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Food & Drink: Potatoes, meat, fish, milk, butter and rye bread are the traditional mainstays of the Finnish diet, but food in Finland has been greatly influenced both by Western (French and Swedish) and Eastern (Russian) cooking. Tourists can expect excellent fresh fish dishes on menus. Examples are pike, trout, perch, whitefish, salmon and Baltic herring. All are in abundance most of the year. Crayfish (a Finnish speciality) is available from July to August. One should also try reindeer meat, smoked or in other forms. Regional dishes include kalakukko, a kind of fish and pork pie, baked in a rye flour crust, and karjalan piirakat, a pasty of rye flour stuffed with rice pudding or potato and eaten with egg butter. Various kinds of thick soups are also popular.
In restaurants, (ravintola) the menu is continental with several Finnish specialities. Restaurant prices are moderate if the set menu is chosen. Most restaurants have a special menu for children, or other half-price meals. Inexpensive lunches are served at places called kahvila and baari (the latter is not necessarily a licensed bar). Information about gourmet trails may be obtained from Finnish Tourist Board offices; two are planned – for east and west Finland. The trails have been designed so that both can be covered in two to four days. Visitors on the trails will visit a variety of eating places from large chain hotels to inns and farmhouses, with the emphasis on the smaller, more personal places. Additionally in Lapland, Lapi à la carte consists of three gourmet routes. An English route map with details is available from the Tourist Board.
Restaurants are divided into two classes: those serving all kinds of alcohol and those serving only beers and wines. Waiter service is common although there are many self-service snack bars. Bars and cafes may have table and/or counter service and all internationally known beverages are available. The Finnish berry liqueurs, mesimarja (arctic bramble), lakka (cloudberry) and polar (cranberry), as well as the Finnish vodka (usually served ice cold with meals), are well worth trying. Finnish beer (grades III and IV A) is of a high quality and mild beers are served in most coffee bars. There are strict laws against drinking and driving. In restaurants, beer is served from 0900 and other liquor from 1100. All alcohol is served until half an hour before the restaurant closes. Nightclubs are open to serve drinks until 0200 or 0400. Service begins at 1100 and continues until the restaurant closes. The age limit for drinking is 18 years, but consumers must be 20 before they can buy the stronger alcoholic beverages.
Restaurant classification: Prices for alcohol vary according to the restaurants classification.
E: Elite price category.
G: General price category.
S: Self-service price category.
A: Fully licensed.
B: Licensed for beer and wine.
Shopping: Finnish handicrafts, jewellery, handwoven ryijy rugs, furniture, glassware, porcelain, ceramics, furs and textiles are amongst the many Finnish specialities. Excellent supermarkets and self-service shops can be found all over the country. Helsinki railway station has the first underground shopping centre in the country, where the shops are open 0800-2200 (Sun and public holidays 1200-2200). At the Katajanokka boat harbour, there is a shop selling glass, china, wooden articles and textiles. Duty free: Anyone permanently resident outside the EU can claim back purchase tax at the time of departure. Repayment can be made (on presentation of a special cheque provided by the retailer) at the following gateways: Helsinki, Turku, Tampere, Mariehamn, Vaasa and Rovaniemi airports; on board ferries and ships operated by Silja Line, Viking Line, Vaasaferries and Polferries; and at the main checkpoints on the land borders with Sweden, Norway and the Russian Federation. Shopping hours: Mon-Fri 0900-1800, Sat 0900-1500. Shops are generally open on Sunday from June to August. Many shops are also open 0900-2100 during the week and Sat 0900-1800.
Special Events: For a full list of special events, contact the Finnish Tourist Board (see Contact Addresses section). The following is a selection of major festivals and events held in Finland during 2003:
Jan 2 2003 Ice Show Fairy Tales. Feb 22-23 Finland Ski Marathon. Mar 5-9 Tampere International Short Film Festival. May 7-11 Vaasa Choir Festival. May 22-25 Kainuu International Jazz Festival 2003. Jun 27-Oct 18 Kivi Festivals, Nurmijärvi. Jun 20-22 Vaasa Rules Midsummer Festival. Jun 26-29 Kaloh Jazz and Blues Festival (Lapland Festivals). Jul 3-Aug 3 Savolinna Opera Festival. Jul 4 Midnight Marathon, Varpaisjärvi. Jul 11-13 Joutsa Folk Festival. Jul 12-13 Beer Festival, Kuusamo. Aug The Karelia Games (International Athletics Meeting). Aug 2 Lapinlahti Wine and Cheese Festival. Aug 19 -24 Espoo Ciné Film Festival. Aug 23-Sep 8 Helsinki Festival. Aug 29-31 Venetian Night Festival, Kokkola. Oct 23-Nov 11 Tampere Jazz Happening.
Social Conventions: Handshaking is customary. Normal courtesies should be observed. It is customary for the guest to refrain from drinking until the host or hostess toasts their health with a ‘kippis’ or a ‘skol’. Casual dress is acceptable. Black tie will usually be specified when required. Finns appear sometimes to be rather reserved and visitors should not feel alarmed if there is a lack of small talk during the first half hour or so. Shoes must usually be removed when entering someone’s home. Tipping: A 15 per cent service charge is included in the bill in hotels. Restaurants and bars have 14 per cent service charge weekdays and 15 per cent weekends and holidays. The obligatory cloakroom or doorman fee is usually clearly indicated. Taxi drivers, washroom attendants and hairdressers are not tipped.
Copyright © 2003 Columbus Publishing Ltd.
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