Author: Migrant Tales

I arrived in Buenos Aires late-Thursday night. The flight was gruelling: Finland to Frankfurt and then a long flight to Rio. After the plane had been delayed for three hours at Rio, I finally made it to Buenos Aires. Argentina is an incredible country. In many ways everything that could go wrong with a country…

…if some are wondering why I haven’t posted anything since Friday it’s because I’m travelling to Argentina. When I get to Bueno Aires, I’ll post something over the weekend. I’m heading from summer to cold winter in the Southern Hemisphere.

Who would write about the plight of immigrants if we wouldn’t? I’ve traveled for such a long time that sojourning feels tireless. So much wandering for so many generations… The former lands of my late relatives appear from afar like strange custom. It’s all time’s fault. It always is because it encourages us to move…

…and another warm day where time takes its time. The lake near the town of Mikkeli in eastern Finland looks so comforting, like a liquid bed where you can rest and leave your cares on shore. I dedicate these four pictures to all the nice people I’ve met blogging. If you’re in the Northern Hemisphere,…

I’ve been thinking about an interesting comment Savannah made on how do we put an end to the insanity and the culture of violence to prevalent in the world. There is a saying in Spain that goes something like the following: No se puede amar lo que se desconoce, you cannot love something that you…

I’ve been thinking for a while about the S.U.V. that slammed through the door of Glasgow Airport. Fortunately there weren’t any innocent bystanders that were injured nor killed by the horrifically stupid act. Even so, everything must be put in context. We’re talking about one S.U.V set alight by two drivers. The unsuccessful plot to…

I was pretty amazed when I read an AP story where Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in Paris after meeting with France’s new President Nicolas Sarkozy that democracy will come to the the Middle East no matter what. “Yeah, it’s really hard,” she said. “It’s hard for democracy to take hold in a place…

Kesä on vihdoin saapunut näille pohjoisille asteille. Vaikka tämä kaikkein suosituin vuodenaika on saapunut miljoonien vuosien ajan, aina se epäröi ennen kuin muuttaa maisemat niin perusteellisesti. Pikku epäröinti, jota luonto harrastaa on ymmärrettävä. Vuoden ajat tällä hiljaisella Euroopan nurkalla eivät ole koskaan kevytmielinen asia, vaan ne ovat kuin vallankumouksia. Pian ihmettä alkaa tapahtua: lehdet puhkeavat,…

One of the reasons why the Finnish government hasn’t shown any interest in rejoining Karelia with Finland is because of its large Russian-speaking population. The other factor is fear that Karelia could in the future cause a new war with Russia. The last matter that some government officials want for Finland is to turn the…

What do cities and towns like Viirpuri, Käkisalmi, Hiitola, Kivennapa, Sortavala and Terijoki have in common? They were all once a part of Finland, before the Karelian Isthmus was ceded to the former Soviet Union after the end of what Finnish historians call the Continuation War (1941-44). Even though my knowledge of Finnish geography was…