Blue Wings Business issue January 2015

BUSINESS ISSUE TRENDS, DESTINATIONS AND INSIGHTS FOR TRAVELLERS

JANUARY 2015

HIP HISTORY IN HONG KONG MAKING SENSE OF BIG DATA

Your personal copy

WILDLIFE SPOTTING IN MIAMI

Back to business in the

Faroe Islands

VELOCITY, VOLUME AND VERVE. V STANDS FOR MORE THAN JUST THE SHAPE OF THE HULL.

BOOT Düsseldorf 17 – 25.1.2015

Helsinki International Boat Show 6 –15.2.2015

The Princess V57 sports yacht. Exhilarating performance at an incredible 38 knots.

Spacious and stunningly styled – inside and out. With triple glass sliding doors off the main saloon create a vast entertaining area that opens to extensive outdoor seating and a well-equipped wetbar.

You don’t have to choose between speed and space any longer.

To find out more please contact: Princess Finland · +358 500 667754 · info@princess.fi · www.princess.fi

WWW.PRINCESSYACHTS.COM

EDITORIAL

BY PEKKA VAURAMO CEO OF FINNAIR

WWW.FINNAIR.COM

HEAD OFFICE FINLAND PRODUCER Amanda Soila ART DIRECTOR Sirpa Ärmänen SUB-EDITOR Anna-Maria Wasenius GRAPHIC DESIGNER Pia Hytönen and Veera Näsänen CONTENT MANAGER Kati Heikinheimo ENGLISH EDITING Silja Kudel and Laura Palotie REPROGRAPHIC Isma Valkama BEHIND THIS ISSUE Karine Aigner, Daniel Allen, Johan Augustin, Tim Bird, Dave Dunne, Miikka Hast, Sinimaaria Kangas, Silja Kudel, Tiina Kälkäinen, Jani Kärppä, Mirva Lempiäinen, Roger Norum, Laura Palotie, Katja Pantzar, Ville Palonen, Anu Piippo, Wif Stenger and Nichola West SUBMISSIONS bluewings@headofficefinland.fi EDITORIAL OFFICES Lapinmäentie 1, 00350 Helsinki, Finland, Postal address P.O.Box 100, 00040 Sanoma, Finland, tel. +358 9 1201, firstname.lastname@headofficefinland.fi ADVERTISING SALES Media Assistant Sirkka Pulkkinen tel. +358 9 120 5921 PUBLISHER Head Office Finland PRINTED BY Hansaprint, Turku, Finland 2014 PAPER UPM Valor 61g Cover paper Stora Enso LumiArt 200g CIRCULATION 60,000 ISSN-0358-7703

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Arja Suominen arja.suominen@finnair.com FINNAIR HEAD OFFICE Tietotie 9 A, Helsinki-Vantaa Airport, 1053 Finnair, Finland, tel. +358 9 81881, Postal address: P. O. Box 15, 01053 Finnair, Finland CUSTOMER FEEDBACK www.finnair.com > Information and services > After the flight or by mail: Customer Relations, SL/08, FI-01053 FINNAIR. www.finnair.com www.finnair.fi www.finnairgroup.com

Bringing in 2015

T

he start of a new year is a time for making resolutions, setting goals and dreams.

For some, that means realising new experiences such as travelling to see the historic tong lau buildings in Hong Kong (see p.26), a city that I lived in for many years, or visiting the giant snow castle in Kemi (see p.25), Finland.

Finnair’s resolutions for 2015 centre on our new A350 aircraft, arriving later this year.

Our aim is to offer the best passenger experience in the northern hemisphere. At the same time, we’ll be taking a major step towards our goal of more sustainable aviation with the very fuel-efficient A350 aircraft.

We also promise to serve up new culinary experiences on board. The fruits of our cooperation with top Finnish restaurants will available in Business Class from January 28 onwards, starting with a signature menu

by G.W. Sundmans’s chef Matti Jämsä.

We’ve also upgraded the Blue Wings concept, with more dynamic content about our ever-expanding network of destinations around the world. We hope you like it and welcome your feedback.

Whether your year starts now, or later in February when the Year of the Goat starts in China, we wish you a great New Year!

Pekka Vauramo

3

My Hong Kong tips

For a leisurely walk along the Victoria waterfront, head to the Avenue of the Stars, which honours Hong Kong’s film industry.

1

Only 20 per cent of the metropolis is built up, the rest is nature. Top trekking destinations include Lantau Island, featuring one of the world’s largest seated Buddhas.

2

The city is renowned for its fabulous night markets. Try Temple Street in Tsim Sha Tsui, with stalls selling everything from clothing to goldfish.

JANUARY 2015

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3

Hyvät unet asuvat Hästens-vuoteessa.

Eläköön paremmalle unelle ja elämänlaadulle vuosikymmeniksi! Hästens-vuode on korkealuokkainen, käsityönä luonnonmateriaaleista valmistettu tuote. Vuoteen jokainen yksityiskohta on tarkasti suunniteltu – jo vuodesta 1852. Älä tyydy vähempään.

HÄSTENS STORE HELSINKI Mannerheimintie 8, 00100 Helsinki Puh. 020 780 1370

hastens.com

IN THIS ISSUE

26

JANUARY 2015 DESTINATION HISTORIC HONG KONG

Endangered tong lau districts turn into trendy hubs

DESTINATION TOP 5 FREERIDING SPOTS The best powder snow from Tokyo to Tromsø

LIFESTYLE THE FUNKY FAROE ISLANDS Creative business returns to the archipelago

BUSINESS MASTERING BIG DATA

Revealing the possibilities behind the buzzword Hong Kong’s restored tong lau neighbourhoods have become hip.

DESTINATION WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE Spotting deer, dolphins and manatees in Miami

DESTINATION LITERARY DUBLIN

In the footsteps of Oscar Wilde and James Joyce

40

36

CULTURE AWAY WITH WORDS

Meet three authors from around the world

TAKEOFF

CULTURE

Lux Helsinki ....................................11

NEWS

Lodging in the Dolomites ........................................12

TECH

Office gadgets ...............................14

DESIGN

Samuji’s interiors line ................ 16 There’s more to the Faroe Islands than just nature.

FOOD & DRINK

Helsinki winter eats .........................18

36 40 48 54

LIFESTYLE SMOOTHIE POWER The best detox in downtown Helsinki

Step off-piste and ski on the wild side.

26

56 64 68

FAMILY

Travel gear for kids .....................20

AROUND THE WORLD

Toronto designs ...........................22

SPOTLIGHT

Mexican butterflies .....................23

CULTURE

Young Artist of the Year .......... 24

FINLAND

Kemi’s snow castle .....................25

JANUARY 2015

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5

IN THIS ISSUE

56

In the Florida Keys, wildlife encounters are part of everyday life.

54

Why smoothies are far better lunch options than sandwiches.

Jhumpa Lahiri has just written her first book in Italian.

REGULARS

Travel Moment............................................ 6

Tiina Rosenberg......................................38 Alexander Stubb.....................................62 Finland in figures.................................... 98

FLYING FINNAIR

68

Tips for takeoff........................................ 80 Inflight wellbeing.................................... 81 Entertainment.......................................... 82 Shopping..................................................... 83 Sustainability............................................. 84 Border crossings..................................... 85 Helsinki Airport ....................................... 86 Maps and destinations......................... 88 Fleet.............................................................. 92 Frequent flyer benefits........................ 94 6 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

Vietnam, p. 6 Helsinki, p. 11 The Dolomites, p. 12 Mexico, p. 23 Lapland, p. 25 Hong Kong, p. 26 Tromsø, p. 36

Tokyo, p. 36 Queenstown, p. 36 Chamonix, p. 36 The Faroe Islands, p. 40 Miami, p. 56 Dublin, p. 64

TRAVEL MOMENT PHOTO AND TEXT BY VILLE PALONEN

WATER BUFFALOES AT RICE PADDIES just outside the town of Hoi An in Central Vietnam, one can marvel at an ancient sight: a farmer with his water buffalo.

Even today, buffaloes play an important role in Vietnam’s agriculture. They are used as pack animals to carry crops, they pull

8 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

the plow on a rice paddy, and they produce milk and meat. The water buffalo is such a valued possession that they are sometimes treated as a part of the family. It’s not surprising that alongside the tiger and dragon, the water buffalo is the national animal of Vietnam.

JANUARY 2015

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FIILISTELY SALLITTU

Sisustusvimman iskiessä Glorian koti.

Hae omasi!

UpEASTI UUdISTUnUT

TAKEOFF

NEWS / TECH / DESIGN / FOOD AND DRINK / FAMILY / ATW / SPOTLIGHT /CULTURE / FINLAND

CULTURE

Helsinki illuminated TEXT BY AMANDA SOILA PHOTO BY LAURI ROTKO

THERE’S NO TIME for post-holiday gloom in Helsinki as the beginning of January sees stunning light artworks filling the streets, parks and buildings of the capital.

Arranged for the seventh time, Lux Helsinki is an open-air light festival for the entire family and displays artworks by some of the most exciting light and media artists and sound designers from Finland, Germany, France, Belgium and Japan.

Some of this year’s highlights include Finnish-German Fire Circus Walkea who combine dance and fire circus at Senate Square, and Water Light Graffiti, which invites the audience to participate in the creation of illuminated water graffiti at the Central Railway Station.

Lux Helsinki Sun–Thurs Jan 4–8, from 5 pm – 10 pm See luxhelsinki.fi for the full list of venues JANUARY 2015

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11

TAKEOFF NEWS

PACKING UP Your may take a ski or snowboard bag on your Finnair flight. The fee depends on the baggage allowance of your ticket as well as how much other baggage you’re taking with you.

COMPILED AND WRITTEN BY MIRVA LEMPIÄINEN

GEAR

Ski to the beat ITALY

Dolce Vita in the Dolomites “Magic in the mountains, the soul’s paradise, absolutely superb.”

Travel website Tripadvisor users wax poetic in their praises of the new all-wood and glass Adler Mountain Lodge in Italy – already ranked the Number One hotel in the Alpe Di Siusi region despite opening only last July.

There is indeed a lot to love about this nature hideaway, including 18 stylish suites and 12 charming Tyrolean-style, all-wood chalets equipped with saunas.

Yet the real draw lies outside the hotel: the magnificent Dolomites mountain range, a UNESCO World Heritage site, greets visitors just across from Europe’s largest Alpine

meadow. When not hiking along the 350 kilometres of marked trails, visitors can admire the Dolomites from their private terraces, through full-wall windows or from the heated outdoor pool.

Due to Alpe Di Siusi being a national park, it took 15 years for the Sanoner family to craft a lodge that was perfectly “embedded in nature,” offering “uncomplicated luxury,” explains the manager Sara Vinatzer.

“The Adler Mountain Lodge is a hideaway for dreamers,” she adds.

Chalets start from €363 in January (for two to three people).

Adler-lodge.com

With its range of 26 different ski helmets offered in shades from chic black to screaming orange, the award-winning Swedish sports gear company POC makes it effortless to stay safe while looking trendy on the slopes. Music lovers have special reason to rejoice this winter: POC’s 420-gram Fornix Communication helmet (€258) comes with built-in Beats by Dr. Dre headphones. The remote control in the cord is compatible with most smart phones, enabling skiers to take calls and switch tunes while cruising down the hill.

Pocsports.com

APPLICATION

Laundry on the fly

Visiting busy NYC, there are many fun things to do – but laundry isn’t one them. With the new FlyCleaners App, you can have a FlyGuy swiftly pick up your dirty clothes from your door, get progress updates and edit your cleaning preferences on the go.

The application is free. Laundry starts at €2 per kilo. flycleaners.com

12 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

FlyCleaners has cleaned over 50,000 pieces of NYC dry cleaning.

The Finest Clothing for Men in Finland

TAKEOFF TECH

PLUG IN! Most Airbus A340 aircraft and all Airbus A330 aircraft are equipped with an electricity socket, which you will find under your seat.

COMPILED AND WRITTEN BY ROGER NORUM

WORKING IT THIS MONTH, WE CHECK OUT A COLLECTION OF STYLISH OFFICE GEAR TO RAMP UP YOUR WORK SPACE.

ST-USBAP Air Purifier

Your biggest fan

SIMPLE AND ELEGANT, this USB-powered device cleanses all that pesky re-circulated air lingering around your cubicle, removing dust and odour via a replaceable filter.

The extending body also lets it double as a fan. About €30.

Xync

The cable guy

satechi.net

Space Bar

Bar none

ORGANISE THE CHAOS that is your desk with this anodised aluminium monitor stand. Your screen rests atop the platform, which lets you stow your keyboard, mouse and assorted papers in the space underneath. What’s more, all those unsightly, gangly wires disappear thanks to six convenient USB ports on the front and back. About €80.

Board 2

Wood you type this?

THE UPDATED VERSION of this sleek, wireless Bluetooth keyboard shows off how keen you are to go against the grain. Carved out of a single slab of cherry, maple or walnut, the lightweight, handmade keys are a joy to type on. It’s about as organic and sustainable as you can get while catching up on emails. From €150. oreeartisans.com

14 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

quirky.com

NEVER BE LEFT with a dead phone thanks to this innovative, compact zincalloy case, which eliminates the need to carry an extra cable while on the road. Hidden inside is a USB charging cable, slots for two extra SIM cards and an iPhone SIM card eject tool.

About €30. moshi.com

Intuos Pro PTH851

Forth to the drawing board

THE DRAWING TABLET has finally come of age, and Wacom’s large, top-of-the-line model is the perfect excuse to finally scrap that outdated mouse. Features intuitive multi-touch gestures and pressuresensitive drawing capabilities. Ideal for doodling your next Mona Lisa and signing documents. About €480. wacom.com

UNIESI MAKUUHUONE.

Koko Jense vuodemallisnto

-20%

Jensen on perinteikäs laatupatjojen valmistaja, jonka kehittämät Aloy-jousisto, Exact-mukavuudensäätö sekä vyöhykejärjestelmä tarjoavat ainutlaatuisen nukkumismukavuuden. www.jensen.fi

www.vepsalainen.com

TAKEOFF DESIGN

SHOPPING BREAK IN HELSINKI? You can get to downtown Helsinki using the Finnair City buses that depart from the airport every 20 minutes.

COMPILED AND WRITTEN BY SILJA KUDEL

Between the sheets

Decor

At home with Samuji

FASHION LABEL SAMUJI dips its toe in the lifestyle category with the debut of its new homeware collection, Samuji Koti (koti is Finnish for “home”). The range features tableware, textiles and whimsical items including a pipe-shaped candleholder that Magritte himself would adore on his mantelpiece. Along with Samuji’s own designs, the collection also features artisan-crafted items.

“I want to build a complete world

around Samuji, not just a fashion brand, but something deeper,” says creative director and founder Samu-Jussi Koski.

“I value understated aesthetics – beautiful things don’t need to shout. We will expand the collection organically, but only with necessary things.”

The collection is sold at Samuji’s flagship store in Helsinki and through selected stockists in Europe, Asia and America. samuji.com

What took you so long, Terence?

CHRISTMAS ARRIVED early for Finnish fans of Habitat, the home decor chain founded by Terence Conran in 1964.

November saw the 50-year-old open its first store in Helsinki, bringing two floors and 1,400 square metres of affordable design to bling-starved shoppers.

Tremble in your boots, Ikea.

Keskuskatu 6, habitatfinland.fi

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FANCY SNUGGLING up with your favourite hunks created

by Tom of Finland? Now you can, thanks to a bold move by textile manufacturers Finlayson, who are paying tribute to the iconic gay artist Touko Laaksonen (1920–1991) with a home textile collection featuring his pneumatically muscled characters. The collection features satin sheets, duvet covers, towels and a tote bag, with further additions awaited in 2015.

“The collection has attracted great interest and sales have exceeded our expectations. The superb art of Touko Laaksonen and its message of equality and nondiscrimination are a powerful combination,” says Finlayson CEO Jukka Kurttila. finlaysonshop.com, byfinlayson.com

TAKEOFF FOOD & DRINK

SPECIAL MEALS If you have special dietary requirements, Finnair will provide you with a special meal. Please submit your order no later than 24 hours before departure.

COMPILED AND WRITTEN BY ANU PIIPPO HANNA TYRVÄINEN

The next Streat Helsinki event will be held March 16–22, 2015.

