With no duties regarding hockey today I decided to go spend some time soaking in the environment that I am going to be surrounded in the next five days. The apartment I rented is a very small studio and I couldn't just hang out there all day. There were a few things on my "to do" list that I wanted to make sure I completed: 1.) have dinner somewhere unique and 2.) go grocery shopping. Both were tasks that I thought would be easy, but I found myself intimidated by the Finnish language on the menus that I glanced at on restaurant doors. Also, there isn't Meijer, Kroger, Whole Food where I am staying so I shopped at a corner market which was pretty cool until I was informed I have to weigh my produce and print the sticker from the scale in order to buy it. So there I was with about seven native Finnish citizens waiting in line while the cashier went and weighed the produce for me....I hurried out of there after that.
On my hunt for a good restaurant -I ended up going to a sushi buffet, please no judgements I love the stuff- there were a tremendous amount of people out and about just doing everything you can think of whether it was riding bikes, playing musical instruments, having coffee or beer on patios along with much more that I saw. What I found interesting was I stumbled upon a dirt field with soccer nets set up on it, along with a station to the side with a big banner that I believe had something along the lines of "football training" or something similar. This was a location where people of this city actually go to play soccer, which I find odd because of the type of playing field it is. I thought more about this as I walked and recalled on an instance where Phil Osaer discussed how athletic Finland's hockey culture is; this dirt field really resembled that because it doesn't matter where they are playing...they play for the love of competition and athleticism. Maybe that is farfetched but Finland's goaltending success reaches beyond what they do in the rink. Just think about that.
Here are a few pictures that I hope you all enjoy. Just a small glimpse into what I discovered during my few hours of walking. There will be more as the week progresses. Also, I can't wait to get some hockey photos on here because that is truly what I am here for!
On my hunt for a good restaurant -I ended up going to a sushi buffet, please no judgements I love the stuff- there were a tremendous amount of people out and about just doing everything you can think of whether it was riding bikes, playing musical instruments, having coffee or beer on patios along with much more that I saw. What I found interesting was I stumbled upon a dirt field with soccer nets set up on it, along with a station to the side with a big banner that I believe had something along the lines of "football training" or something similar. This was a location where people of this city actually go to play soccer, which I find odd because of the type of playing field it is. I thought more about this as I walked and recalled on an instance where Phil Osaer discussed how athletic Finland's hockey culture is; this dirt field really resembled that because it doesn't matter where they are playing...they play for the love of competition and athleticism. Maybe that is farfetched but Finland's goaltending success reaches beyond what they do in the rink. Just think about that.
Here are a few pictures that I hope you all enjoy. Just a small glimpse into what I discovered during my few hours of walking. There will be more as the week progresses. Also, I can't wait to get some hockey photos on here because that is truly what I am here for!