Conference turris::scandia

    There are as many motel and hotel charges as there are motels and
    hotels. You would get the best answer by asking your local travel agent
    about the price of a room in the Helsinki Intercontinental Hotel and
    regard it as the most expensive there is. All other are cheaper.
    Also I think that you should be content with the price you learn
    from your local Hertz or Avis as they have their offices here too.
    Maybe you could even pay according to your own US rates(?) at one
    bill. I'd try having my local prices!
    Tapio

I know from inquiring that booking a car in Germany from the US through
a US agent is cheaper than getting there and booking a car.  I would guess
that it is similar in Finland.

Chad

>    1) Where is the Digital facility located and will it be open while
>       I am there?  I would like to visit it.

    Digital Equipment Corporation Oy is at Niittymaentie 7 in Espoo. Espoo
    is next to Helsinki (first town to the south, I think). You can take a
    bus from the central bus plaza in Helsinki. I don't remember the bus
    number offhand, but you can call the Digital office when you get there
    and get directions. Their number is [358] (0) 43441. There's not a lot
    to see other than lots of offices.


>    Would anyone know typical motel or hostel room rates?  I'm also
>    interested in car rental rates (the local USA travel agent gave
>    a price of about $400/week, which sounds very expensive) in Finland.
    
    All the Nordic countries are expensive. Plan on about $100 per night or
    more in a good, but not luxury, hotel in Helsinki (I stay at the
    Torni). The Michelin red guide for major cities of Europe includes
    Helsinki and gives detailed rates for all the better hotels in town,
    including moderately-priced ones, but does not cover other towns.
    Fodor's guide and Frommer, if they have one, should give you a good
    list of hotels and restaurants in various price ranges in Helsinki and
    other areas of Finland.
    
    Car rental is also not inexpensive, but your Digital discount is 35% at
    Avis on normal time and mileage charges. The Digital discount number is
    126200. There are also packages available from the major rental
    companies in which you prepay in the U.S. The Digital discount does not
    apply to these packages, but these are usually cheaper than the weekly
    rates available at the counter anyway. I recall that a typical weekly
    rate for a category A car was about $150 to $250 depnding on the
    country, but that was about 5 years ago. I would caution you to be
    careful if you pick up a car at the downtown Helsinki AVIS office. The
    manager (owner) of the office tried to give me a line that he had a
    special weekend rate, but that it was "only available to Finns". I got
    the weekend rate after he understood I hadn't just gotten off the
    turnip truck. (I also got the 35% discount).
    
    -Tom                                        

    re: .-1
    
    I checked my records. A single at the Torni, which is one of the
    "second-tier" hotels in Helsinki, was FIM 510 (~$135) in April of 1988.
    
    -Tom

    Thanks for your responses Tapio, Chad, and Tom.
    
    I'll post what we experience after I get back.
    
    Regards,
    
    Paul

(Also posted in HSK01::FNO)
    
Things I was favorably impressed with in Finland:

	. Yellow "caution" light which turns on before traffic light turns 
	  green.
	. Cabinets over sink with dish drainer shelves so wet dishes can be 
	  put out of sight on the drainer shelves immediately after washing.
	. Gasoline pumps that take credit cards and do not require an attendant
	  or any paper work.
	. Booth telephones that show the amount of time available and also hold
	  several coins in waiting that drop in as time is used up.
	. Toilets that use very little water.
	. Hot water fixtures with the red button which must be pressed before
	  very hot water can be turned on.
	. Clean, neat, uncluttered homes.
	. General condition (including cleanliness) of the roads.
	. Hinge placement on 3-hinge doors ("middle" or 2nd hinge placed much
	  closer to the top hinge).
	. Digital facility in Espoo is very nice from what I could see on my
	  brief visit.
	. Favorite good-sized city - Tampere.

Will post unfavorable items if anyone is interested.
                           

Just a note.  Many of these things are common throughout Europe (at least 
in Germany).  The yellow before green is pretty neat.  I've heard in Austria
[while I was in Germany from someone who had just come from there]that in 
addition to that they have the green light blink right before it turns yellow!
{so you know it is time to gun it! :-}

At least the street stop-lights, phones, gas-pumps (at least one that take 
bills), and toilets sound familiar.

European culture should rub off on us in some points.

Makes me want to go to Finland.

Thanks for the report!

Chad

(what were the unfavorables?)

