19 countries in 30 days

along with the world cup heat, you "traveled" 19 countries in 30 days, not a bad result at all considering
you're unwell for the most part of june.
extensive business trips and yet you're able to trotting around the world to attempt dishes of 19 countries span across the continents.

as for me...

and my household, we will serve the Lord

joshua 24:15b

berry.good.weekend

your first experience on self pluck fruits... and it's fun.

 you started at the cherry trees, they're plenty of cherries, of different variety. you're like a little kid finally discover the treasures...

and then the raspberries, this was hard work, unlike the cherries they're all over the tree, for raspberries you have to search for the ripe one carefully

 and most of them are hidden inside the branches and covered by the leaves...

 they're red berries but not ripe enough to harvest

 then the strawberries, what's left were pretty young and raw

yet a couples that you plucked and tried were burst with flavor and sweetness

 and then the gooseberries, you didn't pluck this but just sample a couples, you like the balance of tart and sweetness

 and your harvest of raspberries

this place is full of tourist and local alike, and while paying for your harvest, you spotted the lavender for sales too.
the fruits are not cheap and in fact the prices are comparable to the one in the supermarket but it's the experience and the excitement that count, plus the fact that you harvest what you pick you know the freshness of the fruits.  hard labor, expensive but worth it.

happy.mid.summer

this's taken from the chalk board at your client office.  it says happy mid summer in finnish.  with this you would conclude your travel to finland for the time being.
finland has been nice to you so far and you certainly like the experience so far, from the dark (weather) and cool (people) months of november last year and temporary ending in june this year, you have seen the transformation of the ever dark and grey weather to long day light, and cool client now warming up to you.
all in all, a very good scandinavian experience, as much as you'd have expect that you spend your summer months working in france and switzerland, nordic is a pleasant surprise and certainly a pleasant one.

happy friday.

::nature::

 just last week, your client took you to suomenlinna island and this week she invited you to go out again.  you still haven't figure out the stereotype of finns who usually really cool and distant at the start but now growing warm and open to you.  you're thankful for that or else you will never have the chance to have a glimpse of the finnish lifestyle in the summer.

at the seaside, just within the vicinity of the city, this place has a lot of quack quack, honestly you're not sure if they are duck or goose but surely both produce the quack quack noise.

 and they are plentiful at the park or the seaside just opposite the street

 and funny to see how these quack quack cross the pedestrian zebra line in an orderly manner.  and you noticed almost all of them cross the street on the pedestrian and cars will have to stop and wait for them to cross the street leisurely... it's quite phenomenal

 the weather is cloudy, cold in fact at the temperature of 15c but feel colder because helsinki is bombarded by the wind from the north...

 still you opt for the terrace sitting, though it's cold and cloudy, the breeze is quite refreshing. you ordered a caviar roe cake at cafe ursula.  it's a savory cake made of salmon roe, bread and cream cheese. a calories bom for sure but good to keep you warm, and fuel for the walk you will take after the coffee.  you actually like this cake, not fishy and in fact the roe popping in your mouth is rather sensational... it's probably better to wash down with a glass of white wine but you still have a few more days of alcohol free day to go...

 meantime the bird(s) are waiting to attack my leftover... you can't say it's annoying to chase the birds away from your table from time to time, in fact you quite enjoy the interaction with the birds... feeling very close to nature

and at the end you decided to let the bird eats eat your leftover cream, even the bird knows it's the roe to pick :)

loving the summer in finland, even on a not so summery day. you're not sure if you will be back again in august before your summer vacation... even if you're not back before september, you're still thankful for such a wonderful scandinavian experience you had so far...

cafe.tango.tin.tin

tuck in the quite neighborhood in the toolo district. this is definitely off the beaten track.

 yet it's so close to your hotel, so you decided to check it out since you're not in the mood to go into the city center. this place is frequented by the locals, you're glad you discover this place as such local gems are treasure to a traveler when you hardly spot any tourist and the price is also friendly compare to the quality of the food/drink they served.

 the cafe has tin tin as the theme, the decoration is very french

wanting just something light, you decided on reindeer meat quiche and a cappucino.  the quiche is good, likewise the side salad is also very crisps and refreshing.  the coffee is also great...

and this is the little corner where you sat for a relatively long time because the cafe is just so inviting and relaxing, that one can sit for a very long time yet feeling very comfortable.
you will be back again.

