Helsinki Times

ISSUE 4 (84) • 22 – 28 JANUARY 2009 • €3 • WWW.HELSINKITIMES.FI DOMESTIC

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

BUSINESS

SPORT

LIFESTYLE

Is Finland going nuclear?

Protests against Israel

Shop, don’t stop

The ‘Iceman’ goes arctic

Finland’s prehistoric relics

page 4

page 7

page 12

page 13

page 14 L E H T I K U VA / R E U T E R S / J A S O N R E E D

Obama: “We are ready to lead once more” DAV I D J . C O R D HEL SINKI TIMES

BARACK OBAMA was sworn in as the 44th president of the United States in front of an estimated crowd of two million people. Millions more around the world watched the event live on television or on the internet.

The new president’s inaugural address was given in his soaring rhetorical style that has drawn comparisons to the likes of Cicero and Martin Luther King Jr. While most of the speech was aimed at Obama’s domestic audience, a portion was also directed at the rest of the world.

“So to all the other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend to each nation and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and we are ready to lead once more,” he said.

Much of what Obama said during his speech addressed Finnish concerns, such as America’s treatment of detainees, military involvements, the economy and the restoration of fractured international relationships.

Obama rejected that a choice must be made between safety and ideals, probably signalling that questionable activities like the Guantanamo Bay detentions would be ceased. He also announced that America would “responsibly leave Iraq to its people and forge a hardearned peace in Afghanistan.”

The new president promised to “roll back the spectre of a warming planet” and pledged to support clean technologies, industries and sustainable energies.

Obama reminded his audience that fascism and communism were combated with “sturdy alliances,” which probably heralds his intention of shoring up America’s shaky international friendships.

Delicacies from south to north R E S TA URANT

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RESTAURANT

Reduced waiting times for Finnish citizenship DAV I D J . C O R D HEL SINKI TIMES

SUO I LAPPI

Barack Obama delivered his historic inaugural address on Tuesday after being sworn in as president of the United States.

Original tastes from Lapland Annankatu 22, 00100 HELSINKI Tel. +358 (0)9 645 550 • www.lappires.com Open: Mon-Fri 12.00-22.30 • Sat 13.00-22.30

Delicacies from south to north

THE FINNISH Immigration Service expects that the processing speed for citizenship applications will be greatly accelerated in 2009. In the past the agency had been labouring under a huge number of applications for citizenship, but the resolution of all the old cases should ease the process for new applicants.

A number of measures have been taken in recent years to work through the backlog. In 2004 the agency had about 6,000 naturalisation applications under consideration while the average length of time for a decision was around two and a half years. At that time about 20 workers were transferred from the refugee and asylum section of the agency to the citizenship section to help with the enormous workload.

By 2008 the average waiting time for a decision was down sharply to about one and a half years.

“The average waiting time for those who received a decision last year was 556 days,” says Director Kristiina Simonen. “The queues were very long, with some cases awaiting processing since 2003.”

Now this backlog has been cleared and persons applying for Finnish citizenship will probably receive a decision sooner. The Finnish Immigration Service is now working on the remaining applications from the dating back to 2006, and they are confident these will be fully processed by the end of April. “The waiting time should shorten considerably,” she says.

The agency is expected to have to deal with an increase in asylum applications in the coming months.

This is unlikely to have any effect

on the waiting time for decisions on citizenship however, as the citizenship unit is run separately from the refugee and asylum section of the Finnish Immigration Service.

Simonen points out that the easiest cases went through the citizenship process much faster last year.

“In the clearest cases, where everything was in order and there was no investigative work, a decision was reached in 76 days on average,” she explains.

For those planning on applying for Finnish citizenship, Simonen recommends that they have all their required documentation in order. If necessary papers such as language certificates are missing, processing cannot be gone ahead with until all the mandatory requirements are met. If a person does not meet the request within a stipulated time period, his or her application risks being rejected.

The Finnish Immigration Service announced that last year over 3,300 citizenship applications were received and 4,249 decisions were handed down.

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VIEWPOINT

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

es embraced elsewhere. The institutions of the US and UK top the university ranking lists, and charge not only foreign students for tuition but domestic students too. of the debate about the introduction of fees in this country has so far revolved around the ethics of charging imposing fees on a group that comprise only 2.2 per cent of higher education students in Finland. Fears have also been expressed that Finland will be flooded by foreign applicants if it remains a lone provider of free education – a concern that does not tally with Finnish universities’ strict entrance systems. Nonetheless these arguments obscure bigger issues at stake in with the proposed reforms.

MUCH

Will Sillitoe is an English teacher from Norwich in the UK who has lived and worked in Finland since 2007.

He studies part-time at the University of Helsinki.

The Nordic principle of free education is worth maintaining A country’s education system is an indicator of its broader values. Will Sillitoe wonders whether longestablished Nordic ones are changing. student in Finland I’ve been impressed by its higher education system.

Without an us-and-them culture between academics and students, it has proved a relaxed experience. There’s the freedom to study almost any subject, offering life-changing possibilities – at no cost, since tuition is free! To a foreigner like me, Finland’s university system scores top marks and reflects well on the society.

AS A UNIVERSITY

BUT the Nordic principle of free education is hitting hard times and may be in for a big change.

Clearly, the debate here has been on-going for a long time.

It looks as though in 2010 both Finland and Sweden will experiment with fees for Non-EU students on some international master’s degree programs.

TO THE rest

of the world this suggests Sweden and Finland are ‘catching up’ with chang-

issue concerns funding levels. The success of the fee-charging AngloAmerican universities in the world ranking tables gives an enviable marketing edge.

That these institutions also charge the highest fees means richer students associate cost with quality.

THE MAIN

foreigners who may or may not remain in Finland after they graduate will clearly appeal to Finnish taxpayers. Under the reforms, universities will achieve independent legal status, enabling them to use set fee levels with discretion. Ap-

CHARGING

proximately 500 courses may be affected by this change, meaning they will no longer be funded through taxes.

THE GOVERNMENT has

promised that money saved and raised in this way will not be used to undercut state funding for EU students. But as statistics show, present numbers of non-EU students are very low – too low for them to represent a realistic source of funding. This is not an argument against fees but for more foreign students – and significant upwardly revised student quotas at that. It could mean greater competition for students from the most affluent parts of the world.

FINLAND’S record in technol-

ogy puts it in a strong position to compete for students from the thriving Chinese and Asian economies. However, students from poorer nations, except an exceptional few who gain scholarships, will in effect be priced out. of any corporate structure is a marketing strategy dedicated to recruiting foreign students and meeting financial targets.

University budgets and spending plans are based on these structures giving universities further incentive to seek the freedom to set their own fees. Money from fees enables the building of new facilities and improved services.

A KEY PART

HELSINKI TIMES

STAFF too will feel changes.

At present the state is the legal employer of all higher education staff. In the future they will face the same transitional problems of any industry when it enters a new market sector. New terms and pay conditions could well affect pensions and lengths of contracts. Leading scholars from the international academic community, who can attract students and research funding, will come in whilst less commercial study areas might be shelved. Outsourcing of contracts for non-skilled university workers is also very likely.

fees potentially creates other problems.

Finland’s universities currently enjoy parity of status and finance. However, the foreign student market can be so lucrative it guarantees the most popular universities the most funding. This can lead to a multi-tier system of education with some institutions excelling in the market place while others fall behind.

INTRODUCING

AND IT doesn’t stop there.

Fees can compromise the quality of education by creating clear conflicts of interest. If department budgets become reliant on foreign students as a main source of revenue, a disproportionate value becomes attached to ensuring they are retained. Many UK academics feel pressured to award pass

grades to failing foreign students for fear of creating a ‘dissatisfied customer’. Also, some foreign students think that if they are paying for their degree then they have a right to, regardless of their standard of work.

ALONG with other Nordic countries Finland represents a beacon to many nations who can only look with envy at the high level of education young people receive here.

Even though UK and US universities occupy the highest positions in the world tables, their wider populations have appallingly high levels of illiteracy and innumeracy. An Ivy League education for the few doesn’t make up for this – and neither should world ranking tables be allowed toundermine a Finnish system that offers an excellent education for the many.

here has definitely been a positive experience for me and although I have not been in Finland long I would hate to see the country follow some of the trends I have witnessed in the UK. Hopefully, in the short and medium term, it won’t – but no-one can predict what will happen in the longer term. At present Finland is a country that firmly believes in its education system and healthily respects its students as future citizens. That’s more than worth holding onto.

STUDYING

DOMESTIC NEWS

HELSINKI TIMES

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

WW

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2PM.–6PM: Lion and dragon dancers | Chinese market and food stalls | Colourful fan- and lantern-dance troupe from Beijing | New Years show live from Beijing on video screen | Traditional acrobatic wushu (martial arts) from Beijing | Traditional Chinese puppetry from Beijing, also lot of other activities for children | 6.15PM : Chinese fireworks over Töölönlahti

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DOMESTIC NEWS

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

HELSINKI TIMES L E H T I K U VA / H E I K K I S A U K KO M A A

incomplete. These sites are at Pyhäjoki and Simo on the west coast, and at Ruotsinpyhtää on the south coast of the country. “Making such a blanket application for three very different locations at the same time is a bad sign,” explains Veistola.

Fennovoima may have hurried their application to ensure they do not lag behind their industrial rivals TVO and Fortum in the race to build the next nuclear power plant.

In a recent statement, Fennovoima claimed the projected plant will “enhance Finland’s electricity self-sufficiency, fulfill the electricity needs of businesses and households, secure the competitiveness of shareholder companies significant for the national economy, and improve the functionality of the electricity market and the balanced regional development of Finland.”

Construction work at the controversial nuclear power plant Olkiluoto 3, on Finland’s west coast, has been repeatedly delayed due to safety concerns.

Rushed applications for sixth nuclear plant Nuclear energy producer Fennovoima has applied for permission to build a new nuclear power station, but environmentalists claim the company’s preparations leave room for improvement.

F R A N W E AV E R HEL SINKI TIMES

FENNOVOIMA , a consortium partly owned by the German energy giant E.ON, is one of three major companies hoping to build Finland’s sixth nuclear power station. The nuclear industry is closely watching Finland, as it is the first country in western Eu-

rope to expand its nuclear power production.

Construction of the fifth reactor, Olkiluoto 3, on the west coast has drawn repeated safety concerns and consequent delays. Its owners TVO now admit the plant will come into operation only in 2012 – three years later than originally scheduled. TVO and French-German con-

struction consortium AREVA-Siemens are currently in dispute over responsibility for the delays.

On 12 January TVO reported that a minor cooling system failure had occurred the previous week at Olkiluoto 1, another reactor the company owns that is currently in operation. TVO insisted the failure did not endanger

personnel, the local environment or the construction of Olkiluoto 3.

Finland’s nuclear safety authority STUK imposes extremely strict safety standards on the construction project, with all aspects of construction subject to detailed reporting and inspection. Finnish environmentalists still oppose the

new plant. In their view nuclear power is “fundamentally irresponsible,” since the waste it produces remains radioactive for thousands of years.

Premature application According to Tapani Veistola of the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation, Fennovoima’s application for permission to build a sixth plant is premature, especially since complex environmental impact analyses for the three alternative localities where Fennovoima has been acquiring sites are still

Going nuclear Nuclear power already provides a quarter of Finland’s electricity, and the government could soon be faced with three simultaneous applications for additional plants.

Major industrial companies would like to see a surge in atomic power production as quickly as possible. However, even if problems like those endured by TVO at Olkiluoto can be avoided Fennovoima cannot expect to start electricity production before 2020.

In the shorter term, Finland will soon be struggling to meet tough targets on greenhouse gas emissions. Nuclear power generation does not produce carbon dioxide emissions, and it is hoped that safe long-term storage facilities will be ready sooner or later for their lethal waste. But environmentalist groups would prefer the government to invest urgently in renewable energy and energysaving schemes.

Ministerial proposal seeks greater protection for unmarried couples Justice Minister Tuija Brax argues that the present legal situation for cohabiting couples fails to take account of common sense.

O L L I K E M P PA I N E N – S T T HEIDI LEHTONEN, M AT T H E W PA R R Y – H T

A MINISTRY OF JUSTICE work-

ing group has proposed that the protection afforded to members of cohabiting couples following divorce or the

death of a partner should be improved. The authors of the proposal, which was presented to the Minister of Justice, Tuija Brax (The Greens), on 14 January, emphasised that the point of any new law would not be to create equivalency between cohabitation

and marriage. Cohabitation has become increasing common since the 1970s, and according to current statistics every fifth family in Finland is a unmarried one. Should the Ministry go ahead with the proposal, the reforms will come into force no earli-

Partners left in a financially weaker position following separation would be able to apply for financial redress on the basis of their contribution to the maintenance of the former household.

er than the beginning of next year.

“So far when it comes to individual rights, the law has treated partners in cohabiting couples as though they had never set eyes on each other. This does not correspond to the average person’s sense of justice,” said Brax.

One special adviser on legislative reform and the spokeswoman for the working group behind the proposal, Salla Lötjönen, stresses that any change would not force unmarried couples to register their relationship legal in the manner of a civil union, nor would it require any special legal procedure in the case of separation. Instead, the law would recognise cohabitation as “a living arrangement based around an unmarried relationship.”

Marja-Liisa Rosten, who has lived with her partner for almost 40 years, sees the legislative proposal as more than welcome.

“In our case, we’ve already divided all of our assets. So we own both our

home and our car together,” said Rosten.

Not all couples living in their situation have been quite as sensible.

“I know of cases where one partner has paid all the instalments on a new car, bought various necessities for the home and taken care of all sorts of other running costs. Because their name was not on the papers however, when the relationship didn't work out the other partner was the one who was left with the assets. The one who had actually made the most financial sacrifices was left empty-handed,” she explained.

Tribunals may settle separation disputes According to the new proposal, in the event of a separation, each person in the partnership would keep his or her own property, and mutually owned property would be liquidated upon request. Assets that could not be proved to belong to one or the other partner would be

considered as belonging to both. In the case of a dispute, a tribunal could be asked to designate the executor.

The tribunal could also be appealed to by one partner seeking to remain in the family home, with the tribunal empowered to make a decision based on demonstrable need and for a period of no more than six months. The other partner would then be instructed to leave the home, for which the remaining partner would be required to pay him or her compensation.

In especially needy cases, the tribunal would also be vested with the right to temporarily evict the owner of the family home and leave the non-owning partner in his or her place, for example to take care of the couple’s children.

In cases where one partner dies, the surviving partner would be granted the right to remain in the couple’s home for up to a year in cases where he or she does not own it and hasn't been willed the right to legal ownership.

DOMESTIC NEWS

HELSINKI TIMES

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

5

F R A N W E AV E R

Snow volleyball against global warming NICK BARLOW HEL SINK TIMES

the Finns to come up with truly novel ways to alert the public to the threat of global warming. Only in this country would the national nature protection society (Suomen luonnonsuojeluliitto) and a major professional college (Haaga-Helia ammattikorkeakoulu) join forces by putting on a beach volleyball competition at the end of January – in the snow.

Taking place on 28th of this month, the contest, entitled Passaa Pakkasen Puolesta will happen in Narikkatori, in front of the Kamppi

TRUST

shopping centre, from 14:00 until 18:00. Speeches and presentations from notable individuals including Finland’s Environment Minister, Paula Lehtomäki, as well as music from radio NRJ and theatre performances will feature. The event is probably most worth attending for the unprecedented sight of four teams, featuring athletes from the aforementioned nature protection society, college and, most amusingly, local politicians from across party divides attempting to win a volleyball match while dressed in Santa outfits (possibly).

Free entrance.

L E H T I K U VA / M A R K K U U L A N D E R

Professor Juha Pentikäinen (left) and Francis Joy believe that these boulders in Länsimäki may have been used for ancient sacrificial rites.

Ancient sacrificial sites await discovery The first settlers in Finland after the Ice Age remain a mystery, but experts are slowly uncovering clues that might shed light on their spiritual beliefs.

F R A N W E AV E R HEL SINKI TIMES

JUHA PENTIKÄINEN,

Around 17,000 children need special assistance during early childhood, with boys being in the majority.

Finland's youngest being let down, says child welfare union M AT T H E W PA R R Y HEL SINKI TIMES

“EARLY CHILDHOOD education through a well-functioning, comprehensive daycare system is the best safeguard against the emergence of developmental and learning problems, and the surest way to guarantee a child’s overall welfare”. This is the view of analyst Pirjo Honkavaara from the Central Union for Child Welfare in Finland (LSKL). The Union considers measures taken to protect child welfare in Finland are “totally inadequate” and the situation is worsening through growing demand and rising costs.

Current childcare laws have been in place for 35 years, and in the view of critics such as LSKL urgently need revision as far as early childhood education is concerned. The Union argues that any new law should emphasise the full range of pedagogical and developmental factors crucial to a child’s early years, rather than simply guarantee a place in daycare. It should also set concrete specifications on minimum staffing levels and maximum group sizes.

“The biggest concerns at the moment in Finland’s daycare system are that there are too few staff, substitute staff are hard to come by and much of the work is done on temporary contracts. There has been a lack of stability in the system. Local governments look for savings in precisely this area. Some substitutes are not being paid, and it has been cheaper to employ staff on limited contracts rather than invest in permanent positions,” Honkavaara explains.

According to a survey done by the National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), as many as 8.5 per cent of children require special assistance.Thecorrespondingfigure recorded a few years ago was 6.7 per cent. These requirements are manifold. Support is often needed in developing skills in exercise, reading and social interaction.