(Posted in HSK01::FNO also)
    
Items of possible general interest:

	. Seemed to be a large number of Jehovah's Witness Kingdom Halls
	  around, particulary in what seemed like rural areas.
	. Very few small light planes flying around (of course, living in
	  Fitchburg, MA which has an airport, has made me used to having 
	  a lot of small planes flying around).
	. Was surprised at the large number of Audi and Mercedes taxis.
	. Was surprised to see quite a number of '50s and '60s American
	  cars (in good condition), including an Edsel, large Cadillacs, 
	  a Rambler American, and Fords and Chevys.  Where do they get
	  the parts to keep these going?
	. Lots of women working on the road repair crews.
	. Interesting to see the '60s BATMAN show.
	. Interesting to see so many American and other countrys' items
	  for sale; e.g., records of stars like Roy Orbison, McDonalds,
	  Pizza Hut, etc.  By the way, found the beef at MacDonalds to
	  taste quite a bit different than American beef.  Seemed to 
	  have less fat - does Macs in Finland use Finnish-raised beef?
	  That's what my faulty reading of the place mat seemed to imply.
	. Interesting to have cucumbers and sliced tomatoes served at
	  breakfast.
	. Seat-belts and lights (outside of the city limits) required.

More things that favorably impressed me:

	. Bicycle reflector on arm which sticks out to the road side of
	  the bicycle.
	. Good food - 
		. rye, wheat, oat, and combination cereals 
		. hearty breads
		. delicious viili
		. hirvi and fish dishes
		. Excellent cheeses
	. Good saunas
	. Hearing young people speak Finnish (I grew up in a home where
	  all the people that spoke Finnish were adults and older people, 
	  except for my brother and me; and we listened most of the time).
	. I liked the Hurre (?), built in Yl�jarvi, built-in refrigerators
	. Tampere's N�sinneula revolving resturant!
	. All 3 hotels had excellent breakfasts included in the price.

Things that did not impress me favorably:

	. Dairy cows with horns left on; seems like there'd be potential
	  danger.
	. Prices, for many items, were two to four times as high as in
	  the United States, specifically:
		. hotel costs (these were all around Helsinki):
			Airport Hotel (1 night, 3 adults) - $189.36  
			Helsinki Hotel("  "   "   " ) - $291.86 (included
			several phone calls to the US)
			Hotel Martha (1 night, 3 adults) - $116.36 (this
			is where I'll stay next time if I go to Helsinki)
		. car rental:
			Rental car (2 weeks 1 day/unlimited mileage) -
			$754.86   Opel, nice car, no problems, drove
			over 3000 kilometers!
		. gasoline
		. food costs		
	. Punk, spiked, and colored hair styles.


    p.s. Does anyone know the address of the University of Tampere?  I'm
         particularly interested in the math, physics, and engineering
    	 departments (undergraduate and graduate). Kiitos.

    re: .8
>    p.s. Does anyone know the address of the University of Tampere?  I'm
>         particularly interested in the math, physics, and engineering
>    	  departments (undergraduate and graduate). Kiitos.

    	There are two Universities in Tampere.
    
    	- University of Tampere
    	  Kalevantie 4
    	  Tampere , Finland
    
    	  telefax 358-31-134473
    
    	  They haven't departments of engineering or physics (only maths
    	  medicine,history,social sciencies etc...)
    
    	- Tampere University of Technology
    	  Tieteenkatu 21
    	  Tampere
    	
    	  They have all departments you asked (maths,engineering,physics).
    	  All are located in the same address (Tieteenkatu in Hervanta).
    
    	Actually the P.O. Box address should be used but i don't have the
        box number available right now (the street address should be ok also).
    
    		regards
    		
    			Pekka (graduate from Tampere University of Technology)

    	p.s. Both Universites have undergraduate and postgraduate programs.

    From: [email protected] (Tapani Tarvainen)
    Organization: University of Jyvaskyla, Finland
    Date: 11 Jan 90 06:10:21 GMT
    Newsgroups: soc.culture.nordic
    Subject: Re: Total Solar Eclipse

    In article <[email protected]> [email protected] () writes:

>       According to a message in another newsgroup, the first
>European total solar eclipse in several decades will occur on 22 Jul
>90.

>       I am curious whether this event is being widely publicized.
>Is Finland preparing for a lot of tourists?

    Yep.  All hotels along the route have been booked full long ago (oh
    well, maybe not quite), special flights have been arranged (they sell
    one ticket for one window seat and one other, and only on one side of
    the plane), etc.

    Let's hope the weather won't ruin it (if I remember correctly,
    meteorologists have said the chances of the eclipse being clearly
    visible on surface are around 30%).

    -- Tapani Tarvainen    ([email protected], [email protected])
 

    From: [email protected] (Timo Hyv|nen)
    Newsgroups: soc.culture.nordic
    Subject: Re: Holiday in Finland
    Date: 13 Feb 90 02:25:21 GMT
    Organization: Helsinki University of Technology, Finland
 
>In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] (Rob de Winter) writes:
>> Hello everybody up north,
>> 
>> This summer I am planning to go to Finland for a holiday. I will go
>> there by car and caravan. I want to make a tour from Turku up north
>> (Inari lake) and back along the Russian border to Helsinki. I have about
>> 3.5 to 4 weeks to spend in finland. 
 