::blue::

love all things blue about finland.  the sky is blue

so blue that the sea water is blue too. this was your outlook for quite sometime.  fresh air, crisps wind and you're very close with your God and was in deep conversation with Him.  at that very moment, you realized you're so blessed even though you sometimes complaint about your job, yet it's this job that brought the world to you...

it's this job that brought you the blue sky, it's this job that expose you to the world, to the places that you will never afford to go by your own ability.

at this moment, you're really thankful for the nature, the time and space you have right here

and then you feel cold, so you proceed to the nearby cafe carusel that  facing the water

and you ordered a blueberry cake, blueberry tea

and along with it, a blueberry and cardamon ice cream which really put you on cloud 9.  the taste of cardamon is so sensual to the palate....
all in all, you're totally blue today, blue in a good way...
feeling thankful, blessed and contented.

cafe.succes

you dare to say this is your last business trip before your summer holiday... perhaps not but you're pretty you will stay put in july at least

off you jetset to finland again

you don't usually sit on the window seat but since you do, you seize the view and capture some of the low clouds from your perspective...

arrived in helsinki, you check the city out but failed to locate the pastry shop that you want to try, so you walk a little further

enjoying the little corner and display of thops

and finally settled for cafe succes that's on your to do list.... this little local cafe is very inviting and comfortable...

you ordered your flat whine and you got this latte art on your coffee which you think is quite unusual...

later you noticed it's actually resemble the peony in the vase on the table that you're seated... love the ambiance and the atmosphere. you could sit here for the whole afternoon if you have a good book with you...

and needless to say there's good light too, scandinavian summer is so great that you should not confined yourself indoor, so it's time to pay and get out and get close to the nature...

set.free

you woke up early and went to a conference today.

 it's a special day as you ride on public transportation

 it's a special day as it's the first time you're in a full dutch conference and yet it's special day because you could understand 99% of the teaching with perhaps a handful of words that you have to seek help, but otherwise you understood everything.
it's a special day because the theme of the conference is about set free, though the teaching may not be new to you but the speakers' personal experience is an eye opener to you.  though it's a long day and it's tiring at the end of the day, you feel the presence of the Lord and you're at peace.  you stood up for prayer, though you didn't come with any expectation but you allow your Lord to surprise you....

you ended the day with a simple vietnamese meal, by the end of the dinner you're totally exhausted and your body battery is like physically drained.  however, spiritually you have a sense of excitement in your spirit...

::red::

 finally you start loving the finns cuisine.
absolutely adore the oatmeal with mixed berries compote

and the daily soup as lunch. since you pause for lunch break at 11.30am, literally 10.30am CET time which is way to early for a solid heavy lunch. you find the soup filling to last you till about 3pm when you finished your work and then you can opt for a finns afternoon tea elsewhere in the city.

::ron::

you've been wanting to check out this place for months (or years?) and the last time when you step your feet here, the bistro was closed for private function.  this trip it's finally avail to you.

 the menu, straightforward, all dishes are priced at average 15euros.

 the interior, it's actually quite a new york ambiance, sitting here you're like in any of the decent new york bistro as the gentle jazz songs are playing as background music

 your choice: scallop tartare, his choice: mackerel sashimi; friend's choice: fish bouillabaisse

 your langustines and his beef burger

 the beef is cooked to perfect pink!!

you had a chocolate fondant as dessert and this was the real highlight of your dining here, absolutely melting center, smooth texture and the basil infuse sauce works so well with passion fruit ice cream and the santan.  such a exciting end ^^.
the portion is not too big, in fact just tapas or starter size but expect star grade culinary skill show-casing in your palate and friendly price tag.

oranje.fever

 when it comes to football, you're all in for the lowland... and these are the loom bands made by your (not so little anymore) nephew to you... as far as world cup is concern 'wij zijn voor oranje', a dutch saying for "we are for the orange"....

 the match was great but not as exciting as the previous match, still interesting to watch. during the interval you quickly whisked up a dutch uitsmijter as dinner. this is a common dutch lunch that one can easily find in any cafes... you don't have much appetite lately, so this will do for you

and the dutch won the match against australia.  this is the interview with the dutch football team captain shortly after the game is over.
you have high hope for the lowland team, let's hope they will grow stronger and unbeatable as they progress...