Grüner See - Green Lake

Picture taken on 20/12/2014

The day before yesterday my sister and I hiked in Tragöß, Styria. We were hiking around Grüner See, which has been voted (again) the most beautiful place in Austria. My reasons to write about this awesome lake are its beauty and that describing places will be part of our next English exam...

The lake is on the southern side of the Hochschwab Mountains. Its name Grüner See (Eng. Green Lake) comes from its emerald-green clear water, which comes from the snowmelt. The depth of the lake varies during the seasons. During winter the lake is only about

source: Wiki Commons

1-2m deep (or dried out!). In spring, when the snow melts, the lake gets filled with water. It can become about 12m deep. When the lake is at its deepest it covers parts of the hiking trails, some benches on this trail and some parts of trees. Divers love this lake because it is very clear and provides a good view (about 50m!).

This lake is under nature protection. Its water has drinking quality and about 40% of Vienna's drinking water comes from this lake.

source: T-online.de

Hyvää Sibeliuksen päivää!! - Happy Sibelius Day!!

(c)

Today is Sibelius Day in Finland, but not only Sibelius himself is celebrated/honored today. This day is also celebrating Finnish Music! - This means that today is Sibelius Day and Day of Finnish Music! In Finland this day has become a Flag Day, which means that if you wander around in Finland, you'll see the Finnish flag almost everywhere!

Now you might want to ask: Who was Sibelius?

Sibelius was a Finnish composer. He was born in Dec 8, 1865 in Hämeenlinna and died on Sep. 20, 1957 in Järvenpää. He didn't only study music in Finland. He also studied in Berlin (Germany) and Vienna (Austria). After he finished his studies he became a teacher in Helsinki (Finland).

Sibelius is one of the most important composers in Finland. With his composition Finlandia (which is his best known composition), he took part in giving Finland its own identity, after it was freed from the Russians predominance. Sibelius also composed some music inspired by the Finish national epos "Kalevala".

In Finland there's an academy named after him: The Sibelius Academy in Helsinki. It is part of Helsinki's University of arts. This academy is a university-level music school which operates in Helsinki and Kuopio. It is the only music university in Finland. This academy is also among the biggest music universities in Europe.

Here are some Links to some of his compositions:

Finlandia

Pohjola's daughter (inspired by Kalevala)
Lemminkäinen's suite (inspired by Kalevala)

Karelia suite

Want to learn more about Sibelius? klick >>here<<

Hyvää itsenäisyyspäivää, Suomi! - Happy independence day, Finland!

(c) partio.fi

Today Finland celebrates its independence! - Happy 97th birthday, Finland! 

Finland celebrates its independence on Dec 6th, because in 1917 this was the day when Finland was declared independent. (At the end of this post, there are links to both the official and unofficial anthem of Finland) 

How do Finns celebrate their day of independence? 

On Independence Day the Finnish flag can be seen everywhere (public buildings, as well as private houses etc.). This is because that day is one of many official Flag Days in Finland. (viralliset lipputuspäivät). Some Finns visit the church’s service, after this they visit the war memorials. Some Universities organize a torchlight procession. Students and other people from the university usually walk through the city center, but sometimes they walk from the graveyard to the city center. During their torchlight procession the people sing the Finnish national anthem "Maamme" (Our Land). 

Many Finns put a blue and white candle on their windowsill. Finnish people like to watch “Tuntematon Sotilas” (Unknown soldiers – a quite long black and white movie) and the presidential reception (at this reception there are many celebrities and other people who are welcomed by the president) on tv. 

Besides all the mentioned things, there are a soldier parade (each year in a different city), fireworks and of course a lot of partying and celebrating! Oh, I almost forgot about the famous “Finlandia” (composed by Jean Sibelius), the unofficial anthem of Finland. 

