Those Of You Who Don't Understand Italian http://lyricstranslate.com/en/la-geografia-del-mio-cammino-geography-my-way.html#songtranslation

Pure brilliance she is! #eden #terraspecial #jennivartiainen 

5 habits I've picked up during my Lisbon years

These are the biggest life changing habits I've picked up during my seven Lisbon years.

They come in no specific order.

Vegetarian diet

Not my pic.

Not that Portuguese cuisine is known for its vegetarian dishes (because it has none!) but my view on food and cooking have changed while spending my 30's in Lisbon (or it's the old age hehe). Good flavors are rather a simple thing and a lot can be done with fresh and good ingredients without complex procedures.

When still living in Finland I didn't enjoy cooking that much or know exactly how to use the best out of the ingredients I had in my reach. Finnish grocery stores are filled with overproduced and ready-to-go meal options which I also indulged greatly. Finnish cuisine is also rather meat focused which I have stepped away from a bit during my years abroad even though I still enjoy a good steak every now and then.

Portuguese supermercardos on the other hand differ quite a lot - many things can be found fresh and locally produced (except cod because that they actually get from Norway). Instead of e-code filled spice mixes you don't need much else to highlight the natural flavors except salt, pepper, lemon and olive oil. This has changed my way of seeing and consume food tremendously.

Nowadays my social media feed is filled with Mediterranean style vegetarian recipes and I've taken on such things as herbs, onions, garlic, olive oil, arugula and fresh vegetables to my daily diet. I take advantage of seasonal products such as pomegranate, watermelon, mint to bring variety to my plate.

Fun fact is that I've also learned to eat oats, berries + cottage cheese in here which all have been part of Finnish classical diet forever but which I used to hate when living back home.

I'm more human

Not my pic.

Things don't always work and not especially here in Portugal. Systems crash, procedures fail and so do people. You cannot be in a hurry while living in this city or schedule no more than one bureaucrat procedure on your weekly agenda. And that one thing takes the entire day often! Portuguese people and culture still embrace old fashion lifestyle in many ways. Many things still run with pen and paper here and developments come in practice slowly. It's human that mistakes take place and that things might not be easy on the first try.

On a different side of the coin however, elderly, pregnant women or people with small kids or injuries often get priority in groceries and other places. Or you might be passed by the queue because you only have one item in your shopping basket when the person in front of you is buying for a family of six. There's humanity in everyday counters. I'm not saying that not being able to trust the process is entirely stress free but I do enjoy the more human side of things. Life is more merciful, my flaws don't make me and I demand less from myself and those around me.

Traditional = more simple life?

Not my pic.

I'm not saying that everything is about money or that you wouldn't need it but when you don't have much of it you tend to prioritize the real things in life.

The essential part of Portuguese everyday life routine is the meals, family and relationships in general. Yes, we all have to go to work but it doesn't become us. During free time people read books, exercise, go to the beach or play football - some of these being perhaps the essential parts of a Portuguese (or even of South European) lifestyle. These off-screen activities embrace social relationships, healthy and in my opinion more equal lifestyle where one's background with money or success doesn't matter.

This a far cry how I remember the years lived in Finland. The society is very performance and success focused - whether it's from the financial wealth to meeting the social standards - life is measured with achievements, success. The standards are the same for everyone, every child, woman and man and pressures start to grow from a very young age on. Individuality feels criminal. It's about reaching the finish line with great scores instead of enjoying the journey and its benefits to you.

Portuguese salary is is still lower than an average EU-citizen's elsewhere in Europe. As mentioned this country is slow to develop, therefore people and the lifestyle have remained traditional in many ways. Despite of the recent years' tourism boom that has brought along more pressure to provide things in a more modern manner. However it's not super uncommon to step into a store that only accepts cash, or to a Portuguese kitchen that has changed only a little during the last century. Life can be so simple.

Outdoor sports

Not my pic.

Funnily enough coming from the country of four seasons, thousands of lakes and forests that offer almost the same amount of possibilities to exercise all year round, I didn't learn to embrace outdoor sports before January 2020 - in Lisbon. I started running just before the covid shit storm, just in time when gyms and everything else shut down. There was nothing else than the empty streets and parks to conquer.

Funnily enough this new found lifestyle would suffer significantly if I ever moved to Finland (or any other Northern country with proper winters) because indoor, treadmill running doesn't do it for me. I'm in eternal love with the Portuguese weather because I can get around the rains or heat waves - the weather is not an obstacle for me!

Less productive

Not my pic.

I said these five things come in no particular order but it feels natural though to put this last. This is the result of all these four.

I don't feel pressured to do anything that I don't want to do. Whether it's to change jobs, to have a relationship, to travel, to exercise or eat healthy. I do all these things because I want to and if not, it's because I'm not feeling like it. I may be less productive and not where "I supposed to be at my age" - I can feel the judgement every time going home.. but the choices I've made during these seven years have felt truly mine and only mine.

