Leave with a bang

The anticipation of eurovision very succesfully drew away the attention from the fact that I will be leaving Maastricht on saturday. In fact, my parents and my sister will join me here in Maas tomorrow for a few days; after which we will start our drive back to Finland.

So the days leading to Eurovision were spent very succesfully, meeting up with my friends every single day. There was the gala which was a lot of fun, I've been told. I "lost track of time" once we got there. And then Eurovision was also a success. But then it hit me that I'm leaving so I'm not really sure how I feel. Yesterday I took a day off so to say and stayed home aside from seeing Star Trek at the cinema.

Today I've organised to go out with a group of my friends and have a drink or two before my family arrives. So hopefully this night will be a lot fun and won't turn into a sad goodbye, not the way I want to go. But admittedly I have never been this sad to leave a place. So many nice people here. Though, granted, the likelihood is that I'll cross paths with most of them later on in life when we all will proceed to take over Europe and the world.

Plans back in Finland include hanging out with the girls, meeting up with all my friends that I have not seen for months and so forth. I'm even organising a reunion for my elementary school people in July. Sometime over the summer I should fit in visits to Outi in Cyprus, holidays with Minna, holidays with Suvi, visiting Silvia in Italy and so forth. Where on earth will I get the money is beyond me but perhaps I'll get so many stories published that I'll be able to live off that. Hah!

Eurovision

It's only 9 days away. And I have the fever already. I keep listening to past and current entries, following news about Finland's Eurovision entourage's adventures, talking about it to every single person I meet, posting links on my facebook page. Essentially I'm so immersed in it that everybody must hate me. You can't get me to talk about anything else these days. With my head injury and everything everybody has been really nice. I've had visitors come over and to keep me entertained they've watched videos with me. I bet most people thank heavens that Eurovision is only once a year.

The whole head-thing has provided plenty of amusement over the week. Admittedly I may have over-dramatised it, I have lived a cushioned life and have only broken one toe and had a few stitches in my head once before. Like a friend of mine pointed out, we Europeans have it easy. And aside from the few days of discomfort that immediately followed, the only nuisance about it now is the disgusting state of my hair. I can't wash the hair around the cut so as to not to dilute the glue until saturday so it's nasty. But for example yesterday we had our last tutorial and needed to present an article that I had not read. So I gave a presentation on it and when I felt that I was not making sense anymore I just said "I have a head injury, I cannot be held accountable". Works like a charm.

But once this week is over I will have finished my last remaining uni assignments aside from my thesis and can resume my normal hair-styling routine. Next week we have the two Eurovision semi-finals, Gala for the European Studies students, Bachelor party for a friend of mine and then to end a brilliant week, the Eurovision final. A brilliant last week in Maastricht I tell you. Then the week after that my sister and parents are driving here to pick me up and I'll be leaving Maas for good. So I'm making the most out of Maas while I still can.

How it all went down ... literally

So yesterday was one eventful day. I was a bit upset so Barbara invited me to her place for some fun time. I had a lovely time with her and Marius. Then things got exciting. We were waiting for the bus and decided to play hopscotch to pass the time. I go last and with my enthusiasm I really go for it with speed and end up head first on the ground. I didn't even realise at first that I was bleeding but then it becomes apparent. Barby and Marius take me back home, Barby cleans the wound and even makes me drink water with sugar to prevent the shock. Love her, a proper angel.

We then take the bus to town (quicker than getting a taxi to Smeermaas) and on our way Barbara tries to keep we awake and talking, and I just try to breathe. She asked me when I was born to determine how sane I am and I could not remember for the life of me when I was born! You have no idea how scary that was. I could not remember who some people she was talking about were and when we finally get to the hospital I couldn't remember my home address. I like to think I was calm and I think I did all that I could at that point but I was pretty worried when I was forgetting things.

We were then received by a Dutch doctor who did not really speak English that well. She first tried to apparently tie my hair to close the wound (Barby was holding my hair and witnessed this) but then resulted to glueing it shut. Yes, apparently this is the new alternative to stitches. Finally she did her thing and gave us a note that had all the instructions. Too bad it was in Dutch. Nevertheless, Barby had to come and stay at my place because I needed to be woken up every hour to check that I'm still up and running and not taking a turn for the worse.

We then take a taxi home, on the way there I hear Turkey's entry to Eurovision this year and I mention it to Barbara who sighs of relief because apparently that is a sign that I'm getting back to normal. We get home, settle down on the couch. I was still nauseous and couldn't get much sleep before 4am but then me and Barby both fall asleep and wake up at 6am to check I'm still among the living. And then around 9am Kalina comes and Barby can go home and rest. Kalina kept me company all day, got me food and provided some TLC. And then when Kalina went home Francesco came by to say hi.

