1.7.06

from mini finland with love

Hyvää Paivää! In the wee hours of a wet morning last week, La Femme began an expedition to a very Finnish town in the far reaches of Northern Ontario, Canada. I am here now- after a flight on what was quite possibly the smallest airplane known to humans- and suffering horribly from lack of espresso and internet access. If there was such a thing as mini Finland, that is where I am. Everyone's surname is Kangas or Heikkinen (including my grandparents, who came from here) and have saunas behind their homes. The main street is dotted with Finn-port stores and Scandinavian delis, and chunks of pavement are painted with marimekko flowers (similar to the ones susie noticed in Antwerp). This is about as hardcore urban as it gets however, and away from picking up licorice and egg bread rusks on the main street, my daily activities have included pulling rhubarb stalks and stacking wood (beam me up Scottie, pronto). Prior to arrival, I assured my mother that I have the perfect hiking boot for traversing about in the wilderness (I didn't think the 5" heel would be too much of a hindrance), but we went "nature walking" today, and I don't think any ballet performance has caused my feet to hurt as much as they do now. Ah well, style is everything n'est pas?.

Modern fashion doesn't really exist up here buuuut Laplander hats do (as well as an interesting assortment of traditional Scandinavian wood jewelery- Viking femmes were wearing wood baubles long before Sienna Miller!). If you don't know what a Laplander hat is, then you are in for a treat (I'm not joking- they are quite charming). If you are really curious about them, then I might post a pic of La Femme wearing a Laplander bonnet- the traditional headdress for Lappish femmes- but now, I must sign off and go chop some wood. In my miu miu lace ups.

Please bear with my intermittant posting until I get back to the land of cappuccinos and high speed internet next week! Kiitos!

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

That is one tiny plane!
I can't believe you went on a nature walk in heels like that, absolute dedication to fashion!
xx

moongjee said...

Finnish Canadians? Sounds like an odd mix, but nonetheless interesting. Have fun!

la femme said...

amillionpieces: Haha, yes the plane was tiny- I kept hitting my head on the ceiling, and trying to fit my legs behind the seat was a bit like attempting the human pretzel.

I've been coming up here a few times every year since I was born, but haven't yet given in to sensible shoes.

ryju: Thunder Bay and Nolalu...

moongjee: Oui, c'est moi! FCs run rampant in Northern Ontario. The climate and vegetation is extremely similar to Finland, which is why a lot of immigrants settled here earlier in the century.

Anonymous said...

Is it light all day up there? I was talking to a finnish person (Ok, I know its not actually Finland, but you must be on similar Lattitude up there!) about the seasons today and they were saying its pretty much light round the clock at this time of year.

Anonymous said...

I'm can't believe there's a Finnish town in Canada... I'm from Finland. How weird.

I heard there are "Finnish" towns/villages in Argentina, too.

Claire said...

I wanna see you work the bonnet! Sounds great up there...

Yvan Rodic said...

very exciting microcosm! would love to face hunt there:::

Yvan Rodic said...

this microcosm is exciting, would love to face hunt there!

elena said...

Enjoy, and please a photo with the hat on.

Anonymous said...

Ah, the Laplander bonnets, they look absolutely quaint.

Anonymous said...

Yes, please picture with Laplander Bonnet, it's the new touque!

Anonymous said...

Did you od on salmiakki? :-)