Today, Marja drove Ann-Christine, Camilla, and me to Sammallahdenmäki, another UNESCO World Heritage site in Lappi, a small city next to Rauma. Come to think of it, in the two weeks I've been on the FUSYE program, I have visited a total of three UNESCO World Heritage sites- Suomenlinna, Old Rauma, and now Sammallahdenmäki! The weather was freezing (do not be fooled by the sun) and the blustery wind repeatedly nipped at our faces. Nevertheless, it was great to hike into the forest and surround myself with the magnificent scenery.
Sammallahdenmäki was the first Finnish prehistoric monument to be awarded the distinction of being a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1999. Furthermore, the cairn area was nominated as the most outstanding representative of the western bronze culture in all of Scandinavia.
The dead from the villages were buried under stone cairns, which you can see below. Radiocarbon analysis dates the cairns to the beginning of the Bronze Age. During various excavations, burnt human bones, shards of pottery, animal bones, stone artifacts, scorched grains of barley and wheat, and bronze serial bracelets were found.
Stone cairns (burial places)
In front of the burial site.
The most famous of the Sammallahdenmaki cairns is called the "church floor." A folk tale recorded in Lappi in 1878 explains the origins: The Christians and giants in a village decided to have a competition to see who could build a church the fastest. The first group to finish their church would ring the church bell. But the Christians cheated, immediately raising a trestle of two poles, hoisting a bell in the fork and started ringing without even building the church. When the giants heard the ringing, they became angry and left their work unfinished. Thus, the giants only managed to build the floor of their church, which is now known as the "church floor."
Beautiful Finnish nature
The forest that we hiked through is so pure and serene. Marja, Camilla, Ann-Christine and I were the only ones there.
Me in front of the trees
After a morning of hiking, Marja took us to a pizza parlor in the middle of Old Rauma. But first we stopped at an art gallery where Camilla's friend, Ida, works as a summer intern. It was inspiring to be surrounded by such great art and unique sculptures. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of the art gallery :( But I did sign my name and wrote down where I'm from in the guest book!
Eating pizza at Jubu Pizzeria!
The pizza at Jubu Pizzeria was so delicious! I ordered the Pollotexas pizza, which is adorned with Mexican sauce, peaches, chicken, and jalapenos. I had never tried peaches on pizza before, and it offered a surprising twist on a familiar dish. Nothing in an American pizza chain store can even compare to the handmade savoriness of Jubu pizza. Every bite of pizza seemed to melt into my mouth, and all the elements and ingredients that the pizza was comprised of blended together harmoniously.
Tonight, my host family will be driving to Turku, a very large city about 1 hour away from Rauma, so I'm pretty excited!
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