So apart from my disgusting hair that will remain disgusting for a week before I can wash it, good things have come out of it. All my friends are showing how lovely they are and really love is in the air, they're so amazing. And I know never to play children's games anymore, I'm officially too old.

Odd reasons to be excited about moving to Cardiff

1. Tesco home delivery - I can do my groceries online, have the benefits of a huge selection, compare prices and finally have someone else deliver it to my door. Saves time and money.
2. Moving into student halls - If I get my first choice I will have my own bathroom, have a person cleaning the kitchen and the common areas, a reliable landlord and should something go kaputt, there would be someone to fix it! Oh the luxury of a working fridge and freezer and cupboard space!
3. English - People will speak English, even the teachers. No longer will I have to consider whether an idiom is familiar to people outside the island and can once again become fluent in the language I adore. Say no to Euro-English and embrace the one and only genuine one!
4. Travelling - Easy transportation where ever I want! And cheap as well.
   
5. Learning - I will learn new skills, actual skills that will benefit me in my choice of career. No longer will I have to not study for exams because it's about a topic that I could not care less about but will still get a good grade. I miss going to the library just because I wanted to learn more.
   

Incidents

Overheard in the streets of Maastricht:
Woman 1: "How can it rain all day long?"
Woman 2: "Yea, it happens quite often here"

Happened yesterday:
I'm walking alone to Marttiina's place, just minding my own business. An older man, around 60 with grey hair stares at me so intensively that he trips a bit and the DVDs he's carrying fall on the ground. They were porn films. He quickly gathers them and I continue my way chuckling at old dirty men.

To-do list

Future - sorted

I got in! Starting the Postgraduate Diploma programme in Magazine Journalism at Cardiff University in September.

Cardiff will be the fourth university I have entered since 2005. By the age of 24 I will have a Bachelor's degree, a Masters and PG Diploma. Not bad.

Cardiff

Future almost sorted out now. Cardiff informed me today that I'm first on their reserve list, essentially the first one they'll contact if one of the people on the firm offers list turns down their offer. The really amazingly wonderfully nice woman at the administration even added that every year people get in from the reserve list, just the numbers vary. But given that I have priority it's pretty much certain that I get in. How amazing is that?

Obviously I won't exactly book a ticket yet, the others have to confirm their places by May 1st so I assume after that there will be some definate answers either way. But if all goes to plan in late September I will return to the island. If nothing else, it should make for a few good blog posts about my frustration with the bureaucracy and companies that I have happily forgotten now...

I hope going there will change my life from the crappy soap opera it is at the moment into more like a sitcom. My first choice of student hall is an all-female hall, apparently dubbed as the Virgin Megastore. Whilst Cardiff as a city seems to boast quite a few rugby players... I think this seems like a promising combination. Can't wait.

Finnish Invasion

I had my sister, Anne, Riikka and Jenna visiting me for a week, the latter three being semi-sisters. Being reunited after months of separation in a new city (well, new to most of them, obviously not me or Minna who had visited me before) was a blast. We did pretty much all the touristy things you can do in Maastricht which included walking around town, taking pictures next to random statues, eating waffles, drinking beer and even taking the tourist bus that looks like a train. We were even filmed, Greenpeace wanted us to "turn the Earth". Thankfully the weather was amazing throughout their stay so they all had a really good impression on Maastricht (methinks).

Still no news from Cardiff so keep your fingers crossed. So far all my plans depend on me getting in there, if not then I'm pretty much clueless as to what I will do. Most likely take a gap year, go somewhere remote and do something to get me by until it's time to re-apply.

Otherwise plans for this week include catching up with people and making most of the few days of sunshine that are still to come. Then on Saturday me and bunch of other Maasies are heading up to Bruges to attend a sports day for all the Master European Studies people across Europe. And as you might have guessed, I'm not attending any of the sports. I'm the head of the cheerleaders.

The Island

Greetings from Bristol. Yes, that is a picture of me taken with Mac PhotoBooth with silly effects. But what does that mean? Well that I'm in a lovely hotel room with a Mac that has internet! So my addiction is served, I could access facebook after staying offline for almost two days. Tragic in a way.

To go through things chronologically, lets start with me getting to Cardiff on Sunday. The day got off to an early start as my mother woke me up at 5.30am thinking that I'd already be at the airport. I then proceeded to make my way to Eindhoven first by taking the train at 7.30am from Maastricht to Eindhoven, then a bus from the centre of Eindhoven to the airport. Then got on my flight and everything was just fine and dandy and on schedule. Then I take the bus from the airport to Bristol only to discover they're doing some work on the rails which leads to me having to take a train, then a bus and then one final train before I'm in Cardiff. Overall about 8 hours spent traveling from Maastricht to Cardiff.

