Friday 25th July

After getting up, catching the ferry to Southampton, sitting in the taxi for 2 hours then in Heathrow airport for another hour and a half, I finally got on my flight back to Helsinki. 3 hour flight or there abouts and then I had another hour and a half on the ground until I was to board my flight to Kokkola. However, when I got to the gate I was greeted with the news that my flight had been cancelled (that’s two for two) and that I had been put on a flight to Vaasa. Luckily the next flight for Vaasa was only leaving 5 minutes after the scheduled flight to Kokkola anyway so not to worry. Unfortunately with all the people going to Kokkola on the flight to Vaasa the flight was overbooked by 16 people. I was politely asked if I would mind waiting for the next flight if with some incentives offered. I caved as I had no plans when I got home, and the next flight was not for 5 hours. However the incentives they offered have still not reached my bank account so I need to chase that up. I killed time on the internet, writing some of this, and drinking the café vouchers I was given, its surprising what things you find to spend money on when you have to spend it in €13 bunches all at the same place. Anyway after the flight got in and the bus to Pietarsaari I got home at about 3am, this meant that I didn’t do much on Saturday, except I did get up and go for a ride on my bike, which made me feel better.

In the evening (quite late) I walked into town to have a look at some of the festival that was taking place. The first thing I saw when I reached the town square was a man who from a distance appeared to be naked as he jumped then bounced and swan in the air from the Bungee Jumping crane that had been set up in the main square. He was actually wearing shoes, jocks and the safety harness. I wandered around for a while surrounded by more people than I had seen in the town at one time (both before and since). They had a number of stages set up with various bands playing (mostly covers). It was very odd listening to the bands talking between songs and not understanding a word but they would then jump straight into a bit of Billy Joel – Only the Good Die Young, or some other well known English classic, or not I think some Alanis Morissette was even played. There were a lot of stalls set up selling T-shirts, bad food and anything else that you see in that sort of carnival atmosphere. I didn’t stay too late, and I walked home when it cooled off enough that my shorts and T-shirt were no longer that appropriate.

Back to work on Monday and the two weeks that followed were relatively quiet as most of the yard were still away on summer holiday.