IF YOU NEED to know anything at all about food in Helsinki, Timo Santala is your “go-to guy.” He’s the City of Helsinki’s new food strategist and one of the founders of Finnish food festival Restaurant Day. Timo shares some of his favourite winter food experiences with us – don’t miss these if you’re in town.

1

UGLY BUT YUMMY

“Burbot may not be the prettiest of fish, but its liver is among the best things I know – it’s tastier, healthier and more ethical than foie gras. Burbot roe is also good, and this is the perfect season to enjoy it. An excellent place to find this treat is Hakaniemi Hall, a lively food destination in itself.”

Birch meets sushi

Ilma (“air” in Finnish) is a modern birch serving tray inspired by traditional Japanese sushi plates. Doubling as a cutting board, it is from Verso Design, a small Finnish family-owned business whose designers often draw inspiration from nature. €54.90 versodesign.fi

18 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

2

STREET REVOLUTION “There’s a street food revolution happening in Helsinki. Anybody can be a restaurateur for a day on Restaurant Day, which fills the city with food lovers. The next one is scheduled for February 15. Two street food events will spice up the city this spring: Streat Helsinki and Street Food Carnival.”

3

Wintry wines

Should the first month of the year be celebrated with red wine, white wine or champagne?

Check out Finnair’s wintry wine recommendations.

Baron Philippe de Rothschild, Mouton Cadet Réserve, Pauillac, AOP This dry red wine reveals black fruits, toasted notes and a nice length.

Origin: Bordeaux, France Average price: €28 Sold on intercontinental flights available for pre-order.

FOOD

Helsinki Winter Eats

WINE

FOODIES LOVE IT FRESH

“Finnish food is all about ingredients sourced from nature: berries, mushrooms and wild herbs from the forest and fresh fish from the sea and lakes. If you want to treat yourself in Helsinki, try Chef & Sommelier or some other high-end restaurant such as Ask or Olo. They respect the ingredients and bring out the best in them.”

Weingut Robert Weil, Riesling This dry, quality Riesling is from wine estate that focuses particularly on the Riesling grape.

Origin: Rheingaun, Germany Average price: €21.90 Available for pre-order.

Limited Edition by Champagne Nicolas Feuillatte Each year, Nicolas Feuillatte creates a unique collection of champagnes in limited edition. This Brut Réserve is a champagne whose refined character is a constant source of surprise.

Origin: France Price: €29.50 Sold on intercontinental flights and available for pre-order. finnair.com

DNV GL Taking a broader view Tomorrow’s successful companies will create value by meeting the world’s social, economic and environmental needs.

SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS PERFORMANCE

HEALTH & SAFETY

ENERGY

RESOURCE FOOTPRINT

INFORMATION & IT SOURCING

QUALITY

SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

ENVIRONMENT

Companies today are held increasingly accountable not only for their products or services but for managing their entire value chain.

This means understanding a broader set of issues and risk, managing their operational challenges today while also building sustainable business performance over time.

DNV GL Business Assurance Finland Oy Ab www.dnvba.fi

Creating value

Bridging today and tomorrow

Assuring performance

While meeting the world’s economic, social and environmental needs.

Manage operational challenges today – building sustainable value over time.

Along entire supply chains to build sustainable performance and stakeholder trust.

TAKEOFF FAMILY

BABY BAGGAGE Regardless of travel class, an infant’s baggage allowance includes one piece of baggage weighing a maximum of 23 kg, as well as a folding stroller and safety seat.

COMPILED AND WRITTEN BY NICHOLA WEST

THE LOVEABLE EWAN the Dream Sheep is perfect when you’re trying to get your baby off to sleep in unfamiliar surroundings. Ewan helps to settle restless tots with real heartbeat and womb sounds and a pink glow light which can help soothe your baby into slumber. (€45) sweetdreamers.co.uk

KIDS ON THE GO

THE BABYPING is a monitor that links to your smartphone to become an instant baby video device. It can be viewed using 3G, 4G or Wi-Fi. It has night vision too, so no night glow while your little one sleeps. (€200) babyping.com

TRAVELLING WITH CHILDREN ISN’T ALWAYS STRAIGHTFORWARD. BUT WITH THE RIGHT GEAR IT CAN BE LOTS OF FUN AND A WHOLE LOT EASIER.

THE SKYBABY provides an ideal little bed when flying with your baby.

It works with or without an airline infant belt, and allows your little one to sleep comfortably in your lap. (€38) sky-baby.co.uk

BEHIND THE SCENES Nichola West is a UK based journalist running popular family travel website global­mouse­­travels.com

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WITH CONSERVATION at its heart, the Ohyo collapsable water bottle is a great addition to your travel kit. Simple to fill up and with a smart sports spout, the Ohyo will pack away easily at airports, and holds 500ml when filled. (€7.50) ohyo.me

THE DOONA car seat and compact stroller can convert from a baby car seat into a stroller. The neat integrated travel system means you don’t have to wake your baby when you arrive at your destination.

Simply press the button and within seconds you are off on your travels. (€380) simpleparenting.co

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Say goodbye to hair loss How a new pill can boost your hair and self-confidence

H

air loss can be a nightmare for both men and women. It can make you look less attractive, and also lead to disadvantages within your career and limit you in your partner choice. It can lead to depression, loss and self-confidence and even identity change.

Scientists in Oxford promise to make this a thing of the past. Their pill TRX2 is currently one of Europe’s best-selling hair supplements and is sold in over 90 countries. TRX2 is based on organic compounds and compared to medicinal products for hair loss has no side effects whatsoever.

“Your hair will look much bigger; it

becomes heavier and thicker. You maintain your healthy hair”, says Oxford Biolabs CEO Dr Thomas Whitfield.

Hair treatments often promise a lot without delivering, but TRX2 is backed by cutting-edge science and has been thoroughly tested. According to a study, TRX2 works for 87% of men and women.

The results can be impressive - the average hair thickness increases 22.5% after nine months and 38.7% after 18 months. Start TRX2 as early as possible in order to increase the chances of fully regaining your hair.

TRX2 is suitable for men and women of all ages. The crystalline white capsules come in a brown glass bottle,

“

Your hair becomes much heavier and thicker.

You maintain your healthy hair.

”

which is sufficient for one month of treatment and costs approximately €49.

The manufacturer offers a money-back guarantee if ordered vis TRX2’s official website, and ships worldwide. www.trx2.com contact@trx2.com Oxford BioLabs Ltd, The Oxford Science Park, Oxford, UK

TAKEOFF AROUND THE WORLD

ROUND THE GLOBE Finnair flies nonstop to Toronto three times weekly starting in June and offers excellent connections to Cairo via Paris and London.

COMPILED AND WRITTEN BY MIRVA LEMPIÄINEN

TORONTO

Turning on the style CALENDAR

January events JAN 19–20, 2015 HONG KONG With 100 prominent speakers, the eighth Asian Financial Forum (AFF) will look at recent business trends under the theme of “Asia: Sustainable Growth in a World of Change.”

Last year’s AFF brought together 2,400 participants from 41 countries.

JAN 19–25, 2015 The fifth annual Toronto Design Offsite Festival (TO DO) showcases Canada’s energetic creative scene with a city-wide celebration of design, spanning the gamut from architecture and graphics to textile and web design. Last year’s stats affirm its place on the global design calendar: 18 design awards, 65 public events, 450 artists, 26,000 visitors. todesignoffsite.com

asianfinancialforum.com

JAN 10–FEB 1, 2015 HWACHEON-GUN The Mount Trout Ice Festival invites visitors to try ice fishing and sample raw trout in a pristine part of South Korea. This winter fiesta also features 60 other activities, such as ice football and sledding.

HELSINKI

Bitten by the travel bug

JAN 15–25, 2015 CHRISTCHURCH The World Buskers Festival has honoured street artists in New Zealand since 1994. This year over 50 top comedians, musicians, trapeze artists, dancers, hoola-hoopers and other entertainers will take to the streets, parks and clubs.

JAN 15–18, 2015 Launched in Finland in 1987, MATKA is Northern Europe’s biggest travel fair, attracting more than 70,000 visitors annually. This year’s theme country will be Egypt, with more than 1,000 exhibitors expected from 80 nations. A special stage carrying the name of Jean Sibelius will honour the Finnish composer’s 150th birthday.

worldbuskersfestival.com

messukeskus.com

english.visitkorea.or.kr

22 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

TAKEOFF SPOTLIGHT TEXT AND PHOTO BY TIM BIRD

MEXICO

Magical migration

Between October and March the forests close to Angangueo in Mexico come alive at sunrise with the orange wings of a billion Monarch butterflies that have migrated from the US and Canada. The trees in the El Rosario Butterfly Biosphere Reserve sag under the weight of the resting insects, which are roused in fluttering orange clouds in the warmth of daylight. visitmexico.com worldheritagesite.org

JANUARY 2015

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TAKEOFF CULTURE

READING BREAK The Kainuu lounge near gate 31 at Helsinki Airport offers a Book Swap area for avid readers.

COMPILED AND WRITTEN BY LAURA PALOTIE

VILLE HYVÖNEN

The ghosts of Helsinki

Antroposeeni, a mobile game launching this spring, turns Helsinki into a spooky virtual reality.

In solving the mystery of a character named Keiko Kinosita, a Japanese woman who disappeared in Helsinki while gathering stories of strange and supernatural incidents, the player uncovers ghost stories and other curious tales around the city.

Built on the Arilyn platform, the game is theatre group Circus Maximus’s project. antroposeeni.fi

Two times Sibelius

Commemorating the 150th anniversary of the birth of Jean Sibelius, two new books explore the legacy of Finland’s greatest composer.

Dining with Jean Sibelius is a culinary biography of Sibelius’s favourite delicacies and legendary dinner parties. My Sibelius, meanwhile, is a collection essays whose contributors include opera singer Karita Mattila and conductor Okko Kamu. karisto.fi auditoriumkirjat.fi

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Passage by Ville Andersson.(2010).

ART

Brimming with inspiration VILLE ANDERSSON, 28, named Finland’s Young Artist of the Year 2015, has been commended for his imaginative references to history and his ability to peer at human psychology in a variety of formats, from photography to drawings.

“Because I use different types of visual expression, [all forms of art] benefit me.

It’s good to keep an open mind to different cultural mediums,” Andersson says.

His secret may be his enthusiasm as a cultural consumer: Andersson is an avid reader, music aficionado and film buff, and lists artists such as Leonard Cohen, Japanese dance legend Kazuo Ohno, director Robert Wilson and architect Peter Zumthor among his sources of inspiration.

“All of them depict something essential about what it means to be human through deliberate, delicate, beautiful and poetic expression,” says Andersson, whose solo exhibition will be shown at the Tampere Art Museum from mid-May through August.

For Andersson, the award is both a recognition and a source of encouragement.

“It pushes me forward in a positive way.

I don’t feel external pressure, but I’m very good at putting pressure on myself.”

Tampere Art Museum, from May 5 to August 23, 2015. villeandersson.com

Young Artist of the Year Ville Andersson draws inspiration from everything from modern dance to graphic design.

TAKEOFF FINLAND

FINNAIR OFFERS several daily codeshare flights to Kemi.

COMPILED AND WRITTEN BY DAVE DUNNE PHOTOS BY TIMO LAAPOTTI

The spectacular Kemi SnowCastle is built every winter in Finnish Lapland.

HELSINKI

January events JAN 27– FEB 1, 2015 DOCPOINT HELSINKI is one of the largest documentary film festivals in the Nordic countries.

In addition to screenings, the festival includes seminars, lectures, clubs and a masterclass. docpoint.info.com

Super-snug beds at the SnowHotel.

The SnowRestaurant’s Jean Sibelius-themed cabinet.

TO AUG 16, 2015 FINNSKOGAR – FOREST FINNS at the National Museum of Finland exhibits artefacts of the Finnish migrants to central Norway and Sweden from the late 16th century. These slash-andburn farmers were also accomplished hunters and skilful producers of woodcraft.

NATIONAL MUSEUM OF FINLAND

nba.fi/fi/kansallismuseo

Lapland

Magic castle of the North sual option of the Olokolo-nests – each for one to two people – where visitors can sleep snugly under the stars. The ecumenical SnowChapel is open daily to visitors, and is also available to book for those who want to make their big day that little bit special.

As part of the anniversary celebrations, the castle hosts an exhibition in the historic Customs Storehouse nearby, that displays photos and objects from previous years’ castles, as well as the snow-how of the building – and lighting-techniques involved in the construction. visitkemi.fi

DIDRICHSEN MUSEUM

In the inner harbour of the city of Kemi – situated in Finnish Lapland – lies a magical place that only exists for a few precious months each year. Considered the biggest snow fort in the world, the Kemi SnowCastle is built for the 20th time this year.

From early December each year some 50 workers begin construction, using over 21,000 cubic metres of snow – that’s around 2,100 truckloads – to construct the castle that is open from January through April.

Apart from a SnowRestaurant serving traditional local fare, the castle also hosts a SnowHotel: rooms are a fresh, -5 degrees Celsius. One can also go for the more unu-

TO FEB 1, 2015 EDVARD MUNCH and the “Dance of Life” is a rare gathering of the Norwegian artist’s works kindly donated by a number international museums and collections.

didrichsenmuseum.fi

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DESTINATION HONG KONG

Hong Kong residents are beginning to treasure the village-like feel created by restored tong lau, previously Chinese tenement buildings.

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TONG LAU NOW Hong Kong’s endangered low-rises enjoy a new lease of life.

TEXT AND PHOTOS BY DANIEL ALLEN

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The iconic exterior of the Pawn restaurant draws people from near and far.

E

nsconced on a leather sofa in one corner of hip Hong Kong restaurant The Pawn, local architect and property developer Alan Lo smiles gently as he recalls fond childhood memories.

“As a boy I would be the one sent on errands to the traditional Chinese medicine shop,” says Lo. “They were all on the ground floor of tong lau buildings in this neighbourhood.

Somebody getting sick always meant a trip to the tong lau. And that also meant a trip to the other shops below, which sold all kinds of delicious goodies.”

With a spartan, cookie-cutter structure that originated in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong, tong lau – or Chinese tenement buildings – first began to appear in Hong Kong in the mid-nine-

28 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

teenth century. Typically two to four storeys high, most had overhanging balconies, with the ground floor housing a shop, and the upper floors used as living quarters, frequently for the shop owner’s extended family.

“In their original form, the tong lau buildings of Hong Kong were quite primitive living and retail spaces,” explains Connie Lam, executive director of the Hong Kong Arts Centre. “There were no elevators, there were no toilets. There were often multiple families living in one room, and bathrooms and kitchens were shared.

There was little or no privacy. Most enjoyed a kind of air-conditioning that relied on coastal breezes,” she says.

Despite their stark functionality, today an increasing number of Hong Kong residents are enamoured of their local tong lau. Hunkered down beneath the

Above: Alan Ho looks out over the Hong Kong streets from the balcony of The Pawn restaurant. At left: haute cuisine at The Pawn.

ex-colony’s numerous shiny towers like children wandering through a room full of adults, for many they evoke a bygone era.

“I think it’s the humble, human side of tong lau that really draws me to them,” says Lo. “There’s no glitz or glamour to these buildings. Yet there’s a real villagelike feel to tong lau neighbourhoods. Everyone knows each other; the same people eat breakfast together in ground floor cafes every morning. When you’re living in a city populated with so many huge, impersonal skyscrapers, any structure that can engender this kind of community spirit has to be treasured.”

WRECKING-BALL FEVER While early forms of tong lau appeared in Hong Kong in the mid-nineteenth century, they rapidly multiplied during the 1940s and ’50s, as Chinese immigrants poured into the British colony from the mainland and urgently required accommodation. The last tong lau were constructed in 1964, when changes to planning laws saw the age of supertall Hong Kong buildings really take off.

Today multiple development projects are reshaping nearly every part of Hong Kong. “The new won’t come unless you lose the old,” runs the old Chinese maxim, neatly encapsulating the city-state’s approach to construction. With land at a premium, any building deemed obsolete or outdated is invariably demolished. Over the last few decades the wrecking ball has been taken to whole swathes of tong lau in the name of progress, and they are now a relative rarity.