 Here are some videos:
Finlandia 
Maamme by Apocalyptica 
Maamme by Jonne Aaron
Maamme by Tarja Turunen

and here are the lyrics for Maamme, in case you're interested (including a translation by me)

Finnish Oi maamme, Suomi, synnyinmaa, soi, sana kultainen! Ei laaksoa, ei kukkulaa, ei vettä, rantaa rakkaampaa, kuin kotimaa, tää pohjoinen, maa kallis isien! Ei laaksoa, ei kkukkulaa, ei vettä, rantaa rakkaampaa, kuin kotimaa, tää pohjoinen, maa kallis isien!		English Our home, Finland, our land of birth, sounds the blissful word! No valley, no hill, no water, no coast is as loved as our home, here in the north, the land of  our dear fathers! No valley, no hill, no water, no coast is as loved as our home, here in the north, the land of our dear fathers!

Finnish Christmas market

Some friends and I visited the Finnish Christmas market (joulumyyjäiset) in Klosterneuburg. It was a lot of fun and we all really liked this market. The Finnish ambassador Anu Laamanen held the opening speech. Later Mag. Sari Wagner welcomed the Finnish protestant community. While wandering around the place we listened to Finnish Christmas carols. At some point the Finnish Santa Claus (joulupukki) visited the market and gave gifts to the children. There was also a tombola where you could win a trip to Finland... unfortunately we didn't win anything.

I was really happy that I could buy Finnish chocolate at the Christmas market. (I bought my favorites "Fazerin Geisha" and "Tupla".) At the market there were many delicious dishes such as pea soup (hernekeittoa), roasted salmon (paistettua lohta) etc...  Of course you could also have some "Glöggi" (mulled wine), it was so delicious!

This Finnish Cristmas market is definitely worth a visit!

Donating

My hair, which I'm donating

With this simple title I want to introduce you to "Verein Haarfee" (translates to Club Hairfary). Now you might ask yourself "What's that?"

Verein Haarfee is a NGO which helps children, who have lost their hair due to illness or other dramatic circumstances. After children have lost their hair due to chemo therapy or whatsoever, they might get bullied or feel very unconfident and sad. With a donation you give them the chance to get a wig that looks real. 

Before the haircut

Those wigs made of real hair are usually very, very expensive they cost around € 1,500 up to € 3,000 or even more. The insurance won't cover all these expenses, they only cover around € 380. Which is why Verein Haarfee, or any other NGO collecting for this purpose needs to be supported. You know that these cheap wigs made from plastic or other fabric always look like wigs. Maybe children feel uncomfortable with a cheap wig like that, get teased or bullied, and it might not feel too good on their little heads.

After the haircut

How to donate?

You can either donate money OR your hair! 

(Note: If you don't live in Austria and want to donate: look for a NGO like this in your home country)

I've decided to donate my hair, after cutting it. I told the hairdresser that I'd like to donate my hair, and that they should use a hairband to keep it from falling apart, so that I could take it home. The next step is sending it to this NGO. First I put it in a plastic bag and then I put it in an envelope. - I really like the thought that I could make a child happy!

Things, you didn't know were Finish #2

Here's part two of that series. This time I'm writing about Fiskars.

(c) Fiskars

Fiskars is one of the oldest companies in Finland. It was founded in 1649 in the finish village Fiskars (Raasepori Region). At that time Finland was ruled by Sweden, and Sweden was one of Europe's biggest producer of iron at that time. Fiskars also produced nails, threat, knives, hoes, iron wheels, and other things.

In 1832 Fiskars was bought by Johan Jacob Julin, from Turku, who increased the production range from knives to cutlery including forks and scissors. Under his leadership the company became known for its farm and household implements, and the Fiskars name became a synonym for high quality. 

In 1967 Fiskars produced the world's first scissors with plastic handle. One year later Fiskars founded its first factory in the USA.

Today Fiskars is the leading producer of consumer products for home, garden and outdoors. 

Last but not least: A fun fact!

You might've already asked yourself "Why is the scissor's handle orange?", well here's the answer...

When they were about to produce their first prototype they had to choose a color. The designer wanted black, red or green. As the prototype went in production, the machinist decided to finish the color (orange) he had in his machine. So the first prototypes were of 4 different colors. In an internal vote, the result gave birth to the orange handled scissors we know today.

If you want to learn more about the company click here.

Johan Jacob Julin

Johan Jacob Julin

Johan Jacob Julin

Johan Jacob Julin

Johan Jacob Julin