“The number of children needing special care assistance is constantly growing, and of those cases the vast majority – 75 per cent – are boys. This is an issue that we can't afford to ignore any longer,” Honkavaara warns.

Professor Emeritus of the Study of Religions from Helsinki University, examines strange markings on two enormous boulders that stand in a patch of forest near Länsimäki, in Vantaa. Pentikäinen has studied many such sites around Finland over the last decade, working together with a team that includes geologist and archaeologist colleagues. They are looking for places with evidence of where Finland’s earliest settlers may have carried out sacrificial rituals thousands of years ago.

At some sites, mysterious and ancient rock paintings have survived to this day that have close connection with sacrificial stones, but in other places the shapes of rocks provide only clues.

The possible significance of the landmark stones in Länsimäki was first discovered

by Francis Joy, a student of comparative religion at Helsinki University. Joy points out that the profile of the larger boulder resembles a human face.

“Rituals were typically held at sites where the rocks have anthropomorphic or zoomorphic shapes, reminiscent of humans or animals,” explains Joy, who came to

Finland five years ago to study ancient Nordic and Arctic indigenous cultures – following up on his interest in druidic traditions in his native England. “It certainly looks like these sacrificial stones have been artificially supported and highlighted by placing smaller stones under their edges,” he adds.

Joy points out that thousands of years ago this rocky outcrop would have been on the shoreline of the Baltic Sea, which has since receded as a result of land uplift. This would have made it a likely spot for seal-hunting peoples to gather.

Pentikäinen reaches in and feels inside a couple of strange fist-sized hollows in the rock. “These could have been used as sacrificial ‘cups’ for holding the blood or fat of the sacrificed animals,” he explains, also pointing to an artificial-looking groove in another rock that he believes may have been used as a channel for sacrificial blood.

Living Siberian and Sámi traditions Pentikäinen and Joy agree that further archaeological investigation is needed to assess the possible significance of the Länsimäki site. They also feel that many more such sites await discovery in Finland’s forests. Joy hopes that the local authorities will

Ombudsman busy in 2008 M AT T H E W PA R R Y HEL SINK TIMES

number of complaints – 3,700 – were lodged with Finland’s Parliamentary Ombudsman last year, an increase of more than seven per cent on the previous year.

Complaints were directed fairly evenly at a number of public authorities, with only the

A RECORD

police incurring a somewhat larger proportion of complaints than other branches of government. In addition to complaints received from the public, the Ombudsman herself initiated more than 60 investigations into cases of potential official misconduct.

The Ombudsman also managed to resolve more complaints than ever be-

at least put up signs to keep people off the stones, which lie near a suburban housing estate and have already been desecrated by graffiti, litter and fires. “It’s important to raise awareness of such sites and get people to think about the old beliefs as a part of their historical and cultural heritage. Stones like these are still used by indigenous peoples in Siberia and Lapland as part of animistic traditions that have also existed here in the not too distant past,” he adds.

During his academic career Professor Pentikäinen has sought to interpret what such sites meant to the people who used them. He has often travelled to Finnish Lapland and Siberia to interview Sámi and Mansi shamans, reasoning that their better preserved traditions may still have some similarities with the beliefs held by the related peoples who first settled Finland.

“In spite of long suppression by dominant Christian beliefs, some shamanic traditions still survive even in Finland, passed on in a few families in older or more modern forms,” says Pentikäinen.

Cult of the bear Sacrificial rituals may have centred on a belief in the fore. The number of resolutions was 3,720, an increase of five per cent on the previous year, while almost 50 of the Ombudsman’s own investigations were successfully concluded.

Social, health services draw most ire Traditionally, the majority of complaints are made concerning social and health care services, the police, prison services and the courts, and this pattern held true in 2008.

shape-shifting powers of shamans, who were thought to be able to turn into animals like snakes, fish or bears.

Pentikäinen is particularly interested in the central role of the bear in the mythologies and folklore of northern peoples who live under the star constellation of the Great Bear. His intriguing book Golden King of the Forest compiles old tales and research findings to highlight the importance of the bear in northern cultures.

In many locations in Finland, certain ancient pine trees are still known by local tradition to have been ritually adorned with bear skulls in the past. According to Pentikäinen, many different names used to be given to bears in an age when it was taboo to use the word karhu, the Finnish word most often used today for a bear. “Very many Finnish place names that include words like kontio, otso, otava, ohto and kouvo are linked to bears,” he adds.

Another Kalevala Once retired, Pentikäinen aims to continue compiling narratives from ancient Finnish and Karelian folk poems first written down in the 17th Century. His idea is to produce a folk epic parallel to the well known Kalevala epic, but concentrating on mythology related to shamanism, animistic traditions and the cult of the bear.

He feels that such traditions were neglected when the Kalevala was compiled

by Elias Lönnrot in the 19th Century, because they did not fit in with current ideas at a time when modern Finnish nationalism was on the rise, and monotheistic beliefs were promoted unquestioningly.

Read about rock paintings on page 14.

The distribution of resolved complaints was similar, with the majority – 1,000 – concerning social and health care services, 600 regarding the police, 400 concerning the prison services and 250 regarding the courts.

Further confirming the trend of recent years, slightly under 17 per cent of all resolutions involved some form of official action: an admonition, an official opinion, a representation or compensation.

6

FROM THE FINNISH PRESS

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

HELSINKI TIMES

TRANSLATIONS BY MICHAEL NAGLER L E H T I K U VA / J U S S I N U K A R I

TURUN SANOMAT 18 January. RIITTA HYVÄRINEN

It’s okay to say “hei” Finnish greeting practices are changing, according to the Turku-based daily Turun Sanomat.

Statistics show that 70 percent of mothers use epidurals during childbirth.

SUOMENMAA 18 January. PAULIINA LIEDES

Finnish women reluctant to give birth without medication Childbirth without medication is becoming an increasingly rare occurrence in many countries, including Finland, reports Suomenmaa. “’CHILDBIRTH is always safer and healthier when you don’t need medication or special procedures,’ says birth trainer Päivi Laukkanen, who gives the popular ‘Miten selviytyä synnytyksestä’ (How to make it through childbirth) lectures in Helsinki.

Laukkanen has noticed that few mothers are aware

of what goes on during delivery and that during pregnancy and childbirth the body has its own natural system of pain alleviation.

Laukkanen aims to educate pregnant mothers of their bodies’ natural ability help them cope with giving birth. ‘The endorphins that the woman’s body produc-

es have an effect similar to pethidine, morphine or heroin. But giving medication means the mother’s body will no longer be able to protect her naturally from the pain.’

The statistics of the National Research and Development Centre for Welfare and Health (STAKES) are surprising. Only five per cent of

Finnish women giving birth the first time undergo delivery without the aid of medication and procedures.

Up to 70 per cent of mothers receive epidural anaesthesia, which numbs the womb, vagina and other parts involved in delivery, and just as many receive oxytocin, which cause the womb to contract.

‘The popularity of medical births is worrying, because about 80 per cent of all mothers would be able to give birth naturally. However, midwives are quick to offer drugs and medical procedures to women who are about to give birth. Nearly all mothers are treated as if they were in danger while giving birth,’ Laukkanen says.”

AAMULEHTI 18 January. TIINA ELLILÄ

Asset management a growing business More Finns require professional assistance in managing their wealth, the Tampere-based daily Aamulehti reports.

“ACCORDING to the banks, the recession has increased demand for asset management. ‘Many have submitted their portfolios to profession-

al management because they have felt the current market situation to be difficult,’ says bank manager Timo Liukkonen of OP-Pohjola Group.

L E H T I K U VA / A N T T I A I M O - KO I V I S T O

More affluent customers are finding asset management services an attractive option for advice on handling personal investments.

Investment opportunities are more complex than ever, and the scattered nature of information makes it difficult to form an informed view of things. For this reason, clients are turning to the experts for help in making and managing their investment decisions.

The clients of asset management are entrepreneurs, professional board members and even portfolio managers, who follow the economic flows actively. Why are they unable to manage their money themselves?

‘They are just so busy with their work that managing their own affairs always comes last,’ explains Senior Executive Riitta Pyhälä of Nordea.

Asset management services are also used by people with inheritances and those with large secondary incomes from share dividends. In addition, management professionals and many specialists who have become wealthy through incentive programmes also seek assistance with asset management.

Usually clients hope that their asset managers will conjure the same kind of returns for their fortune as the stock markets do, meaning about 7-8 percent a year after 5-10 years.

Depending on the wealth of the client and his or her specific wishes and requirements, the service costs 0.20 -1.25 per cent of the asset worth per year. Asset management costs on assets of 300,000 euros, for example, would come to between 600 and 3,750 euros per year.”

“HEI is becoming more common in spoken as well as written language, and is used all over Finland. The popularity of this particular greeting is not surprising, and it has been used in the Finnish language for decades. Hei has been part of Helsinki slang for at least a hundred years, and is found also in old folk dialects.

Another reason for its wide use is its neutral nature, with many regarding is as neither excessively formal nor informal. Even in the written language hei is used as a greeting. It is probably the most popular way to start an email, since the prefixes Arvoisa and Hyvä are generally considered too stiff.”

“Different greetings carry different connotations and imagery, according to linguist Hanna Lappalainen. A kiosk salesperson can greet in a friendly fashion by saying moi, but this would be unlikely in a bank or office.”

“Greetings specific to the time of day such as huomen-

ta, päivää and iltaa (good morning, good day and good evening, respectively) are becoming rarer all the time.

This is trend that linguists attribute to the more relaxed social mores that began to spread most clearly from the 1960s on. As part of the same general change people have dropped the use of formal addresses in many cases, preferring instead to be called and to call others by first names.

This is part of the more widespread use of colloquial language in an increasing range of everyday situations”.

“Choice of greeting still depends on the situation and on the speakers. Although hei is the most common pleasantry, not everyone uses it and it is not used everywhere. Moi is a particular favourite among the youth in southern Finland. In rural areas retired people tend to prefer päivää and huomenta.

Moi and terve, as well as moro and morjens are generally considered fairly manly.”

HELSINGIN SANOMAT 18 January. JUSSI PULLINEN

Wireless technology boom increases exposure to potentially harmful emissions Electromagnetic radiation emitted by wireless devices is similar to that emitted by mobile phones, reports the national daily Helsingin Sanomat. “ WIRELESS devices such as digital printers, digiboxes and MP3 players are becoming increasingly common in homes and workplaces.”

“The devices emit electromagnetic radiation that is similar to that emitted by mobile phones. Two weeks ago the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) urged the public to restrict their children’s mobile phone use. This recommendation is pre-emptive, for there is no direct evidence of the health effects of mobile phone radiation. However, there may be side effects if mobile phones have been used for long periods of time. This also applies for devices which function in a wireless network.”

“’It would be good if the network base station were located as far away from people as possible,” says senior scientist Lauri Puranen of STUK. Puranen adds the reassurance that even at full output home transmission stations emits about as much radiation as a mobile phone. ‘Even then, you have to be right next to the station for there to be any effect. Nonetheless there’s no reason to keep wireless devices right next to you, either.

I would be more concerned about the internet gadgets that work in the mobile phone network, which are often carried on the body. Their emission levels are as high as those of mobile phones.’”

L E H T I K U VA / J U S S I N U K A R I

Wireless devices may carry health risks.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

HELSINKI TIMES

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

Israel inspires anger at home and abroad Street protests against Israel's assault on Gaza continue to be held almost daily, despite a fragile ceasefire being in place.

GAZA

A DA M M O R RO W - I P S K H A L E D M O U S S A A L- O M R A N I - I P S N O R A B A R RO W S - F R I E D M A N - I P S

IN CAIRO and many other Arab capitals, continued anger against Israel's assaults on Gaza is directed at the Egyptian regime, which is seen by critics as being complicit in the Israeli campaign.

"The escalation of protests across the country indicates unprecedented levels of outrage over both Israel's aggression and Egypt's official position," Ibrahim Mansour, political analyst and managing editor-in-chief of independent daily Al-Dustour told IPS. "By keeping the border closed to humanitarian aid, Egypt is complicit in Israel's aggression against the people of Gaza," Mansour said, echoing a common sentiment. "Egypt's shameful po-

sition does not represent the Egyptian people or Egypt's political opposition."

Other 'moderate' Arab regimes, namely US allies Jordan and Saudi Arabia also came in for criticism from angry protestors. "Cowardly Arab regimes...there's either resistance or betrayal", they chanted, according to local reports.

Protesters arrested "The eruption of demonstrations countrywide signifies the extent of popular outrage over the criminal attack on Gaza," Hamdi Hassan, MP for the Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's largest opposition group, told IPS. "It also reflects the people's total rejection of the position of most Arab governments, which refused to use the means at their disposal to pressure Israel to halt its aggression."

Demonstrations have been accompanied by a fresh wave of arrests directed mainly against the Muslim Brotherhood, which has taken the lead in organising protests in solidarity with the people of Gaza and the Palestinian resistance.

"The arrest of people for holding peaceful protests is a way of effectively terroris-

ing citizens from expressing their opinion," said Hassan.

According to Israeli police reports at least 763 Israeli citizens, the majority of them Palestinian have been arrested, imprisoned or detained because of their participation in protests.

Ameer Makhoul, director of Ittijah, the Union of Arab Community-Based Associations in Haifa, told IPS that these demonstrations "are part of the uprising here inside the Green Line, to share responsibility and to share the challenge with the people in the Gaza strip."

As an organiser of many of these solidarity demonstrations inside Israel, Makhoul himself was arrested by the Shin Bet (the Israeli

secret service). "They called me, came to my home and held me for hours," he told IPS. "They accused me of being a terrorist and supporting terror. They said that they are watching and monitoring me." Israel, he said, "has become a terror state."

The Shin Bet has accused Makhoul and hundreds of others arrested of "being a rebel, threatening the security of the State of Israel during war time."

7

On the night of 17 January in the coastal town of Jaffa, south of Tel Aviv, several thousand demonstrators - including Palestinians, various peace groups, Israeli anarchists and teenaged Israeli refusniks fresh from jail for refusing to serve in the mandatory military – marched through the main street in the old city with flags and banners, and voiced their determination to continue the fight inside Israeli society against the country's bombing campaign. Israeli security forces, carrying weapons and video cameras, heavily flanked the protesters.

L E H T I K U VA / A F P P H O T O / FAY E Z N U R E L D I N E

Algerian protesters throw stones at riot police outside the Egyptian embassy in Algiers. Algeria is only one of the many Arab countries in which protests have taken place to express anger at the Egyptian regime for its role in the Gaza crisis.

ARE YOU IN FINLAND TO WORK OR STUDY?

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www.infopankki.fi Your guide to Finnish life, culture and customs.

careers by 22 – 28 and JANUARY 2009 8 Jobs

HELSINKI TIMES

When is the right time to change jobs?

THERE are a lot of things to consider when deciding when and why to move on. To begin with, you need to assess where you are now, what you have achieved and where you want to be in a few years time.

WHAT do you enjoy about your present job? What do you feel is missing? What have you enjoyed about any previous roles you have done? What is the ideal situation for you?

How will you know when you have achieved it?

Spotting the right time If you do decide to leave a job, quitting at the wrong time can hit you in the pocket if you’re not careful. For example, leaving just before your big bonus is due is not very sensible. It’s a good idea to think about whether you’re currently paid in advance or in arrears as any change may

affect your monthly cash flow. Because so many people take time off during summer and winter, May and October are often prime times to look for a new job. In preparation for a lot of their workforce being away, employers look to train up new recruits to cover the anticipated gaps.

On the other hand, you may be missing out on overtime opportunities in your current role if you leave before the holiday period is over.

Leave in a good bargaining position Once you’ve made the decision to leave, make sure you have somewhere to go before handing in your notice. Don’t be tempted to storm off in a huff or make some sort of statement if it means leaving yourself vulnerable. It’s much easier to find a job when you already have one. Long periods of unemployment sends

out a bad signal to a future employer, with all sorts of questions about why you left, and could leave you out of work for longer than you think.

Money isn't everthing If money is the overriding issue in your desire for change, have the courage to address it before thinking about leaving. Find out the going rate for your job and, if you don’t feel you’re getting paid enough, ask for more. This can be a scary experience, but it could solve your problem. If your request is turned down, then you can take a view on whether it’s the right time to leave. If you have the option to think in the long term, you may even consider taking a pay cut, but moving to a company where the career progression and wage increases will occur more regularly.

Source: monster.co.uk

Monster is the world’s leading provider of online recruitment services, operating in 56 countries. It has over 75 million registered users worldwide. 75% of Monster Finland is owned by Alma Media, one of the largest media companies in Finland, and 25% is owned by Monster Inc. The business started in 1998, and in ten years the internet has become the most popular recruiting channel, causing Monster Finland to become the market leader with over 60% of the total online recruitment business. In 2007 Monster Finland’s turnover grew 47% in comparison to 2006.

Advertisement enquiries: Monster Oy, tel. +358 10 665 2293, e-mail: yritys@monster.fi

FINLAND IN THE WORLD PRESS

HELSINKI TIMES BARENTS OBSERVER 13 January

DETROIT FREE PRESS 17 January. Erin Chan Ding

Reversed cross-border shopping The financial crisis and the weak Norwegian currency has turned crossborder shopping between Norway and neighbouring states Sweden and Finland upside down, writes the Barents Observer. “ TRADITIONALLY, Norwegians in the northern part of the country have travelled to Finland to buy petrol, meat, alcoholic beverages and tobacco. Now, when the Norwegian krone is weak against the euro, the Finns are coming in great numbers to Northern Norway to buy cheap foodstuffs.”

