Yesterday upon arrival at the Faroes’ Vága Airport, my Maersk Air plane was nowhere to be seen on the runway. It worried me that I would be stuck in the Faroes for yet another day. I use the word “stuck” loosely, since there is nothing negative about staying in the lovely green Faroe Islands, even when the rain is beating you with the same effect as if you took a walk through a carwash.
But shortly after 11.00, the plane landed from Copenhagen. It was a much larger plane than the one I had taken to the islands, since it had double-duty to accommodate all of Thursday’s passengers as well as the regularly-scheduled passengers for yesterday.
Safe landings in Copenhagen then in Helsinki, and Arto had done my requested shopping and then some: he filled the fridge with my favourite Finnish foods. Thanks so much for the hiilisilakkapihvi and lihapiirakka (barbecued whitefish and meat-filled pastries).
This afternoon Arto and I will see the Finnish film “Nousukousi”, which translates roughly to “The Boom” (“boom” in a financial context). I had already bought its soundtrack before even seeing the film, primarily because Kerkko Koskinen, composer and sometime-singer with Ultra Bra, wrote the movie’s score.
The Oscar telecast is going to be broadcast live at 03.00 Monday morning, so Arto and I, plus some of his friends, will watch it in his office’s movie-screening room. Arto writes Finnish subtitles for foreign films and in his office there is a small theatre for ten people. Sure beats watching it on a TV.
Where will I be on Monday morning? There is talk of a Finnair strike next week, and who knows: what happened to me in Tórshavn might happen to me in Helsinki. I could be stuck here. There is already a walkout of ground workers only, but the entire Finnair workforce may walk out in solidarity next week. That general strike however may not happen until Wednesday.
I address this to my brother, mother, and work colleagues in particular: I should be home as planned tomorrow afternoon, and in at work on Tuesday. It will not do my family any good to call the airport to see if my British Airways London-to-Toronto flight arrived on time, since the first leg of my trip, the Finnair Helsinki-to-London flight, may not have even departed in the first place. Call Finnair to see if they are still flying international flights on Monday! I can always call you to let you know, in the middle of the night Eastern Standard Time 🙂
Scrabble friends, I hope to see you at the Cambridge Scrabble Tournament and the Boston-area Tournament.
And to my new Faroe friends, your hospitality was one of the highlights of my trip. Not only did I see your beautiful country but I got to meet its generous and gracious people. You gave me a warm welcome wherever I went, and I was touched by how you opened your homes and lives to me. Túsund takk. I will be back.