I've been living in Finland for a year. I love it but here's the things I miss the most, aside from family and friends: 1. Small businesses and small shops everywhere. Here in Helsinki if you need to go to a pharmacy, a hairdresser, or even just buy a proper mop, that's going to be a whole trip by bus to some shopping mall, and that's a whole thing that needs planning, especially as everything closes early. Back in my country you could just go outside and find all sorts of pharmacies, salons, pizzerias, different grocery shops (many of which work 24/7), alcohol shops all within a 5 minute walk. I miss that. 2. Cheap and convenient online shopping for all sorts of random stuff that gets delivered to a pickup point next to your home in a day. Of course, online shopping exists in Finland, too, but it's usually delivered by post, which is pricey and slow, and you also need to order from different shops to get different stuff. While in my home country we had this amazon-like store where you could just get any small thing quickly and get it delivered the next day. 3. Just cheaper stuff overall, especially restaurants and bars. 4. Oh a more serious note, I miss being a citizen and being able to do basic things like open a bank account. I miss having some safety in the fact that there is a country where you belong legally and won't be deported if something, god forbid, goes wrong, or you're not able to find a job quickly enough. Too bad my home country right now is a place where you can't have human rights or live peacefully at all, so I VERY happily take this tradeoff. I love Finland.
There is definitely cars in Finland. You can do without in the Helsinki region, and in a couple of other larger cites with a good public transit as well, but most of Finland has to have a car to move around. Road trips is a thing here as well, I used to make trips from eastern Finland to Helsinki which took about 5 hours. I suggest you do the same during summer time, it is very lovely to rent a cabin on the lake for a week and enjoy the nature of the Savo region. There is also bath tubs here, though they are not as common as saunas here. I have found that some older buildings have more bath tubs in them, but maybe they fell out of style in the 80's or something and that is why these modern buildings don't have them any more? Some more expensive apartments might have Jacuzzi's or such, but not much else besides showers and saunas on the new apartments .
I can't recommend Tubble enough, if you have the space in your bathroom. It doesn't cost that much, and it's super easy to set up and clean up afterwards. And it's comfier than a traditional hard bathtub.
I'm a native Finn who loves baths and I get to have a bath only when I go to Japan :'D I had to stay in a hotel in Helsinki for a few days due quick renovation and got upgraded to a room with a bathtub. I took 4 baths withing that 1,5 days visit in the hotel + naturally went to sauna, too :D But, since everyone has an access to sauna, there's no need for baths here.
I did the opposite thing and lived in the US (D.C.) for a while about a decade ago. It was interesting hearing that you're missing taco bell... because for me it's the exact opposite. Back then there was this annual taco bell event in the congressional cafeteria, where they only served taco bell for a day and everything was free and served on trays. So as a poor cash-strapped trainee I grabbed as much as I could and put dozens and dozens of tacos in some bags. I put them in a freezer and ate taco bell for like two weeks straight. Haven't touched taco bell since. I also haven't touched chick-fil-a for a decade for pretty much the same reason.
You reminded me about my grandma who lived in Töölö, Helsinki. She enjoyed taking bubble bath. She even gave bubble bath stuff as presents to her daughter, my mom. So as a child, more than half a century ago, I remember taking many bubble baths using what grandma has given us and playing in the bath. We didn't have a sauna in that apartment. Hot baths served also as a kind of substitute for hot sauna for me in those days.
Early 90´s almost every apartment still had bathtubs. But clean water consuption were so high that there were campain of that time eco hipsters that wanted finnish people to save pure water. About same time as we ditched bathtubs came new toiletseats with the posibility for small flush that you didn´t have consupt as much water when you just flushed your pee than you need to flash your poo. That also have been good for water purification to help to reduce work from them and providing pure fresh water into the waterlines got so much cheaper for cities. Also you didn´t need to built so massive waterlines than before becouse consuption is less than halv.
Many houses since 20 years again have bathtubs in the bathroom/sauna area alongside with showers... And car trips are nice; a week of cruising in Finland, Sweden, Norway one can easily gather 2000-3000 km with beautiful scenery and great places to stop at 😊 Recommend 👍
There used to be tubs in almoust all older (like in the 60'- 70') build apartments. People are getting rid of those when renovating. Nobody seems to care to bath and I feel the same. Get the comfort from sauna.