“With the exception of tobacco and alcohol, most commodities are cheaper to buy in Norway than in Finland these days.

In the Finnish town of Karigasniemi … shopkeepers are experiencing hard times.

Some firms have had a drop in turnover on 20-35 per cent.”

MP TALK

Heikinpäivä festival remembers Hancock's Finnish heritage The most Finnish city in the US celebrates all things Finnish during their Heikinpäivä festival, reports the Detroit Free Press.

“IF YOU spend any part of this week shopping at the heikin tori, chowing out at the seisovapöytä and generally living it up at Heikinpäivä, there is only one place in the planet you could be: Hancock, the Finnish capital of Michigan if not the nation.

Hancock is so Finnish that the city's street signs will read not just "Quincy" (the main avenue) but also "Valtakatu," its Finnish counterpart. Hancock … is home to Finlandia University and the Finnish American Reporter, a monthly newspaper distributed in all 50 states and eight countries, including New Zealand, Namibia and yes, Finland.” “‘It's just a lot of fun,’ says Jim Kurtti, director of the Finnish American Heritage Center at Finlandia University and editor of the Finnish American Reporter. ‘You kind of get the Finns and nonFinnish people really enjoying the music and different food and the whole event.’”

“The event includes bootthrowing and wife-carrying contests, a vipukelkka, or whip-sled that turns in circles and an outdoor Polar

THE STRAITS TIMES 12 January. Chua Hian Hou

L E H T I K U VA / S A R I GU S TA F S S O N

TARJA TALLQVIST is an MP with the Finnish Christian Democrats. She also directs and produces documentaries.

In addition she is a qualified carer for the elderly and directs the carer department of nurse's union Tehy.

A childhood in Lauttasaari I SPENT my school years living in Lauttasaari. As much as the place was and still is very much part of Helsinki, as an island it was also something of its own little world. Or at least that's how it felt to those of us who lived there.

had a playschool, a primary school and a secondary school, as well as a collection of necessary shops, a church and chemist. The island also had its own doctor, who made house calls whenever necessary and got to know every family there.

LAUT TASAARI

The vipukelkka is one of the old Finnish activities the people of Hancock can enjoy during their Heikinpäivä festival.

Bear Dive into icy waters for the brave and insane.”

“Kurtti, 51, whose grandparents are Finnish immigrants and who is fluent in the language, estimates that 40 per cent of Hancock is Finnish. His wife, Debbie, also 51, is one-quarter Finnish and has just started taking Finnish lessons.”

“The festival draws a few thousand people each year.” “‘There's this thing,’ says Debbie Kurtti, ‘called adultonset Finnishness. People are learning Finnish and going to Finnish festivals and meeting other Finns and doing genealogy. People are now proud of their heritage.’”

THE LOCAL 15 January. David Landes

Scientist wins Nokia award New coin commemorates Sweden's loss of Finland Nokia Foundation awarded a Singapore researcher writes The Straits Times.

“A LEADING Singapore researcher who specialises in improving the way people and computers communicate with each other has been picked by the Nokia Foundation to work and lecture in Finland” “Dr Li Haizhou, who heads the Institute for Infocomm Research's (I2R) human language technology department, will receive a grant of 10,000 euros from the Nokia Foundation.

Dr Li … is one of the architects behind the robotic butlers which made an appearance at the official opening of Fusionopolis recently.”

“Only one other Asian scientist has won the award from the Nokia Foundation, which was set up in 1995 to support the scientific development of information and telecommunications technologies and to promote education of the sector in Finland.

Dr Li is also one of only two scientists honoured this year; the other is American nanotechnology specialist Dr Parviz Babak. Past Nokia Foundation winners include Linus Torvalds ... and virtual world Habbo's creators Aapo Kyrölä and Sampo Karjalainen.”

Swedes mark bicentenary of Finland’s separation with a special coin, reports The Local.

“ON SEPTEMBER 17th, 1809, Sweden reluctantly relinquished control of the territories it held in present day Finland … when it signed the Treaty of Fredrikshamn to end a war with Russia for influence in the Baltic.” ”To mark the anniversary of the separation, all Swedish one krona coins minted in 2009 will carry a special design on the reverse composed

by Swedish designer Annie Winblad Jakubowski.” ”The upper edge of the coin will be inscribed with the quo-

tation ‘DEN UNDERBARA SAGAN OM ETT LAND PÅ ANDRA SIDAN HAFVET’ (The wonderful tale of a land beyond the sea), taken from Johan Ludvig Runeberg’s book A student’s visit to Finland in 1857.

The new coin was presented on 15 January to King Carl XVI Gustaf and to Finland’s President Tarja Halonen by the Chairman of the General Council of the Riksbank, Johan Gernandt.

The coin itself will actually be produced by the Mint of Finland.”

ANDER S WIKLUND

Pampering and Relaxing elegia day spa Pohjoinen Makasiinikatu 4 Tel. (09) 2289 0408 kasarmitori@elegiadayspa.fi Fredrikinkatu 20 Tel. (09) 666 050 info@elegiadayspa.fi www.elegiadayspa.fi

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

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These Swedish krona coins will be joined by special commemorative coins marking the separation of Finland from Sweden 200 years ago.

From time to time the local pastor would try to incite fellow Lauttasaari residents to draw up the bridge connecting us to Helsinki and declare independence. It sounded incredibly exciting to us children, even if we didn't quite understand what the pastor meant. A permanently raised bridge would have been a wonderful sight. At that time, it was drawn once a day to allow the coal ships with their tall masts to glide under it. That was always such a striking, magical sight.

FROM my first years at primary school I remember our teacher Kerttu Kallio. As an enthusiast for healthy living, she was many years ahead of her time. She always fed us cod liver oil and vitamins, and even made a point of swallowing raw eggs in front of the class – much to our deep disgust. This was back in the 1950s when school food wasn't very nutritious, being made up mostly of a steady, unvarying diet of porridge and pea soup. One of the major motivations to continue our education to secondary school was the knowledge that at that level there were no school meals.

BACK then we didn't just go to Helsinki whenever we felt like it, even if the bus number 23 would take us to Erottaja in around 20 minutes. There had to be a good reason to make the trip, usually with our mothers. The Stockmann department store playground was an enduring daydream and fantasy for us.

WHENEVER we were headed for Helsinki we would put on our town clothes. Nobody would dream of walking the streets in t-shirts and jeans in those days. During the summer, people would be out and about in poplin jackets, while in winter it would be an overcoat. Underneath men would wear a suit and women a church frock. Children would also be in their Sunday best, their hair carefully and beautifully combed. At that time, people also knew a thing or two about proper public behaviour. I remember one front page of the Uusi Suomi newspaper carrying the scandalous headline, “Young couple seen kissing in Esplanadi park.” That remained the talk of the town for weeks afterwards.

we visited the Hietaniemi graveyard to feed the squirrels, a favourite family pastime. All of our near relations were still alive at that time, so we admired the gravestones almost like works of art. But the cemetery also contained some graves that were untended and looked the worse for wear. These ones would never have any flowers on them, which saddened me and my sister Itta, so much that we decided to do something about it. After the visit, unbeknownst to our parents and wearing our everyday clothes we crossed the Lauttasaari bridge on foot and went back to the graveyard. We collected flowers from gravestones that we thought had more than enough to spare and distributed them among the gravestones that were bare. It was a massive operation, and we returned home that evening feeling tired but pleased with ourselves. We were convinced we had done an honourable deed and had secured a place for ourselves in heaven.

At home though, our father was waiting, angry and ready to punish us. Someone had informed on us! My sister and I soon felt we were made to suffer a martyr's fate.

OCCASIONALLY

Translated by Matthew Parry.

9

10

BUSINESS

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

HELSINKI TIMES L E H T I K U VA / M I K KO S T I G

COLUMN

DAVID J. CORD is a private investor with over ten years of international experience.

Looking for money ALMOST every company uses debt to some extent. Even

conservative companies tend to use borrowed money to finance their inventories or for seasonal purchases. Kesko is an example of a net lender: at the end of the third quarter it carried €537 million in liquid assets but still had and debt outstanding of €509 million.

Other corporations are entirely dependent upon debt financing.

THE PROBLEM that many companies are facing is the lack of financing. The capital markets are still not functioning properly and risk premiums are rising.

Companies taking large loans can be expected to pay an interest rate of about 5.75%, compared with 5% in September 2007. Even the country of Finland itself has found widening spreads on its borrowings. The interest-rate spread between what Finland has to pay and what Germany pays has widened to an extent not seen in years.

LONG-TERM bond issues have fallen by two-thirds. The stock of short-term bonds has dropped and large syndicated loans have also decreased. Probably anticipating liquidity problems, companies have increased their bank deposits by about €5 billion.

the capital markets still functioning sluggishly at best, Finnish companies have turned to banks for financing. At the end of October, loans to non-financial corporations totalled €57 billion, The capital markets 20% from the are still not function- up year before. Growth ing properly and risk was strongest in the shortest-term loans, premiums are rising. as the commercial paper market remains expensive and less-than-responsive to the needs of companies.

WITH

operating in Finland remain strong compared with many of their global counterparts, so Finnish companies are lucky to have this alternative source of funding. The problem is that the banks cannot pick up the slack entirely. Karlo Kauko of the Bank of Finland pointed out that banks cannot keep this up for much longer unless they themselves acquire additional capital.

The ‘Don’t Feed the Recession’ campaign aims to keep consumers spending like they used to during the good times.

Stop worrying, keep shopping A new media campaign promotes a way out of the economic downturn: positive consumer behaviour.

BANKS

AS IS HAPPENING elsewhere around the world, the government is stepping in to help. To start with, about €4 billion may be used by the state of Finland to increase banks’ capital. Economist Antti Tanskanen suggested that the State Pension Fund should buy corporate bonds or commercial paper. With large companies going to the Pension Fund for financing, smaller firms could take advantage of the loans being offered by banks.

THE PENSION Fund appears to be willing – and able – to start such a financing programme, with Timo Löyttyniemi telling the press that he could start investing “hundreds of millions” very quickly. The Pension Fund has about €11.3 billion in assets under management.

Finnvera is also stepping up its activities to ease financing. Its ceilings on domestic financing and for export-credit guarantees have already been increased, and may be raised again.

WHILE all of these measures are needed, they really cannot replace the role of a well functioning privatecapital market. For this market to resume its status, trust must be returned to the players. Unfortunately, when exactly that will happen is anyone’s guess.

david@davidcord.com

DAV I D J . C O R D HEL SINKI TIMES

THE AVERAGE Finn has had a strong negative reaction to the economic slowdown.

Fearing the worst, he or she is spending less. Paradoxically, while hoarding cash and reducing expenditures may make sense on an individual level, it could greatly worsen the slowdown if large numbers of people follow suit.

This is the message from the Älä ruoki lamaa, or ‘Don’t Feed the Recession’ campaign.

The idea is the brainchild of advertising agency Bob Helsinki and has attracted the support of a wide variety of media outlets, corporations and research groups. Organisations as diverse as Stockmann, Helsingin Sanomat and the Research Institute of the Finnish Economy ETLA are co-operating with the campaign.

“We started thinking about this when Lehman Brothers collapsed,” said Jukka Kurttila, the CEO of Bob Helsinki. “How would this situation affect Finns? Well, almost 40 per cent of Finns have cut their spending because of recessionary fears.”

Chain reaction The campaign demonstrates an example of what could happen when people stop spending: ‘Engineer Nieminen’ decides not to get his wife a spa package for her birthday, which starts a chain reaction that ripples through the economy and ends with him losing his own job. By trying to save money he ended up making his situation that much worse.

Although the example is simplistic and perhaps dramatic, it does convey an important point. Many jobs in Finland depend upon consumer spending. If consumers begin hoarding cash instead of buying goods and services, some people will undoubtedly suffer. Worse yet, the suffering will spread.

“The recession is very much a psychological phenomenon, I believe,” writes Kustaa Hulkko of Suomen Kuvalehti on the ‘Don’t Feed the Recession’ blog. “It is wrong to unilaterally reduce consumption because the national economy is doing badly. It does not help anyone, quite the contrary. Consumers should be encouraged

to continue their lives as usual.”

Individuals may be reacting to the barrage of negative press reports. A constant stream of bad news begins to affect consumer behaviour. Entrepreneur Eva Malkki admits that she has changed her shopping habits.

“But I had already decided to change,” she said. “I would have changed my habits even without the recession.” Instructor Mikko Leinonen is doing the opposite. “I am following the economic developments quite closely,” he said.

“Actually, I’m spending more money now than before!”

‘A lot of good signs’ Currently, although the global economic slowdown is being felt in Finland, ‘Don’t Feed the Recession’ organisers believe that Finns are overreacting. The memory of the 1990's recession remains fresh in peoples’ minds.

“In reality our employment situation is good right now,” explained Kurttila. “In a worst-case scenario, unemployment may only go to eight per cent. Petrol prices are down, mortgage rates

are down, salaries are higher; there are a lot of good signs.

Consumers are actually misbehaving. People saw all the bad news about the recession and didn’t know how to react.

Why is no one saying what we should do, how we should react? We need a realistic vision and a plan. This is the point of the whole campaign.”

The campaign includes television, print, radio and outdoor advertisements. A short four-minute film has been produced, and even a Facebook group has been created. ‘Don’t Feed the Recession’ also urges businesses to display the campaign logo in their stores. Now, all that remains to be seen is whether it all has the desired effect.

Six tips to stop recession in its tracks: 1 Don't buy less than you used to.

2 Don’t switch to cheaper products.

3 Favour domestic goods and services.

4 Don’t let the gossip on the streets scare you.

5 If you're an employer, don’t fire people.

6 Remember, we've come through recessions before. www.alaruokilamaa.fi (in Finnish)

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

HELSINKI TIMES

11

automated, faster and less labour intensive.”

A big push for her business could come from legislation.

“In Finland, we definitely look forward together with our clients to the forthcoming bill on digital authentication,” she explains. “This would open up opportunities for mobile operators, banks and the public sector to take their online and other digital services to the next level.”

With internet capabilities now available in almost all mobile phones, online shopping is quicker and easier to access than ever.

DAVID J. CORD / HELSINKI TIMES

E-commerce expanding rapidly Finland has one of the best-developed e-commerce sectors in the world. are comfortable with doing business through the Internet. An index produced by e-business consulting consultants Gagar shows that ecommerce volume has grown to nine times the early 2006 level. Similarly, a survey sponsored by the Smilehouse firm showed that over half of Finns purchased Christmas presents online. Statistics

FINNS

Finland found that 15 per cent of adult Finns had recently sold something online. With a population that feels so at home with online commerce, it is no surprise that some of the world’s best companies in the field are Finnish.

RunToShop Toni Paloheimo, head of product marketing at Run-

ToShop, knows why Finnish e-commerce is thriving. “Finland has a multi-decade history in computer science and digital success stories,” he says. “Finns have great imagination and are not afraid to pursue ambitious goals. This is a great place to be an IT industry startup.”

Paloheimo should know, since RunToShop is one of the newcomers that are changing the landscape of the Finnish market. The company offers a service for peers to review different products.

“RunToShop has high ambitions in creating a fun and rewarding service for online word-of-mouth,” Paloheimo explains. “RunToShop is the first of its kind in Finland, but we’re aiming at the inter-

national market. Online recommendations are becoming a mainstream web business.”

Fruugo Fruugo is perhaps one of the most-watched young companies in Finland. It is not only backed by some of the biggest names in Finland’s business world, it is also secretive to the point of being mythical.

Nokia's ex-CEO Jorma Ollila and F-Secure founder Risto Siilasmaa are both involved with the company, which certainly adds to the cache.

Fruugo plans to be involved in online shopping – but exactly in what way remains a mystery, much to the exasperation of the normally wellinformed Finnish technology industry. Apparently the com-

pany plans to streamline the internet e-commerce supply chain. If Fruugo does have up its sleeve a way to make online shopping simpler, easier and safer, it could be big.

Valimo Valimo’s technology enables legally binding authentication and transaction signing for online purchases. Using a mobile phone, a user can manage all secure signatures with only one personal identification number. Director of Marketing and Communications Marika Pirhonen is optimistic about 2009. “We believe our technology enables service providers to find new models and processes for conducting business in new ways to make it more

Smilehouse Smilehouse is a software company focusing on electronic business. Founded in 1999, the company has had annual growth of around 50 per cent and made almost 5.5 million euros in sales last year. Smilehouse accommodates all sizes of client. It offers everything from the free wosbee.com service for small entrepreneurs to custom-built solutions for global enterprises.

Their Workspace Enterprise Edition software was developed for large clients with complex operations.

The product is especially useful for companies operating across several national boundaries. It supports different languages, value added tax calculations, catalogues, promotions and payments for several different markets. Smilehouse’s clients include Suunto, Sanoma and TeliaSonera.

Itella Itella has developed a business niche providing e-commerce solutions to other companies. It offers services to entrepreneurs that enable them to build their own online stores. Itella also offers customer relations management, and purchasing, storage and delivery services. The company’s experience with the Finnish postal service makes it uniquely qualified to help e-commerce companies with logistics.

With the thriving state of e-commerce in Finland and around the world, these companies are poised for another strong year. Homegrown technological expertise remains a strategic advantage in an increasingly competitive world.

DAVID J. CORD / HELSINKI TIMES

Untarnished innovations KORU produces some of Finland’s most popular jewellery. Inspired by ancient Iron Age artefacts discovered by archaeologists, Kalevala adorns everyone from teenagers to politicians. Although inspired by designs thousands of years old, the Kalevala Koru range is produced with cutting-edge technology.

