芬兰

　　Finland

Finland is an enormous land of lakes and forests. It's the largest, totally unspoiled area in Europe. Around 65% of Finland is made up of forests. The genius of the Finns lies in their commitment and coexistence nature. On the other hand, nature in Finland is such an overwhelming factor that it would be impossible not to adapt oneself to it.

Within an area of 1090 square kilometres, Lake Paijanne is Finland's second biggest. Its waters are so clean that you can drink right from them. The lake is one of the most beautiful in the country and offers one of the most panoramic 1 views, thanks to the many small rises in the land, which allows you to admire the unspoiled and boundless 2 countryside.

As you get closer to the Russian border, the forests of pines and birches get thicker and you come across frequent examples of Russian culture and art. These great areas of water are part of a single enormous lake system, which is called Saimaa, which measures 4400 square kilometres.

The population of Finland amounts to fewer than 5 million inhabitants. The Finns, who make up the basic nucleus 3 of the population, come originally from the Urals in the early centuries of the Christian 4 age. For almost a thousand years this people lived organised in tribes, which was family based.

Inside a rich 18th century middle-class house, which is situated 5 on the banks of the Aurajoki River, a small Museum of Pharmacy 6 has been set up which contains precious furnishings, containers and medical instruments of the period. This attention to things of the past and to tradition is even more admirable if you think that Finland, which entered late into European history, doesn not have the enormous number of monuments and works of art, which other countries can boast about.

In Savonlinna it is still possible to come across craftsmen 7 who are working according to the old techniques using instruments and tools that have been passed down from father to son. He creates very ornate handles for the famous Finnish knives by hand.

Glass, which is a typical Finnish product, seems to sum up the characteristics of the world from which it originates: purity, simplicity 8 and a sense of nature.

One of the Finnish objects that is most famous in the world is the Iittala vase designed by Alvar Aalto and produced in this small town North of Hameenlinna.

Near Lieska, lives the sculptress, Eva Ryynanen, an extraordinary artist who works with wood. Her house-workshop and the church, which was furnished a few years ago have become popular tourist attractions for people who venture into the forests. Her work is one of the supurb examples of art that is inspired directly by nature. The forms of her sculpture are natural extensions of the trunks and the branches of the trees, and are harmoniously 9 re-inserted in the natural framework of the forest.

The forests and waters inspire contemporary works of art; and the meditative 10 soul of the Finns, who blend in with nature is nourished by these fresh colours.