Ginger bread!

This is what's been going on over here! I've started early already, prepared food and baked at the same time!
We're getting the tree today, yey! This time it's different though, we usually get our Christmas tree from our summer house, but now there's so much snow that going into the woods is just impossible. It's been such a beautiful thought! But I'm sure we'll get a fine tree from the market place too! Sweet thoughts everyone!

Food and fashion & this and that!

Last photos of my trip, enjoy!

Concert Halls Wuxi and Dalian

Good morning to you all! I'm one early bird over here! The best thing about jet lag is that you can start posting your blog or organizing things or making lists about Christmas, or anything at all when you can't sleep. I thought this was the easiest recovery ever, since I managed to fall back to sleep on two previous nights after waking up around 3.30, but maybe I was wrong. I'm wide awake now, and have been about two hours already! So let's start!

I wanted to show you pictures from the Concert halls we played in China. Both of these venues are brand new. The first concert was in Wuxi and I was very exited to get there, since the hall has been designed by a Finnish architect agency, and my beautiful Goddaughter's father was involved with the project as a designer and a project leader. It's amazing I think! The world is so small, and he is so talented! The hall itself was huge, and we were just at aaw trying to comprehend what we saw. He once said to me that China is every western architect's wet dream at the moment, because they've got the money, they want the wau-effect, and they want it big. I can see that, both of these halls were just huge! But I must say it's not all about appearances, both of these halls were also excellent acoustically, a fact which always justifies almost everything. If it's a great hall with no sound whatsoever, what's it good to anybody, no matter how big or beautiful or peculiar it might look. A musicians point of view might vary while playing on stage but we were told the overall sound was good in the audience. It's always difficult to adjust to different halls when you only get to play there once or twice, but you just sit down and do your job as you always do, and the conductor takes care of the rest. Here we go, first is Wuxi:

                   Then comes Dalian. This I thought felt cold and looked like an airport really!

Christmas shopping!

Today I had a date with my Mother! We ran some Christmas errands, planned the menu, called my sister about the dessert, and talked all things nice and Christmassy! We started from Stockmann and after a while went for a glass of Champagne in the Champagne bar upstairs! Mmm, luxurious! This is how Christmas shopping should be, hooray!
Also payed a visit to the beautiful Senaatintori, with our picturesque church and the Christmas Market. There were Christmas trees for sale already! I'm waiting to get ours so badly! This will be nice, I'm getting in the mood little by little! It's so beautiful outside, snow keeps falling slowly and silently, and I'm so happy to be at home.

Where do I begin?

I've just slept and slept today! Finally came outside a little, there so much snow, a lot more than a week and a half ago! I'm trying to think about Christmas but my mind is still in China. This was my 4th tour over there, and somehow it was the most challenging one. People got really sick, three colleagues were hospitalized, and it kind of got a little scary, especially when it came down to the food. You get paranoid about what to eat and where. But I managed to stay ok, even though I had a lot of sushi.. The rest of the days were so busy that we ended up ordering room service. Hotels were exellent, the Asians really put their minds to comfortable interiors and the service. I had two massages from the hotel spa, they came to my room so I didn't even have to move myself! This tour was special also because of the fact that we only visited two cities. That diminishes the travelling into minimum which makes it a lot less stressful! Our four last concerts were in the same venue so that gave us time to look around a little!
We payed several visits to different tailors. If you have time in your hands that's what you do over there! Over the years I have had all my work skirts made over there. It's incredibly cheap and the work is exellent and materials really good. One of my skirts is silk, other three taffeta. I find it the easiest material, you can wash it yourself and and it keeps the form really well. The men were ordering suits, tails and tuxedos for work and leisure time. I also had a coat made, and it came out real pretty! You'll get to see it here for sure!
It's so easy to lose your mind while shopping in China. The amount of stuff is overwhelming and the piracy production takes your breath away. In these little booths inside huge markets you can see all the latest bags from Gucci, Prada, LV, Chanel.. It's difficult to describe it really, but to think you'd buy an orange fake Birkin and then walk around Helsinki with it, is just so ridiculous! Who would you fool there but yourself! Surely you can't think it could pass as the real thing, knowing how there are waiting lists for bags like that. Not to mention the moral side of it. Not good.
But lots of nice things can be found too and we sure did!
Here are some pictures, an overall glimpse of where we were. I'll write about the concerts and the concert halls later, there are so many pictures I need to get organized! These photos are from the city of Dalian, streets and corners, people living their every day lives over there. See you later dear ones!

Home Sweet Home!!!

I'm back home!! Oh I just don't think you could find a happier person on Earth right now!! After a whopping 15 hours of travelling in two different airplanes, buses, airport shuttles, security checks, queues and a broken suitcase, I finally ended in a taxi which took me home! Am exhausted but extremely happy to be in my beautiful home country where the air is fresh, snow is white and there's room to breathe. My darling husband was waiting for me with a bouquet of roses, rye bread and good old salmiakki, my favourite things, and I just couldn't describe how I'd missed him and home altogether!

I've also missed you all and the blog terribly!! I couldn't believe it but all this social media like Facebook, blogs, Twitter, even Youtube, is banned in China. It's the censorship. Of course it makes sense once I figured it out but I did not get it beforehand. I tried and tried to log in and soon realised what was going on. But now the silence is over and I have so much to tell you!! With pictures of course! I'll get back to you tomorrow, just had to make an informative post here! Sweet thoughts to you all, loads of love and hugs!!

Lace!

Still one more thing!
This is a good idea if you've got some old or new lace lying around for no reason! I got a piece of beautiful lace from my Grandmother in the Autumn. It's made by my Mother when she was young and for some reason it had ended up with my Granny. It was really beautiful and I thought what to do with it. So I went and bought a black sweater and stitched it to it as a collar! It came out very pretty I think, somehow timeless, very beautiful! My sweet Mother is so skillful! All Mothers are, aren't they! It put a smile to her face when she saw it, made me very happy!
For some reason I'd forgotten I had it, or it had been hiding in my closet, but now I found it and it's going to China with me! Bye for now!