For several years Kalevala Jewellery has used a novel nanotechnology that applies an extremely thin silver coating to items to make

KALEVALA

them stain-resistant. While normal silver tarnishes over time, Kalevala’s products retain a remarkable shine.

The company behind Kalevala’s anti-tarnishing attributes is another Finnish company, Beneq. Founded in 2005 as a spin-off from Nextrom, Beneq currently has 40 employees and does business around the world. Demand for its products and services is growing rapidly. “We plan to take on 10 more employees and expect to double our sales this year,” says Beneq

sales and marketing manager Mikko Saikkonen.

Besides helping jewellery or coins from the Mint of Finland to stay shiny and fresh, Beneq provides thin film technology for use on coloured glass to antimicrobial materials. The growing green industries also have a high appetite for nanotech.

“I’m excited about industrial deliveries to the solar industry,” continues Saikkonen.

“Solar power is set to become a boom industry in the years ahead.”

Companies in clean technologies are major customers of Beneq. Saikkonen lists some of the products for which his company provides coating solutions, including energy saving windows, solar energy applications and organic light-emitting diodes.

Saikkonen points out that Beneq has more than 50 patent families. “That is a great number for a small and young company like us,” he explains. “Intellectual property rights are an important part of Beneq’s strategy and offering. It enables technology sales together with equipment and system sales in form of licensing.”

This page is provided by Technopolis Ventures

Jewellery being treated with the nSILVER protective coating.

12

BUSINESS

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

Value of bonus cards in doubt Bonus card systems can be expensive and inefficient, say economists, and suggest that shops think carefully about the value of maintaining them.

L E H T I K U VA / A N T T I A I M O - KO I V I S T O

Despite complicated and misleading bonus systems, Finns own bonus cards for various shops.

NINA TÖRNUDD – S T T M AT T H E W PA R R Y – H T

increasingly rare to ďŹ nd Finns who do not have a few customer or bonus cards knocking around in their wallets. When almost

IT HAS BECOME

every supermarket chain either participates in some customer-card system or promotes their own, the result is a nation addicted to bonus points. Cashier staff are instructed to accost every cardless customer with a sermon

on the value of membership.

The system is designed to feed information on the customer’s purchases straight into the shop’s database. But is there really any value in these systems for either shops or their customers?

KyĂśsti Kakkonen does not think so. The managing director of Tokmanni dismisses the card systems as detrimental to competition and misleading to customers. His company has discontinued cooperation with

HELSINKI TIMES

The bonus card society – 3.3 million Kesko Plussa cards have been applied for and they are used by 1.9 million Finnish households. – There are 3.4 million S-group cards in circulation, used by 1.7 million households. – Tradeka’s YkkÜsbonus cards are used by 1.2 million households. – A whole range of other customer cards can be found in Finnish wallets. Among the more common are cards for petrol stations, airlines, hotel chains, clothing chains, chemists and opticians. – Discount stores and Alko remain some of the few places where customers are not asked to sign up to some sort of bonus scheme.

the YkkĂśsbonus card system which is run by Tradeka. Instead, Kakkonen has reduced prices on products in his Tarjoustalo discount chain.

Professor Arto Lindblom of the Helsinki School of Economics sees Kakkonen’s move as an indication that complicated bonus-card systems do produce extra expenses that must then be passed on to customers one way or another.

On the other hand, they do offer shops detailed information on the preferences and habits of their customers that would otherwise be either difďŹ cult or impossible to collect. “Supermarkets use this information to build a picture of consumers’ shopping behaviour. This enables them to compile better selections of certain goods, target campaigns more effectively and arrange goods on the shelves in a new way,â€? said Lindblom.

At the same time, it is clear that when many customers carry cards for a number of

different shops, they are under no incentive to choose one chain over another. Customers will simply shop wherever is convenient, using the appropriate card.

Bonus points versus bargains There are nevertheless shops for which a customer-card system would be especially inappropriate. Lindblom singles out discount chains and budget airlines. Lidl, for example, never asks its customers to sign up for a card, nor do similar shops worldwide maintain any sort of bonus card system, according to Lindblom.

In addition, running a system that is clear to customers, that functions well and that collects information accurately and efďŹ ciently requires both expertise and money. If shops are unwilling to invest in both of these, they may well be better off abandoning the system altogether and instead tempting customers with lower prices.

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SPORT

HELSINKI TIMES

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

13

L E H T I K U VA / M A R K K U U L A N D E R

Kasymova joins Helsinki Club Parliament The number of foreigners involved in sport in the capital region received a boost last week when a long-standing advocate of immigrant participation was elected to a consultative body that will advise on the provision of sporting facilities.

EGAN RICHARDSON HEL SINKI TIMES

integration through sport took a step forward this month with the election of Spartak Helsinki's Nigina Kasymova to Helsinki City Council's Club Parliament, which is intended to represent the interests of clubs to the council's Sport Department.

The parliament is the brainchild of the Southern Finland Exercise and Sport Association (ESLU in Finnish) and will provide a foothold for immigrants in the administrative bodies, which have a lot of power in Finnish sport. There are few non-Finns involved in sport decision-making, so Kasymova's appointment means more than just offering a voice for the predominantly Russian football club.

Immigrant sporting clubs have difficulties in many areas, from the payment of subs to language barriers, but the

IMMIGRANT

main issue dealt with by the club parliament will be the facilities rented out by Helsinki City Council. These clubs tend to have small junior sections, as children have the choice of playing for Finnish clubs — an option that isn't available to many immigrants in their twenties. For football this means that each club has fewer members, is less likely to have a team in the higher leagues and therefore gets fewer pitch bookings.

Liikkukaa promotes understanding Many of the clubs who voted for Kasymova were canvassed

by Liikkukaa, an organisation devoted to the promotion of inter-cultural understanding, equality and social inclusion through sport. Liikkukaa helped ensure that a range of immigrant-friendly clubs knew about Kasymova's candidacy and voted for her when the time came.

The most prominent club involved in this show

of grassroots support was Ykkönen football side Atlantis. Often the butt of jokes about their low pay and small expense budget, Atlantis has a high number of immigrants all the way through their junior leagues and into the first team. Their director Christian Thibault is also involved with Liikkukaa.

“We had to do something to get some kind of representation here, as it is sorely needed,” said Thibault. “Very few migrants have gained any decision-making power in Finnish sport. Most people recognise this needs to change, and ESLU understood why we wanted to get Nigina on board.”

Changes on the field The issues covered by the Club Parliament are common to non-immigrant clubs too, as the smaller teams face the same issues surrounding the availability of facilities for non-elite, non-junior clubs.

They are scarce and expen-

F1 champ rallies in Lapland Kimi Räikkönen will try his hand at a different sport when he competes in the Arctic Lapland Rally.

MARI K AISL ANIEMI HEL SINKI TIMES

Arctic Lapland Rally will see F1 champion Kimi Räikkönen make his debut in rally racing. Räikkönen will swap his sleek F1 Ferrari for a Fiat Abarth Grande Punto S2000. His wingman in the arctic race will be Kaj Lindström.

Lindström has been a co-driver for four-time rally world champion Tommi Mäkinen.

THIS YEAR’S

sudoku

The 44th Arctic Lapland Rally will also see the return of former F1 driver, 1998 and 1999 champion, Mika Häkkinen. He has raced in the Arctic Lapland Rally three times before, in 2003, 2004 and 2006.

This year he will be driving a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 9 with Ilkka Kivimäki as co-driver.

Finnish F1 drivers seem to really enjoy racing rally cars in ice and snow, since this year’s

SOLUTION ON PAGE 18

entrants also include Mika Salo and JJ Lehto. All Finnish former F1 drivers taking part in the Arctic Lapland Rally will be driving with the same car, a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution 9. Salo’s co-driver is Mika Ovaskainen, while JJ Lehto will have Jari Jyrkiäinen as his.

With this year’s F1 season starting at the end of March, many teams wouldn’t allow their drivers to take part in dangerous activities such as rallying in freezing weather conditions, but Ferrari's team boss Stefano Domenicali thinks differently. He sees the arctic rally as two extra days of testing for Räikkönen.

The race takes place on 22-24 January in the terrain near Rovaniemi.

L E H T I K U VA / S T E FA N O R E L L A N D I N I

Atlantis player Muwahid Sesay (right) tackles Kaarinan Pojat players. Atlantis was the most prominent football club involved in voting Kasymova into the Helsinki Club Parliament.

sive, so hopes are high that the Helsinki Club Parliament can begin to change that for everyone's benefit.

If Kasymova does manage this, then maybe she will turn her attentions to the Finnish Football Association after Spartak's recent difficulties.

Spartak were disappointed to lose a game in northern

Finland 10-3, after what had seemed to be an even contest. The game stood at 3-3 with 9.25 minutes remaining of the final 40, before an extraordinary 7-goal run from Kemi gave them the win.

Immigrant clubs often complain of unfair treatment from referees, something that could be attributed to cultural

differences. Spartak feel that the refereeing was unfair, and that this is an endemic problem in northern Finland. They explained their feelings in a letter to the Finnish FA, complaining about the partisan refereeing they feel they have suffered repeatedly. They are still waiting for a reply some six weeks later.

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Kimi Räikkönen gives a thumbs-up with hopes of a good season in F1 and a good race in the Arctic Lapland Rally.

Laurea – Prime Mover

www.laurea.fi

14

LIFESTYLE

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

HELSINKI TIMES F R A N W E AV E R

COLUMN COLUMN

LESLIE HYDE

A story of Winter War deceit IF YOU want

to learn about the Finnish national character or the vexed question of Finnish – German wartime relations, the case of the missing fire engine is pretty much essential reading. A Winter War Memoir: The Land of the Lakes by the British Consul-General to Finland at that time, Mr Henry McGrady Bell. The book has a wonderful plot full of bureaucratic incompetence and, I must confess, possible Finnish deceit. Mr Bell introduces it succinctly: ‘We had a lot of trouble with that engine.’ The story cries out to be made into a film.

LONDON realised that wartime Finland needed an ex-

tra fire engine for its defences, and money was raised to despatch a unit of eight volunteers plus fire engine to Helsinki. The men arrived, but then two problems arose. First the engine got stranded in Stockholm. Second, the war was over by this time anyway, so the men were mucking about in Helsinki doing bits and pieces and generally helping out.

GERMANY then invaded Norway and these plucky men

decided to go to Stockholm, take their engine and go to Norway to help out there. The problem was that it was no longer their engine. It had been given to the Finnish government, who were not keen to help out. Eventually, the government arranged for a fixer to go to Stockholm and sort it out. Before the fixer left, news came in: the engine was on the way to Tornio. The fixer was not a fixer for nothing, and, not believing a word of it ‘made a dash for Stockholm’ to get the engine before it left. This time it was the Finnish authorities in Stockholm that ‘made things sticky’. They lacked the paper work to release it. But the fixer sorted it and four days later, the men set off to ‘collect their prize’, which would be handed over on the following Friday. Damnation! The Finns had sent the engine back to Finland the day before. Fixer and men flew on to Norway to await the engine. This led to personal financial humiliation: the heroic band of brothers wound up pawning their clothes to pay their hotel bills. The Norwegian government was in no mood to pay wages to firemen without an engine.

This ancient scene painted on a rock wall at Astuvansalmi in the Finnish Lake District features a female archer (left).

Rock paintings and burial cairns In many sites around Finland, awe-inspiring relics of ancient sacred sites can still be seen, if you only know where to look.

F R A N W E AV E R HEL SINKI TIMES

ROCK PAINTINGS dating back several thousand years can be found in more than 100 locations throughout the country, typically on waterside cliff faces near striking rock formations. Some consist of indistinct reddish-brown shapes, but others clearly feature people, boats, animals, fish or mysterious, partly human figures that may be linked to shamanic rituals.

Finland’s best known rock paintings, on the rocky shores of Lake Saimaa at Astuvansalmi, near Ristiina, can be reached along a 3-km nature trail. The paintings feature a female archer, a human figure with antlers as well as elk or reindeer marked with spots showing the location of the animals’ hearts. Another popular site, at Värikallio cliffs in the Hossa Hiking Area near Kuusamo, is renowned for its otherworldly figures with triangular heads.

F R A N W E AV E R

MR BELL was a Fennophile but even he became suspicious. ‘I now had grounds for believing the Finns were playing a cunning game with us, and they were waiting to see how the war went in Norway before parting with our gift to them’. The mission was finally called off because the roads in Norway had become impassable. Men and machine were briefly united when the machine was ‘discovered’ in Turku – but then the men were promptly sent home.

MR BELL’S suspicions that the Finns were waiting to see

which way the wind blows do strike a familiar chord, don’t they?

The handprint signature of an unknown artist from around 5,000 years ago is still clearly visible on the cliffs at Astuvansalmi.

Two set of rock paintings in Kirkkonummi, just 25 km west of Helsinki, are harder to find. Abstract designs on a lakeside cliff at Hvitträsk were first reported to the national antiquities authorities by their discoverer Jean Sibelius. The composer found the paintings while exploring the surroundings of his architect friend Eliel Saarinen’s Hvitträsk home, which today is a museum.

Striking scenes A few miles to the west, a rock face by the shores of Lake Juusjärvi features a lively tableau of ancient images including dancing figures, a large fish approaching a falling man, a curious character with a bird-like head, a line of elk climbing up the cliff and,

most strikingly, the handprints of the artist, reaching out through the millennia.

Finland’s other impressive prehistoric relics include many Bronze Age burial cairns. Such cairns consist of hundreds of large stones piled up over open graves on rocky hilltops, often near the shores of the Baltic Sea. Finland’s best known burial cairns can be seen at the extensive Sammallahdenmäki Bronze Age site near Rauma, on the west coast. This archaeological treasure is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Similar remains of a smaller scale can be seen in the Helsinki district of Meilahti, overlooking the sea at the beginning of Seurasaarentie. An archaeological survey of this cairn revealed charred human bones that had been buried under the stones for some 3000 years. Visiting relics such as these and wondering what they meant to the people at the time is always a thought-provoking experience.

For more information about Finland’s archaeological relics www.nba.fi National Board of Antiquities www.ismoluukkonen.net (enhanced images of rock art) www.suomenmuinaistaideseura.fi Finnish Ancient Art Society (in Finnish only; maps showing locations of sites)

CULTURE

HELSINKI TIMES

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

15

TAT U H I LT U N E N

Robert Burns brings kilts to town The 25th of January is Burns Night, an occasion for every Scot to have a song on the lips, a tear in the eye and a whisky at hand.

L E H T I K U VA / J E F F M I T C H E L L

Kilts are worn with pride to commemorate Scottish national treasure, poet Robbie Burns.

ANTHONY SHAW HEL SINKI TIMES

FOR ALL Scots, there is only one essential national day of celebration (if one excludes the ever-aspired-for day of victory over England in football or rugby), and that is coming soon – 25 January, the anniversary of the birth of their national poet Robert Burns.

Although not such a demonstrative race as their Celtic cousins across the water (remember the St Patrick’s Day Parade last March?), Burns Nights will

be held everywhere that a small clutch of native Scots can find the essential central dish, a haggis, with which to focus their national pride.

Burns himself was the son of a farmer in the southern Scotland. He showed a gift for poetry at an early age, both in English and most famously in the ‘local dialect’, Scots. By the age of 25 he had experienced numerous romantic setbacks that found expression in his writing. By age 30, he was feted throughout his land, from farm labourers to magistrates, with

his poems spreading rapidly when many of his poems were set to music. Having earned something of a reputation for modern style republicanism, Burns finally found happiness in marriage but fell foul of dire economic straights at the end of the century. He died aged 37, on the same day that his first and only child was born.

With a considerable reputation in his lifetime in both Scotland and England, Burns has been taken as an embodiment of the gifted literary poet, who still inspires his people with songs like Auld Lang Syne and Red, Red Rose. On the anniversary of his birth these songs are sung and poetry recited with much the same reverence as the Kalevala is championed by Finns away from their home shore. In Helsinki on 25 January, 100 Finnish–British Society Scots and their friends will celebrate the evening with traditional food and dancing – let’s wish them a traditional Scots Wha Hae (that’s another of Burns’ songs too).

Finland through foreign eyes Kameraseura Gallery celebrates its first anniversary with a photo exhibition showing Finland from an outside perspective.

J U S T I N GO N E Y HEL SINKI TIMES

Wednesday of every month, the Helsinki Camera Club holds its international evening at Kamer-

ON THE FIRST

aseura. The group attracts photographers from a variety of countries and experience levels who discuss techniques, compare prints, visit exhibitions and go out on photography excursions.

D AV I D N AVA R R O

David Navarro’s Agent Orange

To mark the first year of the group’s existence, the group members were given the challenge to shoot with the following instructions: “Expand upon the title theme (‘Finland through Foreign Eyes’) and make it your own.

We’re after photographs that couldn’t have been made by a Finn.”

The current exhibition then is the fruit of this labour, and while the quality of the prints on display varies wildly (mostly owing to the fact that Finland is not always photogenic), there’s no doubt that the participating photographers took the assigned task seriously. There are indeed some excellent images to be seen, most notably the series on “new Finns” (emigrants to Finland).

Kameraseura isn’t easy to find or the most central gallery in Helsinki, but if you have a strong interest in photography this small exhibition is well worth seeking out. Though small in size, it’s big at heart.

Kameraseura Gallery is located at Lastenkodinkuja 1, but to access the gallery you need to enter through Lastenkodinkatu. For more information about the international evening, contact Nikola Ruzickova at international@kameraseura.fi.

Tatu Hiltunen, View (videostill), 2007.

