Do Guys Dig Chicks with Scars?

So I've had a lump in my chest for a few years and it's always freaked me out a little bit. You could move it around, it didn't hurt, and it didn't seem to change shape or size. I had figured that it was nothing, but with my family history of cancer, I didn't want to take any chances.
A while after it appeared, I had gone to my doctor in Canada to check it out. She said it was a benign cyst, a collection of cells, and that I had nothing to worry about. When I asked her if they would cut it out, she said no.
Now that we live in Finland, I was curious to see whether I'd get the same response. So a couple of months ago, I had a consult with a doctor who checked it out. He said it was nothing, but judging from my family history and the fact that it worries me, he would book an appointment for me to have it removed!!! Yippee, point for Finland.
Four needles and five stitches later, I am lump-free! I'm just hoping that Andrew is one of those guys who dig chicks with scars :)

Dentist

Healthcare in Finland is public and free, similar to Canada, and overall we've had a good experience with them. Generally when you have an appointment, you pay a flat "appointment fee", which is usually around 22 euros ($30) and everything else is covered by the government.
The dentalcare in Finland is quite similar, actually, as most employers do not have a specific benefits package. Finland does offer a private care, for those who choose to do so, but of course you would be paying more money.
A couple of weeks ago, I had an appointment for a suspected cavity. It turned out to be nothing, as apparently I have recently begun grinding my teeth due to stress in my sleep. However, I got my bill this week and wanted to share with you the results.
Unlike the healthcare, which is a flat fee, you pay at the dentist for the services that are rendered. But it's awesome how cheap it is.
To inspect my teeth, they charged me 9,60 euros. For an x-ray, they charged me 6,20. And for other expenses, they charged me 6,20. For a grand total of 22,00 ($30). Now imagine how much it would have cost for a dentist and a dental hygienist to inspect my teeth and x-ray my teeth and discuss a course of action if I were in Canada...

Nudity? No problem!

So we've been living in Finland for over 1.5 years, and generally it's been an easy transition. There were no major culture shocks when we came over here....
Until this week.
Two of my girlfriends were taking their kids to the Makelankatu swimming hall in Helsinki (public swimming hall) and invited Charlie and I to come along. Since we had not gone to this pool before, we decided we'd try it out.
Picture me, carrying a sleeping Charlie in his car seat, a diaper bag and a bag full of our swimming gear, struggling to open the change room doors with all of my gear and then boom, walk into a change room where literally there are naked women. EVERYWHERE! No shame. No hiding. No backs are turned. Boobs and butt everywhere. Of all shapes and sizes.
As I got Charlie and I dressed (of course me hiding in the corner trying to put my swimsuit on as quickly possible), an old woman came from around the corner and had the locker next to mine. Butt naked, looks straight at me and says "anteeksi" (excuse me in Finnish) and then bends over to put on her underwear with her wrinkly droopy bum in my face.
We proceeded to the showers, where you have to of course shower before you get into the pool. I was receiving so many strange looks from all these women because I was showering with my swimsuit on.
I had known the Finnish culture was more relaxed about nudity, because we've heard that all Finnish families sauna together in the nude. Mother, father, brother, sister, neighbours, etc. And by no means am I trying to come across as judgmental or horrified. I think it was my first culture shock in this country, as I was very uncomfortable with all the nudity.
But maybe that's just me.

Salzburg, Austria

The next place we visited was Salzburg, which was the setting for "The Sound of Music". We had a very jam-packed schedule in Salzburg, as there were so many things to see and do! We visited Hellbrunn Palace, and went on the Trick Fountains tour where water spits out of hidden spouts all over the palace grounds and surprises visitors. We toured through the Old Town of Salzburg and visited the Hohensalzburg Fortress upon the town hill to view the city at sunset. Salzburg is the birthplace of Mozart, where you can also visit the home where he was born.
We took cable cars up the Untersberg Mountain and did a hike to reach the summit. It was picturesque!! We also went on a salt mine tour, which was very interesting. Maddy was excited to wear coveralls, mandatory for all visitors.
To top it all off, we visited Eagle's Nest, which was a gift to Adolf Hitler. We learned about the Eagle's Nest on "Band of Brothers" and thought it would be fun to visit. It was weird to ride in the same elevator that Hitler once rode, but what was more exciting was the bus ride to get up to the Eagle's Nest. What a nailbiter!! Once at the top, we had a 360 degree view over the Alps and it was spectacular!!! The Eagle's Nest is now a teahouse and cafe but the view was the highlight by far.
It was a busy few days in Salzburg but wow, it was an amazing city along our travels!!!!!

Driving through the Austrian Countryside

Luckily Andrew has co-workers that have lived all over Europe and were able to recommend the most scenic drives to get between stops. We took a scenic route from Vienna to Salzburg and it was really great to drive along the Danube River (just a few short weeks before Andrew's parents took a river boat cruise down the Danube River!).
Lots of hills, beautiful prestine lakes, and castles perched up on the hillside. My favourite memory of driving through Austria was the beautiful red flowerpots hanging in all the windowsills. You know, what you see on tv? It actually does look like that!
We took a wonderful detour to Stift Melk Abbey in the little town of Melk. We saw a replica of this building at the Mini Europe in Brussels and were interested in seeing the real thing. An amazing 900-year old monastery, with the highlight being the Abbey Church and library. It was a fabulous stop and a beautiful drive towards Salzburg.