A bathtub used to be pretty much a standard thing in new houses and apartments from the 50s to 70s, but then came the 70s energy crisis. You can find bathtubs in houses and apartments built in that era, if bathtubs haven't been removed when renovated. Usually people don't want bathtubs, so having one decreases house and apartment value. On the other hand hot tubs are trending, so go figure. Renting a car might be a good way to see what Finland has to offer outside Helsinki.
Decreasing resale value was definitely the biggest consideration when we decided to swap out our electric sauna for a tub when renovating our apartment, and I'm sure that's why most people don't do it even if they prefer baths. (But we figured we're not about to move any time soon, so we might as well equip our home the way we want it, and not worry about value so much. And before anyone freaks out about swapping a sauna for a bath tub, we have a summer cottage with a proper wood heated sauna pretty close by, and our building has a really well equipped communal sauna, should we want to use it.)
@@KalleKilponen That might not be that bad trade-off. Not all go to sauna and often saunas in apartments are quite small and therefore not so good. Those who like to go to sauna might prefer that communal sauna over a smaller apartment sauna. Bathtub probably isn't that big of a problem to begin with, if there's a separate shower in the bathroom. More like luxury and child-friendly thing. Elderly people and people with disabilities might have difficulties with getting into a bathtub and those with pets might prefer a shower with a floor drain.
@@finnishculturalchannel Yeah, we opted for a more spa-like bathroom with plenty of space, a two person tub and a separate rain shower instead of the original combination of a cramped bathroom and a small electric sauna.
We have road trips here in Finland but they are usually taken in summertime with friends of course, when maybe going to one of your friend's or friend's parents' summer cabin or maybe to a music festival, etc. It of course depends on the distance where you going, how long the trip is. Also you can take a train and spend you time in the restaurant/dining car drinking beverages. Another type of "road" trip I guess.
Come to think of it, one of the curiosities in Finland for a foreigner might be the summer cabins/cottages or summer houses (kesämökki), many times located ashore of a lake with a separate sauna building of course, in which you can go straight from the sauna into the lake to take a swim. There are more than 500 000 kesämökkis in Finland.
Back in the 80s and 90s, apartments had bathtubs. 90-00 many of the rental apartments have been renovated and the bathtubs have been removed. The reason is simply water consumption. It takes 150 liters of clean water to fill the tub. In addition to that, washing with a shower, which consumes about 12 liters per minute. Is the question a bath and wash or just a shower with about one hundred liters of water? Ask someone from home to send you a bottle of oil. A refill bottle is preferable. You don't need an energy drink, you get good, clean water from the tap. (Or you can ask for a few drink cans of this in the same package as well.) In Finland, it is common to own a summer car, i.e. a cheap car (about 1000€) with which you can travel around the country during the summer. In the fall, you can sell it or put it in the scrap yard. Mexican food, well, you just have to find it. It's probably not easy, but you can find it somewhere.
I have often wondered if baths are the equivalent of the sauna for the US and the UK for that matter, which is where I am from. Luckily I don’t miss them, and I will only go in a sauna if forced 😂 or I am so cold from mountain biking in winter. The only thing I miss in the UK, besides family is country pubs, which in many places in the UK are often cosy quaint places with open fire places and sometimes with great summer gardens to relax, eat and let the kids play. Road trips of course is easy here as the roads are quite empty and you can drive for hundreds of miles. I call Taco Bell here Taco Smell, it’s pretty awful compared.
It took me 5 years to get used to, to not have bathtubs. I miss them too xD I'm from Austria, middle Europe btw. My ex, who is finn, he had in his first apartment a bathtub, but it was small, so no space to really lay in it either. Ah you remember me of good old times in my bathtub in Austria. aargh I loved it. What I miss the most, comparison between Finland and Austria, is the health care. The health care system is a full blown disaster in Finland.
I have had bathtub when i have lived in different towns. But it is not that important to me as to you. Shower is ok for me. Going to spa is sometimes very nice, but have not gone lately to spas.
I live in Finland and I have a bathtub in my apartment but I've never used it in the 12+ years I've lived in it. It just works sort of as a "shower basin". Just not a bathtub person myself. Sauna is the thing for me and that might be why bathtubs are not that popular here. I guess hot tubs are somewhat popular in hotels or lodges. And also palju is pretty popular in Finland in the backyard.
After living in Finland (Turku) for almost 20 years (from South Carolina), other than people, I miss 1. grits, 2. Target, 3. the beach (it's just different), 4. not being foreign, 5. spacious homes. And yes, I agree with Mexican food and bathtubs, too! ;)
I predict that the thing you'll miss most, is how quiet Finns are by comparison. I've seen it time and again, people who come here for a bit, and go back to the US are just shocked by how loud Americans tend to be.
I've had a very similar experience in the UK-do I miss America in general? Certainly not, 95% of the time. But holy lord I miss Target with every fiber of my being. And it's not like there aren't shops here that sell similar things. I think it's the familiarity? Also miss Mexican food, the freedom of a car, and BREWERIES.
Agree about your assessment about Taco Bell. Dec '22 I went to Tennispalatsi Taco Bell and it just didn't taste good, kind of dry and shrivelled. A true Taco Bell experience is dripping in heartstopping excess, including choice of 20 full fat soda flavours (and diet coke)
Atleast us living in smaller cities for example in Central-Ostrobothnia area it is an requirement to have a car so atleast me and my friends do take a roadtrip every once in a while to Seinäjoki or Oulu or something like that :D. Though it is expensive so we atleast don't do it very often 😅
Try to find an aparment from the 70's that hasent been fully renovated in past 30 years or so and you mite find a bathtub. They were very populat back then but not so much anymore. So now days when an old aparment gets renovated after a tenant moves out they usualy throw it away if there is one.
@@kayleecreates My grandma and mother used to have 🛁 s in their homes. I am a retired senior myself. Haven't had a 🛁 in any of my homes in the past 45 years in buildings which have all been build after 1970s. I think I am fairly typical case in all this. Sauna of course I have always had and a indoor swimming pool in my current home.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), a full bathtub requires about 70 gallons of water, while taking a five-minute shower uses 10 to 25 gallons. You might argue that very few people fill the tub to the top, but a simple calculation shows that either way, baths use more water.
OMG! Two YEARS without a bath here. My KINGDOM for a bath. Miksi? Ei! Perkele! I was going to try to find a hotel or something with one for my birthday . . . but I think I can better use the 200 euro elsewhere. Sigh.
I miss going out to dinner with my friends and not requiring everyone to pay with SEPARATE checks. So, I guess I miss Venmo and everyone just using it and not caring if you just split the check. I miss fabric beads. I miss buying liquor in actual wine stores and distilleries. Alko has a limited amount of choices, plus they don’t have bitters here besides one or two options. I miss walking into a bank and talking with my bank person within 2 minutes. I miss not having a belly because the dairy here is AMAZING and you just gain weight because of it. I miss my dry cleaners. Although Talinn has many affordable and solid choices, but who is going to lug their wardrobe over to Talinn every month, except this NYer? 😎
Hahaha i love it!! Those are all great things to miss. I agree with your liquor/bitters point! Having worked in an upscale bar in the US, i miss the creative bar scene and the options here are quite limited. Also agree with Venmo, it was so easy…
In the 80s a lot more homes in Finland had bathtubs than these days - actually I wonder what happened to tubs, for some reason they're not in fashion anymore. But I don't miss them. A 3 minute shower in the morning is all you need - and remember to turn off the water while soaping. 🚿🧼
![Coheed and Cambria - Searching for Tomorrow [Official Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/hDsYGLbmadg/mqdefault.jpg)
I've been living in Finland for a year. I love it but here's the things I miss the most, aside from family and friends:
1. Small businesses and small shops everywhere. Here in Helsinki if you need to go to a pharmacy, a hairdresser, or even just buy a proper mop, that's going to be a whole trip by bus to some shopping mall, and that's a whole thing that needs planning, especially as everything closes early. Back in my country you could just go outside and find all sorts of pharmacies, salons, pizzerias, different grocery shops (many of which work 24/7), alcohol shops all within a 5 minute walk. I miss that.
