area less than a kilometer from my apartment. Yes – it’s true; there’s even a huge ski jump, a small down hill slope, and trails for cross-country skiers. But not yet – it’s a gorgeous, sunny fall day, + 10 C. Then we pass a fancy hotel – the skiers got to relax somewhere nearby. After a couple of kilometers of forest we enter a nearby suburb, Palokka, where the Euromarket is located. I get off – and head in.

Euromarket is actually located in a mall. Those who really know me – can you believe this? I’m entering a mall (a small one) voluntarily. Matlena used to claim that she was a deprived child with a mall-hater mother; as a six-year-old she warned me of future traumas in her life because of this. Well, better late than never. Here I am. So sorry, Matte, you aren’t with me! There are a couple of chain clothing stores, a shoe store, a Swedish linen & things, an ALKO, a post office – and the Euromarket. The other  side of the parking lot houses four or five furniture and home stores.  I leave those for the next fieldtrip. I realize I could have ridden my bike. It’s probably just about 5 kilometers from my house.

What doesn’t stop amazing me is the quality of merchandise. Of course, there’s a lot of junk, but if I enter my second favorite department (after food): china and kitchenware, I can spot Finnish dishes by ARABIA, the famed Finnish design company, Alvar Aalto vases (just like the ones permanently housed in the Museum of Modern Art in New York) on sale, and Marimekko napkins and bowls – on discount. These items I maybe able to find in Sur La Table or Williams-Sonoma in the States,  or more likely in an even more exclusive design shop.

No wonder so many houses in Finland look like from the pages of House Beautiful. And guess what, probably 90% of Finns (students included) know the design name of their modern, stainless steal everyday silverware pattern.

I buy food: different herbs in little containers: lemon melissa, basil, mint and something called mizuna that become my ‘houseplants’ for the kitchen window. I can’t resist fresh rye bread; this week is the national bread week - and I stock up on frozen blueberries and Marimekko paper napkins.  I walk back to the bus stop with a big plastic bag
(remembered to bring my own this time) and ride the bus back home. It’s time for some real work and a walk in the woods before sauna. Wednesday is my sauna night.