The days are getting longer in leaps again. It can be unbelievably bright with the reflecting snow doubling up the sunshine. I just had to jump out for a quick walk with the camera when I saw the frosty trees through the window.
It wasn’t quite as sunny in Nuuksio on this Friday, but that didn’t stop us from having a nice walk in the woods and across the ponds. Some of the pictures turned out quite fine.
Thankfully it is too late now for this spring, but I might actually consider getting skis for next winter. Unless I get my head checked and snap out of it… I definitely mean just cross-country skiing, I’m not completely out of my mind yet. :-)
In addition to the new pictures, there’s also an RSS feed for the photo album. I don’t always write in the blog when I add pictures, but the feed will automatically pick them up.
I appreciate your thoughts/photography. As a 2nd generation American Finn who deeply longs to go to Finland – these pictures are a pleasant waiting spot in the interim.
e hepola — 20.4.06 @ 0:46
say, what’s wrong with downhill skis? :) (althought i admit that after 12 years of skiing i switched to snowboard 8 winters ago and since then i have never felt the urge to stand on them again..)
salo — 20.4.06 @ 3:23
Hi E! Thanks for the kind comment! I hope you’ll get to make a trip here (to Finland) one of these days. The snow is gone by now and it is a bit dull looking outside, but soon it should start to get green (and warm).
Salo — Downhill skiing has always looked way too scary. Going cross-country you (feel like you) are in control as opposed to on the mercy of gravity… :-) At least as a spectator sport snowboarding is much more interesting, but I think downhill skiing for me is more likely than getting strapped on a snowboard. Maybe if I was actually doing some sports… :-)
Kimmo Suominen — 20.4.06 @ 17:53
i don’t know how popular is downhill skiing in finland, but where i live (central europe, .sk and .cz in particular) it’s considered to be a part of basic physical education (along with e.g., learning swimming) and as a kid you get at least two mandatory skiing courses in 7th grade (elementary school) and 1st grade (high school) so pretty much everyone can ski to some extent over here.
it’s also popular social activity to go skiing with family/friends especially during the christmas and new year holidays.
i admit that probably part of the reason i am not attracted to downhill skiing (and the speed which i liked as a kid the most about it) these days is that when you grow older your self-preserving sense tends to get stronger ;)
and as for cross-country skiing, i’ve never tried that myself but i somehow doubt you (feel like you) are really in control when the terrain is not quite as flat as you’d like it to be ;)
salo — 21.4.06 @ 14:45
Well, that’s exactly the problem: first you’d have to go and find a hill to ski down on… :) We have nothing like the Alps anywhere in the country. You can travel up to Lapland for some proper downhill skiing, but that’s not anything you’d do at school.
Whereas flat land is available readily, especially around where I grew up. The sad part is that somehow school physical education is very good at killing your desire to ever ski again. (And if school didn’t do it, I hear military service will.)
My brother got into downhill skiing when he lived in Grenoble, and from what I gather it is quite a social occasion as you say. It might be fun if I lived somewhere closer to a place that I could go and practise. But I might still be better off starting with cross-country for now. :)
Kimmo Suominen — 25.4.06 @ 15:32