NO GRILLS ALLOWED IN GARAGES!

On Thursday we were walking to the University`s welcome party and we saw this road sign ”No grills allowed in garages”. We were wondering why there is this kind of prohibition? Who would go to barbeque in a public parking garage? Today we found out the answer.

In the morning 8.30am I watched out of the window and I saw lot of people in a parking area. They were reserving their areas for barbeque. The reason for this was that there was starting a football game 1pm! People have brought own chairs, grills, sun tents, lot of food, drinks….It looked so funny. I tried to think do we have anything like this in Finland, but no this is something very American.  But fun and community! 

Tailgating in College park of Maryland

Embassy blog

Finnish Embassy published Mikko’s post “Fulbright to the Fullest: First Impressions of the United States” at their blog.

First Impressions of the United States

This year the Fulbright Distinguished Awards for Teaching in Finland was awarded to the three of us: Maija Kallio, Inka Ritvanen and Mikko Rahikka.

The grant allows us to study at the University of Maryland in Baltimore during the fall semester. We will study at the College of Education with 12 other teachers from Singapore, India, Argentina and Morocco. We will visit schools, go to conferences and of course we will learn a lot about the Education System of the United States. We will also make an inquiry (a small research project) about a topic that we are interested in. I will study how the teachers and pupils use Information and Communication Technology (computers, tablets etc.) in teaching and learning mathematics and physics.

Our Fulbright Orientation started on August 13th in Washington D.C. The personnel of the Institute of International Education (ISS) had created an interesting program for the International Fulbright teachers and teachers from the USA who will travel abroad with their program. We learnt about cultural differences, the education system in the USA, No Child Left Behind -program and a lot about how to get accustomed to our new daily life. We met all five US teachers who will travel to Finland next year. They helped us to understand the States and I am sure that we will meet them again in Finland and help them to get accustomed to Finnish culture. During the orientation days I made many new friends since all of us work in schools and we can discuss all the similarities and differences between our schools. The Finnish school system interested everybody in our workshops and the good PISA scores are known around the world.

After the orientation we moved to College Park, Maryland. Maija and Inka came to the campus earlier with their families and got their own apartments. I came here alone, so I will live with William and Ivin from Singapore and Hassan from Morocco in a campus apartment. Learning our new bachelor life is very interesting and rewarding. First of all we had to buy stuff for our apartment: bed linen, utensils for kitchen as well as for rooms and bathrooms. In a couple of days the apartment started to feel like home. I have already baked makaroonilaatikko (Finnish macaroni casserole), and the guys liked it a lot. Of course I miss my home and my wife in Finland but this is my home now.

For me it has been a surprise how much paperwork has to be done for my new life. Numerous forms and signatures for the apartment, bank account, social security number, University Faculty/Staff Card and bicycle registration. The nice people from the College of Education Office of International Initiatives have helped us patiently. I love their positive and encouraging approach to solve problems. We have used most of our time during the first week to get all the paperwork ready, yet of course we have had some great lessons and discussions about education in the USA.

The school ideologies in Finland and the United States are so totally different that for me it is difficult to understand the educational system in the U.S. All the testing, comparing school scores and even comparing how one teacher’s students score in tests compared to another teacher’s students differs totally from our Finnish school system. Public charter schools in Washington D.C. will start testing children in kindergarten. Testing three to five year old children in math sounds funny to me. I hope that our politicians will be wise enough not to bring more testing into Finnish schools.

But there are also many things that I admire here at the College Park. There are for example many public sport areas and people play baseball, volleyball and soccer in the evenings. I don’t see this kind of activity in Finland. The bicycle routes around College Park are beautiful and there are lots of people using the routes for walking, running and cycling. I am very happy to have a bike here – I have seen many beautiful places while cycling and the nature and animals amaze me. Even the trees seem to be bigger here than in Finland. And the sound of crickets in the evening is something that I don’t hear in my own garden in Nurmijärvi.

I have had many great experiences during the first weeks of my stay: a 50 km bicycle ride to Leesburg, tour at the Capitol Hill and the Mall, visiting Martin Luther King Memorial during the 50th Anniversary of his famous speech, finding Lauri Törni’s (Larry A. Thorne) name at Vietnam War Memorial as well as visiting Annapolis State House, Naval Academy and a Cruise on the Severn River.

I know that during my semester here I will meet many interesting people and experience many fascinating things. And I will learn – both about Finland and about the United States.