“Today tong lau are definitely an endangered species,” says Lam. “Still, enough currently remain, mostly in parts of Wan Chai and Sheung Wan, to provide a record of Hong Kong’s most important vernacular architecture. We can’t be complacent though. We have JANUARY 2015

Above: Connie Lam, executive director of the Hong Kong Arts Centre and tong lau enthusiast.

Left: Tong lau architecture at the Artist Home Base on Wing Lee Street.

Top right: Inside the Artist Home Base.

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The Blue House, one of Hong Kong’s most iconic tong lau buildings.

The courtyard at the Comix Home Base.

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A tong lau era poster at the Wan Chai Livelihood Museum

VISITING

SLEEPING

DINING

• Wan Chai Architectural Heritage Trail: ura.org.hk/media/950737/eng_final.pdf • Wing Lee Street: hkac.org.hk/artisthomebase/en/

• Island Shangri-La: shangri-la.com/hongkong/islandshangrila • Mingle Place by the Park: mingleplace.com/ park/

• The Pawn Restaurant: thepawn.com.hk • Common Ground: 19 Shing Wong Street (next to Wing Lee Street)

to fight to preserve what’s left.”

Awareness of the need to preserve Hong Kong’s architectural heritage is undoubtedly on the rise. Anger at the destruction of the city-state’s heritage sites came to a to y head with the recent demolition of the l i da Star Ferry Pier, a famous Hong Kong ies ng fl ir o a K landmark. n Fin Hong .com r “Smart people woke up and realised i a finn that the end point of all these so-called ‘urban renewal’ projects was a city with no soul,” says Lo. “Conservation and development are not mutually exclusive. Outdated buildings can be upgraded and repurposed, or architects can integrate new features. Thankfully this is now what we are seeing with a growing number of tong lau.”

K G H

HISTORY IS HIP AGAIN Lo himself is already a key stakeholder in the push to preserve local architecture. Nine years ago he co-founded the Press Room Group, a company which now runs a collection of food and beverage spaces in revamped buildings across Hong Kong. When the group opened The Pawn, a trendy gastropub housed in one of Hong Kong’s most distinctive tong lau buildings, it almost single-handedly transformed the Wan Chai neighbourhood.

Set over three floors, The Pawn has real character, with an outdoor terrace overlooking the neon lights, trams and skyscrapers of Wan Chai. Key features of the original tong lau structure have been preserved, such as the narrow entrance staircase, high ceilings and the compartmentalised interior.

“Constructed in the 1880s, this building once housed the Woo Cheong Pawn shop,” explains Lo. “Most of Hong Kong’s pawn shops, of which there are still hundreds left, operate out of tong lau. As well as a place to live, the upper floors were used to store all the pawned goods. In the past people would even pawn

their blankets in the summer to make ends meet.”

Today, The Pawn forms part of the Wan Chai Architectural Heritage Trail, a pedestrian-oriented route which makes the perfect introduction to tong lau. Highlights include the Blue House, a recently renovated tong lau with an eye-catching turquoise facade. This distinctive colour was not a deliberate aesthetic decision – when the building was originally constructed the decorators apparently only had blue paint left.

A living architectural museum, the Blue House has been repopulated with residents, and an old-fashioned medical clinic and dessert shop opened on the ground floor. Adjoining them is the Wan Chai Livelihood Museum, showcasing tong lau life with a focus on the handicraft and light manufacturing industries once prevalent in the area.

A stone’s throw from the Blue House is the Green House, another artfully converted tong lau complex that now boasts an all-white facade. Home to a collection of animation studios, the French-made windows, narrow staircases and ornate balustrades serve as reminders of the block’s architectural history, while cha chaan teng (tea cafés) on the ground floor serve up delicious fare such as milk tea and Hong Kong-style French toast.

Opening of The Pawn, a trendy gastropub, almost single-handedly transformed the Wan Chai neighbourhood.

ARTFUL MAKEOVERS Hoteliers, restaurateurs and home owners are also transforming tong lau into hip new hangouts and JANUARY 2015

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Above: Street view from Mingle Place by the Park hotel.

Below: Tong lau era products at Mingle, including a radio.

homes. Successful renovations usually require real architectural expertise and no small measure of ingenuity, not to mention deep pockets and a sympathetic bank manager.

“For me the best tong lau makeovers are where the key architectural features are retained,” says Lo. “This means carefully deciding what stays and what goes. If you rip too much out then you start to lose the character of the building.”

Located in Wan Chai, Mingle Place By the Park is a 1960s tenement building that has recently opened as a trendy boutique hotel. With most of the interior structure preserved, the hotel is a unique showcase of the tong lau era, with each floor displaying photos and art from the nineteenth century through to the 1970s.

Most rooms also feature 1960s Hong Kong decor and

32 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

vintage furniture pieces, and even include period toiletries, radios and telephones.

“This building is located close to where I grew up in Wan Chai,” says owner Fanny Cheuk. “I spent much of my childhood in this neighbourhood, and Mingle Place by the Park is my attempt to transport guests back to the 1960s era. Repairing, renovating, decorating and licensing the building was a major challenge, but I think it was worth it.”

Over in the Sheung Wan neighbourhood, Wing Lee Street is another must-see for tong lau enthusiasts.

Made famous as a result of the 2010 movie Echoes of the Rainbow, which was mostly shot on Wing Lee, this is the last, fully intact tong lau street in Hong Kong. It had been slated for destruction as part of a redevelopment scheme, but following a public outcry

Green view at the Comix Home Base.

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Content clientele at the Comix Home Base CafĂŠ.

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Left: The Common Ground restaurant, housed in a tong lau building.

Below: A fully renovated tong lau apartment.

all 12 buildings are now set to be preserved and used for homes and small businesses.

The increasing number of locals and tourists now visiting Wing Lee has had a transformative effect on the street’s environs. Just around the corner on Shing Wong Street, tong lau-based café Common Ground now serves up some of the best burgers and lattes in town.

“I love tong lau neighbourhoods,” says Caleb Ng, who runs Common Ground with his twin brother Joshua. “Right now we’re just a few hundred metres from the hustle and bustle of Hollywood Road, but you can see how relaxed and intimate everything is here. Being on a street like this is perfect for the intimate, personal environment we are trying to create for our clientele.”

In their own idiosyncratic way, Hong Kong’s tong lau are as important architecturally as the hutongs (old alleyways and courtyards) of Beijing and the shikumen (tenement buildings) of Shanghai, reminding locals and visitors alike of the city-state’s unique heritage.

With many still threatened by redevelopment projects, the efforts of pioneering individuals such as Alan Lo and Fanny Cheuk will hopefully ensure some survive for future generations to connect with and enjoy.

“Not everyone in Hong Kong wants to live and work in a nondescript shoebox hundreds of metres off the ground,” says Lam. “I think we are now seeing the financial ambitions of a few property developers balanced by the will of the majority. It’s a sign of maturity, and tong lau have been the catalyst.” l

BEHIND THE SCENES

Daniel Allen

Based in London and St. Petersburg, award-winning writer and photographer Daniel Allen has journeyed widely across the globe. His work has featured in numerous publications, including the Guardian and the Sunday Times. In his spare time he likes climbing, curry and Chelsea Football Club.

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TOP5 Powder snow HOTSPOTS

1

FREERIDE THE FJORDS There are no pistes or lifts in the wild mountains of Tamok and Lyngen in Norway’s Tromsø. Each turn is earned with sweat. Special snowboards and skis can be converted into hiking equipment by attaching climbing skins. If the climb doesn’t take your breath away, the fjord scenery certainly will. Nothing beats the feeling of standing on a peak you just ascended... except the ride down in deep powder snow.

Best season: Mid-February to May magicmountainlodge.no facebook.com/OlsrudAdventure

Finnair flies nonstop to Tromsø three times a week to the end of March.

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Riding untouched powder snow is the ultimate freedom. If lift lines and groomed slopes make you yawn, step off-piste and ski on the wild side.

TEXT BY MIIKKA HAST PHOTOS BY JANI KÄRPPÄ

2

SNOW COUNTRY A train ride from Tokyo brings you to Minamiuonuma, one of the snowiest places on earth.

With up to a metre of snow falling overnight, skiing can start to feel more like swimming. There are several resorts to choose from, and you can ride for days without meeting any westerners.

After a day of powder fun, relax in an onsen, a Japanese hot spring, which are abundant in the area.

Best season: January to February

4

PURR WITH A SNOWCAT “BC: best place on earth” boasts a bumper sticker in British Columbia, Canada. When it comes to freeriding, the claim is true. The city of Nelson is surrounded by backcountry terrain best accessed by snowcat, a snow groomer transformed into an agile mountain vehicle. Exclusive trips are provided only by professional mountain guides. Your only job is to enjoy the amazing riding and guess what’s for lunch. Best season: January to March valhallapow.com

Finnair offers connections to Kelowna, B.C. via its oneworld codeshare flights

snow-country.jp triforce-guide.sakura.ne.jp

Finnair flies daily to

3 Tokyo

HELISKIING KIWI-STYLE The Kiwis take pride in showing thrill-seekers a good time. Nestling among amazing fairy-tale scenery, Wanaka is second home to many of the world’s top freeriders during the European summer. Here heliskiing – normally an exclusive sport – is accessible to all. “You can just drop in on a heli-operator and book a day of flying and riding in a great variety of terrain,” says Finnish pro snowboarder Antti Autti.

Best Season: August to September heliskinz.com

Finnair offers excellent connections to Queenstown via its oneworld codeshare flights to Sydney and Auckland

5

GOING TO EXTREMES In the shadow of Mont Blanc Massif lies Chamonix, mecca of the extreme freeride elite. The famous cable car to the peak of Aiguille du Midi holds the title of highest vertical lift ascent in the world. An adrenaline rush is guaranteed just by looking down at many of the world’s most famous off-piste runs. Serious mountaineering skills and equipment are required before stepping onto the spectacular glacier. Best Season: December to June chamonix.com chamonix-guides.eu

Finnair flies twice daily to Geneva

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EUROPEAN VOICES

BY TIINA ROSENBERG

Iconic legacies

T

he American author In their artistic practices, they Wayne Koestenbaum embraced a new style of expression comonce said that it is easy bining the local and the modern. National – and tempting – to formotifs and symbols provided fertile get that an icon is an idea, ground for the creation of new visual and not a person. How true musical languages. Meanwhile, the emerhis comment seems this year as we celegence of a lively international art scene in brate the 150th anniversary of three iconEurope opened up new arenas for artists ised Finnish artists: painters Akseli Gallénto exhibit and enact their new national Kallela (1865–1931) and Pekka Halonen identities, while the art scene became (1865–1933), and composer Jean Sibelius more nomadic and heterogeneous.

(1865–1957). All three artists have become This year, the work of Gallén-Kallela, a national brand Halonen and Sibeand an ingrained lius will be showGALLÉN-KALLELA, HALONEN part of the Finnish cased in many difnational imagery. ferent forums, yet AND SIBELIUS HAVE BECOME For decades, one of the best NATIONAL BRANDS. cultural theoways to become reticians have acquainted with stressed that their personal hisculture is in a continuous state of tories is to visit their home museums, flux and national cultures cannot be the Gallén-Kallela Museum in Espoo, defined precisely. National identiHalosenniemi in Tuusula and Ainola, the ties are not essentially fixed, but are former home of Jean Sibelius in Järvenpää. dependent on the claims people make Though avid travellers, all three rejoiced in different contexts at different times. in the comforts of home. In this respect they The work of Gallén-Kallela, Halare no different from today’s travellers, for onen and Sibelius has played a decisive whom the joy of departing is surpassed only role in the visual and musical creation by the delight of returning. l of the Finnish nation. Generations have come to feel their influence and TIINA ROSENBERG is the rector of the identify the nation with their paintUniversity of the Arts in Helsinki for the ings and music. Gallén-Kallela, Hal2013–2017 term, and currently on leave from onen and Sibelius lived and worked her professorship at the University of in their own unique and diverse ways at a time when national identity Stockholm. Her research has focused on feminist theatre, performance studies, feminist was an abiding concern among Eurotheory, gender and sexuality, and critical pean artists and a key topic in turn-oftheory. the-century cultural discourse.

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Suomen suurin tiedelehti

Tiede ruokkii luovuutta. kriSTa koSonen Tiede-lehden lukija, n채yttelij채

Tiede on tarua ihmeellisemp채채.

Totea itse.

Tilaa: tiede.fi

Tucked away in a remote corner of the Atlantic, the Faroe Islands struggle with population decline. But that’s about to change now that a bold group of creative entrepreneurs are bringing their business back to the archipelago.

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RETURN TO PARADISE TEXT BY JOHAN AUGUSTIN PHOTOS BY KARINE AIGNER

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M

ost people who come to the Faroes remember the 18 islands for their breathtaking landscapes – scenes of waterfalls plummeting into the clean Atlantic Ocean, bright-beaked puffins nesting on the cliffs, and the fresh air filling their lungs. You almost expect the soundtrack of The Lord of the Rings to be playing in the background – and, as it happens, “mysterious and elflike” is an apt description of the local music scene, which is synonymous with the name of a recent returnee, Jónas Bloch Danielsen.

He meets us at “Bloch,” a studio located in a converted 125-year-old factory, combining rough-edged charm with modern technology and design. Equally inspiring is the location by the water’s edge in the picturesque harbour of the capital, Tórshavn.

The 39-year-old music producer was raised in the Faroes, but has lived, produced music and worked with artists in Denmark, Australia and USA since the late ’80s. Two years ago, he decided to move back to the islands. Since then, artists such as Eivør, Mezzoforte and The Holmes Brothers have worked in the Bloch Studio, which Bloch Danielsen and his companions see as a place where they can get together far away from it all.

“The tradition of storytelling is very strong in the Faroes. We take our music seriously,

Saksun is a village near the northwest coast of the Faroese island of Streymoy.

Jónas Bloch Danielsen 42 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

Clothing designer Gudrun Ludvig of Gudrun & Gudrun, which has become a major local employer .

but it’s still at the grassroots level. We have no government backing,” he says.

Being constantly on the move, he rarely has time for anything else but work. But with a wife and two small children, that too has changed in the last three years.

“I want my family to call this place home,” he says.

Besides the inspirational setting, the advantage of having the studio in a small capital with only 20,000 inhabitants means the cost of living is much lower.

“Plus it’s just a two-hour flight from Copenhagen. Imagine what a studio in London would cost! Here I can concentrate fully on work and breathe fresh air, far away from the rat race.”

His most fervent wish is that a certain British band will knock on his door one day. “My dream is to work with The Rolling Stones!”

FAR-FLUNG FASHION If you have ever watched the hit TV series The Killing, you may have noticed that the main character, Detective Sarah Lund, wears a jumper by the local Faroese brand Gudrun & Gudrun.

“We’ve had a lot of feedback through the series,” says Gudrun Ludvig. The

45-year-old fashion designer meets us in her clothing store on the main shopping drag in Tórshavn.

Ludvig was born and raised on the southernmost island, Suðuroy, but like many islanders, she left the Faroes to study and work in fashion design in Copenhagen.

The wool of the 70,000 sheep that roam the islands was once highly valued, but when prices plummeted in the late ’90s, many sheep owners burned the wool instead of selling it.

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The wool of the 70,000 sheep that roam the islands was once highly valued.

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FAROE FACTS The 18 Faroe Islands have a combined coastline of 1,100 kilometres and 48,000 residents. The islands have been an autonomous region of Denmark since 1948.

The Faroese parliament has legislative power in areas such as fisheries, trade, environmental policy, transport, communication, culture, education and research.

Faroese chef Gutti Winther holds up blue mussels found in Saksun lake.

That’s when Gudrun Rogvadottir – the other half of Gudrun & Gudrun, also born in the Faroes – decided to capitalise on the situation by creating a Faroes-based business together with Ludvig. After quitting their jobs in 2007, they turned their focus to their new careers.

“Investing in something means letting the world know you exist,” Ludvig says.

The duo drummed up publicity by inviting

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movers and shakers in the fashion industry to a fashion show in Tórshavn.

“We showed nothing but handmade knitwear and people still talk about the event!”

The 200- to 300-euro price tag doesn’t seem to deter customers from buying their own Sarah Lund knits. Today Gudrun & Gudrun has an annual turnover of 1.5 million euros, and the business is growing.

