Category Archives: Travel

Using our power to make a difference

If you are into the concept of democracy, the world is going to hell in a handbasket. Those of us who might be in a position to make a difference, yours truly included, are too comfortable and lazy to do what it takes to safeguard democracy. Others have totally lost faith in their ability to affect political change.

Countries are up for grabs by leaders who are ruthless enough to ignore all rules as they forge on relentlessly towards absolute power.

The Russian people excel at outsourcing power. They have totally given up on the concept of making a difference. They do not see themselves as political actors. This “Putin has the power, makes the decisions, they have nothing to do with me” way of thinking allows ordinary Russians to go on with their daily lives without any concern for e.g. the war against Ukraine, the efforts to eradicate the Russian opposition and the discrimination of many minorities. According to the majority, it’s all Putin’s doing. They themselves have no say and therefore no responsibility.

Democracy is not dead in America – yet. However, unforgivably many politicians are too comfortable and too lazy to even try to make a difference although they could. The Republicans have all but outsourced their power to Donald Trump, who will grab it and twist it out of recognition. Despite this, many of them maintain that they have nothing to do with Trump’s outrageous behaviour. In addition, too many voters have lost faith in their ability to affect meaningful political change.

Will this laziness and loss of faith result in the loss of the unity, democracy and rule of law that their forefathers fought for?

Where is the EU, when all of this is taking place? It is slowly waking up to the fact that many of the world’s problems may spill over into its lap sooner rather than later. Unfortunately, EU members are no strangers to ignoring a problem until it gets out of hand. It’s the “too comfortable and lazy to react in a timely fashion” effect all over again.

At times, I feel like I am watching a political reality show that seems to be moving unstoppably towards a tragic ending.

The Chinese have always had an eye for playing the long game. I can’t help but admire the ingenuity of it, as I watch Xi Jinping meet key political players all over the world; creating expectations, hope, fear and overall confusion.

As the saying goes, when you realise you are in deep s…, don’t move. This is probably China’s goal: to ensure that as many players as possible stay put and just allow the long game to play out. By the end of the day, the rest of us will find ourselves in the position of bystanders. The force will not be with us anymore – we will have given it away.

Giving power away is not always bad. My first image above is of George Washington surrendering his resignation as wartime leader; and thereby ensuring that the country’s future leader was decided by democratic vote. Something that an increasing amount of key world leaders are keen to avoid these days.

I wish to end this blog on a positive note, so I include a few more pics from my latest trip to New York and Washington. It was a trip of farewell in many ways. However, hopefully not a farewell to the U.S. we used to know – a leading Western democracy.

This trio of pictures serves as a reminder that the angle we view things from changes the picture we see. It is also a reminder that what once was destroyed can be rebuilt with time and effort – even though it will never be the same.

My final picture is a reminder of the fact that, while man can strive towards the skies, nothing rivals the beauty of nature. The need to safeguard our environment is one more reason not to give away our power to make a difference.

My AI assistant (by courtesy of WordPress) kindly gave my feedback on this blog. It suggested that I should add some examples on how to make a positive difference. Sadly, I am still struggling with the how myself. My first step has been to admit to myself that I am part of the problem. I think we all need to find our own way from there. Where there is a will, there is always a way.

Madrid and the silent stowaway

Sometimes you just get tired of being careful. Life passes by and you feel like an outsider – you are not participating. This is how two grandmothers – myself included – and their teenage granddaughters ended up in Madrid for three very full days when Fall leave began.

Of course, we knew that coronavirus case numbers were on the rise. But who has the time and inclination to worry about this when your plane lands in sunny Madrid?

Our group would have been fine with me walking around in a mask all day. Yet it felt weird to do so, when (almost) nobody else was wearing one. Masks were obligatory only when using public transportation.

Peer pressure is a funny thing. Even when there is no actual pressure, you can create it yourself. A mask tends to set you slightly aside if others are not wearing one too. You feel different whether others treat you as such or not. Unless you are into being aloof, it is not a fun feeling; which is why I chose to join the majority.

As always – this was not our first trip abroad as a group – our trip was a thoroughly positive experience. This time, however, it was a little too much so. Thanks to my silent stowaway, the coronavirus, I tested corona positive upon my return. Still, I have no regrets. I thoroughly enjoyed our maskless foray into Spanish culture at its richest.

However, looking back at our carefree days in Madrid, I can’t help wondering when I picked up my passenger. I guess we all do that once we test positive.

