Friday, November 03, 2006

WALKING WOODS

Give me a road
Give me a forest
Give me a road in the forest
I could walk almost forever

Today I have suddenly realised I had been walking a lot. Too bad I had been walking in the city. Nevertheless I have this characteristic I can just walk and walk and walk. For miles. Sometimes without a single thought, sometimes several feelings overcome me. Sometimes I just listen to music. Or to silence. Sometimes I turn very sad while walking. There are other times when I clear my mind perfectly. