Another fantastic weekend went by. Naturally, the weekend already begun on Friday when after morning lectures and short snooze in the main library I met with my DGL and NACS friends. We went to the movie theater to see Jali ja suklaatehdas. I can’t really say I liked the movie, but it was the camaraderie that made me happy. Movie theater entrance fees around here are akin to those in New York, so one does shell out 9E for a movie. I know, it’s obnoxious. But, let’s say I was happy enough that as a student I saved 2E by buying student ticket from one of then well hidden elokuva lipput shops on one of the university campuses (I better not say which one, because then it wouldn’t be hidden anymore).

And yes, it was my first real Finnish movie experience (OK, I’ve seen the actual Finnish movie - Nosukausi - in early September. This was organized as a part of the orientation week activities in Kampus Kino). And it was the experience itself that mattered more than the content. Since I don’t have a TV, it was really interesting to see some of the pre-movie commercials as well. Then there was a real pleasant surprise: the movie subtitles were both in Finnish and Swedish (as Swedish is the other official language in Finland). The audience was also quite amusing to observe as they were laughing at stuff that wasn’t really funny - or maybe it’s just me that didn’t get most of the 5-year-olds’ jokes (There were mostly children in the audience).

And at first it seemed like that was it for the evening, but oh no, the movie was just the matinee, the prelude into the evening festivities. The group went to the local alternative music and culture bar Vakiopaine. I have to say that so far this is the coolest place to hang around in Jyväskylä. Not only is music normal and enjoyable, but they also stage all kinds of non-mainstream cultural: from poetry readings, comedy shows, plays, to concerts. And we just happened to drop in when a concert was about to begin. I have no idea what the name of the band was, but make sure you check the images in the gallery. The performers were a duo brought to the Vakiopaine by a time machine: it was glitter rock with factory preprogrammed synth rhythms on steroids. Believe me, the performance was one of a kind and we have on several occasion questioned ourselves how the hell does the duo keep straight faces during their rehearsals. Anyhow, the audience was all fired up so they actually did two anchors. It was cool and that night I ended up getting home quite early … in the morning.

Then on Saturday in the early afternoon I went on a pleasant bike trip around Tuomiojärvi and Jyväsjärvi (with a short stop over at the Vesillina tower cafe on the hill in the city center). The weather was absolutely fantastic. After that ride a friend of mine introduced me to some Finnish music and I guess it was pure coincidence that one of the bands I was listening to was playing in town that night. So naturally we went to the concert. The name of the band is YUP and they played in the old factory turned into concert venue Lutakko. It’s The concert place in town to go. I like the setting in that place and will definitely be coming back for more gigs.

When I come to think about it, the concert was really enjoyable and I really liked the show YUP staged. Now, I found it really surprising that the entrance fee was actually only 10E (after being charged 4.5E for a goddamn beer, admit it, 10E really isn’t that much for concert). Later I heard that internationally acclaimed band The Rasmus played nearby and they charged 25E for the show. So I guess, concerts can are the only reasonably priced entertainment in Finland. Which is great news for me as I love going to concerts.

One thing that really surprised me is how alcohol consumers are treated in public venues when entrance is not restricted to 18+ years. In Lutakko where YUP played, there was a special fence, or almost a kind of a cage, and it was only within that confined space that the audience was allowed to drink alcoholic beverages. Yeah, I’m used to holding my beer can/bottle in the first row and I couldn’t do it here. Oh well, I’ll get used to the idea. But I do like their relaxed attitude regarding the show timing: the actual beginning time is not announced, they just let their audience know that their shows never start before 1100pm.

Make sure you visit the gallery to check out some of the images I took over the weekend.

Mladen