Was it at the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum where we saw the great Picasso/Chanel exhibition?

Maybe it was when I was scolded by a museum guard for photographing Picasso’s Guernica in the Reina Sofia Museum?

Here I feel the need to defend myself. The museum’s “No photos” sign read as if it referred only to the room that Guernica was in, while I was taking my photo from the next room. In addition, photos are allowed in other areas of the Reina Sofia Museum as proven by the auditorium photo below, which we specifically asked permission for. Immersive art at its best.

Going back to my new companion, did the stowaway hop aboard as we were enjoying the views on the top floor of Riu Plaza Espana? We missed a visit to the Royal Palace of Madrid and the Prado Museum this time, but at least we got a glimpse of the former from the roof top.

Then again, my stowaway may have caught up with me when the girls were shopping through their shortlist of environmentally friendly brands – or on the hop on hop off bus, while I was commenting on the fact that even head post offices look like palaces in Madrid.

Many would consider the flamenco restaurant we visited the most probable breeding ground for stowaways. It was packed, and the tickets cost enough for people to disregard a slight cough or cold instead of foregoing the flamenco experience. An experience that was unanimously voted “best experience of our trip” by the teenagers.

The Picasso/Chanel exhibition and Guernica ended up tied for second position even though Retiro Park was close behind.

The downstairs delicatessen “made our day” each afternoon as we returned to our airbnb for a short recharge. There is no way the virus embedded itself in my cookie! Nothing would be right in this world if that could happen.

However, if I had to bet on where I picked up my silent stowaway, my bet would be on the waitress who managed to sneeze directly at me as we were having lunch in a well-known restaurant. Looking back, there is something so familiar about that sneeze. I found myself re-enacting it – albeit handkerchief at hand – a few days later.

This is how the virus travels. We have to work for a living, we get frustrated with tight rules and regulations, we want to live and experience things together as we used to with friends and family. The virus is betting on us acting as we do and adapting to our ways. The less deadly it is, the more probably we will allow it near us. Silent stowaways are all around us, just waiting for a ride.

The good thing about this pause in my life is that I have less time to worry about the world now that I have to worry about each new symptom. Is that the same headache my sister-in-law suffered from creeping up on me? Do I feel extra tired like many say they did? Definitely – at least, when it’s my turn to empty the dishwasher. Am I loosing my voice like my friend did? Why am I not feeling worse? Can this really be over in a few days? What about long Covid? Is the virus just sitting there, planning a new attack?

There are now two of us. My silent stowaway, who managed to disrupt the world together with its very extended family, and I. Life continues. We will both move on to business as usual, whatever that is, once our quarantine is over.

A moment of hope in Alicante

It happened early in November 2021. For a brief moment, life was sunny and filled with hope. The world seemed to be moving back towards a state of tentative normalcy.

The COVID Omicron variant had yet to surface. Putin had yet to ramp up his rhetoric regarding Ukraine and NATO to its present levels of aggressiveness. China’s ruthless trade war against Lithuania, an example of Tianxia in practice, had yet to make the Finnish news. Even Trump was laying low in terms of international visibility.

Less than two months later, we are back in the cold, be it in terms of superpower politics, COVID statistics or the weather. Finland and Finns are feeling the chill acutely on all fronts.

Let’s, however, focus on the positive. Join me on a trip back in time: to November 2021 and sunny Alicante.

My partner in life and I have long had the habit of heading for sunnier shores in November; a habit that was cut off by COVID-19 last year. This November we finally felt safe enough to pack our bags and take off again. It was our first trip abroad since February 2020, i.e. since ages ago.

On an airport you often feel slightly disconnected from the world. This time the disconnect was greater than ever as we found our way from check-in to our departure gate. Mask-faced crowds marched to-and- fro all around us, dragging carry-on bags along the endless airport corridors like industrious, faceless ants.

We had prepared diligently for our trip. Our vaccinations were in order, our EU Digital COVID vaccination certificates were accessible from all devices, the digital forms required by the Spanish government had been filled well in advance in the app provided, printed copies of all documents were packed into every bag, and we had enough masks to travel for a month instead of the ten days we planned to stay in Alicante. Our chosen hotel advertised many COVID safety measures, including the obligatory use of masks in all public spaces.

In other words, we landed in Alicante in full COVID mode.

