Finland has been portrayed in popular culture as a country with little to see, thanks to Monty Python. However, last summer, I set out to to prove John Cleese et al wrong. Having spent five months in Sweden two years ago, I had certain expectations of Finland. In particular, that it would be similarly Scandinavian, and indeed Finland more than fulfilled my expectations of unspoilt countryside and archipelagos, and strikingly fair people speaking impeccable English. However, travelling through Finland I learnt more about the history of both nations and their different national identities. At the end of a trip through Poland, Russia and Estonia, visiting Finland further strengthened the impression of the significant impact of the Soviet Union and, before that, Tsarist Russia and the Swedish Empire, on the Baltic region. My first stop in
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