    I'd say the best time to come is the midsummer - june/july. The nights
    are really light and the weather is at it's best. You're planning a
    nice route, those areas are so different. West coast is really flat (so
    you wont feel  homesick) when the eastern border is just typical
    Finnish - hills and  forests.
 
    There is a road going along the eastern border called "The road of poem
    and border" (I bet its not like that in English but thats the direct
    translation). I think in the north it starts from Kuusamo and goes
    down to Karelia along the border. I think you can get some kind of
    brochures telling about that area, if not there, then at least in
    finland from the tourist informatioin offices.
 
>> Could anybody give me some tips for interesting places to visit,
>> temperature, mosquito (and what to do against them) and related topics.
 
    Well the last couple of summers have been really warm & sunny. I've
    burnt my  skin many many times :) Of course the usual finnish summer
    consists of  three rainy months but it's getting warmer year by year
    here too (wonder  why ;). There are some mosquitoes, especially in
    lappland, but you get them off with those different stinking chemicals
    you can buy in the stores.
 
    About an interesting place to visit I recommend the Kuhmo Chamber Music
    Festival. That is of course if you are interested in classical music
    at all.  The festival takes place i think in the beginning or end of
    july, Im not quite sure. Kuhmo is a little town by the border (I think
    the 3rd largest city in europe, though). The festival is world famous
    and the artists there are some of the best in the world. Ok, I was born
    there and worked few summers at the festival but it really is great.
    The athmosphere is really relaxed and original.
 
>> How about the roads in Finland and the number of tourists in
>> July/August? I don't suppose it will be as crowded as France, at least I
>> hope not!
 
    No, it is not. Think, there are only 5 million inhabitants here
    together. Of course there are tourists but there is plenty of room for
    them too.
 
    Miriam was telling about the bad roads. Some of them are under
    construction during summer but not all. I have seen some maps you get
    from the customs or tourist info (???) that show the roads that are
    under construction. Get one of those, it saves your nerves. Hope you
    have a nice holiday if you still dare to come here :)
 
    timo
 
    I						i [email protected]	I
    I    Once I thought I was wrong... 		i mcvax!santra!otax!tsh I
    I    ...but I was mistaken.			i Timo Hyv|nen		I
    I						i Call! +358-0-468 2241	I

    Newsgroups: soc.culture.nordic
    From: u-lchoqu%[email protected] (Lee Choquette)
    Subject: Re: vegetarian dining in Helsinki?
    Date: 25 Aug 92 15:01:29 MDT
    Organization: University of Utah CS Dept
 
    In article <[email protected]> [email protected] (Kippi
    Fagerlund) writes:

  > My husband and I will be in Helsinki on business for about four days in the 
  > beginning of October.  We are vegetarians - can anyone recommend any
  > restaurants or other places to eat? 
 
    There are vegetarian restaurants, such as Greenway somewhere near
    Kajsaniemi gatan, but you'll probably pay something like FIM 80 
    (USD 20) to eat at such a place.  You'd be better off going down to
    Salutorget (Market Square) on the harbor, where you'll find a lot of
    people selling fresh produce and fish, plus it's got the kind of
    outdoor market atmosphere that you might enjoy.  If I'm not mistaken,
    there's also a large hall nearby with the same stuff indoors.

  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
   . . . . Lee Choquette . . . . . . . . . . I *love* work . . . . . . . . .
  . . [email protected]. . . . I could watch it all day. . . . . .
 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

    Newsgroups: soc.culture.nordic
    From: [email protected] (Olli-Jukka Paloneva Tkkk)
    Subject: Where would you like to come in Finland ...
    Sender: [email protected] (Usenet NEWS)
    Organization: ABO AKADEMI UNIVERSITY, FINLAND
    Date: Mon, 9 Aug 1993 07:14:26 GMT
 
    Somebody asked something about coming to Finland to work and stay for a
    year or two. In Helsinki there is an governmental office called
 
 
			     CIMO
			      -
		Centre for International Mobility
	('Kansainv�lisen henkil�vaihdon keskus' in Finnish)
 
		      Hakaniemenkatu 2
		     FIN-00531 HELSINKI
 
	tel.  + 358 0 7061, info + 358 0 7062677
	fax   + 358 0 763911
 
    They may help in international exchange and perhaps they know, who
    knows in Finland concerning visas, work permissions etc.
 
    I copied this from a brochure, so I'll reserve right not to be
    responsible above mentioned information, its correctness or other
    related matters.
 
 
    Best Wishes,
 
		Olli-Jukka Paloneva