Scandinavia and The Baltics Part 8 - Arrival in Finland and on to Lithuania

It is now Sunday morning and we are leaving Sweden, and flying to Finland where we will spend two days and a bit.

We loved Stockholm, great city....so we are now looking forward to seeing Helsinki, the capital city and the largest city in Finland. But first a few basic facts:

Finland occupies a huge area of land, 15 times larger than Israel with only 5.4 million people, which means that while in Israel there are 403 people per square kilometre, Finland has 16 people per square kilometre. 

Finland is a parliamentary democracy. 

The VAT rate is 24% compared to 17% in Israel. The highest tax rate in Finland is 58%. The currency is the euro. The official language is Finnish, described by many as one of the most difficult to master. 

The time zone is the same as Israel, 7 hours ahead of Toronto.

Its flag is a blue cross on a white background. The blue represents the lakes of Finland (there are over 187000 lakes in Finland) and the white represents the snow. And when you say snow in Finland, you think of Lapland. 

People speak about Lapland as though it is a separate country when it is in fact a region of parts of four countries, Russia, Norway, Sweden and Finland; similar to how we refer to the Rocky Mountains as being part of two countries and many states and provinces. Lapland makes up about one third of Finland’s total area, with more reindeer than people. And by the way, you can now buy reindeer burgers in fast food hamburger restaurants. 

In Lapland, the sun is visible round the clock for 73 days a year, and the best place to view the northern lights. 

One clarification of something I wrote earlier. I always thought that Finland was part of Scandinavia. Officially, there are only three countries in Scandinavia, Denmark, Norway and Sweden. 

Finland is ranked first in the world for many things:

• It is rated the happiest country in the world.
• Per capita, Finns drink more coffee than in any other country; about 12 kilos per person per year. And in both Finland and Sweden, we noted that the availability of decaffienated coffee was extremely limited. 
• Finns drink more milk and eat more ice cream per capita than in any other country.
• There are 5.4 million people in Finland and there are 3.5 million saunas, more saunas than cars. There is even a Burger King that has a sauna, so you can order a burger and enjoy it in the sauna. Finns are so crazy about saunas, that on the giant Ferris Wheel in Helsinki, two of the cars are “sauna” cars. Note the darker cars at approx. 3 pm and 9 pm in the pic below; those are the sauna cars...have a shvitz with a great view of Helsinki.
• 
• The education system in Finland is rated best in the world, with grade one beginning at age 7. All education, including university education up to and including a master’s degree is free of charge.
• And Finns read more books per capita than in any other country in the world.

And finally, three other interesting facts; Finns love salted licorice (Salmiakki), a confectionary item peculiar to Finland; Finns are among the most honest people in the world (in an honesty test, 12 wallets were randomly left in 10 large cities, and in Helsinki, 11 were returned to the police station, whereas in Paris, only one was returned); in Finland, speeding tickets are assessed according to your total income, so slow down or it could really cost you big time!

We arrived in Helsinki after a very short flight from Stockholm and as the Alters only decided to join on this trip after we had already booked our apartment, they were staying at a centrally located hotel while we were in an Airbnb close by. Our Airbnb was above a garage in a closed in courtyard and it was spacious and clean with full kitchen facilities. 

After unpacking, we walked to the centre of town and the port area, in time to browse the market area that services the many cruise ships that dock in Helsinki.

Our first impression of the city was that it was not as impressive from an architectural standpoint as Stockholm. Much of the downtown area appeared to be designed and built under Russian influence (boxlike, functional with little flair), which is understandable given its proximity to the former Soviet Union and its history. 

There are two huge churches that dominate the skyline, one Russian Orthodox with onion domes and the other a Lutheran church (pictured below), the dominant religion in Finland. There were letters painted above one of the doorways of the Lutheran church, spelling the name of God in Hebrew (second pic below...zoom in), and a guide later explained to us that this was a common feature of Lutheran churches. 

Perhaps the most Russian looking building was the central train station with huge concrete guards on either side of the entrance.

In preparation for this trip, we had tried to access the local kosher list; its link on the community website did not work. We tried to contact the Chabad rabbi and he basically deferred all questions to the local Rav, Rabbi Simon Livson. The Chabad house, located a couple of blocks from our apartment and one block from the port, was totally under renovation and was not accessible. 

The Finnish Jewish community is much smaller than Sweden’s, numbering about 1500 people, the majority in Helsinki. There used to be a kosher store, but in a cost saving measure they now only operate online. We brought some food with us from Sweden and dinner on Sunday consisted of the ever present jar of herring (available everywhere in this part of the world), fresh salads, with leftover schnitzel and cold cuts and a freshly prepared soup.

On Monday morning, our first stop was a 10 AM tour of the Helsinki Synagogue. There is only one in Helsinki and it is Orthodox. It is a fairly large structure and after passing security, were ushered into the courtyard which encompasses the shul, community offices and the 100 student Jewish Day School. We entered the building and were greeted by the community representative, who would be giving us our tour (5 euro per person). See below an historical picture as well as our pic of the shul.