Vienna, Austria

From Slovakia, we drove to Vienna and stayed there a few days. We had gorgeous weather and enjoyed visiting St Stephen's Cathedral, MuseumsQuartier, and the Imperial Palace. Vienna has been linked to such people as Beethoven, Mozart, and Sigmund Freud.
I took Maddy to the Butterfly House while Andrew explored the National Library, although she was petrified of the butterflies (?). We walked through the Volksgarten, enjoyed beer and wiener schnitzel, and got lost in the maze and labrynth at the Schonbrunn Palace. A vibrant and interesting city on our travels.

Bratislava, Slovakia

From the Bone Church, we continued on our way to Bratislava, Slovakia. We only stayed here for the afternoon but thought it would be a neat stop and wasn't too far from Vienna. Bratislava was a bit intimidating since I watched the movie "Hostel", but it was very cute. The Old Town Hall was nice, as well as the monastary, the Bratislava Castle, and the shopping pedestrian zone Korzo. It was also full of statues, which was neat for both adults and kids.
Maddy really improved her climbing skills on this trip, here is an example of her climbing on the wall overlooking the city from the castle grounds.

The Bone Church, Czech Republic

From Prague, we drove towards Bratislava and stopped in Kutna Hora. There is a church called "the Bone Church", which is full of an estimated 40,000 bodies. The well-known story of the Bone Church in Kutna Hora is that in the 13th century, Jindrich, the abbot of Sedlec monastery, returned from a visit to Palestine with a pocketful of soil and sprinkled it on the cemetery surrounding the Chapel. This direct association with the holy land led to the graveyard becoming a sought after burial site among the aristocracy of Central Europe. At the time of the thirty years' war in the 17th century, the number of burials outgrew the space available, so the older remains began to be exhumed and stored in the chapel. They had to do something with all of the bones, so the church hired a local woodcarver to decorate the chapel with the bones and create a reminder of the impermanence of human life and inescapable death.
There were giant piles of bones stacked neatly in each of the four corners of the church. In addition, there was a giant bone chandelier and a coat of arms, not to mention many other decorations around the church.
When Andrew told me this was our stop along the way, I was a bit apprehensive. However, if you get past the mortality of it, it was actually pretty cool.

Prague, Czech Republic

From Berlin, we took a scenic drive along the Elbe River to Prague. There was quite a difference as soon as we left Germany, as the road infrastructure was not nearly as smooth. However, we drove through some really cute towns.
Prague was our favourite city by far. The entire city is full of buildings with amazing architecture. Every single road was gorgeous, every building was spectacular. I believe my favourite part was the Old Town Square, with the Astronomical Clock and the tower. We visited Prague Castle, which is this giant castle on the hill overlooking the city. We stayed in the Jewish Quarter but also walked through the Old Town and the Lesser Town. Charles Bridge was nice too, but I'm sure Andrew's favourite part was the Victoria Secret photo shoot we stumbled upon on the side of the bridge.
We enjoyed some great food. Andrew ordered a pork knuckle and it arrived on the table on a spit. It was so much meat, he actually sweated meat out of his pores. I tried dumplings. We also had this wonderful dessert made at these tiny stands called trdelniks, which is a dough baked on a spit covered in cinnamon and sugar and nuts. Delicious!
We enjoyed a river cruise and also walked up Petrin Hill to a tower that looked exactly like the Eiffel Tower. We also took Maddy to a House of Mirrors, and was amazed at how easily she got through the maze.
It was a beautiful city and we were glad we were able to visit Prague. One of the favourites, it will be hard to top this one.

Berlin, Germany

In August, we did a 16-day trip around Central Europe. It was spectacular. We flew into Berlin and rented a car at the airport. In Berlin, we got to visit the Charlottenburg Palace, Spree River, Museum Island, Berlin Cathedral, City Hall, Potsdamer Platz, Checkpoint Charlie, Brandenburg Gate, and the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. We also walked all along the East Side Gallery, which is a section of the Berlin Wall which has been painted by local artists. Maddy particularly enjoyed our visit to Berlin SeaLife, and also we found this cute beach restaurant along the Berlin Wall for dinner where Maddy loved playing in the sand while we waited for our supper. Andrew also took us to a "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" playground, with a castle, which Maddy also loved.
As you could imagine, there is a lot of history in Berlin. I'm the first to admit that I don't know all the details about the Nazis and WWII, among other things, but it was memorable to visit sections of the Berlin Wall and to walk through the Memorial for the Jews.

Charlie 1.0

I can't believe it is here already, but Charlie turned the big 1!!! It went so fast. It's been a difficult year with his illnesses and setbacks, but it was a wonderful day to celebrate Charlie and the wonderful things he has brought to this family.
As for the cake, he wasn't a very big fan, as you can see by the photo below. But he enjoyed his presents and Maddy was a big helper opening them!