Finland

The information that can be useful for your travel.

Cities Finland  
Country information country code: FI
continent: Europe
capital: Helsinki
languages: Finnish, Swedish

EU membership: yes
NATO membership: no

GSM: 900/1800/3G
GPS: 64 00 N, 26 00 E
electricity: 230V/50Hz

currency:
European Union Euro: EUR
1EUR = 1.2656 USD


phone code: +358-9

Travel advices and warnings Finland
Tourism


 
Culture The culture of Finland combines indigenous heritage, as represented for example by the country's Uralic national language Finnish, and the sauna, with common Nordic and European culture. Because of its history and geographic location Finland has been influenced by the adjacent areas' various Finnic, Baltic and Germanic peoples as well as the former dominant powers Sweden and Russia. Finnish culture may be seen to build upon the relatively ascetic environmental realities, traditional livelihoods and a heritage of egalitarianism, (see e. g. : Everyman's right and universal suffrage) and the traditionally widespread ideal of self-sufficiency (see, e. g. : Summer cottage).
There are still cultural differences between Finland's regions, especially minor differences in accents and vocabulary. Minorities, some of which enjoy a status recognised by the state, such as the Sami, Swedish-speaking Finns, Romani, Jews, and Tatar, maintain their own cultural characteristics. Many Finns are emotionally connected to the countryside and nature, as large scale urbanisation is a relatively recent phenomenon.
Climate The climate of Finland is characterised by extremely cold winters and contrasting warm summers. In this northern land summertime brings the midnight sun and average temperatures of around 68ºF (20ºC). In the southern part of the country temperatures as high as 86ºF (30ºC) have been recorded in the summer months. Winter weather in Finland, though, is not so kind. During winter days remain dark for weeks at a time and temperatures drop as low as -4ºF (-20ºC) in some areas.
Cuisine Finnish cuisine is notable for generally combining traditional country fare and haute cuisine with contemporary continental style cooking. Fish and meat play a prominent role in traditional Finnish dishes from the western part of the country, while the dishes from the eastern part have traditionally included various vegetables and mushrooms. Refugees from Karelia contributed to foods in eastern Finland. [citation needed]
Finnish foods often use wholemeal products (rye, barley, oats) and berries (such as blueberries, lingonberries, cloudberries, and sea buckthorn). Milk and its derivatives like buttermilk are commonly used as food, drink or in various recipes. Various turnips were common in traditional cooking, but were substituted by the potato after its introduction in the 18th century.
Language Finnish ( suomi (help·info), or suomen kieli) is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland (92% as of 2006[3]) and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a Finnish dialect, are spoken. The Kven language, a Finnish dialect, is spoken in Northern Norway.
Shopping Shopping in Helsinki
Helsinki offers the best and widest range of shopping opportunities in Finland, including top fashion, large department stores, small boutiques, inexpensive flea markets, and everything in between. The shops in the city centre are all located within easy walking distance of each other. The Design District in Punavuori is a must for visitors interested in fashion, design and decorating.
Opening hours

Department stores and shopping centres are open weekdays from 9am to 9pm and Saturdays 9am to 6pm. Smaller shops are usually open weekdays from 10am to 6pm and Saturdays 9am to 2pm. From May to August and in the weeks leading up to Christmas shops are also allowed to be open Sundays from 12noon to 9pm.
Costs Shopping in Helsinki
Helsinki offers the best and widest range of shopping opportunities in Finland, including top fashion, large department stores, small boutiques, inexpensive flea markets, and everything in between. The shops in the city centre are all located within easy walking distance of each other. The Design District in Punavuori is a must for visitors interested in fashion, design and decorating.
Opening hours
Department stores and shopping centres are open weekdays from 9am to 9pm and Saturdays 9am to 6pm. Smaller shops are usually open weekdays from 10am to 6pm and Saturdays 9am to 2pm. From May to August and in the weeks leading up to Christmas shops are also allowed to be open Sundays from 12noon to 9pm.

Helsinki, Finland

Thursday 28, March

From wikipedia about Finland

Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, "Republic of Finland", or "Suomen tasavalta" in Finnish, "Republiken Finland" in Swedish, and "Suoma dásseváldi", is the long protocol name, which is however not defined by law. Legislation only recognizes the short name. is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.

Around 5. 4 million people reside in Finland, with the majority concentrated in the southern region. It is the eighth largest country in Europe in terms of area and the most sparsely populated country in the European Union. Finland is a parliamentary republic with a central government based in Helsinki and local governments in 336 municipalities. A total of about one million residents live in the Greater Helsinki area (which includes Helsinki, Espoo, Kauniainen and Vantaa), and a third of the country's GDP is produced there. Other larger cities include Tampere, Turku, Oulu, Jyväskylä, Lahti and Kuopio.

Finland was historically a part of Sweden, and from 1809–1917 was an autonomous Grand Duchy within the Russian Empire. The Finnish Declaration of Independence from Russia in 1917 was followed by a civil war in which a communist revolution was defeated with German support. In 1939 Finland suffered an attempted invasion by Stalin, and fought World War II as essentially three separate conflicts: the Winter War (1939–1940), the Continuation War (1941–1944), and the Lapland War (1944–1945). Finland joined the United Nations in 1955, the OECD in 1969, the European Union in 1995, and the eurozone since its inception in 1999.

Finland was a relative latecomer to industrialisation, remaining a largely agrarian country until the 1950s. Thereafter, economic development was rapid. Finland built an extensive welfare state and balanced between the East and the West in global economics and politics. With the best educational system in Europe, Finland has recently ranked as one of the world's most peaceful, competitive and livable countries.
Description above from the Wikipedia, licensed under CC-BY-SA full list of contributors here.
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Finland, Helsinki