Häpeä, Espoo!

Olen tässä yrittänyt sulatella Espoon Kaupungin julkistamaa suunnitelmaa koulutoimen säästöistä, mutta kun ei niin ei. Pakko kommentoida. Olen evakossa oloja poislukien aina ollut Espoolainen, joten minua nolottaa moiset suunnitelmat.
http://www.hs.fi/kaupunki/artikkeli/Espoo+kaavailee+enn%C3%A4tyksellisi%C3%A4+s%C3%A4%C3%A4st%C3%B6j%C3%A4+perusopetuksesta/1135249570140

Tällähetkellä toisen lapsemme 4. luokalla on jo nyt 29 oppilasta. Kun ottaa huomioon että lähes jokaiselle luokalle osuu vilkkaampia lapsia jotka vaativat keskimääräistä enemmän huomiota, on helppo laskea miten paljon aikaa jää henkilökohtaiseen opastamiseen.

Onneksi toisen lapsemme 7. luokan ryhmä on huomattavasti pienempi, ainoastaan 16. Jos tuoreet säästösuunnitelmat toteutetaan, on moiset ryhmäkoot historiaa ja säätöt repii koulujen toimintaa joka suunnasta. En viitsi edes lähteä syvemmälle kouluruoan tasoon...

Yksi naurettavista kädenväännöistä ja epäkohdista kaupungin eri opetustehtävien välillä on päiväkotien ja koulujen välillä; kouluissa opettajat ovat aterioineet ilmaiseksi oppilaiden kanssa (opetustapahtumana), mutta päiväkodeissa ohjaajat maksavat ruokailusta, joka myös tapahtuu lasten seurassa.

Espoon koulujen opettajat ovat aloittaneet adressin, jonka halutessaan voi käydä allekirjoittamassa;
www.adressit.com/opetustoimen_leikkaukset_espoo

For English speaking readers, our home town is planning unacceptable savings for school work. Among others, it would mean that class group sizes would be increasing. At the moment our one kid has got a class of 16 kids and the other one 29! The link is to an address against the plans.

This Circus is great, but NOT for small kids

After trying to get ourselves to a Cirque du Soleil show for few years in Finland, Belgium and Spain, we finally succeeded yesterday. We had kept it a secret from the kids, just told them that they will not go to practice etc but we shall have a family night.

You can imagine how a nice plan can turn into negative, just like for kids or adults who can not leave Christmas presents alone. We got moaning and complaints that "I'm going nowhere if you won't tell us...".

The show was great! 

It has got the elements of traditional circus, but it comes without the fuss and extra glitter just to fill in a moment. Actually I could go and watch the show 2 or 3 times, since all the time is going on several side activities in addition to the main stunt. Most acts have many people fooling around the stage and even outside, and it is spiced up with a good music.

However, this is not the place to be for kids under 7~8 years. Sure you can take them, but you loose part of your enjoyment by explaining things to the young one who still doesn't get it. For them, I recommend the traditional ones, like Sirkus Finlandia up at these corners http://www.sirkusfinlandia.fi/or Bouglione if you are in Belgium http://www.bouglione.be/

Surely Cirque du Soleil is not the cheapest one, but I think it is worth it!

http://www.cirquedusoleil.com/en/shows/saltimbanco/default.aspx

Russia, a nice neighbor

I am shocked of the arrogance that is going on in today´s Russia. However, I am not that surprised about that.

Russian parlament Duuma has set a new law which allowes Russian army to take actions to "protect Russian citizens also outside Russian borders".

What could this mean in practice?

It gives a legal right to take similar actions as they did last year in Georgia. Already then it raised high interest in neighboring countries like in Baltics. And for reason, since one of three living in Baltic countries Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania are Russians... 

By the way, Finland has got the longest European Union border against Russia.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8194064.stm
http://www.iltasanomat.fi/uutiset/ulkomaat/uutinen.asp?id=1728804

Belgium bureaucracy rules

Last year we got a letter from Brussels bureaucrats to invite our son to school test since they assumed he was in home school.Apparently for them internationally recognized school that has been operating for over 50 is not enough...

Well, we informed the school and since we were not the only ones, the school took over and settled it with the authorities. Or so we thought.

Few days ago we got a letter stating that there has been different inturpitations of the law and now we are obliged to take our son to a test, again due to being at "home school". The funny thing is that the letter was sent to us after we had moved out of the country.

What can make Brussels city not to recognize an international school as an official learning method? Can it be language battle?

...this reminds me of Overijse commune, a Brussels suburb with loads of expats;

An American friend of ours got a letter that she should take Flemish (=Dutch, another official language in Belgium) language lessions or otherwise she would get a fine. Well, this lady damn sure didn´t take any lessions and didn´t get the fine either. Another example of Belgium rules that are there but at the end you don´t need to pay too much attention to them...

I love Finnish archipelago!

Finnish archipelago is beautiful, even if the summer doesn´t last long. Part of the beauty is the dark colors and the wind in the fall. Not to talk about the walks on ice when the sea is frozen in winter.However, if you have a chance to enjoy the sea you should do it. I have posted here some tasters from our day at sea short while ago.

It is great to be back in a country with 4 seasons. In Belgium we had only two seasons, summer and fall. Good thing vs Finland was that the summer is two months longer, but the downside is that the fall lasts from September to March/April. Luckily now and then you have days that it feels like spring.

Now that the summer is ending, I am happy to welcome winter. Sadly we have the boring season in between. Can´t wait the days when it´s raining sideways and feels like the sun is not coming up at all...

Brrrrrr, yesterday morning it was +8 C when I left to the office. Today it was quite warm in the sun but otherwise about 13 C... Well, the summer will come back next year!

A place to wash carpets. I have done it here and ended up in evening news and on many Japanese tourist pics and videos...

Headquarters of Nokia and Kone

Home of "Mrs Marimekko"

Our lunch place with THE view

Getting towards one of the Helsinki marinas

The Captain

The border control

The customs

The police

I love the sea!

Firemen are your friends - just like police!

We had a little incident today, but it was managed by positive approach by involved parties and support by ...firemen!

In the morning our daughter cycled about 6 km to a track & field stadium where she had her physical education in the morning. While she after the class was about to take off to the school, she broke the key in the lock.

Bike to the storage room, lady to borrow bus ticket from a friend (yes she had money but was too puzzled in the heat of the moment) and quickly to the scool. And of course call Mom in tears.

I decided to minimize the damage and headed to the stadium, got the bike from the storage and loaded it in our people mover. Options were to keep it in and take a saw tocut it open - or head to a local fire station to ask for help.

In I go and after explaining the story we both were wondering how could I prove that I have not stolen the bike. This fireman decides to call his supervisor and after hearing my story we head towards the bike in my car. The fireman takes out from their truck a 1 meter long power tool and asks
"was the key for the bike like this..."?

Few seconds later the lock is open, I get a new lock from my wife's bike and drop the bike to the school so the after school activities go smoothly.

What was needed to solve the incident smoothly?

Flexible moment at work to step out for a moment, mother with an extra bike lock, large people-mover and skilled, friendly firemen!

Kiitos Niittykummun palolaitokselle!!!

We have had a saying in Finland that "the police is your friend", "poliisi on ystävä". We even have a junk food chain that sells a burger called "Police Special" and hence they have a banderoll with the saying - next door from the fire station. I think I will set up on the fire station wall a banderoll "Firemen are you friends - and they can break anything"!

PS Lonkero on fantastinen janojuoma. Harmi että löysin Brysselistä kohtuuhintaisen ostopaikan vasta loppuhetkillä...