It’s also a major local employer: around 40 women (many of them friends and family) knit for Gudrun & Gudrun across the islands, with another 30 in Peru producing alpaca jumpers. Many other brands have tried to copy the distinctive snowflake and seaman pattern that has become synonymous with Gudrun & Gudrun.

“We need to get a patent on the pattern… but we welcome the competition,” says Ludvig.

The two women seem a perfect match; Ludvig designs and Rogvadottir organises the sales from Denmark, where she lives part of the time.

With many people leaving the islands for work or study, never to return, the Faroes long seemed to face a bleak future.

Bold entrepreneurs like Gudrun & Gudrun are reversing that trend.

“Now young people are saying that they want to return to their roots and move back here. That’s a good sign,” says Ludvig.

ONE GIANT PANTRY The Faroese “last-minute mentality” becomes apparent when Gutti Winther all of a sudden decides to get us some fresh lobster from a local fisherman in Tórshavn. We are on our way north to the island of Streymoy and the tiny village of Saksun. Winther is taking us on a tour of his favourite Faroese places. He returns with a bag in each hand.

“You have to try these,” he says. The 35-year-old chef worked abroad for many years before he decided to return to the Faroes one year ago.

“I know everybody here, so it’s great for networking,” he says, wading out in the shallow bay that narrows in through sharp cliffs separating this calm lake oasis from the rough Atlantic Ocean.

On arrival in Saksun, he reaches into the water and raises a bushel of largerthan-life blue mussels from the lake. Only minutes later, steam rises from a pan stashed in his Land Rover; he’s cooking the seafood on a Sterno in the trunk of his car.

The mouth-watering lunch is evidence of why Gutti is a big celebrity in the Faroes. Not only is he a renowned chef, he has also recorded three seasons of Spískamarid, a TV show documenting his travels throughout the islands and their various food cultures.

“Our food is seasonal. One day we kill gannet chicks and the next we shoot hare,” he says.

In fact, the islands are a huge living pantry of great local foods including fresh and dried mutton, fish, birds, and the more controversial meat of migrating pilot whales. Everything is seasoned with fresh herbs such as wild sorrel or angelica, which we stop to pick in some secret spots along the roadside.

Winther has plans to open a restaurant in the Faroes, and he claims there is no better place to start a family than in the archipelago.

“I’m proud of the islands. I think our strong culture will survive here.” l

The Faroese flag flies on the stern of the passenger ferry from Mykines to Sørvágur.

BEHIND THE SCENES

Johan Augustin & Karine Aigner Johan Augustin is a Stockholm-based freelance journalist, who covers environmental issues and travel stories. Karine Aigner is a Washington D.C-based award-winning freelance photographer and former National Geographic picture editor. Johan and Karine were both blown away by the pristine beauty of the Faroe Islands.

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be privileged. be one.

Introducing new oneworld benefits.

Finnair Plus Platinum and Gold members both now enjoy additional baggage allowances on all oneworld airlines - and their baggage also receives priority handling from aircraft to carousel.

Learn more at oneworld.com/benefits

member of

be connected Welcome to oneworld, an alliance of the world’s leading airlines committed to providing the highest level of service and convenience across almost 1,000 destinations worldwide. Whenever Finnair can’t take you to your final destination, we encourage you to travel with our oneworld partner airlines.

Enjoy an array of special privileges and rewards — which include earning and redeeming Finnair Plus points on all oneworld airlines and, for Finnair Plus Platinum and Gold members, access to over 600 premium airport lounges.

oneworld alliance members

be recognised As a oneworld traveller, satisfaction awaits you around the globe. Your Finnair Plus status is recognised across all member airlines. And you are entitled to a range of benefits, which are provided according to the following oneworld tier levels, no matter which cabin class you are flying in:

*Access to preferred or pre-reserved seating is in accordance with the individual policy of the oneworld member airline operating the flight. First and business class check-in desks and lounges are not available at all airports. Fast track is not available at all airports. Priority baggage handling is not available on flights operated by British Airways. Extra baggage allowance benefits differ for Sapphire and Emerald level members. oneworld benefits are available only to passengers on scheduled flights that are both marketed and operated by a oneworld member airline (marketed means that there must be a oneworld member airline’s flight number on your ticket). airberlin, American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Iberia, Japan Airlines, LAN, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Royal Jordanian, S7 Airlines, SriLankan Airlines, TAM Airlines and oneworld are trademarks of their respective companies. TAM Airlines (Paraguay) is currently not a part of oneworld.

Some limitations and exceptions may apply. For more information, visit www.oneworld.com/benefits.

be global Round-the-world travel is easy, flexible and affordable with oneworld Explorer. Fares are based on the number of continents you visit or pass through, and class of travel. Select your route, plan your stopovers, even adjust your itinerary. oneworld Explorer means ultimate flexibility and value.

To book, or to discover more multi-continent and single-continent options, visit www.oneworld.com/flights

BIG FUTURE FOR BIG DATA TEXT BY TIM BIRD ILLUSTRATION BY TIINA KÄLKÄINEN

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Digital data is the currency of the 21st century – and companies and organisations of all kinds are starting to understand its value.

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J

ust about everything you do involves the generation of masses of data.

Assuming that you are reading this on an aircraft, the processes of choosing your flight, booking and paying for it, passing through the airport and arriving at your seat have created countless gigabytes. The technology of the flight itself and its arrival at your destination will inflate that total. Multiply your own ever-expanding data cloud by the number of passengers on board and the figures become beyond the reach of the imagination.

This information, multiplied again by all the myriad interfaces of daily life from shopping to health care, is known as Big Data. Even the name seems too small to express the mushrooming plumes of virtual material swirling around the planet, continuously and at terrifying speed.

But the realisation is spreading, in the public sector as well as in the corporate business sphere, that reining in this data, analysing it and then feeding it back into the processes that produce it can yield huge benefits. In fact, the storage and analysis of Big

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Data are becoming essential for the efficiency of companies and organisations of almost any description.

“Big Data has become a buzzword and there is confusion about where it came from, what it means and why it’s important,” says Kelly McGuire, executive director responsible for hospitality and travel global practice at the US-based analytics giant SAS Institute Inc. Data becomes “Big,” she says, when the volume, velocity and variety of information start to exceed an organisation’s ability to use it.

One-armed bandits rattle and chink in the background as McGuire seats herself in a lounge at the Bellagio Hotel, one of the many behemoths that line the Las Vegas strip. She glances around to find a context. “MGM, the owners of this and other Vegas hotels, has some 40,000 rooms in this city,” she says.

“So at any one time they have that many rooms to sell, with all the associated charges and data sets. It’s a big deal to handle that volume of data, but I always tell our travel and hospitality customers that it’s the other two they’ve got to watch out for – the velocity and variety.”

If you don’t have the ability to capture, analyse and deliver on Big Data, you’re missing opportunities.

THE THREE Vs Companies are accustomed to dealing with neat rows and columns of structured data, but that is changing, says McGuire. “Seventy per cent of data we are dealing with now, especially in travel and hospitality, is unstructured, in the form of social media, reviews, ratings, video and audio, and so on,” she says.

“If you consider tweets and location data, for instance, they are stale almost as soon as they are generated. All of this data contains insights about business and customers. But if you don’t have the ability to capture it, analyse it and deliver it back at the speed of business, you are missing opportunities. So all three ‘Vs’ are placing pressure on hospitality companies, as well as those in other sectors,” says McGuire.

Big Data has become such a big subject, says McGuire, because technology has reached a point where information can be captured and analysed, and conclusions delivered and acted on almost instantly.

But for this to work, there needs to be an overall shift in technology infrastructure.

“To advance to provide real decision-making ability requires solving complex math problems, which involves a lot of handling and processing of data. If you can’t do that at the speed of business to deliver the results in time, you might as well not have the data at all. The row-and-column report isn’t going to cut it.

So three crucial factors – storage, analysis and delivery – need to be innovated,” she says.

McGuire is in Las Vegas to attend the annual SAS Premier Business Leadership series conference, a congregation of some of the sharpest minds in the field of Big Data and the challenges of the digital economy, with academia, government and industry all represented. In one keynote address, SAS EVP and CMO Jim Davies describes the “Internet of Things,” in which an increasing number of everyday items and devices, each with their own IP address, are linked by

constant exchanges of data. Company founder and CEO Jim Goodnight expounds on the falling cost of data storage and how analytics can accelerate the prediction of customer behaviour and, in turn, dramatically reduce strategic and operational risks.

EVER-SMARTER INTERACTION “If we are doing it right and the company is using analytics right, fewer but more relevant messages will be sent to customers,” McGuire explains. “And there is definitely an upside to helping a company to give the customer a better experience. Some big players are doing this in ever-smarter ways, by providing interac-

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The balance between the right to protect personal data and the common benefits of allowing it to flow freely needs to be maintained. tion on the website, for example, and in search content. Is a trip for business or leisure? If the data shows that you search for certain airlines and airports, for non-stop flights, you can be given relevant search results.”

According to Mikael Hagstrom, who leads SAS in the EMEA and Asia Pacific regions, analytics can benefit clients in a vast variety of businesses and services apart from travel and hospitality. He points at three examples to illustrate this range.

The first is how health care can extract valuable insights and how one hospital in particular, the Nordland Hospital in Norway, has used analytics to improve its treatment and reduce errors and misdiagnoses. The hospital began using the Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s Global Trigger Tool (GTT) to identify patient injuries and other incidents. The adoption of Automated Trigger Analytics has cut the need for labour-intensive and manual informationgathering, increased transparency of injury statistics, and reduced the incidence of injuries.

The second example is the work being done at Sheffield Hallam University in England to adapt analytics to address crime, cybercrime, terrorism and disruptions of public order. The projects being carried out within the University’s CENTRIC research group include the potential of social media to contribute to criminal apprehension and the use of data to chart – and help to reduce – gun crime.

Thirdly, mobile marketing company ZapFi is developing an analytics-based solution with SAS to ana52 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

lyse consumer surfing patterns that will support more effective and targeted mobile marketing.

WIZARD-DRIVEN INSIGHT If these benefits are to be gained more widely, there is still work to be done, says McGuire, to prepare the mind-set of management as well as organisational infrastructure.

“A company has to be at a certain level of sophistication to be able to take on these analytics and Big Data initiatives,” she says. “It requires investment in resources and in people and backroom decisionmaking. There are a lot of companies that aren’t at that level. That’s why we do a lot of education, a lot of evangelising, for those companies that haven’t positioned themselves in that way. But once you make the organisational commitment you don’t have to adapt to the core product too much.”

In SAS’s case, the product range extends from enterprise solutions for risk management, fraud and security intelligence to supply chain intelligence and analytics software packages, as well as consulting services.

“One of the biggest, most helpful changes has been in data visualisation software,” says McGuire. “This

Healthcare can extract valuable insights from Big Data to improve treatments and reduce errors and misdiagnoses. makes things more visual, more wizard-driven, more self-service and democratised. It makes it easier for someone who is smart but doesn’t have a Masters in analytics to do a lot of the analyses themselves.”

One of the challenges for analytics companies like SAS is how to filter appropriate data to improve customer experience. Direct marketing by airlines and hotel chains is a good example of how this might work.

BIG DATA – BIG BROTHER? Some remain concerned that Big Data is just a step away from Big Brother. Hagstrom strongly believes that companies like SAS have a responsibility to safeguard data access and that legislation might still play a bigger role. The balance between the right to protect personal data and the common benefits of allowing it to flow freely needs to be maintained.

“It’s a matter of how we handle it,” he says. “There is a lot of discussion about who can have access to what data in the EU Data Protection Directive at the moment. It is an open market so companies such as ours have to make sure the data we acquire is used for good. Really the legislators need to play a role in how it’s being used in partnership, but at the moment it’s self-regulated. If we are able to use data and technology to prevent a failure or a crime or to improve quality of life then we should be allowed to do so – but we should try to do so without abusing the personal details of an individual.” l

BEHIND THE SCENES

Tim Bird Tim Bird is a Helsinki-based English journalist and a long-term contributor to Blue Wings. As an award-winning photographer and frequent traveller, he has started to take a bigger interest in issues of digital data storage and distribution.

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WORLD ON YOUR PLATE

PURE GREEN SMOOTHIE 1 small avocado 1 small apple 1 small pear 2 kale leaves 1-1.5 dl of orange juice Juice of half a lime 1 tbsp tulsi seeds Half a tsp of Chlorella Ice cubes Recipe by PUR Smoothie Bar

54 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

A smooth(ie) start for 2015 COMPILED AND WRITTEN BY KATI HEIKINHEIMO

H

aving shed their hippie label, raw liquid meals have become the Number One urban lunch. Easy to prepare and consume, they match today’s hectic schedules. “But more importantly, smartly composed smoothies have unbeatable nutritional value,” says Hanna Huttunen, a nutritional therapist.

Their finely puréed consistency makes them easy to digest, and a much better option than a hastily gobbled-down sandwich or salad. As such, the precious nutrients of smoothies are optimally absorbed. Huttunen points out that many people have chronically elevated levels of the stress hormone cortisol, which disturbs the digestive system.

“As well, most of us drink too little water and eat too few leafy greens, berries and vegetables,” says Huttunen. “The most convenient and delicious way to consume these is in blended format. I recommend at least one smoothie a day to all of my clients.” l

TOP 3 DETOX IN DOWNTOWN HELSINKI

PUR A small and cosy bar in the back of a modern health store, PUR offers hot drinks and smoothies that nourish mind and body. Try Pineapple Gazpacho, Blueberry Pie or Green Coco Shake.

Urho Kekkosen katu 8, next to the Kamppi Shopping Center.

BE GOOD A bit tricky to find, this sportsy wellness bar is worth searching out. On top of delicious raw cakes, smoothies and salads, the menu includes special roast coffee and protein-rich whey ice cream.

Located in the City Center mall (level K1), next to the Central Railway Station.

KIPPO Most people come here for the mouth-watering, organic frozen yogurt, but Kippo also makes great, hearty smoothies. Try Greenthumb if you feel like detoxing. Nutcase is another favourite, packed with dark chocolate, hazelnuts and cashews.

Two locations: Forum Shopping Centre and Iso Roobertinkatu 7.

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DESTINATION MIAMI

KEYS TO

The wild kingdom

Miami is the entryway to the Florida Keys, a string of pearls off America’s south-east point, where wildlife encounters are part of everyday life.

L

TEXT BY WIF STENGER PHOTOS BY SINIMAARIA KANGAS

ike most of Florida, the Keys have their share of kitsch, tourist traps and development. Thankfully there are also four wildlife refuges totalling 170,000 hectares.

The Keys are laid-back and smallscale, home to a mix of artists, Cuban immigrants, ageing hippies, beach bums and fishers – as well as an amazing array of wildlife.

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Within an hour by bus or rented car from Miami Airport, you’re on Key Largo, largest of the 1,700 islands that make up the archipelago.

Wilder areas lie further south, such as the National Key Deer Refuge on Big Pine Key. It is home to more than 20 threatened or endangered species, many found nowhere else. The freshwater Blue Hole is populated by turtles and alligators.

The star of the show, the Key Deer, stands just 75

Key Deer are endearing – but were almost hunted to extinction in the 1950s. Now the population is slowly recovering.

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The Dolphin Research Center funds its scientific work with demonstrations and encounter sessions for visitors.

cm at the shoulder. With dainty hooves and black “masks” around their big eyes, they’re endearing – yet were almost hunted to extinction by the 1950s. Their numbers have recovered from just 27 to around 700.

New fawns arrive in April and May. HIPPIES AND HERONS Just as gentle, tame and endangered are manatees, which sometimes hang around docks where people squirt fresh water for them (please don’t). Raising money to protect them and educate boaters is the Save the Manatee Club, co-founded by singer Jimmy Buffett.

Buffett, owner of the Margaritaville Restaurant, is a quintessential Keys character. His tongue-in-cheek hits such as “Fins” celebrate hedonism, the pirate lifestyle and wildlife.

So did Ernest Hemingway, whose To Have and Have Not tells of a fisherman-turned-smuggler who evades storms and officials by hiding his rum-laden boat among tiny mangrove Keys.

