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Tags: Travel Snapshot / Finland Travel / Trash Cans / Garbage / Talking Trash Cans / → All Tags

Finland's Talking Trash Bins Are Not Only Smart, But They Look Good Too

Earlier this week we told you about Finland's new Talking Trash Bins found in Helsinki, and thanks to a helpful PR rep for Finland Tourism we actually have a shot of the trash bins to show you.

The trash bins are far more intelligent that we are, having mastered six language (ok, select phrases in different languages) and the ability to play music (ok, it's a recording of music from a bunch of high school students). Only eight of these artificial intelligence trash bins can be found in Helsinki this summer so look carefully before you toss your trash.

Have you seen the talking trash bins in person? Send us a picture!

Related Stories:
· Now Helsinki's Trash Cans Talk To You In English, Too [Jaunted]

Tags: Finland Travel / Trash Cans / Garbage / Talking Trash Cans / → All Tags

Now Helsinki's Trash Cans Talk To You In English, Too

Trash cans that talk are an unusual kind of tourist attraction, but just the kind of thing we expect to find in somewhat eccentric Finland. When we first heard about four trash cans in Helsinki which chat away in Finnish, we craved talking trash cans that we could understand, and now the Helsinki Public Works Department has done exactly what we wished for.

This summer, eight trash cans around Helsinki will speak to you in six languages, including English, and some will even play music created by a bunch of high school students. Apparently they say things like this:

One of the sure signs of summer in Finland is that the trash bins start talking.

The idea is that tourists and locals alike will be more interested in disposing of their garbage in the correct way, but we're starting to wonder if conversing with a bin might actually be a sign of madness instead.

Related Stories:
· Talking Trash [Official Site]
· Finns Reward You For Simple Non-Littering [Jaunted]
· Helsinki Travel Guide [Jaunted]

Tags: Literary Travel / Finland Travel / Kalevala / → All Tags

How To Celebrate Finland's National Book

Who can forget the first time he read the Kalevala? The epic poem of Finland, comparable to its Odyssey or King Arthur legends but dating just back to the 19th century, inspired J.R.R. Tolkien and it could move you this summer to seek out some uniquely Finnish attractions.

The 160-year-old Kalevala was compiled from rapidly disappearing folk poetry in order to give Finns a sense of national identity while they were still under Russia's thumb. Quite honestly, we haven't gotten around to reading it yet (Infinite Jest is really long!) but we gather it's about a singer named Wäinämöinen who completes feats of strength and who inspired Tolkien's wizards in The Lord of the Rings and the plot of The Silmarillion.

Celebrate this epic anniversary at Kalevala Experience Park in Kuhmo, where you can stay in log cabins and enjoy a series of free concerts for the summer of local favorites. In Helsinki, catch a special exhibit of Kalevala-inspired works at the Ateneum Art Museum, then stay at the Klaus K hotel which takes the novel's themes of the mystical, passion, desire, and envy as design motifs (and which has a family package in which the second room in a reservation is 50 percent off). As they say, when in Helsinki...

Related Stories:
· A Fresh Idea for Your Urban Getaway: Helsinki's Klaus K [HC]
· Reading One Heck of a Huge Book For One "Infinite" Summer [Jaunted]
· Could Conan O'Brien Really Be Wrong? [Jaunted]

[Photo of a Wäinämöinen statue in Helsinki: hugovk]

Tags: Finland Travel / Food Travel / Summer Travel / Food Festivals / → All Tags

Finland's Throwing A Crayfish Party, And Everybody's Invited

Music festivals, swamp soccer and wife-carrying—there's already so much to do in Finland over summer, and the country continues to attract us in very clever ways, this time going straight for our stomachs.

August and September are crayfish season in Finland, and we've just realized we don't want to miss out on a Finnish-style crayfish party. These shindigs feature, of course, crayfish galore, and lip smacking and finger licking as you try to get the most meat out of your crayfish. But thats not all: "Essential ingredients of a successful crayfish party are a merry mood and schnapps songs." Aside from overdosing on crayfish, you can get drunk with the Finns and sing songs about beautiful women and beautiful crustaceans.