2. Cheap and convenient online shopping for all sorts of random stuff that gets delivered to a pickup point next to your home in a day. Of course, online shopping exists in Finland, too, but it's usually delivered by post, which is pricey and slow, and you also need to order from different shops to get different stuff. While in my home country we had this amazon-like store where you could just get any small thing quickly and get it delivered the next day.
3. Just cheaper stuff overall, especially restaurants and bars.
4. Oh a more serious note, I miss being a citizen and being able to do basic things like open a bank account. I miss having some safety in the fact that there is a country where you belong legally and won't be deported if something, god forbid, goes wrong, or you're not able to find a job quickly enough.
Too bad my home country right now is a place where you can't have human rights or live peacefully at all, so I VERY happily take this tradeoff. I love Finland.
There is definitely cars in Finland. You can do without in the Helsinki region, and in a couple of other larger cites with a good public transit as well, but most of Finland has to have a car to move around. Road trips is a thing here as well, I used to make trips from eastern Finland to Helsinki which took about 5 hours. I suggest you do the same during summer time, it is very lovely to rent a cabin on the lake for a week and enjoy the nature of the Savo region.
There is also bath tubs here, though they are not as common as saunas here. I have found that some older buildings have more bath tubs in them, but maybe they fell out of style in the 80's or something and that is why these modern buildings don't have them any more? Some more expensive apartments might have Jacuzzi's or such, but not much else besides showers and saunas on the new apartments .
I can't recommend Tubble enough, if you have the space in your bathroom. It doesn't cost that much, and it's super easy to set up and clean up afterwards. And it's comfier than a traditional hard bathtub.
I'm a native Finn who loves baths and I get to have a bath only when I go to Japan :'D I had to stay in a hotel in Helsinki for a few days due quick renovation and got upgraded to a room with a bathtub. I took 4 baths withing that 1,5 days visit in the hotel + naturally went to sauna, too :D But, since everyone has an access to sauna, there's no need for baths here.
I did the opposite thing and lived in the US (D.C.) for a while about a decade ago. It was interesting hearing that you're missing taco bell... because for me it's the exact opposite. Back then there was this annual taco bell event in the congressional cafeteria, where they only served taco bell for a day and everything was free and served on trays. So as a poor cash-strapped trainee I grabbed as much as I could and put dozens and dozens of tacos in some bags. I put them in a freezer and ate taco bell for like two weeks straight.
Haven't touched taco bell since.
I also haven't touched chick-fil-a for a decade for pretty much the same reason.
You reminded me about my grandma who lived in Töölö, Helsinki. She enjoyed taking bubble bath. She even gave bubble bath stuff as presents to her daughter, my mom. So as a child, more than half a century ago, I remember taking many bubble baths using what grandma has given us and playing in the bath. We didn't have a sauna in that apartment. Hot baths served also as a kind of substitute for hot sauna for me in those days.
Early 90´s almost every apartment still had bathtubs. But clean water consuption were so high that there were campain of that time eco hipsters that wanted finnish people to save pure water. About same time as we ditched bathtubs came new toiletseats with the posibility for small flush that you didn´t have consupt as much water when you just flushed your pee than you need to flash your poo. That also have been good for water purification to help to reduce work from them and providing pure fresh water into the waterlines got so much cheaper for cities. Also you didn´t need to built so massive waterlines than before becouse consuption is less than halv.
Many houses since 20 years again have bathtubs in the bathroom/sauna area alongside with showers... And car trips are nice; a week of cruising in Finland, Sweden, Norway one can easily gather 2000-3000 km with beautiful scenery and great places to stop at 😊 Recommend 👍
There used to be tubs in almoust all older (like in the 60'- 70') build apartments. People are getting rid of those when renovating. Nobody seems to care to bath and I feel the same. Get the comfort from sauna.
A bathtub used to be pretty much a standard thing in new houses and apartments from the 50s to 70s, but then came the 70s energy crisis. You can find bathtubs in houses and apartments built in that era, if bathtubs haven't been removed when renovated. Usually people don't want bathtubs, so having one decreases house and apartment value. On the other hand hot tubs are trending, so go figure. Renting a car might be a good way to see what Finland has to offer outside Helsinki.