Carl Hiaasen carries on the tradition in Stormy Weather, which recounts a tale of large predators on the prowl after a hurricane frees them from a wildlife park. The baddie ends up being eaten in Key Largo’s Crocodile Lake National Wildlife Refuge.

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Hemingway’s fisherman-turnedsmuggler evades storms and officials by hiding his rum-laden boat among tiny mangrove Keys.

For most visitors, animal encounters are far less dramatic. A Key deer may wander close as it nibbles grass and bougainvillea. Rays – usually harmless – float near beaches in Bahia Honda State Park.

Pelicans soar in unison like fighter jets. Shorelines and wetlands are alive with herons, egrets, ibis, spoonbills and occasionally flamingos.

According to Florida Keys Hawkwatch, ospreys, peregrine falcons and kestrels are the most common birds of prey. Four species of kites have been spotted at Curry Hammock State Park.

Deer may wander close as they nibble grass and bougainvillea.

ON THE EDGE

Brown anole lizards, originally from Cuba and the Bahamas, are among the Keys’ many non-native species.

A I M

mi Mia k o t e ies we ir fl per a n s e ch Fin tim f Mar e e o thr end r.com till ai

Threatened and endangered species • Key Deer • Lower Keys Marsh Rabbit • Key Largo Cotton Mouse • Key Largo Woodrat • Sea Turtle • American Alligator • Manatee • Schaus Swallowtail Butterfly

finn

Manatees are gentle, tame and endangered.

REHAB ANIMALS Dolphin Research Center, Grassy Key dolphins.org

LEARNING FROM DOLPHINS Nearby on Grassy Key, the Dolphin Research Center is home to 23 bottlenose dolphins, most of them found orphaned and injured. Comparative psychologists study their cognition and behaviour, with research funded by activities where visitors can swim with dolphins or even help them to “paint.”

Turtle Hospital, Marathon Key turtlehospital.org

Wild Bird Rehabilitation Center, Tavernier, Key Largo keepthemflying.org

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Bahia Honda State Park offers one of Florida’s finest beaches – and a wide array of wild flora and fauna.

CATCH FRESH SEAFOOD Coco’s Kitchen, Big Pine Key Close to the Key Deer Refuge Visitor Center, this mother-and-daughter Cuban café serves fried fish and shrimp, beans and rice, plantains, yucca fries, and the best Key Lime pie – all with big smiles and low prices.

Mangrove Mama’s, Sugarloaf Key This funky, slightly eccentric rural hideaway dishes up conch, mahi mahi and grouper in a semi-outdoor compound fringed by palm trees. Live bands on weekends.

Castaway Waterfront Restaurant, Marathon Key With tables right on the dock, this authentic local dive has been luring diners since 1951. Sea scallops, clams and stone crabs are washed down with craft beers and live music. Don’t miss the nearby Turtle Hospital, or the Marathon Seafood Festival, March 14–15. marathonseafoodfestival.com

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Seagrass feeds conchs, sea turtles, urchins, lobster, shrimp and fish – including the aggressive, invasive lionfish.

The dolphins live in enclosed lagoons in the Gulf of Mexico, but remain inside even when the water rises above the fences. Just as well, since they lack the skills to survive in the wild.

Along the beaches, wading birds feed on tiny amphipods in the rotting seagrass that gives the shoreline its distinctive aroma. In the water, seagrass feeds conchs, sea turtles, urchins, lobster, shrimp and fish. These include lionfish, an aggressive invasive species with bright spikes, which is now being caught and served as sushi – a win-win for both diners and native fish. l

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BY ALEXANDER STUBB

How to improve your capacity

A

new year holds Another thing we often neglect is good promise, the nutrition. When we’re busy, our eating promise of better habits become erratic. Sometimes we forthings. I often look get to eat lunch all together and find ourback at the previselves craving quick carbohydrates in ous year and think order to keep going. about what I could Establishing healthy and consistent eathave done better ing habits improves our ability to perform. and how I might improve in the future.

I try to eat six times a day. My key meals Was I a good Dad, husband and friend? remain the same: breakfast, lunch and Did I perform well at work? Did I take care dinner. But in between I try to grab some of myself? The answers to these questions healthy snacks. Not easy in my job, but are sometimes “yes,” and at other times “no.” manageable.

But at the end of the day it all boils The final element of capacity is physidown to one thing: cal exercise. I capacity. firmly believe one AREN’T WE ALL STRIVING FOR hour of exercise a To kick off the year I read a day translates into HAPPINESS? book called Kapatwo more hours of siteetti: Johtajan additional energy Menestystekijä (Fitra 2014) by Antti each day. You don’t need to do interval Hagqvist, Mika Nevalainen and Jari training, but breaking into a sweat sure Puranen. The title roughly translates feels good from time to time. to “Capacity: the leader’s essential In this Nordic neck of the woods we success factor.” Although the book have a tendency to fight the Novemonly exists in Finnish, the recipes are ber and December blues with moderate universal. debauchery in the form of Little Christmas The book’s focus is on maximisparties. To put it bluntly, we drink and eat ing capacity at work, but its themes too much. can just as well be applied to all areas After Christmas, we make a New Year’s of life. It brought me back to the three promise. Many go for “tipaton tammibasics of general wellbeing: rest, food kuu,” also known as Dry January. Others and exercise. change their eating habits or start going to Rest and recovery are probably the the gym. most undervalued elements of your capacThere is a Latin saying: “anima sana in ity, or how well you function. Over the corpore sano,” which means “a healthy soul years I have come to realise that I need in a healthy body.” So true, and so obvious. seven to eight hours of sleep. If I get a We all strive for happiness, but we don’t good night’s sleep, I am full of beans. If always know how to get there. Improving not, my capacity suffers. your capacity is a good start. l Sleep is often the first thing you give up when you’re suffering from time restraints and pressure. We think that we can do a bit more if we sleep a bit Alexander Stubb is the Prime Minister of less. But as we all know, the opposite is often true. Never underestimate the Finland, and he’s always looking for ways of improving his capacity. value of recovery from a tough day.

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A bust commemorates writer James Joyce, Dublin’s most famous literary export, in St Stephen’s Green.

Marsh’s Library was opened in 1707 and is the oldest public library in Ireland.

64 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

Oscar Wilde’s wit is celebrated with a colourful statue.

T

he story-telling ability of the Irish is world renowned and Dubliners in particular are immensely proud of their writers. From the wit of Oscar Wilde to Bram Stoker’s immortal Dracula, Dublin has made an incredible contribution to the world of literature.

St Stephen’s Green where, if you’re lucky, you can catch a poetry recital.

1. NO OTHER AUTHOR speaks of Dublin quite like James Joyce. All his major works are set in the city and his masterpiece, Ulysses, tells of the adventures of one Leopold Bloom in Dublin in the course of a single day, June 16, 1904.

Sandyford’s Martello Tower, where Joyce briefly lived and the setting for the first chapter of Ulysses, is open to the public; it’s a short trip south along the coast.

In the heart of the city is the James Joyce Centre on North Great George’s Street hosting interpretive exhibitions and the door to No 7 Eccles Street – home to the fictional Leopold Bloom.

2. A SHORT HOP across the River Liffey is St Stephen’s Green; a beautiful park set on a Georgian-era square, and home to the colourful statue of the very colour-

BOOKLOVERS’ DUBLIN One of only nine ­UNESCO Cities of ­Literature in the world, Dublin is a perfect ­destination for the ­literary traveller.

TEXT BY DAVID DUNNE PHOTOS BY DUBLIN REGIONAL TOURISM AND TOURISM IRELAND

ful Oscar Wilde. One of the most remarkable wits of the English language, Wilde’s famous dying words – in a run-down boarding house in Paris – were: “Either this wallpaper goes, or I do.” Wilde’s childhood home is a five-minute walk away on Merrion Square.

3. A BRIEF STROLL west will take you to Synge Street and the George Bernard Shaw museum. Shaw’s plays revealed the prevailing social problems of the last century, with a dash of dark humour.

4. CLOSE BY is Marsh’s Library – Ireland’s oldest public library was opened in 1707 – and St Patrick’s Cathedral, the resting place of Jonathan Swift. A thinly-veiled satire on human nature, Swift’s Gulliver’s Travels has never been out of print since it was first published in 1726.

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5. AGAIN ON THE NORTH SIDE of the Liffey – in Clontarf – is the Bram Stoker Castle Dracula. A relatively unknown theatre manager during his lifetime, Dubliner Bram Stoker gave the world its most-renowned villain, Count Dracula. Castle Dracula is a fun-filled experience, combining gore and comedy.

The Dublin ­Writers’ Museum beside the Abbey Church houses some wonderful personal artifacts and rare first editions.

6. STAYING ON THE NORTHSIDE, on Parnell Square is the Dublin Writers’ Museum, which is packed full of books and intimate personal belongings of writers such as the cultural nationalist author Lady Gregory, Oliver St. John Gogarty and feminist writer Mary Lavin.

7. NO VISIT TO DUBLIN is complete without seeing The Book of Kells – an unparalleled 9th-century illuminated manuscript of the Gospel, combining Christian symbolism and Celtic imagery. The Trinity College library in which the book is displayed is the largest in Ireland, and dates from 1592.

The Dublin described in Joyce’s Ulysses is so vividly depicted that the author boasted that were the city ever destroyed it could be rebuilt from the pages of his book. Thankfully Dublin, and its remarkable literary heritage, is still with us. Its Georgian pubs and parks offer solace and solitude to visitors, as they did to writers in times past. l

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10. DOHENY AND ­NESBITT’S, Baggot Street In times past Brendan Behan and George Bernard Shaw pondered the complexities of life here. Writers, politicians, journalists, and actors still frequent this pub.

Phibsborough

9. TONER’S, ­Baggot Street Toner’s is the only Dublin pub visited

by W.B. Yeats. He stood up half way through his first drink and said, “I’ve seen a pub, now can we go?” Since then Toner’s has a sign which reads, “Toner’s. A pub.”

Synge St.

8. HORSESHOE BAR, SHELBOURNE HOTEL, St Stephen’s Green The Horseshoe has been frequented by an astounding array of writers including Elizabeth Bowen and William Makepeace Thackeray.

ra Rd Lo we r

Best of Dublin’s literary pubs

Grafton St.

2 8 10 9 Bag got St

.

B U D

s to flie y r i ail na ) Fin blin d days s u D ch. ue t T f Mar p e c o (ex end com m ir. fro finna

“I always write about Dublin, because if I can get to the heart of Dublin I can get to the heart of all the cities of the world.”

– James Joyce

Trinity College Library is home to the Book of Kells, and some six million other volumes.

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words Away with

Great writing inspires journeys of all kinds. Blue Wings meets three internationally acclaimed authors who share one valuable asset.

TEXT BY KATJA PANTZAR PHOTOS BY AMANDA SOILA

PORTRAIT OF THE ARTIST FANS OF PULITZER-PRIZE WINNING author Jhumpa Lahiri, best known for her novels and short stories that so eloquently capture the Indian-American experience, may be surprised to learn that she has just written her first book in Italian. In Altre Parole (“In Other Words”) debuts this month from Parmabased publisher Guanda.

“I’m a different person in Italian,” says Lahiri, who moved from Brooklyn, New York to Rome with her husband and children two years ago to continue her intense immersion in Italian language and culture.

“The two languages I was raised with, English and Bengali represent a clash in every way. Italian is a way to turn my back on all of that,” says Lahiri.

68 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

“The book begins as an investigation of what drew me to studying another language that I had no need to learn,” says Lahiri. “It ends up becoming a linguistic self-portrait in terms of the themes of all of my books to date: how language and belonging and not belonging meet up on a linguistic level.”

In 2000, Lahiri, then 33, won the Pulitzer Prize for her collection of short stories The Interpreter of Maladies; her first novel The Namesake (2003) was made into a movie of the same name; her second collection of short stories Unaccustomed Earth debuted on the New York Times bestseller list in 2008; and her 2013 novel The Lowlands was shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize.

“Being an outsider is a fundamental ingredient for a writer.”

FUNDAMENTAL INGREDIENTS The role of outsider is a familiar one for Lahiri. Born in London, England in 1967, she moved to Rhode Island with her Bengali parents when she was two. Growing up, Lahiri and her family made frequent visits back to Calcutta (now Kolkata).

Lahiri’s most recent novel The Lowlands tells the story of two Bengali brothers: Subhash and Udayan, who are inseparable while growing up in Calcutta during the 1950s and 1960s. While the older brother, Subhash, becomes a scientist and moves to the US, younger brother Udayan stays in India and becomes involved with an insurgent political movement called naxalism.

When tragedy strikes, Subhash returns to India. The novel explores the universal themes of sibling rivalry, family obligations, and the weight of history. But it is also very much about finding one’s place in the world.

“As an artist and a writer being an outsider is a fundamental ingredient,” says Lahiri. “Even though it was hard for me as a child, it’s opened up a whole range of opportunities. That’s a good thing, a positive thing.”

In spite of all the award wins, Lahiri says the prizes belong to the works.

“There’s a big wall between me and those books, whether they sell three million copies or three copies.

I write them and learn what I learn from them. Then I try to move forward as an artist and a writer because that’s the only thing that I can control. I can’t really control how the books are received or whether they’re praised or condemned,” she says.

Lahiri says her biggest challenge now is the question of language: “Do I keep climbing this new Italian mountain? It remains a transgression in many ways.

It’s not what I’m supposed to be doing and I’m aware of that, yet there’s an exhilaration that comes with the effort of writing in a foreign language.”

JANUARY 2015

Jhumpa Lahiri, who visited Helsinki for the Finnish release of The Lowlands (Tulvaniitty), has just written her first book in Italian.

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Finland-based Hassan Blasim has been called the best writer of Arabic fiction alive

by The Guardian.

70 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

TRUTH IS STRANGER THAN FICTION STORIES HELPED SAVE film director and writer Hassan Blasim when he was escaping Iraq 14 years ago.

“It was a very hard game: if you fell behind while crossing over the mountains no one was going to wait.

I outlined the situation as a story, as though I was following it with interest to see how it would end,” he says. “In a difficult situation, imagination is the key to survival.”

Blasim, who has been called “perhaps the best writer of Arabic fiction alive” by the UK newspaper The Guardian, made history last spring by being the first Arabic writer to win the prestigious Independent Foreign Fiction prize for his second collection of short stories The Iraqi Christ, unforgettable depictions of life in a warzone. It was also the first time that a collection of short stories won the Independent prize.

“It was a very positive surprise to receive such recognition,” says Blasim, who has made his home in Finland since 2004.

But as result of the Guardian’s pronouncement and the award, problems arose.

of contemporary Arabic literature and I haven’t been published much in Arabic owing to censorship. Therefore, for many Arabs I don’t exist.”

But that too is changing, as Blasim has been publishing his work in Arabic online for free and reaching a new audience of young readers who want to read beyond the borders of the official Arabic establishment.

Infused with dark wit, Blasim’s narratives mix memoir with reportage and fantasy.

“The ironic humour in my writing always represents hope against violence,” he says.

Ra Page, his editor at Comma Press, which first published Blasim’s work in English, has said that when he first read Blasim’s work he realised he didn’t understood anything about the Iraq war.

While Blasim is being held up as the Arabic writer in many Western quarters, he gently counters: “My interest is literature – one book can’t be the book about Iraq.”

Blasim, born in Baghdad in 1973, is currently working on a movie project based on two of his short stories with the Finnish Film Foundation, and writing his first novel.

Living in Finland has brought safety, peace, and a son to Blasim. “When I travel to writer’s festivals abroad I want to return home to Pispala in Tampere, to my own community. It’s important to me. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t problems because it is difficult to be a refugee in Finland, as in the rest of Europe,” he says.

“In a difficult situation, imagination is the key to survival.”

OUTSIDE THE MARGINS “For Arabs it was difficult to understand because I’m not an official writer. In the Arab world there are ‘official writers’ who work together with the ministries of culture and are ‘approved’ by the system,” says Blasim.

“My goal has been to remain outside on the margins

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South Korean author Kyung-sook Shin was first Korean and the first woman to win the Man Asian Literary Prize.