We recognized Rabbi Livson in the office and asked him about the state of kashrut in the city. He proceeded to have his secretary print out a list for us (all in Finnish) and he translated the relevant headings so that we could take the list when shopping and find acceptable items. It was very helpful. He also clarified the status of Cafe Kippo, a vegan cafe in one of the downtown malls and, as had been the case in Stockholm, identified the problem ingredients in the cafe. 

Our tour covered the main sanctuary, (where we were given a history lesson on the Jews of Finland), the bet hamidrash, and an explanation about the Jewish School. 

One of the most interesting things that our tour guide said was that despite the fact that the vast majority of Finnish Jews are not orthodox, the shul remains staunchly orthodox out of a spirit of inclusiveness; knowing that if it were to turn conservative or reform, it would disenfranchise those few members who practised Orthodox Judaism. Here is a pic of the beautiful sanctuary from the Women’s Gallery in the shul.

Finland for 500 years until 1809 was part of the Sweden Kingdom. Under Swedish law at that time, Jews were only permitted to settle in three towns in the Kingdom, none of them in the area that we now know as Finland, and they had to convert to the Lutheran religion. 

In 1809, Sweden lost control of Finland, but because the new Grand Duchy of Finland adopted Swedish law, prohibition on Jewish settlement continued. 

In the first half of the 19th century, Jewish soldiers serving in the Russian Army in Finland, were permitted to temporarily remain in Finland after their discharge, but in 1869, there was an administrative decree that limited Jews to specific towns, specific jobs, and any violation would result in immediate expulsion.

By the end of the 1880s there were about 1000 Jews in Finland. 

When Finland gained independence in 1917, parliament approved the “Mosaic” law that allowed Jews to become Finnish nationals.

By the 1930s there were about 2000 Jews in Finland. 

Finland has always been wary of being taken over by their neighbours to the east, the Russians. So in a strange twist of fate, Finland aligned itself with the Nazis during the Finnish - Russian War or Winter War of 1941 - 1944, and Jews in the Finnish Army found themselves fighting against Jews in the Russian Army. 

Two neighbouring countries, Denmark and Norway, had already been occupied by the Nazis and the three territories of Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia had already been annexed as part of the Communist Soviet Union. Talk about being caught between a rock and a hard place. 

So the Finns chose to align themselves with Germany as the “lesser of two evils” in an attempt to protect being swallowed by Russia. The Nazis demanded that Finland hand over their Jews, with Himmler making two trips to Helsinki to formalize the demand. But the Finnish general, Marshall Mannerheim, refused and famously stated “while Jews serve in the Finnish Army, I will not allow their deportation”. He went so far as to set up mobile synagogues on the front lines and permit the local Finnish Jewish community to bring kosher provisions to soldiers serving in the army, and gave special leave to Jewish soldiers on Shabbat and Jewish holidays. He even permitted them to bring matzo and other provisions to Jewish Russian prisoners of war captured by the Finns. 

One disastrous event did occur when the head of the Finnish police permitted the deportation of 8 Jewish refugees to the Nazis; seven of whom were immediately murdered. In recognition of this terrible mistake, Finnish Lutherans established a small Christian moshav in Israel called Yad Hashmonah, the memorial to the eight. 

During the course of the war, full Jewish life  for the Jews of Finland continued as before. 

Three Jewish soldiers were awarded the Nazi Iron Cross in recognition of their bravery and all three refused to accept any award from the Nazis. 

By the end of the war, Finland remained independent and it is because of Mannerheim that the Jewish community survived. Three years after the end of WWII, in 1948, twenty seven Jews with battle experience went to Israel to take part in the Battle for Independence of the State of Israel. 

There is much more to this fascinating tale, and much has been written about it. Definitely worth a read. 

Today the shul and community centre provide a full range of services including a senior residence, youth activities, kashrut, tzedoko fund etc., as you would find in much larger communities. The visit to the shul was very worthwhile. 

One important note: you must pre-reserve by sending in a picture of your passport, as well as the time and date of your visit, or you will not be admitted. While we were there, a group of Mexican Jews, in town for one day on their cruise, tried to visit but because they had not pre-registered, were not admitted for security reasons.

One of the problems of touring on a Monday, is that all museums are closed and there are a number of interesting museums in downtown Helsinki. 

When we left the shul, we took an Uber to the port and took a ferry to Suomenlinna, an island fortress strategically situated at the entrance to the harbour to protect the city of Helsinki. It was a beautiful day and the ferry ride was refreshing. 

The Fortress was built on a series of islands that guard the harbour. Once you arrive at the main dock, there is a tourist desk that gives out a walking map, a route that is roughly 30 to 40 minutes each way. Today there are 800 people who live year round on the island, as well as a number of museums, shops, artists and a supermarket. The ferries run every 20 minutes and when the harbour freezes over in winter, the Finnish navy operates an ice breaker so that the ferry service for the island residents can continue.