Wikipedia warns us there is now a limited supply of crays left in Finland and many are imported from the US or China, so perhaps taking a night-time crayfish-catching tour is a good strategy—they're easy to book during the summer season. You might however need to take your own schnapps with you.

Related Stories:
· Finland Makes Most of Summer Sunshine With a Slew of Music Festivals [Jaunted]
· Wanna Play Swamp Soccer? Head to Finland This Summer [Jaunted]

[Photo: villoks]

Tags: Music Travel / Finland Travel / → All Tags

Finland Makes Most Of Summer Sunshine With a Slew Of Music Festivals

If you've got it, flaunt it – that's what Finland seems to think about its summer midnight sun. Finland's taking the chance again this summer to hold a practically endless list of music festivals that can go late into the night without needing any lighting; how smart of them.

The funkiest of the fests is the Flow Festival, a contemporary music festival that fits as a companion to the multi-arts Helsinki Festival. Flow will ... well, flow from August 14 to 16, and feature Kraftwerk, Lily Allen, Grace Jones and dozens of other bands from every music genre you can name. Tickets for the full three days are €94 ($130).

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Tags: Finland Travel / Contests / Wife-Carrying / Swamp Soccer / Phone-Throwing Contests / → All Tags

Wanna Play Swamp Soccer? Head to Finland This Summer

A country as cold and far away as Finland needs to have a few tricks up its sleeves to attract tourists, and Finland is the best magician of them all. We've already become addicted to following their annual wife carrying contests and last year we added the sauna-sitting titles to our list of reasons to return to Finland.

But it turns out there are literally dozens more weird reasons to fly up to Santa-land. The Mobile Phone Throwing contest (this year on August 22) appeals to us, where we can watch hundreds of competitors heft their (probably Nokia) cell phones through the air. The Swamp Football championships take place for the twelfth time on July 17-18 and these literally involve playing soccer in very, very muddy ground. And we've long been keen on catching the Air Guitar Championships in Oulu, northern Finland – strumming away this year on August 19-21.

And if, like us, you still hold the strongest affection for wife-carrying – remember, you're allowed to carry somebody else's wife – the dates to remember are July 3 and 4, 2009. Alternatively, if you're prepared to following the Sauna contest rules of "sitting in the sauna with buttocks and thighs on the seat", then August 7-8 are the dates to note.

Related Stories:
· Visit Finland [Official Site]
· Finnish Tourist Board Will Use Wife-Carrying to Lure You In [Jaunted]
· Winners Are Not Only in Beijing: Congrats to Sauna Sitters [Jaunted]

[Photo: husin.sani]

Tags: Airport WiFi / Airport-WiFi-Map / HEL / → All Tags

There's Something About Finland

The last time we were in Helsinki, we honestly believed it was enchanted. Stumbling off a flight from New York, we entered a well-scrubbed terminal with bright yellow trays at a clean cafe and cheery flight attendants zipping from one end of the terminal to another on scooters.

Had we tried to boot up while we were savoring our coffee and plotting to become Finnair frequent flyers, we would have found another delight: As of November 2008, wireless Internet is free in the terminals at Helsinki-Vantaa Airport thanks to Finava, the national civil aviation administration. Now your fingers can fly with as little resistance as you do!

Had a fantastic experience in an airport recently? Tell us about it.

Related Stories:
· Free WiFi at the airport in Helsinki - Finally [Life2Go.net]
· Live Your Prisonbreak Fantasy in Finland [Jaunted]
· Airport WiFi Map [Jaunted]

Tags: Christmas Alternatives / Santa Claus / → All Tags

Stop By Santa's House

This time of year most people are trying to flee the cold weather instead of embrace it. But British tour operators are pushing trips to the region of Sápmi--classically but incorrectly known as Lapland--as a way to see Santa before he embarks on his RTW trip.

Being from the uncouth continent, we have no idea whether a trip to see Santa's house that doesn't involve a megamall and Polaroids is traditional, but we can't help but be intrigued by offers of Husky safaris and Arctic Circle crossings. Santa Park falls firmly on the tourist-trap side, but Polarfleece addicts might enjoy a toboggan-riding day trip that caters to their inner child. (And we mean inner because seriously, bundle up!)