Reception

We had a very warm Welcomine Reception at Riggs Alumni Center.

All photos at Mikko’s Google+

 

Cultural Trip to Annapolis

We had a wonderful day at Annapolis. We visited the State House and Naval Academy. After lunch (or for some during it) we had a cruise on the Severn River. We had a nice and interesting day. Thank’s to organizers.

All the photos at Mikko’s Google+

Bachelor life, somebody has to take care …

Mikko’s makaroonilaatikko

Boil about one American coffee cups of macaroni (about 4 dl) with one boullion steak cube (Knorr?), the cube is not very important but that’s the way I do it. About 10 minutes depending on the macaroni.
Chop one large onion very thinly if you want, or just coarse, depending if it makes you cry or happy to chop onions. If you like  you will make it thin, but in this makaroonilaatikko it is not so important. And if you want to cry, this is the moment.
Fry about of 500 g of hamburger meat (minced meat from a cow, maybe less fat) and the onion on a pan. With Teflon pans I don’t have to use oil  at all. But if you want, you can add some butter. Adding butter makes usually food better.

Add some pepper (some people add also paprika and/or white pepper), salt (maybe 2 tablespoon depending did you use the boullion with the macaroni) and about half of tablespoon of nutmeg (optional but I like it) to the meat/onions.
Take a casserole and mix the macaroni and meat/onions into it. Take about 2-3 American coffee cups of milk (about a liter or maybe less) and 2-3 eggs, mix in a bowl and pour it to the casserole. (A lazy man puts them altogether in a bowl before the casserole to minimize dishes.)
Mix.
Cover the whole thing with about 300- 500 grams of Swiss cheese or what the cheese you like. I think it would be OK if the liquid is about 3/4 the cheese surface (so it is 1/4 below the surface).

Put the casserole in the oven for about 45-60 min in 200 °C or 400 °F. Just check it  in about 1/2 hours that it does not burn.
When it looks brown on top and it is not too wet, then it is ready.

Serve with ketchup!!

And when your kids tell you that they like this, then you will remember me 😮

Are you married, what’s your salary?

These are two questions what you should not ask here. Guess twice have I already asked these questions? Oh yes I have or actually I haven’t asked other’s salaries but even worse, I have told mine. I learned this in lecture ”cross-cultural tips and strategies”. In Finland we dont talk about salaries so much but teachers salaries are public information and you can find that information from internet. So I don’t think it’s such a big deal. One more example how I have lost my face. Classic elevator situation. I have had many confusing moments especially in elevator when some strange has asked me ” How are you?” and I didn´t know what to answer! So I totally froze and didn´t say anything. How smart!  In Finland we don´t ask from people ”How are you?”, if we don´t know the person very well.

Now I already know how I should react in those situations. It`s funny how differently we behave in different countries. But that`s one of the main reasons why I´m here. I want to learn to know different cultures and people and some times you learn the hard way!

During this week we have been managing the practical things like got University`s ID card, applyed social number, opened the bank account, got involved a campus tour, listened the different lectures, selected the courses from university, learned how to use the library…Next monday we will meet our mentors from University. We gonna  have lunch together and we will discuss about caspstone projects. The studies and school visits will start in the beginning of September.  I cant wait to start the coursies in University and the school visits!

So that’s life in here at the moment. Maija

An art teacher’s smartphone’s cultural Trip to Capitol, DC

After having worked for some days in the University we were rewarded with a trip to DC and a guided tour in Capitol Buiding and it’s Library. I give you my very personal (art teacher’s view) about the tour. Sorry about the quality of photos; my iphone was set on low quality etcetc, explanations : )

Let’s start from this special kind of sculpture:

And as you can see, we are paying attention. Maija took the photo below, but as the light was difficult, the creature in the middle is kind of dark:

See, how the eyeglasses are shown in this scuplture. Do you consider them well made?

But why is the angel blowing his horn on that one head? And the one above doesn’t even notice. (Must be a teacher)

Anyway. there were so many beautiful rooms, walls, floors, pieces of art, art…

And sentences: THE FIRST CREATURE OF GOD WAS THE LIGHT OF SENSE: THE LAST WAS THE LIGHT OF REASON.

In the end, the day was full of meaningful pictures and sentences. Again I thank the Fulbright staff and Washington DC for this experience!

