The Nordic Charm Brings Me to Tampere
By: Fargo Bcn From my home native land, in Cordillera to Vancouver, Barcelona, Paris then to Tampere, I look back today with grateful heart as I celebrate life with my 6 years of residence in Finland. The Nordic countries have always fascinated me when I spent Christmas here in 2011. Until I got a job offer from Helsinki, I decided to move to Finland right away.
ENKKU Teaching staff poses after the graduation. (SY 2015-16)
Coming to Finland to work made me fell in love to the city of Tampere where I worked at the English School of Tampere. Four years has been a wonderful teaching experience in my early years in Finland. But as I live longer in this country, I realized that I need to love the cold weather, embrace not only the culture, the people but also to learn the difficult language. One of the interesting part in enrolling to the Finnish language course is doing an on-the-job training. It has been a wonderful experience to carry out public services and perform voluntary works for the benefit of the immigrants. It's an opportunity also to apply my public relations experience in the field of mass media; which I immensely loved and enjoyed.
As I accomplish my work training, I realized that it's really difficult in Finland if you do not know the language. There's always a need of two interpreters and two social workers in the worksite for two days a week to be able to meet the costumers need. The importance of work assistance is visible every day. (Photos: TEKO-Hanke staff and volunteers learning Finnish.)
Volunteering at TEKO-Hanke offers an avenue to help and influence local people and immigrants alike. The information drive helps the Kototori for the following tasks: - a community cafe. Assisting the immigrant in filling in the forms needed in everyday matters, medical examinations and social services, etc. These are the few tasks that needs to be carried out everyday as the need arises. Talk about love of nature: I am a country girl, and whatever occurs in the busyness of the city life, that does not prevent me to unwind on weekends. I always want to explore the nearby regions. Yes, Finland is by nature such a complex and diverse country that it is not easy to describe in a single word – except perhaps “contrast”. From the breathtaking beauty of the archipelago of the south, to the mystical shimmering of the Aurora Borealis lighting up the skies in the north, Finland presents a rare natural paradise to charm and soothe the soul. Wildlife, islands and forest are untouched and reserved.
For a person like me who loves nature a lot, I find Finland as a haven of peace, beauty and breathtaking nature. It's a safe place which allows everyone (Finns and visitors alike) to roam the countryside. With this right comes responsibility, and Finns are very careful not to intrude or disturb the natural environment, or other people’s property. Respect for the environment is a high regard that is seldom seen elsewhere. Finns have a special relationship with nature in general, and with the natural world in which they live in particular. With all these, one can easily fall in love to this country. That's reason why I decided to stay.
