Aapa Mires, Sami Art, St. Petersburg, and Performing as Scholar and Poet in Helsinki and Tampere

 What an amazing month this has been!  Sad to be leaving Finland today for Paris, but such rich opportunities and beauty I've beheld. With Marjorie Shaffer at the wheel of our rented hyrid car, we crossed bridges over Appa Mire in Pyha Luosto National Park, the Juutuanjoki River in Inari and found a

gorgeous spot to meditate on Lake Inari. Visiting the Siida Museum and seeing a new show of Sami art and activism, including new work by Marja Helander  http://viidonsieiddit.fi/tyoryhma/marjIa-helander/

I also saw the Northern Lights on Oct. 7 in Rovaniemi, in Mike and Iris' s back yard of all places!  What a show. I screamed so loud when I came upon the flashing lights like a ribbon undulating Mike thought his house was on fire.  This is a video on You Tube of some of what I saw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03mz6J1kVYY

In St. Petersburg after a Visa-free cruise from Helsinki, Marjorie and I visited the Palace Square where the statue of Peter reigns and the Hermitage's many buildings ensure hours of gawking at art from Leonardo to Rembrandt. 

We dined on Russian locavore cuisine at a place called Jack & Hamlet. 

I have to check out of my room in Helsinki or I'd have a lot more to say. My flash fiction piece "Grade Book" was published by CheapPopLit. http://www.cheappoplit.com/home/2018/7/26/grade-book-cheryl-j-fish   Let me know your thoughts on it.

On Oct. 16, I gave a talk and had a great conversation with those who attended on Sami Film and Eco Media in response to Extractivism in Sapmi at the Helsinki Environmental Humanities Seminar. Thanks to Viktor Pal, Mikko Saiku, and Inna Sukhenko for making this happen. I see myself as an ally who is interested in international soladarity between indigenous and non-indigenous persons.  https://blogs.helsinki.fi/environment/2018/10/11/prof-cheryl-j-fish-city-university-of-new-york-helsinki-environmental-humanities-forum-on-october-16-14-00-16-00/

Finally, I re-united with Angie Pohja and her family--Tomi, Lilja, Ella and Nikko, and had a wonderful time in Tampere where I first developed my love of Finland, sauna, giant lakes and heavy metal attitude (if not the music per se). Angie and her blues band performed at the Gobi Desert Canoe Club Bar and I did a set of my "sauna poems" plus some red-hot pizza break up and other poems.