out of the holidays, into the hollow-day

Hey everyone how is it going on this the first day of 2012. (only twelve months and twenty days until the end of the world :P ) So I hope santa was good to all you Canadians and Finns and Rotarians. Well I had a good holiday. Christmas was spent with the family new years was spent with friends and in between was spent as a mixture of friends and helping babysit my three year old cousin with down syndrome. It was a fun finnish learning experience.

While I am on the topic of Finnish learning I should probably bring up a deal that myself and the french student made that we are no going to only speak Finnish (as much as possible) from now on. for me this started on the car ride home last night/ this morning at 1:30 and by 2:00 I was so frustrated I just went to bed, to anyone who thinks learning languages is easy let me tell you this. Some languages are (i.e. english, spanish, italian, even french) But Finnish Is Not By Any Means An Easy Language To Learn Or Speak.

Well as my title suggests school starts again tomorrow. So now everything is going to be ask back to normal as an exchange ever is. Sorry for the short blog, Stay frosty, keep your stick on the ice and I'll post again next week from across the finnish line.

Robert

Christmas..... 1 Week? Miksi?

Hey everybody, I know it's been a while but my weeks have been full. Almost too full but not quite. But things will get better in a bit because christmas will be done. Presents for past family, and current and I'm poor, great. If I may give any advice to any rotarians reading this. Never change a students families in december. Because then we have to buy gifts for people we don't know, but people we are supposed to know. Well that's my little complaining for this week now time to get to the update of what I've been up too, probably the reason you guys still read this blog.

Well it has been a very school orientated week, I've been doing my art homework most of the weekend. Also yesterday I went to the dance recital of my friend Thomas. He is a good dancer. I filmed his dance and it will be up on facebook and youtube soon so you guys should check it out.

I start Christmas Vacation on wensday, I think. I'm not quiet sure because I haven't got a straight answer out of anyone. Finns are very bad for that. Well unfortunately that is it for this week. Not much happened. I'll post again after Christmas. Stay frosty and keep your stick on the ice and I'll talk to you soon from across the Finnish line.
Robert

So It IS a Small World After All

Hey guys, sorry it's been so long since my last update, the last week I have been very sick (like the kind of sick where moving is out of the wuestion let alon blogging) and I went to muonio in the finnish lapland. Also I have made a great discovery about my friend Santu that the boys and girls back home will probably never believe.

So as I said I was sick over the last week. first time in a long time, and afterwords I was so thin it was scary so now I have to hit the gym harder than ever. I started going back this morning and nobody told me my relax class was going there, so two and a half hours with diego then to school only to find out I would need another hour and fifteen minutes. that ought to do it ;) (winky face)

Now the part that everyone reading wants to hear about. Lapland. First off I want to say, I missed snowboarding so much. Even though I can do that one back in the great white north I can still say that it was my favourite part. I was able to snowboard with a south african girl and an american guy who were both pretty good. I also taught a few people how to carve. And on the "jump run" I am pround to say I showed off a little for Canada. We also visited a reindeer farm went on dog sled rides and partied like foriegners (ya a know we are) I love those other exchange students. It's good to have a network of other boys and girls going through the same thing as you, and how I loved to be able to talk to the other Canadians because they are cool and even though we ended up singing bieber on a stage to represent our land we still represented it well. I can't wait to see those guys again and if you all want to see the photos check out facebook they are all there.

Before I sign off I would like to say that little something I found out about my good buddy Santu (to all fins reading this you probably wont get this right away so bear with me to the end please) I was hanging out with Santu and I was talking to his mom, she mentioned that Santu's cousins lived in Canada. I said o cool where? and she replied....... Blind River Ontario!!!!!  (a small town outside of my small town about 15 minutes away!!!!!) I mean holy crap what are the odds? So if anyone is going to Blind River anytime soon and you run into anyone with the last name Repo let them know there cousin is doing fine

Well that's all for now my friends this post will be linked on facebook, and I'm sorry it's so long. I still love to hear your comments, it lets me know people are still reading this thing. Stat frosty, keep your stick on the ice and I'll talk to you all again soon from across the finnish line

Robert

New Post, New Family, New Problem

Terve everybody. Before anyone says anything new problem is supposed to be a play on words, it is to be stretched so it sounds like no. It's a pun there is no problem as of yet. But as My title says I am in a new family, I do miss the old one but I have to move on, that's part of the experience of being an exchange student. We come to leave. The Family is nice. The mother doesn't speak english but this is good because it will get me better at finnish. Finnish as a language is so hard. However I am getting the hang of it. The only problem I am having with the language so far is remembering sentences when people tell them to me. but I will when I get to use them more often. I want to give a bug Kiitos Paljon to Mrs. Margret Yli-Juuti who taught me most of the finnish I know so far, with out her I wouldn't be half of where I am today. Well that's all I have to post for now, I'll post more when I have it. Keep your stick on the ice and stay frosty and I'll talk to you soon from across the finish line
Robert

Harasmies (a gentleman in finnish)

Terve, how is Canada this week? That's great. Finland you say? it's good. Exam time again so as an exchange student I am prepared for failure. I had a math exam today, in finnish, I failed but I tried so I count it as a win. (Lame I know) I have three more exams to do. French, history, and Physics. I don't expect alot (except for history) but I still am trying.

This saturday I am switching host families. Alot to go into on that one so I'm gonna keep it short. New family, new challenges, new everything. I'm nervious. But I'm Canadian I will endure. Hahaha. I will put a better blog entry after I get settled.

Today on the bus today I did something proud to call Canadian. I saw a old woman on a crowded bus (I was also on this bus) so I stood up and offered her my seat. She was SHOCKED. I found it hilarious. I gave her my seat and now I'm here. hahaha Well that has been my recent progress in Finland. Stay frosty and keep your stick on the ice. As I said I'll talk to you later, from across the finnish line

Thoughts on Jenga

Hey guys, I'm just making another update on my exchange year. It's going very well so far. As I told you guys last week I was planning something for rememberance day in my history class. It went very nicely turns out finns don't have rememberance day. Most of them don't even know if their grandparents sis anything for the second world war. Anyway the presentation went off well, I recited "Flanders Field" surprisingly by memory. Then I asked for a moment of silence and then shared some of the stories I have been told. I was very pleased to notice that the people were actually quiet. I wish more Canadian 18 year olds could be like that.

I just finnished playing Jenga with my host parents and I couldn't help but notice that the whole thing was every architects worst nightmare. Imagine you just moved into a new appartment, you are sitting with you significant other when all of a sudden the room shakes and you are picked up and moved to the top floor. Oh look there is Joey. He used to live 5 stories above you, now you're neighbours and then the building falls down and one giant laughs and the other one screams. no wonder you got this room so cheap. Hahaha. I thought that you guys may find that little rant enjoyable

Well that's my update for this week. I hope to recieve comments and if you guys like it maybe I can post more rants like that. If no one likes them then I will not put anymore in. I recieved a package from Canada a few days ago. Skittles, 5 Gum, and Maynerds for the win.Stay frosty and keep your stick on the ice. I'll talk to you all later from accros the finnish line.

Robert

Dancing With The Devil

Hey everybody, It's blog time again. This week I started, with the other Exchange Students a great new way to stay in shape. We started boxing. My rotary councilor has been on the boxing team since he was sixteen so he was able to get us on the team. I'm going with Diego, and Kristian (a Mexican and German respectivley) It is really good excercise.

Yesterday I went to a halloween party, my second one so far this year. I discovered even though Fins don't celebrate halloween all the youth here love it. I should probably take a second to explain the title of this blog entry. The most popular costume for finnish people is to dress up as the devil. As most have you have seen from facebook the first party myself, Kristian and Thomas (French Exchange Student) all dressed up as woman. It was a really funny evening. Yesterday Thomas and myself went as skeletons. It was also a fun night.

That was this week. I hope everything is going well back home. This friday is rememberence day and even though Finland doesn't celebrate it I'm gonna try to talk to my history teacher about doing something. I'll tell you guys about how that goes in the next entry. Well stay frosty and keep your stick on the ice, I'll talk to you all later from accros the finnish line

Robert Kluke