Sometimes I do wonder if these changes and steps would have occurred if I had lived in Finland or somewhere else. Some maybe, others not.

Lisbon before Covid-19 

Found these random shots on my laptop... When it was still summer but cloudy.

I keep..

Allô!

March has been so full of #mtlmoments that I don’t even know where to start!

The much praised La Nuit Blanche which was already a month ago was indeed one of the greatest events of my Mtl year. Ten well spent hours by doing free activities in the greatest company. The highlight of the event was definitely vinyl scratching just around the corner from the place I live. Other stuff included penguin watching, so called tramway ride, ice sculptures and several other different art performances all over the city. Some activities didn’t exactly match the original description but were still somewhat enjoyable. And they were all free so can’t complain.

(LNB, 2014)

Also the long anticipated Laura Pausini concert which was even more back and beyond than what I imagined first. In total 9h of travelling in a bus from Montréal to this small town of Orillia, in Ontario. Even my first apartment was bigger than the local bus station. But the people there were the friendliest I’ve ever met. It came handy at that point when we were checking out from the hotel (we stayed in the same one with the band and crew btw!) and there was only 30min to our bus’ departure to Toronto and we seriously thought that you could have a taxi in that time but noup. Our travel plans would have changed dramatically unless the hotel’s manager hadn’t driven us herself to the bus station. What a service!! http://www.daysinn.com/hotels/ontario/orillia/days-inn-orillia/hotel-overview

(You'll never find me in this one! pic by Mario Torre)

We were lucky enough to see Laura doing a tv interview before the concert and where we were literally 1m away from her. She saw my flag and signed some autographs, again I was super lucky to get one! Otherwise there were no more chances to meet or talk to her. But I don’t wanna complain cause I’ve been so lucky with her in the past in London and Madrid. I did give her the post I wrote about her here in my blog ( http://lageografiademicamino.tumblr.com/post/68130494682/she-uguale-a-lei ) through a staff member of a casino. Not sure if she's read it or checked out my blog or anything.

The concert followed the same tracklist as the previous concerts in America and Europe. More or less. Some songs weren’t performed like Con la musica alla radio which I’ve been praising here in Tumblr too.. But I guess you can’t have it all. Laura seemed tired. But she’s now a mom of one-year-old and still touring around the world so who wouldn’t be tired in her place The problem with an artist like Laura is that she gives so much of her time to her fans and when she's acting normally and just doing her job it doesn't feel like enough.

But the concert was great overall. Her voice was in top condition as always. The majority of people were quite old, I felt super young among those canadian-italian grannies. That was one of the reasons why the concert seemed a bit slow compared to the concerts I attended in A'dam and London which were just full of energy. But I did love to see the show with my own eyes and hear the latest versions of the songs. Now all I’m looking forward to, is the live release. #pausini20th

The latest event which I’ve been to was St. Patrick's Day,  probably one of the rare Sunday afternoons in the winter time when it's totally okay to get wasted here. Totally new acquaintance as an event since we don't have it in Finland. Originally an Irish thing but celebrated widely in all over North America. Also in Mtl where almost half of its population has some sort of Irish background in the family (who knew?!).

It was fun, cold thou but fun. There was a parade of three hours long, more commercial apparently when compared to the real thing in Ireland. Or so I was told. But I did get to see some mounties, which I've been dying to see ever since I came here! Green was the theme colour of the day and the streets of centre-ville were packed of people wearing all sorts green clothes and accessories. Even the beer was green at the Irish pub where we later ended up with the bunch of couchsurfers.

(Moi, on St. Paddy's)

ALSO, I'm almost embarrased to tell you this but I did attend to a seminar of "Get the Guy" by Matthew Hussey. Apparently he's quite big in his field, wrote books and doing a world tour now with this seminar thingie. Definitely a #mtlmoment I never thought I'd do! It was just one post or two before where I was telling how I'm not looking for anyone or anything but.. yeah friend had a free ticket and I thought what the hell.

It was okay, he didn't tell anything that I wouldn't have known before but gotta admit that it was still pretty entertaining with his jokes and that gorgeous british accent. In the other hand, it did have a bit of a commercial taste cause it ended up lasting over five hours! When I left he was still talking.. not about pick up lines or how to get any guy but about himself and trying to sell his book, tour or whatever. Well now, I've been there and done that too! :)

Single ladies, interested or curious in the subject, this is for you :)  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnFUFy4GbdQ

But I have worked as well. Quite a lot actually recently. Just had my first days off for 11 days. I’m be working now only in the evening shifts since there’s not enough of physical space for all the employees to work during the day. And naturally the day shifts are more popular compared to the evening shifts which last until midnight. Like I said before, nothing against working in the evenings but I gotta admit non-stop working until midnight five times a week might get in the way of my social life. So in some point I’m thinking of cutting it down to four days a week kind of thing. But at least Babel is paying $12/evening shift more now!