Onscreen civilisation S U S A N F O U R TA N E HEL SINKI TIMES

solo video exhibition Jamais Vu (never seen), often described as the opposite of déjà vu, deals with man in the modern world and his flirtation with art history, nature, society and the feeling of being confined in an open cage.

Action, movement and speed are all trademarks in the artist’s works. Hiltunen discovers and experiments new options for his works while toying with stop-motion animation and frame slowing, the two video techniques he combines with still photographs.

In the animations, Hiltunen is the main character representing the human civilisaTATU HILTUNEN’S

tion of our time. In his work View, we can see how he exposes humanity, science and culture. Being naked symbolises being exposed in the open wild from the position of society. We witness nature and civilisation being divided by a fence, which represents the barrier human beings create themselves.

The exhibition is an exposé of the real human being, free from the cultural influence, a reunion with his true nature and his inner self. It makes us wonder if we are prisoners in our own civilised jail; encapsulated by social rules and laws. It is a journey to consciousness for those interested in exploring a view of humankind. What happens when we do not act in the way society has programmed us?

The viewer can enjoy the works by simply seeing a funny guy doing a boggy dance in his underwear in snowy Lapland during winter; or he can have deeper thoughts about humanity, his relationship with nature, society and himself. “The possibility of people having different views and reactions when seeing my art work makes me happy,” said Hiltunen of his work.

Jamais Vu until 1 Feb open: Tue-Fri 12-17 Sat-Sun 12-16 Photographic Gallery, Hippolyte Studio Kalevankatu 18 B, Helsinki www.hippolyte.fi/studio www.tatuhiltunen.com

Not quite good enough to eat!

Coinciding with the release of their second book The King Nosmo Cookbook, renaissance men Kasper Strömman and Tomas De Rita have assembled an exhibition at Napa Gallery that approaches a less celebrated side of food culture.

J U S T I N GO N E Y HEL SINKI TIMES

“ WE LOVE the visual world surrounding food. We’re not so much after the perfect taste experience as we look for that perfect ice cream wrapper or nice kebab sign...” This excerpt from the The King Nosmo Cookbook’s introduction taps into the duo’s basic knack for finding beauty in the details of commonality. While no one is likely to confuse pizza for haute cuisine or to find airline food appetising, that’s exactly the point. By dropping the pretence of foodsnob culture, King Nosmo shows that the day-to-day food items that we take for granted can be engaging. As the book states, we all have to eat, so the food that we choose is rarely driven by nutritional value alone.

The exhibition Bon Appetit at Napa Gallery complements

it. While the book is a collection of food-related photographs taken from around the world, the exhibition features more traditional mixed-media art. For example, anyone who ever grew up eating here will recognise the Marimekko-esque tableaus for what they are; Finnish (not-so-) favourites such as maksalaatikko (liver casserole) and punajuurisalaatti (beet salad) as served in foil pans like those you buy in the preparedfoods isle at the supermarket.

The pièce de résistance is a giant rotating paper maché döner kebab.

Though the exhibition is small, the works on display are fun, accessible and refreshingly unpretentious.

Bring your appetite.

Bon Appetit until 1 Feb Napa Gallery, Eerikinkatu 18 Open Wed-Fri 12-18 Sat-Sun 12-16 KING NOSMO

16

EAT & DRINK

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

HELSINKI TIMES

SC ANS TOCKPHOTO

cial mention for value for money and amusing spelling mistakes. Apetit and Grandiosa both get a slap on the wrist. I’m off to lie down in a darkened room for a spell.

Pirkka Stone Oven Baked Tuna Pizza (2.49 euros) Available only from K-supermarkets, this pizza has two saving graces – the price and the base, which is actually quite thick and thus doesn’t shatter into a thousand pieces when you eat it. The toppings left a bit to be desired though, and the ‘tuna’ was fish in the same way that sausage is meat. Also, since I don’t have a stone oven, we don’t know why it was stone oven baked, but whatever. 60%

The great pizza challenge In a daring display of altruism, four brave souls put their cholesterol levels and waistlines at risk in a mission to find the best – and worst – of the frozen pizzas.

NICK BARLOW HEL SINKI TIMES

on your budget and culinary expectations, oven-ready pizzas are either a cheap and cheerful hunger satisfier or a travesty of a classic dish. Personally, I veer towards the former category.

Ever since my student days, pizza of one sort or another has practically never left my freezer compartment. For a start, it’s cheap and it’s egalitarian. For a few euros you can have a moderately unhealthy but filling meal, which might not be as fresh as one from a pizzeria but costs probably less than half the price. True veterans are never satisfied with the factory toppings and will always add extra ingredients (they never put olives on it, do they?). The original tomato sauce and base con-

DEPENDING

stituents do lay the foundations for what can either be a tasty supper, or a soul-destroying journey through a mass of leathery cheese and limp dough.

I’m pretty sure there are not many people reading this who have never had frozen pizza, but I bet most people stick with what they know.

The price difference is pretty negligible for the most part, so if you’ve grown up with pizza X, that’s what you’ll stick with.

However, the quality of the products varies dramatically, and in these times of trouble you want to know you’re getting the best price/quality ratio, right? So in the spirit of public service, a crack team of pizza tasters was assembled to bring you, the public, the frozen pizza low-down.

Four of us met on a dark winter’s evening, ready to

throw caution and our cholesterol levels to the wind. A hackneyed journalist (yours truly), a professional wine waiter, a restaurateur, and some bloke who likes pizza.

Names have been withheld to protect the innocent. A short trip to the supermarket later, nine pizzas lay in my kitchen ready for the tasting. Products from as many different companies as possible were chosen, and from all price groups.

A rather complicated scoring system was devised, involving scores for value for money, the base, and the toppings, from which a percentage mark was calculated. Nothing went uneaten and no extra toppings were added. The results are revealed below. Prices were from the stores we bought them in, so may vary.

Opinions are those of the tasters, and theirs alone.

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Rainbow Mozzarella Pizza (2.19 euros) Even cheaper than the Pirkka pizza, Rainbow is another budget brand whose packaging doesn’t exactly inspire confidence, seeming to be the outcome of a brainstorming session among 6year-olds. However, the addition of dollops of pesto to an otherwise run-ofthe-mill product raises it somewhat in our estimation. 58%

Grandiosa Kebab Pizza (3.79 euros) Grandiosa pizzas are some of the most popular on the market, due to brand familiarity more than anything we suspect. This one also says it’s stone-baked on the box, which again makes no sense. Also, according to the packaging, there’s ‘More cheese!

More toppings!’, in which case the original toppings must have been the size of a good meal for a mouse.

OK, it’s not that bad, but who really wants to eat a kebab pizza anyway? 46% So there you have it.

Casa di Mama’s Pizza Diablo wins the eat-off, but Mcennedy earns a spe-

Mcennedy American Style Supreme (3.79 for two) No, the name isn’t a typing error – there really is no ‘K’ in Mcennedy. But despite the bad spelling and the fact that it’s only available from everyone’s favourite budget-tastic German supermarket chain, Lidl, the fat base on this baby actually ended up being, well, light and fluffy. In fact, the base was pretty similar to Pizza Hut bases, so now we know where they source their dough. Otherwise there was a tasty tomato sauce and flavoursome salami, plus you get two of them in a pack. Well worth a go, in other words. 80%

Trattoria Alfredo Parma, Rucola and Parmesan Pizza (4.29 euros) The second Lidl offering likes to think it’s posh, what with the silver and black packaging and little bag of parmesan flakes and Parma ham you’re supposed to put on after the base has cooked. You can see what they’re aiming for, but the weird thing is that the rucola is already on the pizza and so gets cooked in the oven, and baked rucola is not exactly an integral part of any food, we’d imagine. Nice try, but no cigar. 32%

Ristorante Pizza Pollo (2.59 euro) The first of two Dr. Oetker products on review, the

Ristorante pizza is one of Europe’s big sellers, which is no surprise really once you try it. The chicken variant also includes spinach, sweetcorn and some herby cream cheese effort, which works out OK in the end, actually. 70%

Casa di Mama Pizza Diavola (3.29 euros) Dr. Oetker pushes up the price point but also lays on the toppings. It’s not as spicy as you might think, given the name and list of ingredients, but there’s a bit of a kick and the yummy base wins it some plus points, too. We can’t help thinking they could do more with it though – like add olives. 82%

Apetit Frutti di Mare (1.49 euros) The cheapest offering, and it’s easy to see why. Horrible base, horrible toppings; just horrible all round. One of only two we didn’t keep for breakfast. 20%

Grandiosa XXL Pan Pizza (6.99 euros) For seven euros you can get a pizza from a real pizzeria, so for this price the product had better be good. Unfortunately, it wasn’t. Barely bigger than a normal size pizza (meaning XXL for infants, then), this travesty of economics laughs at you as you chew into its dull and unforgiving grotesqueness. Not only that, the meatballs look like rat droppings.

No, no, no. 24%

EAT & DRINK

HELSINKI TIMES RESTAURANTS

RESTAURANTS

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009 RESTAURANTS

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FIRST ORIGINAL NEPALESE RESTAURANT Open: Mon-Fri 11-23, weekends 12-23, Lunch: Mon-Fri 11-15 Contact: Ratakatu 1 b, 00120 Helsinki. www.himalaya.fi Book your table: tel. (09) 647 551, fax. (09) 647 552

FROM MIAMI TO HELSINKI

Time stands still at the Brezhnevian era’s last monument Kafe Moskova, situated in central Helsinki. Cold beer and freezing service.

Open: Mon-Sat 6pm-2am. Sun closed.

New Latino Cuisine Finally in Helsinki!

Korkeavuorenkatu 47 / Etelä Esplanadi, Helsinki tel. 09 678 345 www.nuevolatino.fi

Contact information Eerikinkatu 11, 00100 Helsinki, Finland Tel. +358 9 751 75613 www.andorra.fi

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SHEEP THIEF

Transported to Australia in 1828 for the crime of steeling a sheep, this man was never to see Europe again. Now his descendents are back.

Serving you with criminally good Australian beer, wines and snacks in Helsinki today.

SERVICE BY DESCENDENTS OF CRIMINALS

Open: 14-02 Sunday-Tuesday 12-03 Wednesday-Saturday WHAT’S ON AT THE AUSSIE BAR:

Thursday 22nd- Cocktail Evening with DJ from 9:30pm. Friday & SaturdayMaddness!!!! DJ both nights @ 9:30pm. Sunday 25th- lazy days Wednesday 28th Live Music with Mr Bryn Jones @ 9:30pm.

Keep 26th Jan Monday free- AUSTRALIA DAY kick off 6pm FREE BBQ AND LIVE MUSIC Tel. +358 (0)9 737 373 AUSSIE BAR Come and have Email: aussiebar@aussiebar.net Salomonkatu 5, Kamppi a Tooheys Web: www.aussiebar.net 00100 Helsinki, Finland or two!

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18

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

HELSINKI TIMES Until Sat 7 Feb Tammat A play about women on the brink of a nervous breakdown.

Alexander Theatre, 19:30 Bulevardi 23-27 Tickets €15/10 www.aleksanterinteatteri.fi

The Helsinki Photography Festival

23/24/26/27 Jan Theatre Academy Dance Company Distances, Rough Plan Theatre Academy’s seven talented young dance graduates will perform two new works.

Theatre Academy, 19:00 Haapaniemenkatu 6 Tickets €10/5 www.teak.fi

The Helsinki Photography Festival has its roots in the early 1980s and is the oldest photography festival in Finland. In times when photography was still an art form on the margins, the festival aimed to reach out to a wider audience. Later on, the focus of the festival became clearly directed towards a public that was interested in questions concerning photo-based art.

This year marks the 11th Helsinki Photography Festival, which started on Wednesday 21 January with a four-day opening that includes two main exhibitions, a two-day symposium as well as other exhibitions and happenings at various venues in the Helsinki metropolitan area.

23/24/28 Jan Visible Volumes A dance work choreographed by Mikko Orpana.

Koko Theatre, 19:00 Unioninkatu 45 Tickets €20/12 www.kokoteatteri.fi

The exhibition at The Finnish Museum of Photography houses a set of four personal exhibitions and the other main exhibition Aletheia – Positions in Contemporary Photographies is presented at Meilahti Art Museum, where fundamental questions regarding photographic practices and the photographic medium are revisited and re-examined. In addition to the seminar Knowing Photography, Helsinki Photography Festival also offers guided tours, gallery talks and an opening club at Korjaamo.

Wed 21 Jan to Sun 24 May www.hpf.fi Tel. 09 6123 344

MUSIC Thu 22 Jan UMO Jazz Orchestra A tribute concert to Bob Brookmeyer.

Malmitalo, 19:00 Ala-Malmin tori 1 Tickets €15/10 www.malmitalo.fi Thu 22 & Fri 23 Jan Tapiola Sinfonietta The orchestra will interpret works of Bach, Mozart, Pleyel and Haydn.

Espoo Cultural Center, 19:00 Kulttuuriaukio 2 Tickets €17.50/12/6 www.tapiolasinfonietta.fi Fri 23 & Mon 26 Jan The Talking Drum The new opera production takes children on a musical journey around the world.

Finnish National Opera Helsinginkatu 58 Fri 12:00, Mon 11:00, 13:00 Tickets €9/7 www.operafin.fi

Photographic works of Emily-Jane Major are on display at Meilahti Art Museum.

Sat 24 Jan Regina, Joensuu 1685, Alpo& Tomi The gigs are a part of the Helsinki Documentary Film Festival’s programme.

Gloria Cultural Arena, 21:00 Pieni Roobertinkatu 12 Tickets €10 www.docpoint.info 24/26/28 Jan Daddy’s Girl Daddy’s Girl has been hailed as Kortekangas’ best opera, tapping into the melodic vein of true classic opera.

Finnish National Opera, 19:00 Helsinginkatu 58 Tickets €14-68 www.operafin.fi Sun 25 Jan Volbeat (DEN) Brother Firetribe will be supporting the popular Danish metal band.

Cable Factory, 18:00 Tallberginkatu 1 Tickets €38/35 www.kaapelitehdas.fi

Sat 24 Jan Modern Times Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra accompanies Charlie Chaplin’s silent film.

Finlandia Hall, 15:00 Mannerheimintie 13 E Tickets €18/14/10/6.50 www.yle.fi/rso

Sun 25 Jan Philharmonic Chamber Music Matinees A new series of Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra on Sundays.

Helsinki City Hall, 15:00 Pohjoisesplanadi 11-13 Free entrance www.hel.fi/filharmonia

Hel sinki Travel Tip HELSINKI in Your Mobile Phone Helsinki.mobi A mobile information package about Helsinki, which you can carry around in your pocket. Within the portal you can find all sorts of useful information about Helsinki, from attractions and restaurant guides to city maps and transportation schedules.

Updated event calendar Metropolitan mobile map service Direct click-to-call action Video guide tour of the main attractions in the city Advertising slots for advertisers Supports multiple language selection Images automatically targeted to mobile device

www.helsinki.mobi In cooperation

visit espoo

MORE TIPS FROM

www.visithelsinki.fi

Mon 26 Jan Jill Walsh and Mika Pohjola This duo proudly performs classics that are often forgotten by jazz musicians.

Malmitalo, 19:00 Ala-Malmin tori 1 Tickets €6 www.malmitalo.fi Tue 27 Jan Vuk, Innanen & Kallio Duo Club MauMau offers jazz oriented musical experiences.

ClubLiberté, 20:00 Kolmas linja 34 Tickets €7 www.clubliberte.fi Wed 28 Jan Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra Robert Schumann’s Cello Concer-

to and Symphony No. 3, Arnold Schönberg’s Five Pieces for Orchestra and Paavo Korpijaakko’s Amuse-bouche.

Finlandia Hall, 19:00 Mannerheimintie 13 E Tickets €18/14/10/6.5 www.yle.fi/rso THEATRE AND DANCE 22/23/24/27/28 Jan Sing, Hedda Sing!

The production is a playful combination of theatre, circus, and musical theatre.

Stoa Cultural Centre of Eastern Helsinki, 19:00 Turunlinnantie 1 Tickets €15/10 www.stoa.fi

EXHIBITIONS Until Sun 25 Jan Sándor Vály: Selected Life Paintings, sculptures and video works.

Gallery Huuto Uudenmaankatu 35 Mon-Sun 12:00-18:00 www.galleriahuuto.net Until Sun 25 Jan Tomer Ganihar: Channel of Light The Israeli photographer Tomer Ganihar is interested in the different aspects of light.

Tennis Palace Art Museum Salomonkatu 15 Tue-Sun 11:00-20:30 Tickets €7/5/0 www.taidemuseo.hel.fi Until Sun 25 Jan Teatrip The exhibition concentrates on the rich and colourful history of tea in different parts of the world.

Design Museum of Finland Korkeavuorenkatu 23 Tue 11:00-20:00

Wed-Sun 11:00-18:00 Tickets €7/6/3/0 www.designmuseum.fi Until Sun 1 Feb Drawn in the Clouds The exhibition features Asian contemporary art that focuses on reaching out from the ground to the skies.

Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma Mannerheiminaukio 2 Tue 10:00-17:00 Wed-Sun 10:00-20:30 Tickets €7/5 www.kiasma.fi Until Sun 8 Feb Black and White – Classics of Japanese Photography Depictions of landscapes, urban scenes and everyday life convey the traditional Japanese way of life, as well as changes in Japanese culture.

Ateneum Art Museum Kaivokatu 2 Tue & Fri 09:00-18:00 Wed-Thu 09:00-20:00 Sat-Sun 11:00-17:00 Tickets €8/6.5 www.ateneum.fi Until Sun 8 Feb Visiting – Young Croatian Art Scene The first presentation of Croatian contemporary art in Finland.

