Kokkola City Run and Goodbyes!

Here we have it - one week left in Kalajoki! Ahren and I decided that it was only natural that we should try to do as much as possible before leaving. This led us to: the Kokkola City Run. We ran the 6k along with a bunch of students. Others completed the 10k and one very brave student did the half marathon! (Thanks for organising it all, Jouko!)

My final lessons for the past week have focused upon the royal family since Prince Harry got married the other weekend. The students have learned about the family's (rather scandalous) history and even made some hats fit for fancy guests. (Hats are a big thing at royal weddings and they're often quite...strange.)

We have been basking in some BEAUTIFUL sunshine recently. Luckily, my younger brother (Liam) has also been here to experience it! In fact, he joined myself and the IS1 classes to enjoy a good chat and ice cream in the great outdoors.

The goodbyes have already started and I have to share this awesome parting picture with you all (if only it were true)...

There was one final IS2 class meeting where the students completely surprised me with a lighthouse figure made with sand from the Kalajoki beach. I have the habit of referring to this group as my "babies" because we've been together since day one! It has been such a privilege to watch them achieve so much over the past couple of years. Congratulations, International Studies 2 Class of 2018!

Besides the school, I've been sure to show Liam around. This has included trying out some golf frisbee. Liam was okay. I definitely was not (163 OVER PAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) but, oh, well. We all have to start somewhere...right? We also managed to convince Tanja to try out the zipline and obstacle course in the trees with us. Our legs were like jelly but it was lots of fun.

I'm sure that there will be another blog post before I leave but for now - goodbye and have a lovely week!

Helsinki

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Erasmus+ in the Czech Republic!

Last week, I was in a town called Rakovník in the Czech Republic with five fantastic International Studies pupils and the ever-amazing Jouko! We were visiting as part of the EU Energy project (a partnership with schools in the Czech Republic, Austria, Ireland, and Germany). Our project is all about examining different types of energy, their pros and cons, and their futures in our world. This time, our focus was upon nuclear energy.

Our journey began on Sunday with a flight from Oulu. Luckily, Jouko was on hand with his juggling skills to keep us entertained!

Monday was the day of icebreakers. My favourite ice breaker was when each table of people was given a large sheet of paper and told to decorate it using the pens and face paint. There was one golden rule though: you could not use your hands to draw things! Naturally, I shoved my nose into the paint and drew a cat with that. Other people were using their wrists and inner arms - much less messy!

We also had a visit to the town hall to see the mayor and enjoyed our community food evening. Our project is based a lot around the use of Snapchat, so we also had lots of fun watching the SnapStories that each country had made about their culture.

On Tuesday the students presented their community survey results regarding nuclear energy. They read with such poise and confidence!

Now, here is things get really interesting. Wednesday saw us take a three-hour bus ride to Temelín in order to check out the nuclear power plant there. We got to see the operating room as well as all of the technology that contributes towards how the plant functions.

On Thursday, we took a break from the project work to visit Prague. Experiencing another country's culture and capital city is always such an awesome experience. We all agreed that we had heard about how beautiful Prague is but it really did take our breath away. We were given a guided tour of the castle grounds, soaked in sights of the cathedral, crossed the Charles Bridge and enjoyed all of the stunning architecture.

Our final full day in Rakovník came along all too quickly. The students spent the majority of the day writing up reports about the nuclear power plant visit, compiling SnapStories and making an energy display for the school.

That night, the Czechs held a special leaving ceremony. We received our participation certificates and were treated to musical performances from two pretty incredible bands! (The food on offer was also delicious.)

The next day, it was time to fly back home to Kalajoki. Overall it was a brilliant week of experiencing new things, learning more about nuclear energy and creating deep friendships in a deceptively short space of time. Many thanks to our hosts!

Ireland 2018: The Year of the Harmonica!

April was the month of travelling, so be prepared for a couple of blog posts! First up, we had our long-awaited Ireland trip. This is something the second-year International Studies group does annually and it never fails to entertain. We tasted fish and chips, visited wonderful museums and enjoyed scrumptious gelato in the evenings.

Firstly, let's talk about the fish and chips. They can really divide opinions. I personally judge how good fish and chips are by how greasy they seem to be. The greasier the better! We bought our's from Lee Burdock's which I would definitely recommend.

There are so many other highlights from the trip. For example, we wandered around the Chester Beatty Library, home to just 1% of the American collector's scrolls, ornaments and books from around the world. This doesn't sound like a lot but trust me when I say that it is! It's a treasure trove of intriguing finds. We really appreciated this scroll which is from Japan and depicts the zodiac animals engaging in a poetry competition!

Here is the man himself...

You also can't visit Dublin without taking a peek inside Trinity Library. It always reminds me of something out of Beauty and the Beast - it's hard not to marvel at the sight of tall, skinny ladders rested against shelves laden with hundreds of old books.

One morning, some us even opened up the Disney store on Grafton Street! Top tip: if you tell the workers your name the day before and visit before 9am when they open, you can unlock the entrance! Ooooh! While we were waiting for the grand moment, we decided to sing "Hakuna Matata" in Finnish (they'd never heard such a thing before).

Other cool parts of the trip included checking out the cathedral...

...eating delicious cakes and scones (very fancy)...

...going to the cinema one evening to watch Ready, Player One...

...the Natural History Museum...

...gazing over St Stephen's Shopping Centre...

...and this dinosaur exhibition!

Ultimately, we had such a fun time in Dublin filled with culture, tin whistles and harmonicas (yeah, there was an International Studies band). It was a truly amazing way to end two years of our International Studies classes together. That, and receiving a Rieska Leader award for our escape room project! I am so thankful to have been able to spend my time with these hilarious, thoughtful and talented students :D