Against what people might think about it, the job ain’t about the playing the game but to find all the things that might go wrong while playing the game. The employees are usually divided into different teams and we have different themes, areas etc, we need to work on. Still fun thou. People are still super friendly and there are worse jobs in the world. Haven’t done translating since there are now more finnish people but I enjoy the team I get to work with while doing the regular testing. 

It’s been pretty hectic at the flat as well. First one room mate from the flat downstairs got evicted after he started fighting about this rat issue at the building with our landlord. And now that room mate is suing our landlord. A bit more dramatic the disagreements here between landlords and tenants compared to Finland. Yeah but now he’s moved out. We also had a week of renovations being done in our kitchen and bathroom which was just pain for me cause it didn’t just fit into my daily routine at all. Cause I worked in the evenings when they were gone and then when I was at home so were they. But it’s over now and no more leaking taps etc. But now the toilet doesn’t work! I hope the landlord gets it fixed by my bday which is next weekend..when I’m just gonna do the traditional finnish thing: get drunk… with great friends of course to carry me home afterwards. #finnish #bday #justkidding

Weatherlike. It's been back and forth with spring and winter over here. There's been pretty gorgeous days with sun and warm temperatures over 0 but then there has been snowstorms too, the latest one today. But I'm still brave enough to say that I have indeed survived the famously cold canadian winter. #mtlmoments

Okay, now I stop! Thanks again for reading :)

Jeronimós Monastery, an UNESCO heritage site and not for vain! Truly worth paying the entrance fee for! 

"...Qui dove tutto sembra che sia da sempre immobile...Dove resto solo io."

I did not spent more than just a few hours in Braga nor did I have a local showing me around and telling me stories of the city... but I was missing that lively spirit Porto had. I might go back though for an event or if I had a local or someone to prove me wrong. The churches were nice though and I’m glad I went. It was also cheaper than Porto clearly.  

Merry Xmas! Feliz Natal! Hyvää Joulua! 

Blue

Hey folks, 

Thought I might actually want to update this thing once in a while... 

Some of these stuff are seriously two months old but for what it's worth I wanna have it all on writing and out there as a proof to myself that I've actually did all of this..

SOOO my birthday... ages ago I know but gotta mention it since it was my first one abroad..Big plans, big plans to get wasted and the hit one of the many night clubs of the city and party my ass off. BUT let’s just say that the first goal was well achieved but the later ones… not so much. Thank you girls again for holding my hair and for the thousandth time my mortified but the sincerest apologies. But at least it was my birthday I was ruining and no one else’s. But oh well... #finnish #stillmortified 

And as my hang over cleared I made the long feared bookings in order to come home in the end of July. On 28th to be exact. Friends and family in Finland, make a mark in your calendars. Read above why I wanna come home and rest of the blog for the reasons why not. It’s incredible how fast time has passed. It feels like yesterday when I was planning it all, counting days and preparing me and the world around me for the grande aventure...Today I have less than 60 days left of my Montréal year. How depressing is that… #stupidstudies #dontwannagohome

It’s been quite stressful and tight in moneylike cause I have to pay some of the student aid I received (too much) back in 2012 to the Finnish government (which is always fun). But luckily Mtl is full of activities that you get to do without paying a penny! 

Speaking of free..

Made my way to the famous Tam Tams finally which is a free Music event at the park of Mount Royal happening every Sunday afternoon. When the weather allows it I guess. Starting at noon and going on for hours until the evening. Insanely popular:  hundreads of people, young people, old people, parents with small children and friends, newcomers, tourists having picniks or just hanging out and enjoying the beaux temps. 

It is not an officially sanctioned nor sponsored event so no one really knows when the first Tam Tams took place. Somewhere between 1970’s and 1990’s apparently. But today it’s one of the best known summer events of the city and the musical scene has developed from the traditional drum circle to DJ’s. Different kinds of vendors, performance artists and exhibitonists can be seen too. 

(pic from http://montrealagogo.tumblr.com/)

More free stuff! International this time. Made a new discovery called “Jane Walks” which are free walking tours insipired by American activist and urbanist Jane Jacobs who started organizing them first in New York and later in Toronto. Today they’re organized worldwide on first weekend of May annually.  The idea is to get the people to discover the neighbourhoods of their cities in a new light. Anyone who wants to share their knowledge and experience can volunteer to organize one and anyone who wants to learn more can join in for free. Here in Montréal there were over 100 different walks to choose from during in three days all over the city.

I took one in the neighbourhood where I live in, the lively and lovely Mile End which I’ve become very fond of over the passed months. During the two hour long walk I was never further from my front door than maybe just a few blocks but still I learnt so many interesting and fascinating facts about this neighbourhood. The theme was street art which  “is anonymous and the entire city is its canvas”. Totally recommend everyone to check their neighbourhoods and cities by joining Jane walks next year! I’m definitely gonna do the same next year, wherever I’ll be. 

For more information: http://www.janeswalk.org/

One of the landmarks of Mile End.