Muu Gallery Lönnrotinkatu 33 Tue-Fri 12:00-17:00 Sat-Sun 12:00-16:00 Free entrance www.muu.fi Until Sun 8 Feb Jenni Hiltunen Make Your Own Paintings The exhibition by Jenni Hiltunen is an entity of paintings and video.

Korjaamo Culture Factory Töölönkatu 51 Mon-Sun 11:00-17:00 Tickets €12 www.korjaamo.fi Wed 28 Jan to Sun 15 Feb Maria Wolfram: Paintings The main theme in Wolfram’s paintings is female identity. tm•gallery Erottajankatu 9B Tue-Fri 11:00-17:00 Sat 11:00-16:00 Sun 12:00-16:00 www.artists.fi/painters/tmgalleria Thu 22 Jan to Sun 24 May Tensions of Space Mohamed Bourouissa’s, Sini Pelkki’s, Carrie Schneider’s and Sauli Sirviö’s solo exhibitions.

The Finnish Museum of Photography Tallberginkatu 1 G Tue-Sun 11:00-18:00 Tickets €6/4/0 www.fmp.fi OTHERS Sun 25 Jan Chinese New Year Welcome the Year of the Ox with a parade starting from the Railwaystation at 13:45, enjoy the dancers and acrobats at Lasipalatsi square and Chinese fireworks over Töölönlahti at 18:15.

Lasipalatsi square Mannerheimintie 22 14:00-18:00 Free entrance www.kiinalainenvuosi.fi Wed 28 Jan to Sun 1 Feb Disney on Ice A magnificent show and loved Disney characters.

Hartwall Arena Tickets €18-42 www.hartwall-areena.com

solution sudoku

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

HELSINKI TIMES

thursday TV1 09:30 Down to Earth 11:05 News in English 11:10 Born and Bred 14:30 Doctors 15:05 Coronation Street 17:08 Born and Bred 22:40 Life Isn’t All Ha Ha Hee Hee SERIES ENDS Part 3/3. Chila’s child is born. Will Tania’s friends ever trust her again?

23:40 Coal Miner’s Daughter FILM Loretta Lynn, originally from a small mining community in Kentucky, achieved great success as a country singer.

Directed by Michael Apted.

Starring: Sissy Spacek, Tommy Lee Jones. USA 1980.

Coal Miner’s Daughter.

T V1 at 23:40

TV2 06:50 Pikku Kakkonen Cartoons for children in Finnish. 07:55 The Moomins.

10:35 Happy Days 11:05 Camilla Plum – Boller af Stål 11:35 Plus belle la vie 12:00 Junk Brothers 12:50 Derrick 15:50 Figure Skating SPORT Ice dancing. European Championships. Commentary in Finnish.

17:00 The Secret World of Benjamin Bear 18:00 Biathlon World Cup SPORT Women’s 7,5 km. Commentary in Finnish.

19:20 Cooking the World 20:10 Die Kommissarin 21:00 Figure Skating SPORT Men’s free programme.

European Championships.

Commentary in Finnish.

22:05 Figure Skating SPORT Men’s free programme.

European Championships.

Commentary in Finnish.

23:55 David Nolande

YLE TEEMA 17:00 Around the World in 80 Treasures DOC From Australia to Angkor Wat. 19:05 SOAP 20:30 Everest ER DOC 21:00 The Genius of Charles Darwin DOC 21:50 Takva FILM Movie about a man’s relationship with God. Directed by Özer Kiziltan. Starring: Erkan Can, Güven Kiraç.

Turkey 2006.

friday

22.1.

MTV3

NELONEN

09:35 The Young and the Restless 10:20 Emmerdale 10:45 Emmerdale 12:15 Who’ll Age Worst 12:40 David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 13:05 Honey I Ruined the House 13:30 The Bold and the Beautiful

Footsteps.

MT V3 at 23:30 14:30 New Adventures of Old Christine 15:00 Men in Trees 17:00 The Bold and the Beautiful 17:30 Emmerdale 18:00 Emmerdale 21:00 ER People try to come terms with the death of a colleague.

22:30 Closer 23:30 Footsteps FILM Successful novelist meets a young admirer. Directed

by John Badham. Starring: Candice Bergen, Michael Murphy, Bryan Brown. USA 2003.

01:15 Unit

SUB 07:00 Cartoons for Children In Finnish. 07:00 Tractor Tom, 07:10 Jim Jam and Sunny, 07:35 Batman.

11:25 Sturm der Liebe 12:45 Holiday Showdown 15:35 How I Met Your Mother 16:00 Stacked 16:30 E! Entertainment: Behind the Scenes 17:00 E! Entertainment: Snoop Dogg’s Fatherhood 18:05 Sturm der Liebe 19:00 My name is Earl 19:30 Will & Grace 20:00 Friends 20:30 Simpsons 21:00 Top Chef 23:00 Supernatural Woman tells Sam he is going to die in an explosion.

00:00 Late Night with Conan O’Brien 01:05 Génesis

07:00 Cartoons for Children In Finnish. 07:00 Disney’s the Replacements, 07:25 Tutenstein, 07:50 Charlie & Mimmo.

08:00 Big Day 09:00 Come Dine with Me 09:30 Birth Stories 10:00 10 Years Younger USA 10:30 Staying Put 13:00 Birth Days 13:30 Diva on a Dime 14:00 Staying Put 14:30 Come Dine With Me 15:00 Dr. Phil 16:05 Days of Our Lives 17:00 Kyle XY A dead body is discovered in the vicinity of where Kyle was found.

18:00 Talent USA 20:00 Stylista 21:00 Criminal Minds Agents hunt for a serial killer, who reports his victims missing before kidnapping and murdering them.

22:00 Breaking Bad Walter tells his family about his illness.

23:30 Frasier Sam dumps Frasier.

00:00 The Office Fire erupts in the office kitchen.

JIM 15:30 Stunt Junkies 16:00 Amazing Adventures of a Nobody 16:25 Design Remix 16:50 Trigged Out 17:15 Jimmy Kimmel Live!

18:00 Banzuke 18:30 Amazing Adventures of a Nobody Leon is heading for Bristol and tries to hitch a ride on a riverboat.

19:00 DIY Tools & Techniques 19:30 Save My Bath 20:00 Perfect Weapon Can an axe beat a sword?

21:00 Digging for the Truth: Terror in the Mediterranean DOC Pirates were the scourge of the Mediterranean in the 16th century. Hunter Ellis looks at how they operated.

22:00 Contender 23:00 Jimmy Kimmel Live!

23:50 Modern Marvels: Tobacco DOC 00:45 Mastermind (CERT 15)

SELECTION OF ENGLISH PROGRAMMES ON FINNISH TELEVISION 23.1.

TV1

MTV3

09:30 Down to Earth 11:05 News in English 11:10 Born and Bred 14:30 Doctors 15:05 Coronation Street Amber doesn’t want to move to Finland.

17:08 Born and Bred 19:00 Heartbeat Small step for mankind.

22:00 The Street Part 2/18. Brian is compromised in a park and fears for his reputation.

23:50 William & Mary

TV2 06:50 Pikku Kakkonen Cartoons for children in Finnish.

11:05 World Café Asia 11:30 Little House on the Prairie 12:50 Derrick 15:05 Yle Live: Bon Jovi 16:00 Figure Skating SPORT Women’s short programme.

European Championships.

Commentary in Finnish.

18:20 Biathlon World Cup SPORT Men’s 10 km. Commentary in Finnish.

20:00 Figure Skating SPORT Ice dancing. European Championships. Commentary in Finnish.

21:00 Eurovision 2009 Who will go on to represent Finland in the Eurovision 2009 song contest?

The third elimination round.

Commentary in Finnish.

22:05 Figure Skating SPORT Ice dancing. European Championships. Commentary in Finnish.

00:00 Sin City Law (CERT15)

Alias.

T V VIISI at 21:00

The Annual Music Massacre Part 1 NICK BARLOW

Yes, it’s that time of year again: Eurovision fever is gripping the country. Since 1961 Finland has entered the Eurovision song contest 42 times and, as you probably know, finally won the competition in 2006 thanks to the weird rock band Lordi and their comedy pantomime entry Hard Rock Hallelujah. Before this victory we were considered to be the perennial underachievers of the competition, having placed last eight times and received the dreaded “nul points” three times. This never stopped the public from getting

NELONEN

09:35 The Young and the Restless 10:20 Emmerdale 10:45 Emmerdale 12:15 Who’ll Age Worst 12:40 David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 13:05 How Clean Is Your House?

13:30 The Bold and the Beautiful 14:30 Still Standing 17:00 The Bold and the Beautiful 17:30 Emmerdale 18:00 Emmerdale 21:00 Without a Trace Jack and Sam travel to Los Angeles to find a missing man.

22:40 X-Men FILM Xavier’s superheroes go against Magneto’s mutants.

Directed by Bryan Singer.

Starring: Patrick Stewart, Hugh Jackman. USA 2000.

00:40 Smallville

SUB 07:00 Cartoons for Children In Finnish. 07:00 Tractor Tom, 07:10 Jim Jam and Sunny, 07:35 Animaniacs.

11:25 Sturm der Liebe 15:35 How I Met Your Mother 16:00 Stacked 16:30 E! Entertainment: E! News Weekend 18:05 Sturm der Liebe 19:00 My Name is Earl 19:30 Will & Grace 20:00 Friends 20:30 Simpsons 22:10 Bones Archbishop is found dead on a construction site.

23:05 C.S.I. Elderly woman drives her Jaguar into a restaurant.

00:00 Late Night with Conan O’Brien 01:25 Katie & Peter – The Next Chapter

YLE TEEMA 18:15 Dan Cruickshank’s Adventures in Architecture SERIES BEGINS. Part 1/8.

Professor Cruickshank takes a look at architectural masterpieces.

20:00 Forsyte Saga Part 2/13. Irene agrees to marry Soames and June is engaged to Philip Bosinney.

22:15 Julius Caesar FILM Adaptation of a play by Shakespeare. Directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz. Starring: Marlon Brando, John Gielgud, James Mason. USA 1952.

TV VIISI 18:00 Home and Away 18:30 Fresh Prince of Bel Air 19:00 America’s Funniest Home Videos 19:30 America’s Funniest Home Videos 20:00 Scrubs 20:00 Scrubs 21:00 Alias 22:00 GSG 9 – Die Elite Einheit

19

Julius Caesar.

YLE TEEMA at 22:15

excited about the contest itself, it just gave the Swedes another excuse to snigger at their lowly neighbours. In Sweden the competition to select the country’s entry is practically bigger than the Eurovision final itself, with huge crowds of screaming blondes working themselves into a frenzy over the latest in Nordic Euro-pap.

Anyway, as far as this country is concerned, YLE seems to be attempting to emulate the Swedish level of hysteria and looks determined to cash in on Lordi’s success for as long as possible. These days the selection process for Finland’s entry drags interminably onwards over three ‘semi’-finals, the last of which is broadcast live the day after this newspaper comes out. In each of these shows, two of four entries are selected to progress to the ‘grand’ finale where Finland’s

Addicted to Love.

T V VIISI at 20:00

TV VIISI 18:00 Home and Away 18:30 Fresh Prince of Bel Air 19:00 America’s Funniest Home Videos 19:30 America’s Funniest Home Videos 20:00 Addicted to Love FILM Sam chases his ex-girlfriend to New York. Directed

by Griffin Dunne. Starring: Matthew Broderick, Tcheky Karyo. USA 1997.

22:00 The Friday Night Project 22:30 Minor Accomplishments of Jackie Woodman

ultimate representative will be chosen. The weird thing is that, unlike in, say, the UK, where the Eurovision song contest is regarded with detached bemusement and the country’s representatives have almost all descended swiftly into musical obscurity, people in this country actually love this crap.

This year we have truly bizarre entries, featuring the weirdest and worst musical cross-genres that you could think of. For example, we have tracks ranging from a terrible faux classical/ hip-hop entry from the entirely untalented Kwan, via utterly predictable euro-dance rubbish from Waldo’s People, to an entry from Hurriganes drummer Remu, who describes his own entry as ‘tango-rock’. There’s also a mixture of English and Finnishlanguage entries. The Finnish ones are probably better, since

07:00 Cartoons for Children In Finnish. 07:00 Disney’s the Replacements, 07:25 Tutenstein, 07:50 Charlie & Mimmo.

08:00 Big Day 09:00 Come Dine with Me 09:30 Birth Stories 10:00 Diva on a Dime 10:30 Staying Put 13:00 Birth Stories 13:30 What Women Really Want 14:00 Selling Houses 14:30 Come Dine with Me 15:00 Dr. Phil 16:05 Days of Our Lives Sami tries to get to make it to the wedding.

17:00 Kyle XY Kyle is confused by his feelings for Amanda.

18:00 Talent USA Watch David Hasselhoff gape at a pig that paints.

21:00 Big Momma’s House FILM Malcolm Turner takes the guise of Big Momma to catch a criminal. Directed by Raja Gosnell. Starring: Martin Lawrence, Nia Long, Paul Giamatti, Terrence Howard.

USA 2000.

Big Momma's House.

NELONEN at 21:00 23:25 Tudors Henry chases Anne Boleyn with increased vigour.

00:35 Contract Killer (CERT15) FILM Yakuza boss is murdered and his family offers a whopping $100 million for the man who finds the killer. Variety of contract killers crawl out of the woodwork. Directed

by Wei Tung. Starring: Jet Li, Simon Yam, Eric Tsang, Gigi Leung. Hong Kong 1998.

JIM 15:30 Stunt Junkies 16:00 Amazing Adventures of a Nobody 16:25 DIY Tools & Techniques 16:50 Save My Bath 17:15 Jimmy Kimmel Live!

18:00 Canadian Sportsfishing 18:30 Skier’s World 19:00 DIY to the Rescue 19:30 Carter Can 20:00 Police Interceptors 21:00 Parole Board (CERT 15) DOC 22:00 Miami Ink 23:00 Banzuke 23:30 Banzuke 00:00 Most Daring Rescues 01:00 Jimmy Kimmel Live!

01:45 Jimmy Kimmel Live!

the lyrics tend to make sense.

The English-language entries are appalling for the most part but do have the advantage of being potentially understandable by the rest of Europe, the French excepted.

Either way, comprehensible lyrics are not really a necessity for triumph in the Eurovision song contest – just look at last year’s winner: the Russian entry ‘Believe’ sung by Dima Bilan. His victory can probably be attributed to the theatrics that accompanied his performance, in much the same way that Lordi’s success was not due to the fact that their song was good, but because they were the only act to have fireworks on stage. Mind you, if you actually care about this competition, the chances are you don’t really like music anyway.

TV2 at 21:00 Fri

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

saturday TV1

HELSINKI TIMES

sunday

24.1.

MTV3

14:10 14:40 16:00 18:20 19:45

Keeping Up Appearances Los Serrano Holby City Mumbai Calling Monk Monk meets his father for the first time in 40 years.

22:30 Lucky Louie (CERT15) Louie goes out drinking leaving Kim to take care of Lucy, who’s sick.

22:55 The Thick of It 23:25 Medea

TV2 07:45 Pikku Kakkonen Cartoons for children in Finnish. 10:00 The Moomins.

10:55 Cross country skiing World Cup SPORT Women’s 10 km. Commentary in Finnish.

10:55 Cross country skiing World Cup SPORT Men’s 15 km. Commentary in Finnish.

14:50 Figure Skating SPORT Women’s free programme.

European Championships.

Commentary in Finnish.

20:50 Der Alte 22:35 The New World FILM Europeans meet Americans in 1607. Directed by Terrence Mallick. Starring: Colin Farrell, Christopher Plummer. USA 2005.

00:50 The Border 01:35 Yle Live: Glastonbury 2007

YLE TEEMA 11:00 12:00 15:55 19:10

Cidade dos Homens El sastre DOC Everest ER DOC Prestuplenie i nakazanie (Crime and Punishment) Part 2/8. Raskolnikov is ordered to report to the police station. In Russian.

20:05 Dan Cruickshank’s Adventures in Architecture Part 2/8. Professor Cruickshank visits an extraordinary Czech chapel, a Mayan pyramid and a cemetery in Genova.

21:55 The Pianist (CERT15) FILM The story of Wladyslaw Szpilman, who survived the terrors of WWII. Directed by Roman Polanski. Starring: Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann. France/Germany/ UK 2002.

00:20 The Bullshit Detectives

Dora The Explorer.

MT V3 at 08:40

NELONEN

08:00 Cartoons for Children 07:55 Dora The Explorer, 08:25 Viva Piñata, 08:40 Powerpuff Girls, 09:05 Pokémon, 09:30 Zorro, 09:55 Woody Woodpecker.

In Finnish.

10:25 Hannah Montana 12:55 Move On! Storming the Gate DOC 15:10 Kangaroo Jack FILM Two friends deliver a pile of mob money to Australia.

All goes well until a kangaroo steals the cash. Directed

by David McNally. Starring: Jerry O’Connell, Anthony Anderson, Estella Warren, Christopher Walken.

11:30 13:00 13:30 14:30 15:30 16:00 16:35

Volvo Ocean Race Gay, Straight or Taken 3 lbs Animal Crack-ups Everybody Loves Raymond Everybody Loves Raymond For da Love of Money FILM Dre Mitchell comes into money and his life changes. Directed by Pierre Edwards, Mike Williams. Starring: Pierre Edwards, Sacha Kemp. USA 2002.