We walked from one end to the other, and ended up overlooking the open sea where there were a battery of cannons and camouflaged houses within hills that housed the troops guarding the city.

When we returned we had a picnic lunch before returning to Helsinki.

After an hour browsing thru the markets at the port, we returned to the apartment for dinner and an early night.

On Tuesday morning, we did the free walking tour of Helsinki. Our guide was originally from Glasgow and he was excellent. Informative and humorous. On the way we passed the state library which has this beautiful interior. 

The weather was great, and after about two hours of walking, seeing points of interest and entertaining us with tidbits about Finnish history, customs and trivia, we ended up at the giant Ferris wheel at the port. 

One of my favourite pics on this trip was the front view of the Ferris wheel with the sun directly above.

Beside the port, there were a number of Solar Electric Charging Benches....no, not the electric chair, but rather a bench with a solar panel in the seat area, with USB charging ports along the rim of the bench. What a concept! What great Finnish innovation. 

One of the cute lines that our guide shared with us was regarding the difference between a Swede and a Finn. He said that Swedes are known as introverts and therefore when speaking to you, they will not be looking into your eyes, but they will rather be looking at their own feet. Finns on the other hand are much more outgoing, so when speaking to you, they will be looking at your feet. 

The Alters were leaving that night for Israel, so we went back to the apartment for a final lunch together for this trip and then Fran and I went out to the Design Museum, a small but very interesting museum dedicated to the art of Finnish design (see an example below). We spent the better part of an hour there and it was worth the visit.

For dinner we went to Cafe Kippo, the Vegan Place in the Forum Mall in the centre of town. We tried two of their all natural plant based sandwiches and loved both of them. Absolutely delicious. 

And then it was back to the apartment to pack for the morning Uber to the airport and our flight to Riga, Latvia and then our connecting flight to Vilnius, Lithuania. 

The main impetus for this whole trip was our interest in Lithuanian Jewry and our desire to visit the grave of my (David’s) great grandfather Rabbi Nachum Lipa Chananyah, who lived and is buried in the Old Jewish Cemetery of the small town of Vorno (Varniai), just south of Telshe (Telsai). 

In Lithuania, towns are natuarally known and signposted by their Lithuanian names. We on the other hand, know of the former Jewish life there and know the Yiddishe names of the towns. So, for example, if you are looking for Kovno, you must look for Kaunas; there are numerous such examples.

We did a lot of research about the area and the few remnants of Jewish life that remain after the brutal murder of the Jews of Lithuania and the almost total destruction of anything Jewish in the area. 

We looked at various options for shabbat and were left with two options, Vilna (Vilnius) or Kovno (Kaunas). We then read about the amazing work of a young Rabbi, Moshe Sheinfeld and his wife Ruchie who arrived in Kovno 6 years ago (when they were in their late 20’s) and established the Jewish Student Centre of Kovno to service the 50 or so Israeli students, then attending medical school in Kovno. Those numbers have now grown to almost 400 students and we felt that this would be a great place to spend Shabbat. 

So we created an itinerary of a day of touring in Vilna, and a day of touring in Kovno before Shabbat in Kovno. We would then continue to the great grandfather’s grave and spend two days touring places of Jewish interest in Lithuania and Latvia, before the final two days of our trip in Tallinn, Estonia. And to maximize our time, we hired a Vilna based tour guide originally from Israel to be our driver and guide.

After all the planning and numerous emails to Rabbi Sheinfeld, he informed us that we were in great luck, as on the Thursday evening when we would arrive in Kovno, there would be a Hachnasat Sefer Torah (Ceremony to Greet a New Torah) at the Student Centre, the first such event since the Shoah (Holocaust). 

We flew from Helsinki on Air Baltic and both flights were on Canadian made Bombardier Dash 8 twin propeller planes. Both flights left on time and were smooth. 

We had a 45 minute connection in Riga and when we got to the gate, there was a large group of Israelis who were on their way to Vilna for a tour of Jewish Lithuania. There was also an observant Jewish couple and we went over to introduce ourselves. 

It turns out that the couple was Rabbi Eliyahu and Shuly Rotenberg from Israel and he is the Rav who is responsible for the kosher supervision at the Student Centre in Kovno and they were on their way to Kovno for the Sefer Torah ceremony. 

They had been to Kovno numerous times and told us that we had definitely made the correct decision as to where to spend Shabbat.

When we arrived in Vilna, our guide Meny was waiting for us. The airport terminal was interesting, an old building that looked as though it was a remnant of the Soviet occupation of Lithuania.  

Not wanting to waste any time, we had created an itinerary with Meny that would begin with a visit to the Vilna cemetery, then to the one existing synagogue in Vilna and finally a walking tour of the Old Town of Vilna which housed the Vilna Ghetto. 

Our next post will deal with Vilna and Kovno, as well as a fascinating side trip to Alytus, where Rabbi Aaron Milevsky, grandfather of Bnai Torah’s Rav Yirmiya Milevsky, served as Rav till just before the Shoah. 

More to come....Kol toov

Fran and David