THE MALAISE OF MODERNITY “IT’S BEEN ONE WEEK since mother went missing” reads the haunting opening line of best-selling South Korean author Kyung-sook Shin’s Please Look After Mom. The novel, which won the Man Asian Literary Prize in 2011 making Shin the first Korean and first woman to win the award, is not only about the disappearance of the protagonist, 69-year-old Park So-nyo, who goes missing at a Seoul train station, quintessential kimchi dish in hand. It’s also an examination of loss on many levels and the quirk of human nature to not appreciate something until it’s gone – whether it’s a person, a culture or way of life.

72 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

“The mother represents traditional society while the children represent modern society, but it’s also a story about how modern times make people forget some of their humanity,” says Shin. “That’s one of the questions it raises: What have we lost by living our lives this way?”

GENERATIONAL SHIFTS South Korea has moved from an agrarian society to an urban one, from a dictatorship to a multi-party democratic republic in just a few decades. Younger generations have left the countryside for education and jobs in the cities.

“What have we lost by living our lives this way?”

Shin, like Lahiri and Blasim, sees herself as an outsider. She considers it essential to her art: “While everyone is looking and going in one direction, the life of a writer is to look the other way and uncover what’s hidden.” l

KATJA TÄHJÄ

Please Look After Mom, published in 34 countries, has been interpreted by some to refer to the loss of North Korea, which has been separated from South Korea since 1945. But Shin says that’s not the case: “There were no political intentions.”

Shin, who was born in 1963 in Jeolla, made her literary debut in 1985 in Korean with the novella Winter’s Fable.

For her, being introduced to an international audience in translation is relatively new. “It’s refreshing to hear viewpoints from readers in different countries,” says Shin.

Her ninth novel in translation I’ll Be Right There was released last June in English and has already been published in several countries including Norway, Spain, and India.

“It’s a coming of age love story set in 1980s Korea, though I don’t say it’s the 1980s. At the time, university students were busy demonstrating against the government and the dictatorship. It is quite a tragic novel with tragic events, however, there is also love – all is not lost,” says Shin.

BEHIND THE SCENES

Katja Pantzar Katja Pantzar is a Helsinkibased writer and broadcast journalist raised in Canada, with stints in the UK and New Zealand. Her forthcoming book Helsinki by Light (Siltala/May 2015) offers a bright new perspective on the Finnish capital.

Ilmoitusmyynti: Oy Suomen Myyntitieto Ab | Mirja-Liisa Vuorenmaa | P. 09-7742 3316

Everyone deserves

TURKU

Investoi menestykseen

good leadership

A Journey Far Starts from Near

Come and join us!

www.embaturku.fi

’’Johtamiskoulutusta 30 vuotta Suomessa

Turun kauppakorkeakoulu • Turku School of Economics

Avance Executive MBA ohjelma – rakenna oma menestyspolkusi R Yksilöllinen R Joustava R Rakentuu verkostoille ja vuorovaikutukselle Tilaa sitoumuksetta alustava Executive MBA opintosuunnitelma www.jyu.fi/mba/opintosuunnitelma Lisätiedot helene.eriksson@jyu.fi, 0400 777 054

JYVÄSKYLÄN YLIOPISTON KAUPPAKORKEAKOULU AVANCE-JOHTAMISKOULUTUS

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Avance-johtamiskoulutus

KOTI MATKALLASI • 1 hh alk. 49 €/vrk • 2 hh alk. 59 €/vrk • Tervetuloa!

LUT eMBA [ Yksilöllinen valinta ]

Tietojohtaminen, Hankintojen johtaminen, Innovaatiojohtaminen

Kodikas Hotelli AVA sijaitsee rauhallisessa ympäristössä Helsingin Vallilassa. Hotellista on sujuvat yhteydet mm. ydinkeskustaan, Helsinki-Vantaan lentoasemalle ja Messukeskukseen. Viihtyisissä huoneissamme on langaton internet-yhteys, modernit taulutelevisiot elokuvakanavineen, suihkut ja osassa huoneista on jopa oma keittiö. Tyylikkäissä saunatiloissamme rentoudut päivän päätteeksi.

Tarjoamme asiakkaillemme myös ilmaiset parkkipaikat.

HOTELLI AVA | Karstulantie 6, 00550 HELSINKI | puh 09 774 751 | fax 09 730 090 | varaukset@ava.fi | www.ava.fi

Voit aloittaa opinnot työn ohessa heti

Tietojohtamisen asiantuntijaohjelma [ Miten johtaa sellaista, mitä ei voi nähdä? ] Käynnistyy huhtikuussa 2015 Lahdessa Soveltuu LUT eMBA:n teemaopinnoiksi www.lut.fi/executive www.lut.fi/mba LUT Executive and Professional Education

Ensi-ilta 12.2.2015

Ilmoitusmyynti: Oy Suomen Myyntitieto Ab | Mirja-Liisa Vuorenmaa | P. 09-7742 3316

ELÄMYSMATKOJA Open daily

Ikä ei paina Velin turvallisilla matkoilla!

25.1.-6.4. at 10-18 Tickets 15 € / 7,50 €

11.1 ja 15.3 Niilin risteily 8 pv.

18.1, 30.1 ja 22.2 Siwan keidas 9 pv 15.2 Nasserjärvi ja Sakkara 7 pv 3.4. Riikan oopperamatka 4 pv 6.5.Klassinen Kreikka 7 pv 25.5 Dubrovnik, Mostar ja Albania 6 pv Ja paljon muuta...

20th Anniversary

Experience the Arctic Freedom – sea, snow & ice

www.velinmatkat.fi tai 0447180008

SnowHotel, SnowRestaurant, SnowChapel & SnowFun

The SnowCastle Jubilee Exhibition The exhibition is a collection of history of the SnowCastle and snow-how in words, photos as well as objects and articles from the years gone by. Open from 19.12.2014!

Book online!

Information: www.visitkemi.fi Kemi Tourism Ltd. | Tel. +358 16 258 878 | sales@visitkemi.fi

MON–TUE 11.30 –22 WED –FRI 11.30 –24, SAT 14–24 Sofiankatu 4, Helsinki tel. +358 9 6128 5900 w w w.r avintolanuevo.fi

Osta omaksi pala Kuusamoa!

Kurkista mallistoomme, tutustu hintoihin ja löydä Kuusamo-myyjämme osoitteessa: www.kuusamohirsitalot.fi

Kuusamo Saapunki

P.S. We are looking for distributors abroad.

Please contact: sales@kuusamohouses.com

Annankatu 1, Helsinki www.hotelanna.fi info@hotelanna.fi Tel. +358 9 616 621

FINNAIR NEWS

SUN SALUTATIONS For this winter season (2014–2015), Finnair has started scheduled services to Krabi and Phuket in Thailand, destinations previously served on a charter basis.

COMPILED BY KATJA PANTZAR

TOP

New destinations for winter 2015–2016

Ho Chi Minh City Vietnam’s largest

city of commerce and culture will be served once a week from December 2015 to March 2016. Ho Chi Minh City, previously known as Saigon, is home to 9 million people and a tropical climate.

Chef Matti Jämsén and his tender cod in brown butter sauce.

MENUS

Gourmet in the air TEXT BY SILJA KUDEL PHOTOS BY PANU PÄLVIÄ

BUSINESS CLASS passengers, prepare to have your palate tickled when Finnair launches its new signature menus on longhaul flights from Helsinki this month.

Finnair has invited star chefs from four top Helsinki restaurants to recreate a gourmet dining experience in the clouds.

First up is Matti Jämsén, executive head chef at G.W. Sundmans. Jämsén’s wintry five-course meal oozes character from the first lingering bite of truffle dip.

“Inflight meals need extra kick because your taste-buds are duller at 30,000 feet.

Rather than adding salt, I dialled up the flavour fusions,” says Jämsén, whose menu will be served from January 28 until April 28. Economy Class passengers will be pampered with a classic Finnish comfort food: beef-macaroni casserole prepared according to Jämsén’s secret recipe.

Eilat Perched on the Red Sea, this Israeli resort city averages 360 days of sun a year. Finnair will fly to Eilat once a week from October 2015 to March 2016.

finnair.com

Bocuse D’or contender MATTI JÄMSÉN has worked his gastronomic magic in top restaurants from Helsinki’s Chez Dominique to Berlin’s Die Quadriga. Famed for his creative take on Nordic traditions, he took over as executive head chef at G.W. Sundmans in 2011.

Jämsén will represent Finland in the prestigious Bocuse d’Or cooking contest

76 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

this January, hoping to top his fifth place ranking from 2011. The finals take place in Lyon on January 27 to 28.

“Just think, if he wins, Finnair will have a signature menu designed by the world’s best chef!” says Maarit Keränen, Finnair’s Head of Service Concept. bocusedor.com

Lanzarote This Canary Island is

renowned for its unique geology formed by its volcanic origins. Service to Lanzarote will be once a week from October 2015 to March 2016.

I

talia on maa, johon on helppo rakastua. Samasta maasta löytyy kristallinkirkas Gardajärvi, Riminin alueen tyylikkäät kaupungit ja hiekkarannat sekä Napolinlahden uskomattomat maisemat. Italian ainutlaatuinen kulttuuri, mieleenpainuvat näköalapaikat ja maailmankuulu ruoka valloittavat kokeneidenkin matkailijoiden sydämet ja tarjoavat ainekset unohtumattomaan lomaan.

Aurinkomatkat tarjoaa Suomen laajimman ja monipuolisimman valikoiman Italian lomia. Lue lisää lomapaketeista, yhdistelmä- ja kiertomatkoista osoitteesta aurinkomatkat.fi

FINNAIR NEWS

SECURITY CHECK Not sure whether your lip gloss counts as a liquid? Here’s a good guideline: If it could be spread with a knife, it’s considered a liquid and needs to go into the clear plastic bag for screening.

COMPILED BY KATJA PANTZAR

Finnair crew tips

JUHA SALMINEN

Flight attendant and blogger Helena Kaartinen shares her tips for staying happy and healthy when flying long-haul:

One of the Airbus A350 test aircraft visited Helsinki Airport last autumn.

AIRCRAFT

Firming up the future FINNAIR HAS PLACED orders for eight new Airbus A350 XWB aircraft.

“Our strategy centres on growth, taking advantage of the unique geographical location of our Helsinki Hub, which offers the fastest connections between Europe and Asia,” says Pekka Vauramo, Finnair CEO. “The A350 XWB aircraft will be essential in delivering on our strategy, as they enable growth in both passenger and cargo traffic, offer our customers top class travel experience and considerably enhance our cost competitiveness,” he adds.

The eight A350s, which were part of an order option placed in 2006, will be delivered to Finnair starting in 2018 bringing TWEET OF THIS MONTH

the total number of Finnair A350 orders to 19.

According to Vauramo, the order for additional eight Airbus A350 XWB aircraft demonstrates Finnair’s commitment to growth. The long haul fleet will expand, on average, by one new-generation energyefficient aircraft a year between 2016 and 2020.

Based on the current delivery schedule, Finnair will receive the first four aircraft in the second half of this year, seven A350s between 2016 and 2017, and eight A350s between 2018 and 2023. finnair.com

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1 2

When you board your flight, shift your clock (and mind) to the local time at your destination.

If you’re travelling at night, relax and close your eyes even if you can’t sleep. Your body and mind will rest on some level.

3

On arriving at a destination in the morning, have a nap to energise before you head outside for some fresh air and light exercise in the form of a walk.

C MYK / .ai

FINNAIR IN

Finnair fun facts

25,000

Bottles of wine served onboard a year

We firmed up eight A350 options, increasing the number of A350 orders to 19. #A350Finnair @Airbus twitter.com/Finnair

Finnair, UNICEF and Amadeus join forces to support underprivileged children. youtube.com/user/finnair

78 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

The skiing season is about to begin! Visit the updated guidance page for transporting skis. facebook.com/finnair

500,000 Piccolo bottles served onboard a year

FLY FINNAIR

Your complete guide to travelling with us

WELCOME ABOARD We want you to enjoy your flight. This guide contains all the information you need for stress-free travelling. We have even included tips for inflight wellbeing and entertainment.

So sit back, relax and enjoy your travel experience.

JANUARY

In this guide 80 TIPS FOR TAKEOFF 81 INFLIGHT WELLBEING 82 ENTERTAINMENT 83 SHOPPING 84 SUSTAINABILITY 85 HELSINKI AIRPORT 88 MAPS 92 FLEET 94 FREQUENT FLYERS 98 FINLAND IN FIGURES JANUARY 2015

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FLY FINNAIR TIPS FOR TAKEOFF

FINNAIR

TRAVEL TIPS

in a nutshell

MARKKU REMES, Manager for VIP & Lounges services at Helsinki Airport began his career at Finnair in the 1960s.

Established in 1923, Finnair is one of the world’s oldest operating airlines.

“If you’re looking for a moment of calm while in transit, check out these two havens open to all passengers at Helsinki Airport. The Kainuu Lounge near Gate 31 offers the spirit of Finnish nature plus a book swap area for avid readers, while the new Arctic Bar above Gate 29 serves refreshing drinks and a breath of fresh air from the terrace starting in early 2015.”

Finnair’s route network includes more than 50 international destinations.

In 2013, Finnair carried 9.3 million passengers.

Close to 1.5 million passengers fly between Asia and Helsinki each year.

See page 86 for Helsinki airport map.

SAFETY

IN YOUR POCKET A NEW FINNAIR MOBILE APP is available for Apple iOS devices, with other platforms to follow. The app provides personalised, up-tothe-minute flight information and e-boarding pass storage.

It can also be used to check in, select seats, purchase upgrades, receive news, and view point balances.

Download yours now from the App Store!

80 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

SMOOTH JOURNEYS SAFETY INFORMATION is presented by the cabin crew at the start of each flight. This information is also listed on the safety instruction card in your seat pocket.

Safety belts must remain fastened when the “Fasten safety belt” sign is on. For safety reasons we recommend keeping them fastened even when the sign has been switched off.

Passengers may use MP3, CD or DVD players when the "Fasten safety belt" sign is turned off. This is when laptop computers, tablets and mobile phones can also be used in airplane-mode.

FLY FINNAIR INFLIGHT WELLBEING

FOOD AND DRINK

From January 28, Business Class passengers can enjoy new seasonal Signature Menus created by top Finnish chefs. Read more on page 76.

EAT WELL

Foods to fuel on short-haul flights MAKE SURE to arrive at your destination restored and energised.

For a little extra money, you can choose from a tasty selection of foods and drinks. You will find the Sky Bistro menu card in your seat pocket. Coffee, tea, water and Finnair’s new signature drink – blueberry juice – is served free of charge on all Finnair flights.

MINDFULNESS

WELLBEING

Sit back and relax

INFLIGHT EXERCISES These moves keep you fit while flying. Hold each movement for a few seconds and repeat five times per side.

STRETCH

LIFT

RAISE

LOWER

Stretch one leg in front of you and rotate it slightly to left and right.

Lift one knee up and then lower your foot back down to the floor.

Keep heels on the floor and lift your toes upwards, then release.

Keep toes on the floor and lift your heels upwards, then release.

Mindfulness instructor Aleksi Litovaara's exercises will help you feel calm and rested during the flight.

1

BE AWARE The basic idea of mindfulness is that you have arrived. The aircraft is already taking you where you need to be so just sit back and relax. Watch, listen and feel your present environment without judgement – just be aware of it.

2

TACKLE ANXIETY If you experience nervousness or restlessness, try holding and feeling an object in your hand. It will help you bring your attention to the simple physical sensation instead of getting caught up in your own thoughts.

3

BREATH EASY Focus on your breath. Think of the word “peace” when inhaling and of the word “calmness” when you exhale. You can also try the 7/11 method; count to seven when breathing in and to 11 when breathing out. It will have a balancing effect on your nervous system.

SHRUG

NOD

ROTATE

TURN

Lift your shoulders up towards your ears and release.

Lower your chin slowly towards your chest and lift back up again.

Gently rotate your head from side to side. Keep your shoulders relaxed.

Slowly lower your left ear to your left shoulder and then back up again.

aleksilitovaara.com

JANUARY 2015

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81

FLY FINNAIR ENTERTAINMENT

WATCH TIME FLY

JANUARY

Make the most of your flight with your personal entertainment system. Use your handset or touchscreen to choose from 72 movies, 150 TV shows, up to 200 CD albums and 15 games.

