POST SCRIPTUM

C’est fini.
We just came back from checking the nets out on the lake with my father, my little brother (1,5 years old) and my aunt. I gutted the two whitefish we caught and we put them in the freezer.

Concretely, it’s over, my year in Paris. I know where I have been for a year, the people I have known, the places I’ve memorized, the paths I’ve taken from one place to another, and I know all this of the place I have come to now too. Logically it should all be neatly arranged in my mind, in a kind of linear continum of sequences. But, at least for the time being, it’s all scrambled up, displaced symbols, like flashes from unconnected places and people. I guess it will take time, and then, if past experience has told me anything, my year abroad will be like a dream – in the sense that it will be a vivid experience, completely disconnected from my ’real’ life, possibly never to have happened. And after all, in a sense it will be, as almost all the people i befriended, won’t be in Paris if I ever go back there. But I also know those people will be out there to meet, in new places to discover. So be prepared, I seriously intend to visit as many of you as possible in the years to come. And of course, you are warmly welcome to visit Finland.

My last week in Paris was nice, even though it was a bit of a hassle, since I left the norwegian house a little earlier so i would pay only half the month’s rent, and lived at Gonzalo’s house outside Paris. On Friday I had a going away party, which, loyal to tradition, ended at the Hideout bar. On saturday I went to see the Rolling Stones with Gonzalo, where some frenchies (eight of them) wanted to kick our asses. That kind of killed the mood, until Sympathy for the Devil came. What a show; you could feel the heat from the flames all the way to our spot.
I spent my last day saying goodbyes to some of the people I’d met during the year, which was horrible as always. I guess they don’t have good social models on how to do that.

When I came back to Finland, my mother, sisters and Niki were there to greet me with a finnish dinner. After that we hit the bars, and at 4AM in Molly Malone’s I pogoed on my glasses which miraculously survived, even though somewhat deformed. BTW, I am typing this on my computer, so I got it fixed (for errr... 550e). I spent midsummerfest on an island owned by my friend with some 20 people. Going into a smokesauna after a year was reviving. And now, I am at our summerplace. It felt like home to swim on the placid lake with an aura of light after midnight.

Peace to you all
Until next time,
Niklas

EXCELLENT WEEK

All in all, last week was pretty cool. Summer finally came back from it's holidays.



I worked hard on the last paper i had, on the disarming of colombian paramilitaries. I had read more than enough on what is a very complicated situation, and managed to do (in my opinion) some relevant analysis on the subject. Although the initial page limit of 5 stratched to twelve, heh. But, i turned that in on wednesday, and was a free and happy man.

The next morning the Ivan and Marius, the norwegian guys, managed to convince me (and themselves, since it was at an early hour) to go and try to get tickets for the Roland Garros tennis tournament. We got in and with thirteen euros, we could see all the matches except the mens and womens singles. We saw John Mcenroe play, as well as the mens doubles semi-final. The best match was still the boys semi-final; these little guys whacking the sh** out of the ball. And yeah, they all really wear those white hats and sweaters neatly placed over their shoulders.

Thursday night was a sciences-po party my friends had organised which was loads of fun. The next morning, having had a big night out and feeling a little shaky, a game of ping-pong was in place (we have a table downstairs). You wouldnt believe it, but ping-pong makes you sweat; so we took our shirts off, and by the time we were done, we were soaking weat. To go back to our floor, we decided to take the elevator, so as to avoid anybody seeing our naked sweaty personas. Down came the elevator, and we opened the door and the new girl from our floor was inside. There wasnt anything left to do so we went in, into the 3 square meters. What a jolly ride. The conversation was uncomfortable, to say the least, and the elevator isnt too fast either. She must have stuttered Marius' name three times, until Marius said "you can just call me mr.M".

This week I am moving out of the norwegian house, and i am flying to Finland the 19, tuesday (plane lands at 14.05). I think I have to start organizing my departure here. To cancel or close anything (cell phones, bank accounts, social aid), you have to write and send a handwritten letter. Stone ages baby, stone ages.

TICKETS PLEASE

Just a couple of measly weeks left..
I dont know what happened to the concept of it being warmer the more south you go, but somebody in the administration upstairs screwed it up, because it's been 10-20 degrees and raining the past month.
Great weather for visits. Salli and Ami were over for the weekend, and we took advantage of the dry spell which lasted a couple of hours on saturday and had sparkly in the Jardin de Luxembourg. Sunday we were tragically cought in by the rain in a cafe at Montmartre, drinking red wine.





On Sunday, Sissi came to stay at my place for a couple of days. We went to the Orangerie and Musée d'Orsay. The Orangerie is a museum with two large oval rooms, where Monet has painted four wallsized water lilly paintings in each.