Five of us went to Chinatown for lunch:

And again came the sentences; Chinese horoscope as well as the fortune cookies: The time is right to make new friends. 🙂

How are you?

That’s what one hears here. I like it. One’s not supposed to take it deeply serious, but of course a dum foreigner can try to push social boundaries also (*smiley*)  Another phrase I like even more, is when entering a store or office: “What can we do for you?”

But, really, there are people (like my mother or friends) who really would like to know how I am. And I have to say I’ve been too busy doing stuff and answering “Fine. How are you?” that I haven’t had time to tell them anything. And have I had time to ask myself the question so that I knew? So, this post is about that:

I’m fine. My daughter’s fine too. We’re hot. It’s like 25-30’C during daytime. But when thinking about Finland autumn, we are not complaining.

The photo above is taken by Darja. During our orientation period in DC Fulbright folks arranged a sightseeing tour for us. So, even though we’re hot, the cool stuff happens. Let me show you:

Yep, they are Mr Bieber, and Mr Bond. Although the other one is just a replica (of a fictional character roleplayed by a real person).

But really, it’s not the attractions or celebrities that are keeping us busy. It’s the everyday life that has  just started. It goes basicly like this:

6:30 eyes open and ready for the day. Have to make good breakfast for Darja, whose school lunch is not really made of the best ingredients. Have to also remember to dress to be ready for the heat but also for really cold inside spaces. If there’s need this is also good time to take care of byrocracy in Finland because it’s afternoon there.
At eight Darja takes bus to school and I start bicyckling to the University, which is less than 5 km away. And then there will be a day full of studying, lectures, formalities and practical stuff to take care (just to mention: University ID, social security number, logging into the library system, registering my bicycle and fixing/tuning it up (this week I’ve visited the University Bike Shop four times), ordering new laptop and getting rid of my money).

My schedule has ended around 4 or 5, after which I’ve taken care of my personal things (like the bike, banking, leasing office and biking to different stores to by whatever we need (from backpack to led and glue). Which means, I’m home around six o’clock, if somebody doesn’t get on my way (well, today somebody did actually:)

(other people just passed by, I was the only one to stop and take photos)

So, then those of you, who have taken care of family and worked the same time, know, what the evenings are like: Come home. Check the mail. (Carry your bike to the 3rd floor.) Wash the hands and start to cook. Think happily about all the time there is left to do all the duties that need to be done. Eat. Notice, that it’s already eight o’clock and the kid needs help with homework, and there are dishes to do, and that you are far too tired to think clearly. But try anyway. Help with the homework, answer the mails, check the bills and waste time with facebook until it’s eleven and you really should go to bed, doesn’t matter if you should stil check some articles and links. Go to bed, and instead of the professional books, grab the forever-wonderful November in Moominvalley http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moominvalley_in_November

to get good dreams (and to remind you what the autumn in Finland’s soon going to be like).

So, that’s about it, I guess. All this includes a lot of *thinking and reflecting the educational questions *discussing with fellow Fulbrighters *getting confused with formalities *organizing documents and papers and getting anxious when the important ones are missing and *eating exotic foods. And, so many times laughing, smiling and exchanging “how are you’s”.

Thursday

In the morning I bicycled to Benjamin’s Building. First Rashi had a logistical/administrative talk, Letitia told us about “Cross-cultural communication tips and strategies. We had a good discussion of what we had learned about Americana and about what we have found interesting about this new culture/ way of living (for us). Then we visited three International student’s who told us about their thoughts about the subject.

After lunch we had a fast drive with Letitia (and maybe a little slower with Yali) to Social Security office. The bureucratics went rather fast and soon we all will have our own security number.

In the aftenoon I wen to Transportation office to register my bike. Again a sheet of paper to fill. Now I am allowed to park my bike in the College Park area and get help if I lose my bike ore bike key. When I got back home I noticed that I have got my Capital One Bank Debit Card. I am becomeing more and more like a normal person in the USA.

All photos.

Tuesday & Wednesday

On Tuesday morning we got our faculty member cards and after we had a nice walk around the Campus, after lunch we listend a marvelous talk by Jim de George about the American school system. After that we made course selections.

On Wednesday morning Rashi told us how to conduct inquiry as practitioners, then we went to the Library tolearn how it works. After lunch Joshep M. Smith gave a talk: “Human subject research protection – Basics”. After that filling some more papers for our social security number.

All Tuesday  and Wednesday photos