18:30 America’s Next Top Model 20:00 American Gladiators 21:00 Identity (CERT15) FILM Ten strangers end up stranded in a motel in Nevada.

One of them is a murderer.

Directed by James Mangold.

Starring: John Cusack, Ray Liotta. USA 2003.

23:15 Las Vegas 00:55 Auto Focus (CERT15) FILM Actor leads a double life in 1960s America. Directed

by Paul Schrader. Starring: Greg Kinnear, Willem Dafoe USA 2002.

Kangaroo Jack.

MT V3 at 15:10

JIM 11:05 Hooked on Fishing 11:30 House Hunters International 11:55 Amazing Adventures of a Nobody 12:20 Amazing Adventures of a Nobody 12:45 Good Eats 13:10 Stuntdawgs 13:40 Human Weapon – Krav Maga 14:30 Dangerous Encounters 15:25 America: The Wright Way 16:20 Canadian Sportfishing 16:45 Skier’s World 17:10 DIY to the Rescue 17:35 Carter Can 18:00 Hidden Potential 18:30 Ace of Cakes 19:00 Rip + Renew 19:30 Dream Builders 20:00 Border Security 20:30 Crime Museum: Jack the Ripper 21:00 The Final Report: Oklahoma City Bombing DOC Timothy McVeigh planned and executed an attack, which claimed 168 lives.

22:00 Crime Scene Academy (CERT15) 22:30 America’s Dumbest 23:00 Banzuke 00:00 Most Shocking (CERT 15) 01:00 Fifth Gear 01:30 Jimmy Kimmel Live!

16:55 Star Wars: The Clone Wars 17:55 Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares 21:00 Survivor 22:25 Biker Boyz FILM Young guns challenge veterans in biker flick.

Directed by Reggie Rock Bythewood. Starring: Laurence Fishburne, Derek Luke, Kid Rock, Meagan Good. USA 2003.

00:25 Mystére

SUB 12:35 Mad T V 13:25 Mad T V 14:40 E! Entertainment: How Do I Look 15:35 E! Entertainment: The Big Party Plan-Off 16:30 World’s Greenest Homes 17:00 Instant Star 17:30 Office Monkey 18:00 American Idol 21:00 C.S.I. Miami 22:00 Most Haunted 00:30 Murder (CERT15) 01:25 Stargate SG1 02:15 X Files

TV VIISI 18:00 Home and Away 18:30 Fresh Prince of Bel Air 19:00 America’s Funniest Home Videos 19:30 America’s Funniest Home Videos 21:00 The 13th Warrior FILM Arab poet sent to the Ultima Thule ends up fighting monsters. Directed by John Mc Tiernan. Starring Antonio Banderas, Vladimir Kulich.

USA 1999.

LIVE SPORT Saturday 24.1.

14:35 Hartlepool-West Ham, FA Cup (U) 19:10 Manchester United-Tottenham, FA Cup (U) 19:25 MODO-Linköping, Elitserien (C+S1) 20:40 PSV-NAC Breda, Eredivisie (C+SE) 21:25 Juventus-Fiorentina, Serie A (C+S2) 23:00 Barcelona-Numancia, La Liga (U+) Sunday 25.1.

15:25 Cardiff City-Arsenal, FA Cup (U) 15:25 FC Groningen-Ajax, Eredivisie (C+S2) 15:55 Napoli-Roma, Serie A (C+S1) 15:55 Lazio-Cagliari, Serie A (C+SE) 17:55 Liverpool-Everton, FA Cup (U) 21:25 Inter-Sampdoria, Serie A (C+S1) 21:55 Real Madrid-Deportivo, La Liga (U) Tuesday 27.1.

18:30 Lukko-Blues, SM-liiga (C+S1) 20:00 Skellefteå-Färjestad, Elitserien (C+S1) 21:40 WBA-Manchester United, Premierleague (C+S2) 21:55 Portsmouth-Aston Villa, Premierleague (C+S1) 21:55 Tottenham-Stoke, Premierleague (C+SE) C+ S1/2/E = Canal+ Sport1/2/Extra, U(+) = Urheilukanava(+)

The New World.

T V2 at 22:35

L E H T I K U VA / R E U T E R S / T O B Y M E LV I L L E

20

SELECTION OF ENGLISH PROGRAMMES ON FINNISH TELEVISION 25.1.

TV1

MTV3

14:40 Los Serrano 17:08 Gilmore Girls Lorelai raises eyebrows at her daughter’s school.

22:15 Nesser’s Van Veeteren (CERT15) 23:00 Absolutely Fabulous Patsy hangs out with Erin O’Connor.

TV2 07:45 Pikku Kakkonen Cartoons for children in Finnish. 10:00 The Moomins.

11:25 Little House on the Prairie 12:50 Cross country skiing World Cup SPORT Men’s and women’s sprint.

Commentary in Finnish.

14:30 Biathlon World Cup SPORT Women’s 12,5 km. Commentary in Finnish.

15:15 Biathlon World Cup SPORT Men’s 15 km. Commentary in Finnish.

16:15 Figure Skating SPORT Final show. European Championships. Commentary in Finnish.

19:10 Tom & Thomas FILM Twins live in the same city oblivious of each other until an adventure brings them together. Directed by Esme Lammers. Starring: Sean Bean, Aaron Johnson. UK 2002.

Tom & Thomas.

T V1 at 19:10 21:00 Elisa di Rivombrosa 23:35 Skithouse

YLE TEEMA 10:10 Prestuplenie i nakazanie (Crime and Punishment) 11:05 Cuéntame cómo pasó 12:10 Old Curiosity Shop 14:55 The Genius of Charles Darwin DOC 15:45 SOAP 16:10 Forsyte Saga Part 2/13. Irene agrees to marry Soames and June is engaged to Philip Bosinney.

18:00 Shadow of a Doubt FILM Young woman begins to think her uncle could be a murderer. Directed by Alfred Hitchcock. Starring: Teresa Wright, Joseph Cotton. USA 1943.

21:50 Brando DOC Part 2/3. Marlon Brando was an influential actor.

23:35 Rock Album Classics The Grateful Dead: From Anthem to Beauty 1968-1970.

Shadow of a Doubt Charlie, an innocent but bored teenager lives with her emotionally fragile and neurotic mother in Santa Rosa, a prototype peaceful pre-war American small town. Her life is given a jolt when she hears that her uncle, who she adores and after whom she was named, is coming to town for a visit. Charlie’s happiness is shortlived, however, when the police tell her that they suspect Uncle Charlie to be the “Merry Widow Murderer”, a serial killer. Charlie grows suspicious and confronts her uncle, who admits that he is the killer, but pleads with his niece not to reveal his secret because it would put him in jail and destroy his sister. Charlie agrees, thus putting herself in harm’s way. Classic Hitchcockian suspense all the way.

Yle Teema at 18:00 Sun

NELONEN

07:40 Cartoons for Children 07:40 Tractor Tom, 08:05 Pokémon, 08:30 Transformers Animated, 08:55 Batman. In Finnish.

12:25 According to Jim 12:55 FIS Alpine Ski World Cup SPORT Women’s giant slalom. Commentary in Finnish.

14:10 FIS Alpine Ski World Cup SPORT Men’s slalom. Commentary in Finnish.

15:10 Analyze That FILM Therapist is in trouble with his mob boss client. Directed by Harold Ramis. Starring: Robert De Niro, Billy Crystal. USA 2003.

17:00 Candid Camera 17:25 Simpsons 21:00 Amazing Race 22:35 In Plain Sight 23:30 K-Ville

SUB 10:00 Cow & Chicken 10:30 Futurama 11:00 Family Guy 11:30 King of the Hill 12:00 Office Monkey 12:30 Dog the Bounty Hunter 13:00 Instant Star 13:30 Xena: Warrior Princess 14:30 Pepper Dennis 15:30 Holiday Showdown 16:30 Hot Properties 17:00 Candid Camera 17:30 Commercial Breakdown 18:00 American Idol 20:00 Peep Show 20:35 Peep Show 22:05 Entourage 22:40 Sleeping with my Sister DOC British documentary takes a look at this taboo subject.

00:30 Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps 01:05 Supernatural

TV VIISI 18:00 Home and Away 18:30 Fresh Prince of Bel Air 19:00 Taking Care of Business FILM Convict wants to see a baseball game, regardless of the costs. Directed by Arthur Hiller. Starring: James Belushi, Charles Grodin. USA 1990.

21:00 Farscape 22:00 Paranormal State 22:30 The Friday Night Project

Farscape.

T V VIISI at 21:00

09:00 Jamie at Home 09:30 Colin & Justin’s Home Heist 10:30 Jeff Corwin Experience 11:30 The Most Extreme 12:35 Dr. Phil 13:30 Frasier Four episodes of Frasier.

15:30 Whistler Carrie has problems with her father and so does Griff.

16:25 Wildfire Accident leaves Kris feeling guilty.

17:20 Brainiac: Science Abuse Where does navel lint come from?

18:15 My Dad is Better than Your Dad 21:00 Big Momma’s House 2 FILM Malcolm Turner has to go undercover to catch a computer criminal. Directed by John Whitesell. Starring: Martin Lawrence, Nia Long, Emily Procter. USA 2006.

23:25 Lost (CERT15) Sayid comes face to face with Ben’s spy.

In Plain Sight.

MT V3 at 22:35

JIM 10:00 24 Hour Design 10:55 Hooked on Fishing 11:20 House Hunters International 11:45 Amazing Adventures of a Nobody 12:10 Amazing Adventures of a Nobody 12:35 Corkscrewed 13:00 Mighty Movers 13:55 Flip This House 14:45 A Bikeography 15:10 Wheeler Dealers 15:35 Celebrity Rides 16:05 Kings of Construction 17:00 Digging for the truth: Terror in the Mediterranean DOC 18:00 Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern 19:00 Cooked 19:30 My Country, My Kitchen 20:00 Destination Truth Josh visits a haunted mosque in Malesia.

21:00 Biography: Barack Obama DOC In-depth look at the world’s most powerful man.

22:00 Crime Investigation Australia SERIES BEGINS. Serial killer targets elderly women in Sydney.

23:30 Contender 00:30 Parole Board (CERT15)

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

HELSINKI TIMES

monday TV1

MTV3

09:30 Down to Earth Sarah's friend arrives in Silverdale but Faith is suspicious.

11:05 YLE News 11:10 Peak Practice Will and Sarah's son ends up in hot water. Will that keep the two out of each other's throats?

14:30 Doctors Helen and Marc are en route to reconciliation.

15:05 Coronation Street Ashley and Matt fight it off in court.

17:08 Peak Practice Jack has to be the bearer of bad news.

23:45 Japan’s About-Face DOC Japan’s defense budget is the fifth largest in the world and the nation can boast its own aircraft carrier.

TV2 06:50 Pikku Kakkonen Cartoons for children in Finnish.

08:50 Vets in Practice 10:20 Plus belle la vie 11:35 Supernanny 12:20 Eurovision 2009 Who will go on to represent Finland in the Eurovision 2009 song contest? Commentary in Finnish.

13:10 Der Alte 14:40 Elisa di Rivombrosa 16:10 McLeod’s Daughters 18:05 Schwarzwaldklinik 20:20 Sky Cops London’s flying police play cat and mouse with a gang of youths.

22:05 The Border Three US Army soldiers flee to Canada to seek asylum.

22:50 Third Watch Yokas and Bosco try to find a young boy. Sully prepares to talk about Tatjana’s past.

YLE TEEMA 19:00 Cuéntame cómo pasó 21:00 Rock Album Classics The Band: The Band 1969.

22:00 Tui Shou (Pushing Hands) FILM Taiwanese gay man living in Manhattan marries his female subtenant. Comedy directed by Ang Lee. Starring: Winston Gao, May Chin, Mitchell Lichtenstein. USA/ Taiwan 1993.

09:35 The Young and the Restless 10:20 Emmerdale 10:45 Emmerdale 12:15 Who’ll Age Worst 12:40 David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 13:05 Honey I Ruined the House 13:30 The Bold and the Beautiful 14:30 Two and a Half Men 15:00 L.A. Law 17:00 The Bold and the Beautiful 17:30 Emmerdale 18:00 Emmerdale 21:00 Life Man is shot dead and everybody tells a different story.

22:30 Fringe Strange metal object causes an explosion on a construction site.

23:30 Psych 00:35 Survivor

SUB

NELONEN 07:00 Cartoons for Children In Finnish. 07:00 Disney’s the Replacements, 07:25 Tutenstein, 07:50 Charlie & Mimmo.

08:00 10 Items or Less SERIES BEGINS. Leslie returns to Ohio to run the family grocery store.

09:00 Come Dine With Me 09:30 Birth Days 10:00 What Women Really Want 10:30 Selling Houses 13:00 Baby Squad 13:30 10 Years Younger USA 14:00 Open House 14:30 Come Dine With Me 15:00 Dr. Phil 16:05 Days of Our Lives This wedding will not go without a hitch.

17:00 Kyle XY It’s Kyle’s first day at school and the Tragers get a suspicious visitor.

07:00 Cartoons for Children In Finnish. 07:00 Tractor Tom, 07:10 Jim Jam and Sunny, 07:35 Animaniacs.

11:25 Sturm der Liebe 15:35 How I Met Your Mother 16:00 Stacked 16:30 E! Entertainment: Television Special 17:00 Commercial Breakdown 18:05 Sturm der Liebe 19:00 My Name Is Earl 19:30 Will & Grace 20:00 Friends 20:30 Simpsons

Airline. T V VIISI 20:00 21:00 Planet of the Apes FILM Captain Leo Davidson crashes on a planet where apes keep humans as slaves.

Directed by Tim Burton.

Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Tim Roth, Michael Clarke Duncan, Kris Kristoffersson.

USA 2001.

23:15 E! Entertainment: Pam: Girl on the Loose SERIES BEGINS. Pam plans moving into a new home.

23:45 Sleeping with my Sister DOC 00:45 Late Night with Conan O’Brien 01:40 E-Ring

TV VIISI

Talent USA. NELONEN at 18:00

tuesday

26.1.

18:00 Home and Away 18:30 Fresh Prince of Bel Air 19:00 America’s Funniest Home Videos 20:00 Airline 20:30 Big Spender 21:00 Intervention 22:00 The People Watchers

TV1

TV2 Weeds.

NELONEN at 22:35 18:00 Talent USA 20:00 Ugly Betty 21:00 Desperate Housewives Bree meets her future sonin-law’s mother and the claws come out. Susan goes wild in a gay bar.

22:00 Californication (CERT15) 22:35 Weeds (CERT15) Nancy gets into a jam with a latino gang.

23:30 Frasier Misunderstandings threaten the Crane family Christmas.

00:00 Day Break

JIM 15:25 Stunt Junkies 15:55 Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern 16:45 Ultimate Gambler 17:10 Cooked 17:35 My Country, My Kitchen 18:00 Banzuke 18:30 Amazing Adventures of a Nobody 19:00 Cool Tools 19:30 Hidden Potential 20:00 Most Daring Rescues 21:00 Single Subject: Deadly Deception: The Mark (CERT15) DOC 22:30 Speeders 23:00 Jimmy Kimmel Live!

23:50 Biography: Barack Obama DOC 00:45 Extreme Evidence (CERT15)

27.1.

SELECTION OF ENGLISH PROGRAMMES ON FINNISH TELEVISION

MTV3

09:30 Down to Earth 11:05 YLE News 11:10 Peak Practice 14:30 Doctors Faith gets into trouble when she divulges too much information to a patient’s daughter.

15:05 Coronation Street Steve helps Kelly and goes from bad to worse. Ronnie screws up in traffic.

17:08 Peak Practice Alice loses a dear friend.

19:00 Last of the Summer Wine Tom and Smiler go on blind dates. Truly meets his exwife’s new husband.

21:00 Sense and Sensibility SERIES BEGINS. Part 1/3.

Mr. Dashwood’s death puts his daughters in a difficult situation.

21:55 In Treatment SERIES BEGINS. Part 1/43.

Laura talks about her relationship.

22:23 In Treatment Alex, a fighter pilot, ponders returning to Iraq.

22:55 The Street Part 3/18. Brian is compromised in a park and fears for his reputation.

06:50 Pikku Kakkonen Cartoons for children in Finnish.

10:35 Happy Days 11:00 Kylie Kwong: My China 11:30 Animal Hospital 12:00 Vroom Vroom 16:10 McLeod’s Daughters Jodi has found a pair of handcuffs that seem to bring bad luck. Tayler is worried when Regan doesn’t come home.

22:05 The Big Red One (CERT15) FILM Five American soldiers wreak havoc in Europe and Africa. Directed by Samuel Fuller. Starring: Lee Marvin, Mark Hamill, Robert Carradine, Bobby Di Cicco. USA 1980.

00:35 Skithouse

NELONEN

09:35 The Young and the Restless 10:20 Emmerdale 10:45 Emmerdale 12:15 Just for Laughs Gags 12:40 David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 13:05 Honey, I Ruined the House 13:30 The Bold and the Beautiful 14:30 Alf 15:00 Windfall

The Big Red One. T V2 at 22:05 17:00 The Bold and the Beautiful 17:30 Emmerdale 18:00 Emmerdale 20:00 Private Practice 21:00 Lipstick Jungle Nico attempts to dump Kirby 22:30 C.S.I. New York 23:30 C.S.I. New York 00:30 Man Stroke Woman

YLE TEEMA 19:00 Cidade dos Homens 19:35 Little Mosque on the Prairie Formation of the world’s first islamic curling team.