NEW EASY-TO-USE personal entertainment systems are available on Airbus A330 and Airbus A340 aircraft. Just one click and you can choose your favourite from movies to music and games. The system also contains an Airshow moving map that displays the progress of your flight.

Available language tracks include English, Japanese, Korean, Thai, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Swedish and Finnish, depending on the pro-

gramme, as well as Finnish and Chinese subtitles.

On scheduled intercontinental flights headphones are available free of charge. On leisure flights the entertainment fee includes headphones.

Entertainment/communication systems may vary by aircraft. On leisure flights (AY1000 series) there is an entertainment fee.

ON SCREEN Latest films and TV-series

MOVIE HECTOR AND THE SEARCH FOR HAPPINESS. Hector is tired of his humdrum existence, so he embarks on a global quest in hopes of uncovering the elusive secret formula for true happiness. (Rating R) MOVIE DELIVERANCE CREEK. Two years into the Civil War a widowed young mother, Belle, is pushed into becoming an outlaw.

(Important: The following content may not be suitable for younger passengers.) (Rating NR) MOVIE JOE. An ex-con, who is the unlikeliest of role models, meets a 15-year-old boy and is faced with the choice of redemption or ruin.

(Chinese Subtitles, Rating R) TV SERIES TWO AND A HALF MEN. Alan begins working on getting Lyndsey back, but his days at Walden’s place may be numbered.

TV SERIES KOIRAMÄKI/DOGHILL. Mauri Kunnas’ beloved Doghill books have taught the chidren of today of the life in 19th century rural Scandinavia. Join the main character, Kille, and follow the goings-on at Doghill.

KIDS PICK

Fun for the little ones BHOOTHNATH RETURNS After being relentlessly teased by fellow ghosts for having failed to scare kids, Bhoothnath finally returns to Earth in order to redeem himself. But the only kid who can see him is a slum dweller.

(English Subtitles, Rating NR)

82 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

RADIO SMOOTH JAZZ. Tune in and drop out to this eclectic mix of Smooth Jazz gems, including tracks from Big Boss Man, Death Shanties, Sir Sultry and more. Enjoy more music at music.nokia.com.

PLUG IN!

Most Airbus A340 aircrafts and all Airbus A330 aircrafts are equipped with an electricity socket, which you will find under your seat.

FLY FINNAIR INFLIGHT SHOPPING

AIGNER CROSSOVER BAG

Sold on Interconti­ nental flights €119

HERMÈS UN JARDIN SUR LE NIL

Sold on European, Intercontinental flights €58

FAZER WIENER NOUGAT Sold on European, Interconti­ nental and Leisure flights €12,50

SHOP NOW Best in flight

SHISEIDO ULTIMUNE POWER INFUSING CONCENTRATE Sold on European, Intercontinental and Leisure flights €108

EARN DOUBLE POINTS FINNAIR CARRIES a broad selec­ tion of cosmetics, fragrances, gift items, confectionary and jewellery, which can be purchased during your flight. On most Intercontinental and flights to and from destinations outside the EU, wine and spirits are also available for purchase.

During January earn double Finnair Plus award points for all purchases in the pre-order shop, during your flight, and from the Sky Bistro selection on flights within Europe.

To earn the double points you must fly before Jan 31, 2015.

MONT BLANC LEGEND FOR MEN Sold on European and Intercontinental flights €41,50 INGERSOLL MEN’S CHRONOGRAPH WATCH

Sold on Euro­ pean flights €245,00

NICOLAS FEUILLATTE BRUT RÉSERVE COMPASS SLEEVE EDITION

Sold on Inter­ continental flights €29,50

PRE-ORDER

Shopping made easy Pre-ordering your favourite products at finnairshop.com will make travelling stress-free. Your purchases will be waiting at your seat on your return flight and you save money, too!

JANUARY 2015

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83

FLY FINNAIR SUSTAINABILITY

JANUARY

BETTER PLANET A few examples of societal involvment that reflect Finnair’s environmental leadership in the industry: THE UNITED NATIONS Global Compact is a corporate responsibility initiative aiming to make human rights, fair labour standards, environmental responsibility and anti-corruption core parts of the participating companies’ operations. Finnair has been a member since 2103.

The airline company has also signed the United Nations Women’s Empowerment Principles in 2011.

CLEANER SKIES

IN 2015 Finnair will receive its first four Airbus A350 aircraft, which will cut back on fuel consumption and emissions by 25 per cent.

with the A350

THIS YEAR FINNAIR will become the first European airline to begin flights with new Airbus A350 aircraft. Four of these state-of-the-art wide-body aircraft will join Finnair’s fleet in autumn of 2015, and 15 more will follow in the coming years. In addition to its spacious and comfortable cabin and low-noise engines, the A350 offers a 25 per cent reduction in fuel burn compared to the previous generation of aircraft; this equals about 10.5 million litres of saved fuel annually.

“The best way to cut aviation emissions is technological development, as each new generation of aircraft pre-

sents a 20 per cent reduction in pollution,” says Kati Ihamäki, Finnair’s VP of sustainable development. “There is a direct correlation between fuel burn and savings, and thus we are able to both reduce fuel costs and preserve the environment with our aircraft and engine selections.”

Fuel savings in the A350 are achieved through efficient Trent XWB engines, aerodynamics, advanced systems such as variable frequency generators for electricity, and use of composite materials that result in a lighter, more durable aircraft body. www.finnair.com/us/gb/a350

WORK WITH US

DO GOOD

Donate to charity Finnair collaborates with many environmental and humanitarian organizations. Members of Finnair’s frequent flyer programme can donate points to the following charities at pointshop.finnair.com:

84 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

• The Finnish association for Nature Conservation • The Association of Friends of the University ­Children’s Hospitals • The Cancer Society of Finland • The Finnish Red Cross • UNICEF • The Baltic Sea Action Group • Hope

FINNAIR is one of the first airlines in the world to receive an IATA Environmental Assessment (IEnvA) certification; an environmental management system designed to take into account the airlines’ needs.

THE AIRLINE supports the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) goal of zero emissions trading scheme. Finnair is dedicated to reducing its carbon dioxide emission revenue as much as 20 per cent per tonne-kilometre from 2009 to 2017.

Another ambitious goal is to reduce the total amount of anti-icing fluids by 40 per cent from 2006 to 2016.

FINNAIR CONDUCTS an annual employee wellbeing survey, participates in campaigns promoting equal opportunities at the workplace and places a strong focus on occupational safety and continuous training.

FINNAIR WAS INCLUDED on the Carbon Disclosure Project's (CDP) 2014 A List: The 2014 Climate Performance Leadership index for its efforts to reduce emissions and slow climate change. Among the 187 businesses included, Finnair was the only airline.

FLY FINNAIR HELSINKI AIRPORT INFORMATION

HAPPY LANDINGS Arriving and departing Helsinki Airport

PASSENGERS at Helsinki Airport can use the 30 automated border control gates. Fifteen of these are located in the departure hall. The Finnish Border Guard’s automated border control helps serve growing passenger volumes at Helsinki Airport.

EU, EEA and Swiss nationals with biometric passports can take advantageof the automated border control gates. Third country nationals, who are exempt from the visa requirement and hold a biometric passport, may also use the automated border control upon departure. The service is available for Australian, Canadian, Japanese, New Zealand, South Korean and U.S. citizens.

The automated border control is monitored by a border guard ensuring secure border crossings.

Please note that passengers travelling with an infant, baggage trolley or wheelchair must use the manual border control lane.

BORDER CONTROL Place your passport with the info page face down on the reader. Please wait while your passport is being read for biographical and biometric data. When the scan is complete, the gate will open. 日本人で、ICパスポート（※）をお持ちの方 は、2012年5月から試験的に、出入国審査場において 自動化ゲートをご利用頂けます。 ヘルシンキ空港のシェンゲンエリアから、日本に向 けて出国される際にお使い頂くことが可能です。 まず、パスポートの顔写真ページを読み取ります。 該当ページを開き、読み取り機に向けて置いてくだ さい。 こちらで個人情報と生体認証データを読み取ります。 ゲートが開いたら中に入り、右を向いてください。 カメラで顔認証を行い、パスポートの顔写真と照 合します。 二番目のゲートが開いたら、出入国審査官のカウン ターにお進み下さい。パスポートの入国スタンプを 確認した後、出国スタンプを押印致します。 ご協力頂きまして有難うございます。 ※ ICパスポートとは、2006年3月20日から申請受付 を開始したIC旅券、つまり冊子中央にICチップ及び 通信を行うための。

대한민국 전자여권을 소지한 승객께서는 유럽에서 한국으로 입국 시, 헬싱키 공항에서 자동출국심사 서비스를 이용 하실 수 있습니다. 우선, 전자여권의 사진 페이지를 인식장치에 올려주시기를 바랍니다. 이 과정에서 여권정보가 시스템에 자동 인식됩니다. 첫 번째 게이트가 열리면 안으로 들어가 오른쪽에 위치한 카메라로 안면인증을 거치게 됩니다. 이후 마지막 게이트에서 출입국관리 직원의 출국확인도장을 받으시면 됩니다. 보다 간편하고 빠른 본 자동시스템의 많은 이용 바랍니다.

アンテナを格納したカードが組み込まれているバイ オメトリック・パスポートのことです。

대한민국 전자여권은?

2008년 8월 25일 이후 발급된 여권으로 표지 하단부에 전자칩과 안테나가 내장 되어 있는 여권입니다.

www.finnair.com/jp

www.finnair.com/kr

Enter through the gate and turn right. Please remove your backpack if you’re wearing one and stand on the footprints on the floor. Remove your glasses and hat. Stand still and look directly at the screen keeping your face visible. The camera will compare your facial image with the biometric feature scanned from your passport. Wait until the second gate opens.

The border check for EU, EEA, and Swiss nationals is completed when the gate opens. Third country nationals must now move towards the border guard, who will check your entry stamp and mark your passport with an exit stamp.

JANUARY 2015

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FLY FINNAIR HELSINKI AIRPORT INFORMATION

WELCOME TO HELSINKI AIRPORT HOW TO TRANSFER Check your gate and departure time on the airport monitors. All Finnair and Flybe departures are located in the same terminal.

If you don’t have a boarding pass for your connecting flight, please contact the transfer service desk.

Most passengers transferring from non-EU countries to EU countries have to go through security and passport control. Please note that liquids are restricted in carry-on baggage.

If your baggage has not been checked through to your final destination, collect it from the baggage claim area and go to checkin and security control.

AUTOMATED BORDER CHECKS are available to passengers with Border control biometric EU, EEA or Swiss passports.

Place your passport on the reader with the photo page down, then pass through the first gate, turn towards the monitor, and wait for the second gate to open. See more information on page 86.

FINNAIR TRANSFER SERVICE desks in Helsinki Airport T2 terminal are ready to help you with any inquiries related to your connection flights.

TRANSFER SERVICE

BUS CONNECTIONS The Finnair City Bus to the Helsinki Railway Station leaves from Terminal 2 every 20 minutes, stopping also at Terminal 1. Travel time is about 30 minutes. Price: €6,40 CHECKING IN Checking in to your Finnair flight is easy. You can save time by checking in at a self-service stand at the airport, online 36 hours before departure or by text message.

CANCELLATIONS In case a flight is delayed or cancelled, Finnair will make every effort to keep you updated.

Please make sure that you have provided Finnair with your email address and phone number.

86 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

34 35

SHOP

33

32

32a

Security control

SHOP

31a-e 30

31x 31

Border control

SHOP

SHOP

LONG-HAUL AREA NON-SCHENGEN

Bo con

TRANSFER SERVICE 3

2ND FLOOR 36

FINNAIR LOUNGE FINNAIR PREMIUM LOUNGE 37

38

2ND FLOOR

37a-d

GROUND FLOOR

During 2015 the Helsinki airport will renovate most of the shops, cafés and restaurants for your greater enjoyment. Thank you for your patience!

SERVICES AND FACILITIES

TRAVEL TIPS

Make most of your time SHOP SHOPPING Receive special offers for airport services when you show your Finnair Plus card.

You will recognise our partners by the Finnair Plus symbol. Helsinki Airport features more than 30 shops and boutiques and various restaurants and cafés.

WIRELESS INTERNET is available free of charge. An eService Bar is located across from gate 21.

CHILDREN Children’s playrooms offer videos, microwave ovens and baby care facilities.

NON-SMOKING Smoking at Helsinki Airport is prohibited outside of designated smoking rooms.

SHOP

FLY FINNAIR HELSINKI AIRPORT INFORMATION WALKING TIME GATE 24-30: 7 MIN

T2 29

LOST AND FOUND Restaurant & Deli Fly Inn

28

27

26 SHOP

SCHENGEN AREA

24

25 TRANSFER SERVICE 2

23

GATE AREA

Security check

order ntrol

CHECK-IN 240–270

P

CHECK-IN 201–232 SHOP

SHOP

FINNAIR LOUNGE

Security check

22

FINNAIR SERVICE DESK

GROCERY

INQUIRIES Lentäjäntie 1 (next to T2, street level) Open Mon–Fri 09:00–17:00 and Sat 09:00–15:00 Tel 0600 41006 (1,97€/min + local network charge)

3RD FLOOR

21

SH

OP

20

1ST FLOOR

SHOP

19

TOURIST INFO

18

PHARMACY

17 16

TRANSFER SERVICE 1

15

CHECK-IN 101–114

GROUND FLOOR

T1

14

Security check

BAGGAGE STORAGE

13 LOUNGE FINNAIR PREMIUM LOUNGE is now open. Featuring Finnish design and an upgraded food and drinks selection, it is available for Finnair Plus Platinum and Gold members and oneworld Emerald and Sapphire card holders. The two other Finnair lounges have also been revamped. All passengers have the opportunity to enjoy Finnair Lounge services for €48.

GATE AREA

2ND FLOOR

12

11

SHOP

1ST FLOOR JANUARY 2015

BLUE WINGS

87

FLY FINNAIR FLIGHTS WITHIN EUROPE KARTAT Great Circle Estimated FROM HELSINKI ALGHERO AMSTERDAM ALANYA/GAZIPASA ARRECIFE ATHENS BARCELONA BERGEN BERLIN BIARRITZ BILLUND BODRUM BRUSSELS BUDAPEST BURGAS CATANIA CHANIA COPENHAGEN DALAMAN DUBLIN DUBROVNIK DÜSSELDORF EILAT EKATERINBURG FARO FRANKFURT FUERTEVENTURA FUNCHAL GENEVA GOTHENBURG HAMBURG INNSBRUCK IRÁKLION KAVALA KAZAN KERKYRA KIEV KOS KRAKOW LAS PALMAS LISBON LJUBLJANA LONDON MADRID MALAGA MALTA MANCHESTER MILAN MINSK MOSCOW MUNICH NAPLES NICE NIZHNIY NOVGOROD NORRKÖPING OSLO PALMA DE MALLORCA PAPHOS PARIS

Distances km

2473 03:35

1525 02:35 2722 03:45 4518 05:55 2490 03:40 2632 03:55 1112 03:30 1123 02:00 2581 03:45 1060 01:50 2572 03:55 1651 02:40 1481 02:20 1982 03:00 2636 03:45 2756 03:50 895 01:40 2639 03:40 2030 03:10 2027 03:00 1512 02:25 3457 04:45 2098 03:05 3480 04:45 1543 02:35 4578 06:05 4310 05:45 1994 03:00 785 01:25 1172 02:00 1701 02:35 2777 03:55 2159 03:15 1521 02:30 2331 03:25 1171 01:55 2620 03:45 1186 02:00 4700 06:10 3369 04:50 1713 02:40 1863 03:10 2950 04:25 3357 04:35 2822 04:15 1817 03:00 1953 03:05 740 01:25 876 01:40 1577 02:30 2283 03:25 2202 03:25 1189 02:10 530 01:30 766 01:30 2777 04:00 2898 04:00 1900 03:05

TÄHÄN KARTTA

8 WINGS 2014 88BLUE BLUE WINGSDECEMBER JANUARY 2015

Great Circle Estimated Distances Flight km Times

Flight Times

PISA PRAGUE PREVEZA RHODES RIGA RIMINI ROME SAMARA SANTORINI SKIATHOS SPLIT STOCKHOLM ST. PETERSBURG TALLINN TARTU TEL AVIV TENERIFE NORTE TENERIFE SUR TORONTO TROMSØ VARNA VENICE VERONA VIENNA VILNIUS WARSAW ZAKYNTHOS ZÜRICH

