Our time in Finland is sadly coming to an end, quicker than I care to admit. I find myself getting sentimental while I’m doing the most mundane things. Thinking of everything that I’m going to miss about this place has really made me pay attention to the little things. So today I’m going to give you a glimpse of one of the things that we have grown to love throughout our time here - our neighborhood.
The sun is out, plants are starting to bud, green is showing, water is dripping from the rooftops, and then BAM!, it’s snowing. It’s not just a couple flakes here and there, it’s a full on downpour that lasts for days. You got me again, Spring. I fall for your antics every time. April fools? No? You’re right, I should know you better than that.
I've gone back and forth about the title of this post. Magic just sounds so cheesy. I'm the one that scoffs at cheese balls and all their feelings. But I've decided to stick with it, because that's the only way that I can describe it adequately. This so-called magic is something difficult to put into words. You just have to experience it for yourself. It has something to do with being so far away from other people and so close to nature. One Finn told us that when foreigners visit Finland, and stay in her cottage out in the middle of the forest, far removed from civilization, they start getting uncomfortable. Often times they find the solitude of the forest too much and long to be close to people, stores and other conveniences again. But she said, “that’s where us Finns feel most at home, in the middle of the forest, with no one else around.” It can be strange if you’re not used to that feeling, especially for a prolonged period of time, but I think I’m starting to get it. There is something pretty cool about being engulfed by trees that tower over you, on all sides, and slowing down enough to appreciate nature in all seasons (yes, even you, bitterly cold winter). You kind of start to crave it.
So there’s another thing you need to know about this mountain (fell) named Levi. It’s also the name of the town. But technically it’s not. It's so confusing. It’s actually Kittilä, which is the region or something, but everyone just calls it Levi. I was super confused too the first time I typed “Levi, Finland” into Google Maps and nothing came up. But everyone in Finland knows exactly what you’re talking about when you say you're going to Levi. So now that’s all cleared up, let’s talk about all the fun we had there.
These pictures are from our first trip up the mountain. Ok, it’s technically a fell, but that’s a mountain by Finnish standards. So we’re going to call it a mountain. Anyway, we drove nearly to the top to take in the view and check out the slopes one afternoon. As soon as we opened the car doors we were blasted with some seriously cold and incredibly strong wind. The wind was blowing so hard that the packed snow was wildly swirling through the air pummeling anything and everything around it. There was a café not too far away from where we parked, so we all turned around, backs facing the flying snow, and walked backwards all the way there. You could barely see anything but a cloud of white. Our initial intention was just to hang out outside for a while looking out over the town, but the wind was so unbelievably crazy that we cut our viewing time short. We only went into the café to rest for minute and thaw our frozen hands (from taking pictures) before walking right back through the storm.