Sissi asked me if she could travel without a ticket in Paris. I said yeah, that i hardly ever saw officials checking tickets, and that it was easy to bypass the gates if there were two of us. And they wear uniforms, so in any case, we could turn back. Well, little did I, or Sissi, know that it was the 'pirate'- campaign for checking tickets. A civilian dressed guy was watching the gates! how unfair is that towards honest cheating citizens.. Well, Sissi tried explaining that she didnt speak english, didnt have her ID and didnt have money. But when they called the police and explained the fee would be doubled when the police came, she caved in.

MUSEUM NON-VISIT

Saturday night all the museums were free, and they were open until midnight or one.
I had been hearing a lot of good stuff about the musée quai branly, an anthropological museum which features large collections of exotic art. Well, so had other people.
At arriving, i at once reprimended myself for my stupidity. The museums in Paris are free every first sunday of the month, so i knew already. I knew that it was better to pay than to try to get in free. The security guards estimated that you had to stand in line for about two hours.
Well, i entered through a cafe and found a smaller (note: not small) line. After waiting for half an hour, i was close to the entrance. It was around nine thirty. this is when the security guards came and told us that they weren't letting anybody else in.
Well, the people were not pleased, having waited for a long time with their kids, having been promised all museums would be open until late. Somebody put forward a rumor that they were closing earlier because there were too many people inside. In any case, the french would have none of it. They gathered around the security guards and started booing and clapping hands. The security guards tried to explain, but the people started pushing them. It was like an uprising. against museum security. Finally, they had to force the door to be able to close it. That's the most action I've seen at a museum, like, ever.
'Maybe these frenchies are good for something', i thought to myself.

BACK UP

So, i sent my computer to be repaired - to Antibes.
I also read the warranty conditions: 'the warranty does not cover improper use of the computer'. i wonder if dropping it off the bed falls under that category..
I also asked how much it would cost me, if the warranty doesnt cover the repair, to replace the screen. 600e plus the work - 'you might as well buy yourself a new computer'. So its pretty much all or nothing (stakes being at a 1000e) now, just wait and see.
Also, it is standard procedure for them to format your harddrive (empty it), for client confidentiality. OF COURSE i dont have backups. byebye all the pictures from Paris. I guess this has to happen to you once before you start taking backup CD's.

One month left!
Seems so little. I should get myself together and start touring Paris while i still have time. Unfortunately i think I'll pass most of my time studying since the final exams are coming up.
tonight all the museums are free, so i have a good excuse for some cultural intake.
Back to the books. I am writing on the demobilization process of the AUC in Colombia.
Ciao!

LAST TRIP

I spent the last week in Corrèzze, which is 500km south of Paris.
We were 30 people altogether, going to a countryside house.
Well, turns out the cabin was more like a mansion; it had beds for thirty people, and was three stories high. It was surrounded by green pastures and forests, adjacent to a small town (called st exupery if i remember correctly).
Alices family (the girl from my school who had invited us all) had recently bought an old jeep, with which we went around the countryside. We even went swimming to a lake.
Cooking for thirty people was like cooking in the army. i made nakit ja muussit, which was a big hit.
We had a great time, and laughed our bellies sore.
On the downside, while playing hide and seek, somebody tripped on the wire of my laptop, which fell off the bed, which busted the screen. Somehow i have a feeling my warranty doesnt cover falling off the bed.

Have a nice weekend.

AMSTERDAM

Well, it was time for the three wise men to get together.
By wise i mean to be sarcastic, by three i mean Allan, Niki II, and me (being, by birth, chronologically the first of Nikis), and by together i mean Amsterdam.






That city is as charming everytime. It manages to combine the calm village look, with its low, small, picturesque and so bizzarre houses, and the buzz of a big city 'where it's all at'. If you don't mind the stoned american tourists, the junkies, pushers, and whores. It has to be one of the few cities where men in suits ride bikes. Riding a bike is so cool.

So, if anyone noticed, the month changed too - that is the time when finnish have this tiny, low-key party called vappu. Well, the Dutch had their equivalent. It was called Queen's Day. It was very much like vappu actually, just with more orange, really tall people. And even though the Dutch have a lot going on for them (boys, the girls are soooooo pretty. and too tall for me), music taste is not one of them. I thought we buried techno in the hellhole that were the 90's. Well, i guess nobody told the Dutch, cause they were all crowded around the hundreds of DJ's in the city playing the same crap, in a complete frenzy.

But the best part was definitely seeing my buddies, and i have to hand it to, and thank, our host Allan for a great time and the effort he put in (with a little bit less stress this time, but with the same old heavy preference for planning. Allans way.) We ate horribly unhealthy and delicious stuff - i now know all the kebab places in Allan's neighbourhood.

So much for the fenzy of Amsterdam, now i am going to the countryside, 500 kilometers south of France with - get this - FRENCH PEOPLE. if you don't get the joke - it's cause french people are a rare species for foreigners here.

P.S. Just came back from boxing. I SO got my ass kicked again. its SO irritating. i guess missing half the classes and being bad at sports will do that to you.

P.S.2. sorry for anybody who tried to call me during vappu, my french phone didnt work there.