Decreasing resale value was definitely the biggest consideration when we decided to swap out our electric sauna for a tub when renovating our apartment, and I'm sure that's why most people don't do it even if they prefer baths. (But we figured we're not about to move any time soon, so we might as well equip our home the way we want it, and not worry about value so much. And before anyone freaks out about swapping a sauna for a bath tub, we have a summer cottage with a proper wood heated sauna pretty close by, and our building has a really well equipped communal sauna, should we want to use it.)
@@KalleKilponen That might not be that bad trade-off. Not all go to sauna and often saunas in apartments are quite small and therefore not so good. Those who like to go to sauna might prefer that communal sauna over a smaller apartment sauna. Bathtub probably isn't that big of a problem to begin with, if there's a separate shower in the bathroom. More like luxury and child-friendly thing. Elderly people and people with disabilities might have difficulties with getting into a bathtub and those with pets might prefer a shower with a floor drain.
@@finnishculturalchannel Yeah, we opted for a more spa-like bathroom with plenty of space, a two person tub and a separate rain shower instead of the original combination of a cramped bathroom and a small electric sauna.
We have road trips here in Finland but they are usually taken in summertime with friends of course, when maybe going to one of your friend's or friend's parents' summer cabin or maybe to a music festival, etc. It of course depends on the distance where you going, how long the trip is. Also you can take a train and spend you time in the restaurant/dining car drinking beverages. Another type of "road" trip I guess.
Come to think of it, one of the curiosities in Finland for a foreigner might be the summer cabins/cottages or summer houses (kesämökki), many times located ashore of a lake with a separate sauna building of course, in which you can go straight from the sauna into the lake to take a swim. There are more than 500 000 kesämökkis in Finland.
Back in the 80s and 90s, apartments had bathtubs. 90-00 many of the rental apartments have been renovated and the bathtubs have been removed. The reason is simply water consumption. It takes 150 liters of clean water to fill the tub. In addition to that, washing with a shower, which consumes about 12 liters per minute. Is the question a bath and wash or just a shower with about one hundred liters of water?
Ask someone from home to send you a bottle of oil. A refill bottle is preferable.
You don't need an energy drink, you get good, clean water from the tap. (Or you can ask for a few drink cans of this in the same package as well.)
In Finland, it is common to own a summer car, i.e. a cheap car (about 1000€) with which you can travel around the country during the summer. In the fall, you can sell it or put it in the scrap yard.
Mexican food, well, you just have to find it. It's probably not easy, but you can find it somewhere.
I have often wondered if baths are the equivalent of the sauna for the US and the UK for that matter, which is where I am from. Luckily I don’t miss them, and I will only go in a sauna if forced 😂 or I am so cold from mountain biking in winter. The only thing I miss in the UK, besides family is country pubs, which in many places in the UK are often cosy quaint places with open fire places and sometimes with great summer gardens to relax, eat and let the kids play. Road trips of course is easy here as the roads are quite empty and you can drive for hundreds of miles. I call Taco Bell here Taco Smell, it’s pretty awful compared.
It took me 5 years to get used to, to not have bathtubs. I miss them too xD I'm from Austria, middle Europe btw. My ex, who is finn, he had in his first apartment a bathtub, but it was small, so no space to really lay in it either. Ah you remember me of good old times in my bathtub in Austria. aargh I loved it. What I miss the most, comparison between Finland and Austria, is the health care. The health care system is a full blown disaster in Finland.
I have had bathtub when i have lived in different towns. But it is not that important to me as to you. Shower is ok for me.
Going to spa is sometimes very nice, but have not gone lately to spas.
I live in Finland and I have a bathtub in my apartment but I've never used it in the 12+ years I've lived in it. It just works sort of as a "shower basin". Just not a bathtub person myself. Sauna is the thing for me and that might be why bathtubs are not that popular here. I guess hot tubs are somewhat popular in hotels or lodges. And also palju is pretty popular in Finland in the backyard.
Shout out to the mom! Loved this and your candid comments about baths…
thank you mother💖 i miss you!!!
After living in Finland (Turku) for almost 20 years (from South Carolina), other than people, I miss 1. grits, 2. Target, 3. the beach (it's just different), 4. not being foreign, 5. spacious homes. And yes, I agree with Mexican food and bathtubs, too! ;)
I predict that the thing you'll miss most, is how quiet Finns are by comparison. I've seen it time and again, people who come here for a bit, and go back to the US are just shocked by how loud Americans tend to be.