For those, who are as unfamiliar with the city as we were upon arrival; Alicante is a historic Mediterranean port. It is the capital of the province of Alicante, which in turn is a part of the Valencian community. The population of the city itself is close to 340,000. Both in terms of atmosphere and location, Alicante is in between its southern counterpart, Malaga, and its northern counterpart, Valencia.

Before the pandemic, Alicante would have been nice but nothing out of the ordinary. Now everything felt new and interesting as we slowly woke up from our COVID-induced hibernation.

Granted, pandemic or not, I am hard put to find a hotel as conveniently situated as Melia Alicante, which sits between a nice beach and a scenic yacht harbour, has a bona fide historic castle looming above it, and still remains within walking distance of everything you might want to see or do.

Even though the COVID situation was good at the time, we preferred to skip public transportation. Alicante is eminently walkable. We took a taxi only when coming and going to the airport and travelling to nearby Elche to see its multiple palm parks.

Due to our sailing background, the Ocean Race Museum was a must-see for us. It tells the story of the Ocean Race, formerly known as the Volvo Ocean Race and originally called the Whitbread Round the World Race. This globe-circling yacht race was first held in 1973.

The museum is – probably somewhat unintentionally – a quick crash course in how our lives have changed since the 70’s due to technology. It highlights the technological advances that have taken place in multiple areas, be it e.g. weather forecasting, navigation, communication, design, materials or construction. It shows us how the speed of everything has accelerated and underlines the fact that the skill sets needed to compete successfully have changed fundamentally. 

A must-see for all Alicante visitors is Santa Barbara Castle. The castle area itself is interesting and the views are to die for in good weather. The castle’s history goes back to the 9th century. It was recaptured from the Arabs in 1248 on the feast day of Saint Barbara.

The castle elevator at the floor of the mountain was closed due to COVID, one more  reminder that times were not fully back to normal. It proved to be a blessing in disguise in our case. There are many scenic routes to the castle. Walking up and down is definitely worth the effort. 

To summarise our moment of hope in Alicante: For a small moment, life was back to nearly normal. Skies were blue, the sun was shining, and we were out and about pretty much like on any other trip: enjoying sights, delicious meals and some really good wines (Alicante has some surprisingly good restaurants) in a cocoon of perceived safety. At the end of each day, we were lulled to sleep by the sound of waves hitting the beach in front of our hotel.

We had arrived in full COVID mode and departed ten days later in a state of relaxed hopefulness.

I keep going back to this moment of hope in my mind and take comfort from it amidst the cold, which is why I decided to share it with you.

There is a Finnish saying, “Paistaa se päivä risukasaankin”, which translates into “The sun will shine into a pile of brushwood too”. May the sun shine into your pile of brushwood, wherever it is – as it did into mine for a moment in Alicante.

Movie: Built on sand

I see the past months as a movie storyline. It can be turned into a bona fide action movie, but I like to keep it simple. My story stars an elderly couple. This is not the normal Hollywood go-to age group for leading roles – but these are not normal times.  Continue reading →

A month in Spain

There was a time – not very long ago – when travel was still relatively carefree; no coronavirus face masks in sight. We were lucky enough to spend a month in Spain in such circumstances.

Spain has many faces. Some of them are set in anger. I have absolutely no pearls of wisdom to share regarding Catalonia’s potential independence, but it did affect our travel itinerary.   Continue reading →

In search of hope

Two political beasts met up in Helsinki this summer. It was  time to evacuate. Sometimes you just have to take time off from everything. My partner in life and I decided to travel. Our first stop was the lake district of Central Finland. Continue reading →

There is no going back

Contrary to what my featured image might suggest, there is really nothing worth taking with you to your grave. It’s the memories of you, the ones that live on after you are gone, that matter. Continue reading →

Freezers and royal escapism

A 19-year-old woman was found dead in a walk-in hotel freezer in Chicago some time ago. The incident caught fire on social media, and was widely covered by the more traditional media too.

I mention this only to illustrate what catches our attention these days. Continue reading →

A one hour wonder

It’s time to stick my spoon in the soup, which is a Finnish saying for adding one more stirrer in the pot or finger in the pie. I am taking a moment to contemplate Finland, with some politics and hurricanes thrown into the mix. Continue reading →

Unlikely attachments

The world is full of serious issues, and people who take themselves too seriously. My goal is to avoid both today. It’s time to discuss unlikely attachments.

My former boss once asked a captive audience, “What do lawyers and mice have in common?” Continue reading →