Planet of the Apes

Sense and Sensibility

Astronaut Leo Davidson, portrayed by Mark Wahlberg, gets lost in an electromagnetic storm and ends up crashing on a planet controlled by apes, who keep humans as slaves.

Davidson is captured and sold to a female chimpanzee named Ari, who is critical of the way that apes treat humans. Ari quickly falls in love with our hero, as does a beautiful slave girl named Daena. With two females of different species in love with her, Leo wastes no time in promptly starting a rebellion. This puts him on a collision course with General Thade and Colonel Attar, two ruthless military leaders bent on controlling the ape civilization. Planet of the Apes is an excellent dystopia with some surprising twists.

Elinor and Marianne are cast into financial uncertainty with their father’s death because the sole heir to the family property is their brother, John. The girls are quickly made by John and her nasty wife Fanny to feel like unwelcome guests in their own home, and have to begin searching for a new one. They move to a small cottage on the estate of a distant relative to start their new life. Sense and Sensibility rotates around Elinor’s and Marianne’s different personalities, with Elinor being the older, more sensible one, and Marianne the frivolous one. Their romantic involvements mirror this difference and Austen, a Victorian through and through, makes clear which approach to love is better in her opinion.

Sub at 21:00 Mon

TV1 at 21:00 Tue

07:00 Cartoons for Children In Finnish. 07:00 Disney’s the Replacements, 07:25 Tutenstein, 07:50 Charlie & Mimmo.

08:00 10 Items or Less 08:30 Birth Stories 09:00 Come Dine with Me 09:30 Baby Squad 10:00 10 Years Younger USA 10:30 Open House 13:00 Newlywed, Nearly Dead 13:30 10 Years Younger USA 14:00 Open House 14:30 Come Dine with Me 15:00 Dr. Phil 16:05 Days of Our Lives 17:00 Kyle XY Kyle has a vivid dream during a violent thunderstorm.

18:00 Talent USA 20:00 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition Part 2/2. Ty and the team continue work on the Okvath family home.

21:00 Navy NCIS Explosion during a burial reveals too many peoples’ remains inside the graves.

22:00 The End of the World Cult DOC Twenty years ago, Wayne Bent declared himself son of God and founded a cult.

23:30 Frasier 00:30 Jericho

SUB 07:00 Cartoons for Children In Finnish. 07:00 Tractor Tom, 07:10 Jim Jam and Sunny, 07:35 Animaniacs.

11:25 Sturm der Liebe 12:45 World’s Greenest Homes 15:35 How I Met Your Mother 16:00 Stacked 16:30 E! Entertainment: Denise Richards 17:00 E! Entertainment: Battle of the Hollywood Hotties 18:05 Sturm der Liebe 19:00 My Name Is Earl 19:30 Will & Grace 20:00 Friends 20:30 Simpsons 21:00 O.C. Oliver invites everybody to Palm Springs, which turns out to be a bad idea.

22:00 Pushing Daisies Bernard tells Ned, Emerson and Chuck he was killed by a crash test dummy.

23:00 Génesis 00:00 Late Night with Conan O’Brien

TV VIISI In Treatment.

T V1 at 21:55

21

18:00 Home and Away 18:30 Fresh Prince of Bel Air 19:00 America’s Funniest Home Videos 19:30 America’s Funniest Home Videos 20:00 8 Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter 20:30 Minor accomplishments of Jackie Woodman 22:00 Secret Lives of Women

The End of the World Cult.

NELONEN at 22:00

JIM 15:30 Stunt Junkies 16:00 Amazing Adventures of a Nobody 16:20 Cool Tools 16:45 Hidden Potential 17:15 Jimmy Kimmel Live!

18:00 Banzuke 18:30 Amazing Adventures of a Nobody 19:00 Over Your Head 19:30 Dream Builders 20:00 Re-Inventors 20:30 How It’s Made 21:00 Premonition Man DOC Christopher Robinson saw the 9/11 attacks in his dreams before they occurred.

22:00 Build It Bigger See the construction of a US Navy destroyer.

23:00 Jimmy Kimmel Live!

23:50 Single Subject: Deadly Deception: The Mark (CERT 15) DOC 00:45 Extreme Evidence (CERT 15)

22

TV GUIDE

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

wednesday TV1

Thu 1/22

28.1.

MTV3

09:30 Down to Earth 11:05 YLE News 11:10 Peak Practice 14:30 Doctors Jude helps an old friend.

Kate tries to come to terms with Marc and Helen’s friendship.

15:05 Coronation Street Jamie takes his anger out on Danny. Steve and Ronnie cover up after their mistakes.

17:08 Peak Practice Beth is assaulted by a young boy’s father. Jack is left to pick up the pieces.

19:00 Keeping Up Appearances Hyacinth hosts a luncheon.

00:20 Inside the Actors Studio Naomi Watts talks to James Lipton.

09:35 The Young and the Restless 10:20 Emmerdale 10:45 Emmerdale 12:15 Who’ll Age Worst 12:40 David Rocco’s Dolce Vita 13:05 Honey I Ruined the House 13:30 The Bold and the Beautiful 14:30 How I Met Your Mother 15:00 Northern Exposure 17:00 The Bold and the Beautiful 17:30 Emmerdale 18:00 Emmerdale Seth is buried but not everyone is in attendance.

21:00 C.S.I. Two people are murdered in a Las Vegas rodeo.

22:30 Ice Road Truckers Lorry tips over and blocks the ice road.

23:30 Mythbusters 00:35 3rd Rock From the Sun

TV2 06:50 Pikku Kakkonen Cartoons for children in Finnish.

10:35 Happy Days 11:00 Mat med Niklas 11:55 Globetrekkers 16:10 McLeod’s Daughters Riley’s father arrives. Alex has had it with Marcus.

17:00 The Secret World of Benjamin Bear 20:00 Mr. Bean Mr. Bean is having problems with his brand new television.

YLE TEEMA 20:35 Le jeune homme et la mort (The Young Man and Death) Roland Petit’s choreography performed at the Paris Opera in 2006. Featuring Niholas Le Riche and MarieAgnès Gillot.

21:00 Brando DOC SERIES ENDS. Part 3/3.

The life and times of the great Marlon Brando.

21:55 Little Mosque on the Prairie 22:20 The Bullshit Detectives Alasdair’s team takes a critical look at fortune tellers, fitness videos and pets’ mind readers.

23:15 Yle Live: Girlschool Feminine take on new wave heavy metal.

HELSINKI TIMES

Kidnapped.

NELONEN at 23:50

SUB 07:00 Cartoons for Children In Finnish. 07:00 Tractor Tom, 07:10 Jim Jam and Sunny, 07:35 Animaniacs.

11:25 Sturm der Liebe 15:35 How I Met Your Mother 16:00 Stacked 16:30 E! Entertainment: Television Special 17:00 E! Entertainment: Keeping Up with the Kardashians 18:05 Sturm der Liebe 19:00 My Name Is Earl 19:30 Will & Grace 20:00 Friends 20:30 Simpsons 21:00 Urban Legends: Final Cut FILM Film student faces surprising problems with her thesis.

Directed by John Ottman.

Starring: Jennifer Morrison, Eva Mendes. USA 2001.

23:15 Heroes Will Nathan get elected?

00:10 Late Night with Conan O’Brien 01:05 Wire

−9 −3

NELONEN 07:00 Cartoons for Children In Finnish. 07:00 Disney’s the Replacements, 07:25 Tutenstein, 07:50 Charlie & Mimmo.

08:00 10 Items or Less 08:30 Birth Stories 09:00 Come Dine with Me 09:30 Newlywed, Nearly Dead 10:00 10 Years Younger USA 10:30 Open House 13:00 Newlywed, Nearly Dead 13:30 10 Years Younger USA 14:00 Staying Put 14:30 Come Dine with Me 15:00 Dr. Phil 16:05 Days of Our Lives Austin is not giving up on Sami.

17:00 Kyle XY Kyle’s basketball skills earn him a place in the championship game.

18:00 Talent USA 20:00 The Bachelor Who will Brad send packing after a round of over-night dates in Cabo San Lucas?

21:00 Grey’s Anatomy Bailey prepares for a very demanding operation. Derek takes full credit for research he did together with Meredith.

22:00 Mad Men Everybody at Sterling Cooper is rooting for Dick Nixon.

23:20 Frasier Daphne finds a wedding ring in Martin’s drawer.

23:50 Kidnapped Everybody is drawn to a small town in Mexico.

00:50 Dirt

−8

Thu 1/22

−3 −3 −5

−1 −1 Fri 1/23 −11 −8

−9 −7 −6 −3

−4 −4 Sat 1/24 −15 −12

−14 −10 −9 −7

−6 −4 Sun 1/25 −19 −15

−19

−13 −10

−7

−5 −5 Mon 1/26

−2

JIM −2 15:25 Stunt Junkies 15:55 Amazing Adventures of a Nobody 16:20 Over Your Head 16:45 Dream Builders 17:15 Jimmy Kimmel Live!

18:00 Banzuke 18:30 Amazing Adventures of a Nobody 19:00 Design Remix 19:30 Trigged Out 20:30 Fifth Gear 21:00 Monster Truck Tech DOC 22:00 Wheeler Dealers 22:30 Gumball Rally 23:00 Jimmy Kimmel Live!

23:50 Premonition Man DOC 00:45 Extreme Evidence (CERT15)

−1

−2

−1 0

+1 0 Tue 1/27 −2 −4 −3

−5

−4 −2

−2 −4 Wed 1/28

−5

TV VIISI

Home and Away.

T V VIISI at 18:00

18:00 Home and Away 18:30 Fresh Prince of Bel Air 19:00 America’s Funniest Home Videos 19:30 America’s Funniest Home Videos 21:00 The People Watchers 22:00 Dark Justice

Fri 1/23

Sat 1/24

Sun 1/25 Mon 1/26 Tue 1/27 Wed 1/28

+4

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−8

Thursday 1/22

−7 −1

−5 −4

C.S.I. MT V3 at 21:00

Mad Men Mad Men is an Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award–winning drama set in New York City. The series follows the lives of people working in the advertising business in 1960s America. Critically acclaimed for its visual style and authentic feel, the show’s protagonist is an ad executive named Don Draper who works for Sterling Cooper, a posh Madison Avenue ad agency. The show is best approached as an interesting study in masculinity, which it constructs around marital infidelity and the strict separation of the private and the public. What is lacking from this depiction of masculinity is racism, which is a remarkable omission when dealing with America of the 1960s. Mad Men is all-vanilla and proof that, while sexism may be fun, racism is still taboo.

Nelonen at 22:00 Wed

Urban Legends: Final Cut Amy Mayfield, portrayed by Jennifer Morrison, is a student at the prestigious Orson Welles Film School and struggling to make a movie about urban legends.

Her efforts are hampered by an unknown murderer wearing a fencing mask who is slaughtering members of her cast and crew in unimaginative ways. Amy must find out who the killer is before she herself is killed. Sequel to the popular Urban Legend, this movie is one of those slasher flicks, where only the young and the beautiful ever get murdered.

Perhaps the producers felt that the old and the unattractive don’t make good victims? Be that as it may, Urban Legends: Final Cut is a run-of-the-mill horror movie well suited for a dark and dreary Wednesday night.

Sub at 21:00 Wed

8:57 am 4:06 pm

9:37 am 3:22 pm

9:10 am 4:15 pm

9:56 am 3:03 pm

9:12 am 4:01 pm

10:54 am 1:56 pm

CLASSIFIEDS & SERVICES

HELSINKI TIMES

22 – 28 JANUARY 2009

23

Finland info 22 – 28 January 2009 DENTAL CARE

Dental care centre

tel. 726 2266 Emergency duty

24 h

Eurohammas Hämeentie 60

We offer you kind and professional service. Our dentist: Mikko Larjomaa.

OUR SPECIAL PRICES Tooth-coloured filling from.............................€52 Painless tooth removal from.........................€52 Removal of dental calculus and stains, fluoridation and cleaning from.......................€52 Dental whitening..........................................€150 Other services: Dental Implants Surgery Tooth Jewels Open: Mon – Fri 8 – 20. Right by the buses, trams and the metro.

On the street level, easy access with the wheelchair.

Open Mon - Fri 8-20 Sat 9 -15

Uushammas tel. 146 1460

The prices of the special dental technician Prosthesis as if the teeth were your own (made with the best materials)

IN THIS MONTH: THE FULL PROSTHESIS OF UPPER OR LOWER JAW......€360 THE FULL PROSTHESIS OF UPPER AND LOWER JAW....€590 THE FULL PROSTHETIC LINING................................ ........€65 IN CASE OF EMERGENCY THE PROSTHESIS CAN BE MADE IN 12 HOURS.

24 h

Lining and fixing while waiting.

No discount of the special prices

Alko. Alko is the only store to sell any alcohol above the strength of beer. Alkos are open Mon-Fri 9-20, Sat 9-18 and closed on Sundays.

More information is available at www.alko.fi. For store locations, please call: +358 20 711 712.

Banks and Money Exchange. Banks are usually open Mon-Fri 1016:30. The money exchange office, Forex, at the Helsinki Railway Station is open Mon-Sun 8-21. See www.forex.fi for more information.

Department stores are open Mon-Fri 9-21, Sat 9-18 and are closed on Sundays.

Emergency Number. Dial the number 112.

Emergency Rooms at the Malmi and Maria Hospital offer treatment at night and during weekends. Malmi tel. 09 10023 or +358 9 310 6611. Maria tel. 09 10023 +358 9 471 63466.

Grocery stores. Most grocery stores are open Mon-Fri 7-21, Sat 7-18 and Sun 12-21.

Health. Helsinki City medical centres are open Mon-Fri 8-16.

In case of children in need of urgent medical treatment, contact tel. +358 9 10023 or Lastenklinikka’s emergency department, tel. +358 09 471 72783 or +358 09 471 72751.

Libraries. Public libraries in Helsinki are usually open Mon-Thu 1020 and Fri-Sat 10-16. Kirjasto 10 (Library 10) in the centre of Helsinki (in Postitalo, Elielinaukio 2 G) offers internet access and good information services in English. It’s open Mon-Thu 10-22, Fri 10-18 and Sat-Sun 12-18.

Museums are closed on Mondays.

Post. Post offices are usually open Mon-Fri 10-18. See www.posti.fi.

Public Transport operates in Helsinki and its surrounding regions from around 05:30, 06:30 on weekends, until midnight. Night buses operate extensively at weekends. See www.ytv.fi and www.hkl.fi

UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS

Working in Finland?

To get earnings-linked benefits in case of unemployment in Finland, you need to be a member of an unemployment fund.

Get your independent unemployment security now for only 67 €/ year.

Join us: www.ytk.fi

COURSES

EXPAT VIEW Entrepreneurship courses in English!

JULIO TUBAL is an American (now a Finn) who came here several decades ago to learn how to weave – and succeeded.

Courses are tailor-made for immigrant entrepreneurs who are new to running a business or would like to update their business know-how.

Weaving a new life in Finland The art of weaving drew me to an international summer weaving course in the small town of Pieksämäki, Finland, during the hot summer of August 1972. The only things I knew about Finland then were Marimekko, Sibelius and Dora Jung, whom I later met. Oh yes, and the fact that weaving was, and still is a tradition that is alive and well.

That was the first of the many trips I would make from New York to Helsinki. That first time I stepped off the plane here, felt the warmth of the Finnish summer and fell in love with the colours and smells of the place. I was ready for my adventure and eager to get started. However, I was far less prepared for the Finnish language and the Finnish winters. But I was

only here for the summer and would go back to the States – or so I thought.

I did go back, but returned to Finland in the summer of 1974 and have been here ever since. Over the years I have had to do many things to survive: English teaching, proofreading, translation, and what not. Then one day the Mikkeli Finnish-American Society offered me a full-time position working in English with Finnish children in their newly founded English Playschool. I took the job of course, but although the work was in English it meant I still had to learn Finnish to get by. As it turned out, there was no better way to do this than to learn from Finnish children. At home I also learned Finnish words by la-

belling every object in the apartment in Finnish.

I also took some courses, but because the teachers loved emphasizing how difficult the language was I was beaten before I even got started.

Through listening to how Finns spoke and asked for things my speech gradually took on a Savonian tone, which did not go unnoticed amongst Finns from other parts from other parts of the country. As time went by I encountered many situations where I had to speak Finnish, and really began to speak and learn more about how to use the language and make contact with Finns. Humour always helped in tricky situations.

Since the first of January this year I’m retired. I plan to study Finnish as a hobby and re-

In this series expatriates tell about their lives in Finland.

turn to my weaving. Although I do not speak Finnish fluently, I do understand everything and manage very well. My art weavings speak for themselves. To understand a Finn’s personality, you must understand what he or she says and how they direct the use of Finnish towards you. But that is true in all countries: it is through language that you enter the culture of a people and get close to them. The Finnish language is a very rich, creative and exact one. One word can create a thousand pictures: “Meri Christmas”, as one ad reads.

For me, this year will be a new adventure and the start of a new way of life. What will I do? I plan to grow old gracefully, be happy, and be thankful for all my blessings. Most of all, I plan to weave.

•Experienced lecturers •Both training and lecture materials are free of charge!

Courses • Company legislation Consumer protection, marketing law, copyright, 1 evening •Basics of Labour Law Employment Contracts, 1 evening • Contract Law, 1 evening • Business economics of a small company Everyday routines incl. bills, VAT, basic bookkeeping duties and cooperation with an accounting firm, 2 evenings • Marketing course Mainly in Finnish, partly in English, 2-3 evenings All courses are on Tuesday evenings, starting at 16.15 and lasting about 3 hours.

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