That is the truth! And they're whiney! I'm not looking forward to visiting the US again. 😢
I've had a very similar experience in the UK-do I miss America in general? Certainly not, 95% of the time. But holy lord I miss Target with every fiber of my being. And it's not like there aren't shops here that sell similar things. I think it's the familiarity? Also miss Mexican food, the freedom of a car, and BREWERIES.
agreed 100%
I miss Target so much. Tokamanni is fine, but not the same!
I miss soft lighting! These harsh, white lights make me look like a corpse!😢
Agree about your assessment about Taco Bell.
Dec '22 I went to Tennispalatsi Taco Bell and it just didn't taste good, kind of dry and shrivelled. A true Taco Bell experience is dripping in heartstopping excess, including choice of 20 full fat soda flavours (and diet coke)
hahaha this made me laugh! yes and i agree👏🏼
almost every apartments had bathtubs before.....but then they started to think that it waste of water, so a new houses has a shower.
Fab vid Kaylee!
Atleast us living in smaller cities for example in Central-Ostrobothnia area it is an requirement to have a car so atleast me and my friends do take a roadtrip every once in a while to Seinäjoki or Oulu or something like that :D. Though it is expensive so we atleast don't do it very often 😅
Such an interesting contrast to the city! I am really looking forward to giving Seinäjoki a visit soon.
Try to find an aparment from the 70's that hasent been fully renovated in past 30 years or so and you mite find a bathtub.
They were very populat back then but not so much anymore. So now days when an old aparment gets renovated after a tenant moves out they usualy throw it away if there is one.
Good to know!! So interesting.. 🤔
@@kayleecreates
My grandma and mother used to have 🛁 s in their homes. I am a retired senior myself. Haven't had a 🛁 in any of my homes in the past 45 years in buildings which have all been build after 1970s.
I think I am fairly typical case in all this.
Sauna of course I have always had and a indoor swimming pool in my current home.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), a full bathtub requires about 70 gallons of water, while taking a five-minute shower uses 10 to 25 gallons. You might argue that very few people fill the tub to the top, but a simple calculation shows that either way, baths use more water.
Cold baths exist 🥶??? My absolute nightmare 😆!
Rent a car and drive around in Sweden and Norway, Denmark. A big car that you can sleep in...
you are in Helsinki?
Baths.... hmmm.. I am a 53 year old finnish man and I think I have taken perhaps 5 baths in my whole life, but I've been to sauna maybe 5000 times 😂.
so you did Lapland? welcome in Lapland
I miss Rams
rams misses you
OMG! Two YEARS without a bath here. My KINGDOM for a bath. Miksi? Ei! Perkele! I was going to try to find a hotel or something with one for my birthday . . . but I think I can better use the 200 euro elsewhere. Sigh.
I like USA i living in arizona so good in arizona thanks for watchings for you
I miss going out to dinner with my friends and not requiring everyone to pay with SEPARATE checks. So, I guess I miss Venmo and everyone just using it and not caring if you just split the check.
I miss fabric beads.
I miss buying liquor in actual wine stores and distilleries. Alko has a limited amount of choices, plus they don’t have bitters here besides one or two options.
I miss walking into a bank and talking with my bank person within 2 minutes.
I miss not having a belly because the dairy here is AMAZING and you just gain weight because of it.
I miss my dry cleaners. Although Talinn has many affordable and solid choices, but who is going to lug their wardrobe over to Talinn every month, except this NYer? 😎
Hahaha i love it!! Those are all great things to miss. I agree with your liquor/bitters point! Having worked in an upscale bar in the US, i miss the creative bar scene and the options here are quite limited. Also agree with Venmo, it was so easy…
Oh god I feel bad for you Finland is a mess not even refugees wanted to stay over there
Just beware, staying in #Finland changes you and if you go back to #US you can't stand small talk and you will be an outcast. 😆
In the 80s a lot more homes in Finland had bathtubs than these days - actually I wonder what happened to tubs, for some reason they're not in fashion anymore. But I don't miss them. A 3 minute shower in the morning is all you need - and remember to turn off the water while soaping.
🚿🧼