Natalie From America

I've had a lot of questions about this museum and our experience, so I decided to write a blog to share! Recently, David and I visited a new museum in Helsinki,  Amos Rex . Their instagram and website was enticing enough, that David made me wait until he could come with too. Built underground, this museum has four large exhibit spaces. While outside, the general public may peek through the windows to see the museum-goers below. Above the museum, the public can watch through the windows at the museum underneath. While inside, I caught a kid peeking through the window over head Currently, they are home to Japanese-base digital collection by teamLab - you can read more about it here . Additionally, a collection of post-impressionist paintings by Sigurd Frosterus are housed and enjoyed in a more traditional art museum setting. Sigurd Frosterus drawing at the entrance of the exhibit The digital aspect of the exhibits was one of the most exciting parts of the experie...

Sweden ya'll! It was a doozy, and yet another place to check off the Scandinavian list. This part of Europe, to me, is one of the most unique. Scandinavian style is right up my alley. And if you're not sure what 'Scandinavian style' is, don't worry I've included so  many pictures for this post. Let me just start by saying, I fricken loved  Sweden. Stockholm is a big, diverse, beautiful city. When compared to Finland, I got a completely different vibe than say, Helsinki. There are so many more ethnicities, languages, and options for things to do and places to eat, etc. Coming from a very spoiled place, Chicago, I appreciated this.  While I do still appreciate Helsinki as a city, Stockholm might take the lead. Swedes seemed warmer, they actually embraced their friends, and by this I mean they actually hugged or kissed to greet or bid farewell to one another. In Finland, I almost never see people kissing, hugging, let alone holding hands to show any ty...

So I've shared this info with my close friends and family, but didn't want to share with the world until it was official - I am employed! I'm very excited to share that I secured a full-time preschool teaching position at an international school in Tampere, Finland. There was definitely an aspect of 'being in the right place, at the right time', as a teacher unexpectedly resigned during my first week of substitute teaching at the school. I'm not sure what the universe is trying to tell me, but I am so lucky and grateful to have some amazing people in my corner who helped me get here. An article published in The Atlantic gave me an intriguing perspective on what we are doing in America in comparison to the rest of the world. This system definitely informed my teaching style while in Chicago the last couple of years. (Read it  here .) But the biggest coincidence, about being here, is that in undergrad my professors preached the gospel of the Finnish education s...