Return to the Land of Finns, Family and Fjords

 October 25, 2022

It was under leaden Portland skies that my plane waited at gate C23.  Our long-awaited rain was finally here, blessedly putting out the wildfires that had marked the latter part of our summer.  

As I waited for my Iceland Air flight, I admired the crew as they checked in at the gate and boarded.  The women wore smart navy skirt suits with ruffled white blouses, and a navy pillbox hat.  The men were sharply dressed in crisp suits as well.  Most people in my world now dress so casually that this was notable.  

There were only a smattering of people gathered near the gate so we were all invited to board at once.  Only sold to maybe 15% of capacity, there were enough seats for everyone to claim a row if they so chose.  

Around 3:30 in the gray afternoon, we lifted off, affording one last view of the Portland area before we were engulfed in the clouds.

With three pillows and blankets at my disposal, I propped myself up against the window with my legs stretched out, and a sewing project on my lap.  Called trapunto, the technique is basically creating a stuffed quilt.  In this case, batting is sandwiched between a printed top and a backing.  I'm stitching around strategic pieces, and later with slit the back and push stuffing in, to create a three dimensional effect.  My intention is to stretch it over a wooden frame and hang it above my fireplace at Christmastime. 

Flying towards the sun on a late October day, daylight was soon waning and the sun slipping behind the thick blanket of clouds that was the horizon. 

 The night was very short, and despite a few attempts, sleep was very limited.  And then, before I knew it, we had landed in Reykjavik, Iceland.  I had opted out of the supper on the plane, so grabbed a simple breakfast before heading to my next gate for the three hour flight to Helsinki.  

 The sun made a brief appearance shortly after take off, and then the skies were gray the remainder of the day. 

This flight was completely full, primarily with Finnish speaking people.  I was in a tight seat next to the window, with a woman on the aisle that was disinclined to letting us out for bathroom trips, so I just tried to catch a nap and tracked our plane's progress on the screen.  The clouds broke as we crossed over Norway, providing a beautiful glimpse of the snowy mountains.

And then at last we were on Finnish soil and I could find a bathroom.  A brief wait at the baggage carrousel, and both my big bag and my gate-checked little roller bag appeared.  On my last trip I'd had some confusion in the airport and embarrassingly couldn't find my way out.  The airport has since been remodeled so I easily followed the huge exit signs, and soon was tucked into brother Wade's car and on my way to their house.