2093 03:20 1322 02:10 2397 03:25 2668 03:45 382 00:55 1993 03:00 2235 03:25 1698 02:35 2660 03:40 2353 03:30 1956 02:55 400 01:00 301 01:00 101 00:30 245 00:50 3230 04:25 4691 06:10 4745 06:10 6619 08:50 1081 02:00 1911 02:55 1847 02:55 1903 02:55 1462 02:30 633 01:15 940 01:40 2526 03:55 1781 02:45

SCHEDULED DESTINATIONS LEISURE DESTINATIONS PARTNER-OPERATED CODE-SHARE OR MARKETING DESTINATIONS SEASONAL ROUTE EW SCHEDULED N SEASONAL ROUTE NEW SCHEDULED DESTINATION IN 2015

Atl Oc antic ean

DOMESTIC FLIGHTS New

FROM HELSINKI IVALO JOENSUU JYVÄSKYLÄ KAJAANI MARIEHAMN KEMI/TORNIO KITTILÄ KOKKOLA/PIETARSAARI KUOPIO KUUSAMO OULU ROVANIEMI TAMPERE TURKU VAASA

quay

931 01:35 360 01:00 235 00:45

464 01:00 282 00:55 609 01:30 823 01:25 391 01:05 335 01:00 667 01:15 514 01:05 697 01:20 143 00:35 150 00:35 348 00:55

Bay of B isca ya

Arct ic

Ocea n

FLY FINNAIR IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Nor weg ian S ea

Nort

h Sea

y

Rostov-on-Don

Medit erranea n Sea DECEMBER 2014BLUE BLUE WINGS89 8 JANUARY 2015 WINGS

rctic

Arctic Ocean

FLY FINNAIR FLIGHTS INTERCONTINENTAL Circle Estimated KARTAT Great Distances Flight FROM HELSINKI

km

Times

AGADIR 4193 05:35 BANGKOK 7912 09:45 BEIJING 6325 07:55 CHICAGO 7139 09:15 CHONGQING 6736 08:40 DELHI 5229 06:50 DUBAI 4537 05:55 GOA via Sharjah 6739 10:15 HÔ CHI MINH CITY (Saigon) 8510 10:50 HONG KONG 7821 09:35 KRABI 8350 10:20 LANGKAWI 8560 10:25 MIAMI 8342 11:10 NAGOYA 7780 09:40 NEW YORK 6626 08:45 OSAKA 7751 09:30 PHUKET 8312 10:05

PUERTO PLATA 8417 11:15 SEOUL 7050 08:40 SHANGHAI 7410 09:05 SINGAPORE 9272 11:30 TOKYO 7849 09:45 VARADERO 8665 11:40 XIAN 6421 07:50

Atlantic Ocean

FINNAIR PLUS members earn Plus points from travelling on any ­scheduled flight with a oneworld airline.

Pacific Ocean

Ocea n Atlantic Ocean

Oneworld: almost 1000 destinations

8 BLUE WINGS DECEMBER 2014

Arctic Ocean

FLY FINNAIR IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Nizhniy Novgorod

an

Agadir

Taiwan

Pacific Ocean

Indian Ocean

n

DECEMBER 2014 BLUE WINGS 8

FLY FINNAIR FLEET

AIRBUS A350-900 (NEW IN 2015) Number 19 in order Seating capacity 297 Length 66.8 m Wingspan 64.75 m Cruising speed 903 km/h Maximum cruising altitude 13,000 m AIRBUS A340-300 Number 7 Seating capacity 270/269/261 Length 63.6 m Wingspan 60.3 m Cruising speed 870 km/h Maximum cruising altitude 12,500 m AIRBUS A330-300 Number 8 Seating capacity 297/271/263 Length 63.6 m Wingspan 60.3 m Cruising speed 870 km/h Maximum cruising altitude 12,600 m AIRBUS A321 (ER) Number 11 Seating capacity 136–209 Length 44.5 m Wingspan 34.1 m Cruising speed 840 km/h Maximum cruising altitude 11,900 m AIRBUS A320 Number 10 Seating capacity 110–165 Length 37.6 m Wingspan 34.1 m Cruising speed 840 km/h Maximum cruising altitude 11,900 m AIRBUS A319 Number 9 Seating capacity 105–138 Length 33.8 m Wingspan 34.1 m Cruising speed 840 km/h Maximum cruising altitude 11,900 m EMBRAER 190/170 Operated by Flybe Number 12/2 Seating capacity 100/76 Length 36.2/29.9 m Wingspan 28.7/26 m Cruising speed 850 km/h Maximum cruising altitude 12,300 m

92 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

FLY FINNAIR FLEET A350

COMING SOON AIRBUS A350 XWB NEXT GENERATION AIRCRAFT The advanced filtration system which brings fresh air to the cabin every 2–3 minutes.

Finnair will begin operating its first A350 XWB (extra wide body) aircraft in 2015, initially serving Shanghai, Beijing and Bangkok.

31-INCH SEAT PITCH IN A 3+3+3

297 SEATS The 297-seat configuration includes 46 seats in Business Class in a 1+2+1 layout, ensuring direct aisle access for all Business Class passengers. Economy Class features comfortable Zodiac Z300 slim-line seats with a 31-inch seat pitch in a 3+3+3 layout. At the front of the Economy Class cabin are 43 Economy Comfort seats, with comfier headrests, high-quality headphones and four extra inches of legroom.

Airbus A350 XWB's the eco-smart design resulting in more than 25% fuel efficiency

Finnair, the first airline in Europe to fly the next-generation aircraft, has 19 firm orders for A350 aircraft, which will form the backbone of long-haul fleet expansion plans.

46 SEATS IN BUSINESS CLASS IN A 1+2+1.

JANUARY 2015

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93

FLY FINNAIR FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAMME

JOIN NOW

DID YOU KNOW? JOIN FOR FREE by filling in the Finnair Plus form attached to this magazine or online at finnair.com/plus

Big benefits for f­ requent flyers

FINNAIR PLUS PROGRAMME allows you to earn points when travelling with Finnair or oneworld airlines and from services provided by many Finnair Plus partners.

As a Finnair Plus member you can also benefit from many valuable offers and benefits including: · A head start on special flight sales · Exclusive members’ prices on offers · Earn and use points on Finnair, oneworld and partner airline flights · Earn and use points on numerous worldwide partner services

EARN POINTS when flying Finnair scheduled and leisure flights.

Points can also be earned on oneworld scheduled flights. As a member you also receive points when purchasing products and services from any one of our Finnair Plus partners.

USE POINTS to purchase Finnair award flights, pay for additional baggage and upgrade your Finnair flight from Economy to Business Class. You can also use your points for oneworld flights. Points are valid currency in the Finnair PlusShop online and you can use them to pay for services and products from Finnair Plus partners.

Read more about our partners on page 96.

94 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

UPGRADE TO BUSINESS

Pay economy price and travel in business on a Finnair flight and enjoy these added benefits:

Finnair Plus members can use their points to purchase upgrades.

• Priority check-in and boarding • Priority lane (when available) • Access to Finnair business lounges • Extra luggage • Exclusive Business Class meals, wines and snacks BOOK ONLINE finnair.com/plus

FLY FINNAIR FREQUENT FLYER PROGRAMME

FINNAIR PLUS MEMBERSHIP

KIDS

These are some of the benefits you receive as a member. For more information go to finnair.com/plus.

FINNAIR PLUS TIER BENEFITS

BASIC Up to 40 000 tier points

SILVER 40 000 – 90 000 tier points or 24 scheduled flights

GOLD 90 000 – 150 000 tier points or 54 scheduled flights

PLATINUM 150 000 tier points or 92 scheduled flights

• F lights awards •A dditional baggage charges with points*

• One extra piece of baggage free of charge*

• Special baggage free of charge *

• Special baggage free of charge*

• F innair lounge access*

•W aiting list priority based on tier

•P riority Lane*

•P artner service purchases with points

• 1 0% discount on normally priced tax free purchases outside of the EU*

• T ravel class upgrades* • Finnair and Oneworld Business Class and Frequent Flyer lounge access + 1 guest

• T ravel class upgrades* •D iscounted travel upgrades for family members*

• 1 0% points bonus*

•P riority Lane* • 1 5% points bonus* • 1 0% discount on normally priced tax free purchases outside of the EU*

• Finnair and Oneworld Business & First Class and Frequent Flyer lounge access + 1 guest •P riority Lane* •N o expiration on award points during tracking period

JUNIOR Kids get points, too!

Children aged 2–17 can join the Finnair Plus Junior Program. The points earned can be spent on flight awards and exciting product prizes.

• 2 5% points bonus* • 1 0% discount on normally priced tax free purchases outside of the EU* * Finnair flights (AY operated and AY marketed)

EQUIVALENT ONEWORLD TIERS Finnair Plus oneworld Basic --Silver Ruby Gold Sapphire Platinum Emerald

Combine your Finnair Plus membership card with a credit card and you can earn Finnair Plus points on all your purchases. Read more: finnair.com/plus.

DID YOU KNOW? SKY BISTRO is a new selection of seasonal, high-quality foods and beverages on Finnair Economy Class short-haul flights. The new menu replaces the complimentary cold snack service.

Meals can be paid for using the award vouchers worth €20 or €50 that you may purchase with your Plus points at f­ innair.fi/ pluspartners.

JANUARY 2015

BLUE WINGS

95

FLY FINNAIR PARTNER BENEFITS THIS MONTH

MORE THAN 300 PARTNERS For your benefit As a member of our Frequent Flyer programme you can earn and use points when purchasing services and products from our world-class partners around the globe.

PLAY WITH YOUR POINTS You can use your Finnair Plus points to purchase some of the world’s best games. Get one for yourself or buy as a gift. Get yours by going to finnair.partycoins. me. Choose your favourite game and sign into your account. After

you have verified your order, it will be immediately delivered to you via email. If you install your games on your device, you can enjoy them whilst you are travelling.

Not yet a member?

Find out how to join on the previous page

finnair.partycoins.me

· Airlines · Travel · Credit Card · Insurance · Restaurants · Shopping · Wellness · Golf · Entertainment · Charity · Leisure time For complete listings and more information visit finnair.com/ pluspartners

HOTEL REWARD Sokos has more than 50 hotels in Finland, Estonia, and Russia. Use your points to purchase a reward voucher for Sokos Hotels. finnair.fi/pluspartners

DOUBLE POINTS FOR JAPAN Earn double reward points on flights to and from Nagoya and Osaka. You can also earn double points on many routes within Japan when you fly with Japan Airlines.

Offer valid between Jan 5-Mar 31, 2015. finnair.com/japan-doublepoints

96 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

CABFORCE TAXIS AND AIRPORT Make your upcoming trip a little more enjoyable with pre-booked taxis or minibuses for your airport rides. Pay online with your credit card. The service is available in most Finnair destinations worldwide. As a Finnair Plus member you earn Finnair Plus points. finnair.com/pluspartners

FLY FINNAIR PLUSSHOP OFFERS THIS MONTH

SHOP ONLINE wherever you are.

The Finnair PlusShop stocks more than 3,000 products, including many Finnish design items, and delivers around the world. To order, simply login using your frequent flyer number, place your order and pay with Finnair Plus points, money or a combination of both.

finnairplusshop.com

BACK TO BUSINESS! ALL SAMSONITE SKYDRO LUGGAGE WITH SPECIAL PRICES! 3 sizes & several colour options. For example, Samsonite Skydro Spinner cabin bag €189 Member offer €99 + 1,000p

GP BATTERIES PORTABLE POWERBANK 12000 -BACKUP BATTERY €79,90 Member offer €49 + 1,000 points

MARIMEKKO FOR FINNAIR OIVA/ SEIREENI TEA POT & 6 KIVET TEA CUPS €179,40 Member offer €119 + 1,000 points

PHILIPS SAECO XSMALL ESPRESSO MAKER €349 Member offer €279 + 1,000 points

MARSHALL MODE IN-EAR HEADPHONES Black €59 Member offer €45 + 1,000 points MARSHALL MONITOR OVER-EAR HEADPHONE Black €200 Member offer €149 + 1,000 points Prices subject to change.

JANUARY 2015

BLUE WINGS

97

FINLAND IN FIGURES

DID YOU KNOW? Ed­u­ca­tion: 37% of Finns ­have uni­ver­sity or other tertiary qualifications (the highest percentage in the EU countries)

FINLAND

POPULATION • 5.5 mil­lion • Life ex­pec­tan­c y: men 77.8 and women 83.8 years • Av­er­age house­hold ­size: 2.1 persons • L anguages: 89.3% ­speak Finn­ish; 5.3% Swedish • Religion: 75% are Lu­ther­an; 1% Orthodox • 81% of the pop­u­la­tion aged 25 to 64 ­have com­plet­ed upper secondary or tertiary ed­u­ca­tion and 37% ­have uni­ ver­sity or other tertiary qualifications AREA • 390,920 sq. kil­o­me­tres, of ­which 9% is fresh water; land area is 303, 909 ­sq. kil­o­me­tres. There are 188,000 lakes. 6% of the ­land is ­under cul­ti­va­tion. Fo­rests (main­ly ­pine and ­spruce) cov­er 68% of the country.

GOVERNMENT • Sove­reign par­lia­men­tary re­pub­lic ­since 1917.

• The pres­i­dent is elect­ed eve­r y six years. The current president of Finland, Sauli Niinistö took office in March 2012. The 200 mem­bers of Par­lia­ment are elect­ed for fouryear terms.

• Finland has been a member of the European Union since Janu­ ary 1995.

ECONOMY • GDP 2013: 193 billion euros, the annual change in volume -1.4%.

• Annual inflation rate as of Febru­ ary 2014: 0.9%.

• Currency: Euro

ECONOMIC STRUCTURE Employed persons by industry, 3rd quarter 2014 (per cent of total) Construction and energy Miscellaneous services

8% 13%

34%

Manufacturing

14% 5% Agriculture

10%

Manufacturing

16%

Financial and business servces

48%

Other manufactured goods

23%

Forest products

15%

Food prod. and textiles

14%

Trade and hotel

Transport and communications

GDP

Norway Denmark Sweden USA Finland Germany France UK EU27

Metal and engineering products

EXPORTS BY PRODUCTS

Nominal

Adjusted for Purchasing Power Standard

75,900 44,400 43,800 40,000 35,600 33,300 31,300 29,600 25,900

49,200 32,100 32,700 39,900 28,700 32,000 27,800 27,200 25,800

Chemical industry products

25%

Forest industry products

20%

Other industries

16%

Metals and metal products

14%

Machinery and equipment

13%

Electronics

11%

Foreign trade 2013 exports by products by activity: 55,903 MEUR (per cent of total)

GDP per capita 2013 (EUR)

MONTHLY TEMPERATURES

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Mean˚C -4,9 -1,8 -5,2 3,1 17,5 18,1 18,1 17,2 12,6 7,5 4,7 2,3 Max˚C 3,3 6,0 4,3 12,9 22,6 28,6 25,6 25,5 20,3 14,4 9,4 7,8 Min˚C -22,6 -9,4 -18,4 -5,9 2,1 9,0 11,3 8,6 0,3 -3,1 -7,0 -10,3

More information: www.finland.fi, www.goodnewsfromfinland.com, www.findicator.fi

98 BLUE WINGS JANUARY 2015

Source: Statistics Finland

IN FIGURES

FINNAIR

SKY BISTRO Now there’s freedom of choice to mix & match your favourite tastes

LIFE IS FOR GOOD FOOD AND WE BELIEVE YOU SHOULDN’T GO HUNGRY, ESPECIALLY WHEN TRAVELLING Our new Sky Bistro on short-haul flights serves all your cravings. Just mix & match your favourites from the menu with well-loved classics, seasonal tastes and theme combos. Tailor your menu onboard – learn more at finnair.com

IMPERIALE WAT C H E S & J E W E L L E RY Oy Osk. Lindroos Ab Helsinki Airport Schengen, gate 27, +358-9-354 0500 Helsinki Airport Non-Schengen, gate 33, +358-9-354 0510 www.lindroos.fi