I then arrive to my hotel in Cardiff which turns out to be a quite glamorous affair if slightly aged (picture wonky halls with creaking floorboards) right in the centre, next to the Cardiff Castle. I could actually do my sightseeing from my room's window. In addition it was a really nice sunny day and I did some shopping. All in all, everybody was really lovely and the city seemed really nice, packed with cafes and places to shop at.

Then today I finally had that interview. And picture this, I walked into the building where the interview took place and saw people in suits. I felt under-dressed!! After speaking with some people I find out that

a) they all seem rather young

b) they're all British

c) they all have done internships or written articles to magazines/newspapers/radios.

Someone thought I was Welsh from my accent. And one person heard I study in the Netherlands and started impersonating a "Dutch" accent which was more like a sad attempt at a German/Austrian accent. I then corrected him that I'm actually not Dutch to which he reacted by a sigh of relief (thinking that I'm British) and saying that good because otherwise I must have felt out of place. Weird I tell you.

But then my small group of 4 other people proceeded to the interview process. We had a small test on current events. I know like 6 of the answers (out of 30) and guessed a few more, one of the answers I actually knew because Eoghan had joked about how the UK home secretary's husband charged adult films from her expense account and they had a question on it. I sent Eoghan a thank you text. Then we had to correct the grammar and spelling of one text and then write a news article. All very relaxed, not really a stressing exam situation at all. But throughout the process, the person conducting the interview, who is actually head of the course, kept on emphasizing the need for practical experience in order to get in. Also like previously mentioned, the people had done so many internships already or at least edited their university's student paper or something. One girl had actually taken a gap year to gain more experience in order to get into the course. Oh yea, we were told that over 100 people applied for the 30 places they have and only about 50-60 were invited to interviews.

So by the time we got on to one-on-one interviews I was pretty sure I was not going to get in. As I was the last one to be interviewed I also heard the comments from the others as they came back. None of them were that confident afterwards and a few actually got the impression they won't get in because they haven't got enough experience. So when it became my turn I was pretty relaxed thinking that there's really nothing to lose here and I'll just do my best and if that is not enough then too bad for them.

But to my surprise the interview went on really, really well! She understood that I haven't got experience but then we spoke about the work experience I do have and how I could relate that to journalism. Towards the end she actually commented on how well I "come across" and how professional and determined I appear to be. And then she asked why I chose Cardiff when I could get into any university in Europe I want to. We spoke about my level English which apparently is very, very good but how the fact that I'm not a native speaker might influence my grading in the course. I then said that I know my English isn't perfect at the moment since I've been living in Euro-English zone but it's bound to improve when I move back to the island. But the point is that she alluded to the grading of the coursework, something that would not have come up unless I was being seriously considered for acceptance. Overall, I came out of the interview thinking that it was the best interview I have ever had. If I don't get in then I can at least rest assured I did my best.

They will let me know by the end of the week. I really hope I get in, the University and the city seemed amazing. The course seemed fabulous, exactly what I hoped it would be. In the meanwhile, it's back to Maas tomorrow, have to get up at 5am to catch the bus to the airport...

Transposition & the Island

Karma is a bitch. As it has been evident all year long, studying has not been high up on my list of priorities. So it serves me right that for the past few weeks I've done nothing but. After about six weeks of rather leisurely existence with not much school to worry about, the deadlines kicked in, big time. Without going into details of how many papers and exams I've had to do, it has kept me up until 4am, made me stay at the library from opening to closing and, worst of all, made me dream about transposition.

Whilst normal people have no idea what transposition means, I know it by heart now. And please, don't even think about asking me for a definition. Believe me, it is nothing interesting. And coming from me who makes my friends remember all the member states of EU by heart and haves quizzes about them, that's saying someting.

So this sudden episode of my life, back to shool: the revenge, has pretty much denied me of any social life. Today when I met up with friends to have a few drinks and enjoy the weather, I actually jumped out of joy for the fact that I was out of the house and not doing school-related stuff. Enjoying weather stems from the fact that it is about 20 degress here in Maastricht. I heard in Finland it's still below zero...

Thankfully things are brightening up. Tomorrow there are supposedly parties of some sort to celebrate the end of hibernation, on Saturday there is a dinner & drinks with friends. On Sunday I am actually going back to the island. I got an interview at Cardiff University on Monday for their journalism program. So because there aren't really any good connections from Maastricht to Cardiff it's turning out to be a bit of holiday for me, I fly on Sunday morning and come back on Tuesday. I quite look forward to not only seeing what's Wales all about but also going on a holiday all by myself.

And, don't tell this to anyone but I am actually really excited about being back on the island!! Shhhh!