Related Stories:
· Are Lapland Ski Resorts Finnished? [Jaunted]
· Foxy Lights in Finland [Jaunted]

[Photo of a reindeer in Rovaniemi, Finland: infeite]

Tags: Future Travel / Finnair / Airlines / Airplanes / → All Tags

Finnair Thinks 85 Years Ahead, We Wonder Why

All this year Finnair has been celebrating its 85th birthday in style, looking to the past with its 50s-retro paint job and now to the future with its Departure 2093 website.

The year 2093 is--in case you were wondering, because it wasn’t instantly obvious to us--another 85 years away, so Finnair thought it'd be fun to speculate about flying in the future. They asked experts for their opinion and drew funky pictures and even started a discussion forum for debate--it's early days, but after a week there are just four messages on it.

Given that, frankly speaking, we're not really anticipating being alive in 2093, Finnair's idea is kind of fun, but a bit on the irrelevant side. Their funky flying things of the future look great, though.

Related Stories:
· Departure 2093 [Official Site]
· Finnair Goes Funky 50s Retro [Jaunted]
· Finnair Coverage [Jaunted]

[Illustration: Departure 2093]

Tags: Finland Travel / Talking Trash Cans / Trash Cans / Garbage / → All Tags

Finns Reward You For Simple Non-Littering

Yes, Finland is a country that can produce nightmare-inducing rock bands like Eurovision 06 winners Lordi. But they can turn around and be sickeningly polite and friendly, too. The latest ain't-that-nice story out of Finnish capital Helsinki is the installation of talking trash cans.

From today, four very special garbage cans will be placed around the city for the enjoyment of locals and tourists alike. When you place a piece of rubbish in one of them, it will play a recorded "thank you" message from famous locals. For example, the mayor says (in Finnish, of course):

It is great that you care about the city. Cool, isn't it.

Which, if we could just understand Finnish, would certainly entice us to keep feeding it with more rubbish.

Related Stories:
· Helsinki Rubbish Bins to Thank Users for Not Littering [AFP]
· The Nightmares of European Children Have Just Begun [Jaunted]
· Helsinki Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Matti Mattila]

Tags: Sports / Finland Travel / Wife Carrying / Contests / → All Tags

Winners Are Not Only in Beijing: Congrats to Sauna Sitters

Finland's wife-carrying contests are now famed the world over, but what kind of championship is there for single people? Naturally the Finns have something for everyone, so we're keen on the Sauna World Championships which have just wound up for 2008.

Held every year in Heinola, southern Finland, the Sauna Championships are open to all, and the winner is the person who can stay for longest inside a steamy room. Sounds easy, right? Plus we've heard that hanging out at the sauna is a great way to pick up a girl or a guy.

But this kind of sauna-sitting might not be so relaxing. This year's male winner, Bjarne Hermansson, sat in a 230 degree box for 18 minutes and 15 seconds, admitting that there was "slightly more pain than pleasure." The female winner only lasted for five minutes and 21 seconds, so we figure, female Jaunted readers, start practicing now and by the 2009 championships we could have our own sauna-sitting winner.

Related Stories:
· Sauna World Championships [Official Site]
· Finns Reign in Sauna World Championships [AFP, via Google]
· Finland Travel coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: saunaheinola.com]

Tags: Finnair / Airlines / Airplanes / → All Tags

Finnair Goes Funky 50s Retro

Finland's national airline Finnair, has got something to celebrate: 85 years in the air. That's longer than many airlines, and the carrier's come up with a neat way of celebrating.

Finnair's going retro. Not all the way back--and we're grateful for that--but back to the strangely cool 1950s. They're painting up one of their A319 aircraft to look just like an Aero Convair plane that Finnair (then Aero) flew in the 50s. Add to that crew dressing up in fifties clothing and passengers might come close to thinking they're time traveling.

We're wondering if reverting to 1950s prices would be beneficial or not. Then again, perhaps the best thing about Finnair back then was that it didn't need the fake pandas to sell seats.

Related Stories:
· Finnair Goes Retro [Boarding.no]
· Finnair's Creepy Panda [Jaunted]

[Photo: Finnair]