We\u2019d met them in a national park, one of many here in Finland. The meeting-part wasn\u2019t hard, that\u2019s just what happens when you camp next to each other. You walk around to find a place to pitch your tent\u2014or in this case, hang your hammock\u2014and that\u2019s when you meet. You exchange kind greetings and some pleasantries and all of a sudden your knee deep in a conversation full of how\u2019s and why\u2019s: How\u2019d you get here? Why this place? How has traveling been so far? That happens to everyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"Wild](\"https:\/\/ellisand.me\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Camp_Jyva\u0308skila\u0308_Hammock_Finland_backpack-1024x683.jpg\")
Yet, apparently, somewhere along the way we give a strong vibe that we need a place to sleep. It wasn\u2019t as direct as it was the last time. This time around it happened after a good night’s sleep, and so we couldn’t account it to these people being too quick on their feet. They had time to think.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A spoonful of culture<\/em>\nWe were in need of some help, and this new family saved our behinds. Then: \u201cWe\u2019ve got a spare room, you can stay there if you want.\u201d Bam. All of a sudden we are this couple who just get invited into the homes of strangers. And it’s not like we’re complaining, we\u2019re just amazed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So we jumped at the opportunity (because how often does this happen, ordinarily?) packed our stuff, left the national park, and traveled a short way back from where we came, to Jyv\u00e4skul\u00e4. It was there that we could stay in the beautiful house of this family; a mom, a dad, and their three daughters. The daughters were adorable, mom a sports teacher and dad a doctor. We arrived at around three o\u2019 clock, and it didn’t take long before they brought us back out onto the streets of this town. This family never stays inside long. Not even when it’s freezing outside. And if you’re wondering, the lakes here freeze over until about April. It’s that kind of freezing. Still, they go out every day. And today we were going to explore this city and get a taste of their culture. I say ‘their’ on purpose because it seems this family adds their own unique twist to traditional Finnish culture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n First off, we were going to try traditional cinnamon buns which we bought in a cute little shop, owned and run by local students as part of their bachelor degree in business. And seeing they have a lot of business students here they also have these kinds of small boutiques all over. This shop was in a little park where their two youngest daughters could run around playing, and we could sit down, and relax. As we sat down on the table appeared, not only four cinnamon buns but also a carton full of milk. We asked if that was normal: \u201cFor us it is, but it\u2019s not Finnish. That\u2019s why the guy behind the register asked us what we paid the last time. We\u2019re the only ones who buy whole packages of milk here.\u201d They laughed as father filled the cups they brought along for the occasion, and we dug in. The rolls were somewhat more doughy than we were used to, but they were good, tasty. And the milk indeed gave it just that little bit extra.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet, the buns were only a precursor to the highlight of the evening. After taking us for a nice hike (8 km on flip flops, let\u2019s go!) we got to share in this families’ creme de la creme of eating experiences, the icing on their weekly cake, the food that this family would bring to a deserted island, even if it were the only thing they could take; we were getting some porridge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe love porridge!\u201d Mom laughs, \u201cI could eat it every day.\u201d And they\u2019re serious. We didn\u2019t think they were, that it must\u2019ve been a mistranslation or that they were fooling us (just like they told us our car got ticketed) but no, there it was on the kitchen top: a hot pan full of porridge. \u201cBut that\u2019s not all, we make it special,\u201d and so next to the pan there where bowls of banana, strawberry (the Finnish kind are really sweet) and berries, some muesli, a sort of vanilla sauce, cardamom and most important: peanut butter. The family started loading up these big bowls full of what can be described as nothing else than little porridge parties, each one of them. We sat down at the table, baffled, but excited\u2026about porridge! And we ate, and we ate, and we enjoyed it, and we laughed at the fact that we did, because who would\u2019ve thought. It was porridge! We decided then and there: these were \u2018the porridge people.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"City](\"https:\/\/ellisand.me\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Porridge_People_Finland_blog_Ellis__Me-1024x683.jpg\")
![\"Porridge](\"https:\/\/ellisand.me\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Porridge_People_Finland_city_tour2-1024x683.jpg\")
![\"Playing](\"https:\/\/ellisand.me\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Porridge_people_love_porridge_game-1024x683.jpg\")
![\"Black](\"https:\/\/ellisand.me\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Selfie_ellis_and_me_finland-1024x683.jpg\")
![\"Finland](\"https:\/\/ellisand.me\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Finland_Jyva\u0308skila\u0308_sunrise_nature_landscape_photography-1024x683.jpg\")