Made in Kilimanjaro: best of both worlds

In high school I used to make fun of Finland with my best friend who’s also Finnish. We’d diss the winters and the pathetically short summers, the lack of small talk or how people avoid eye contact. But when the Swedish boy in our class came over to boast about how they beat Finland in ice hockey, we had mad love for the team and were deeply insulted that anyone would disrespect us Finns. Only we were allowed to criticise Finland and we did that a lot, but it was funny to see how much it hurt our pride if anyone else dared to do the same.

I’ve noticed I love to tell about Tanzania and other places I’ve lived in when I live in Finland. And when I live abroad I enjoy telling people about the exotic things we do in Finland & make people laugh when I bring out the sock I’m knitting from my bag (“That’s for grannies!” they say.)

The point is: I wish I could have the "best of both worlds" because they are both so special. I've lived in the extremes in terms of wealth, weather and culture. Of course the grass is always greener on the other side, so I am always missing things wherever I am. Below are pictures of some of my favourite things, from both worlds!

Yummy food & fruits!