Party, in brief

We had been promised mountains of crayfish, and that is what we were given. Every time we looked away, our hostess would top up the mountains. The vodka shots rendered me unable to speak Finnish, although my English was still coherent (ahem). It was not an easy feat to attend a five-hour Shakespeare rehearsal from midday the following day.

Boiled alive

I call myself vegetarian, but it is in the broadest of terms: I don't eat things that run or fly. Tonight, I am invited to a "crayfish extravaganza". Before inviting me, my friend checked I do eat the things, as in her books, they "sort of run around on the seabed." When I give my criteria for edibility, surprisingly many people will try to come up with obviously disgusting things that would fall within my self-set limits. The person who suggested aborted foetuses I never spoke to again.

I'm looking forward to the party. It'll be good company, good food, shots of vodka & glasses of wine, and an air of being more sophisticated than we are (well, me anyway). Someone needs to remind me how to deal with the beasts to get the edible bits out, and not to remind me about the way they are prepared.

Night of the Arts

Yesterday saw Helsinki's 18th Night of the Arts. I usually haven't bothered much with it, but this year I checked out a few events in my neighbourhood, kicking off the night round 5 pm by queuing up for some costumes at the Opera flea market. These had been used for Cosi Fan Tutte - we shall use them in the 25th anniversary production of (the one-and-only, the inimitable) Finn-Brit Players, which, incidentally, will be The Winter's Tale.

Events I missed included poetry karaoke, canoe ballet, and a UV-light circus act. I did see various other things though: shamanic drumming, an antiques dealer who made pancakes for free and stripped off for my camera - without being asked to, I hasten to add - and fire-juggling. We closed the night by dancing to the tunes of La Traviata, again at the Opera. A full circle, in other words, of "high", "low", and, um, surprising culture. A good time was had by all. More photos on my photoblog.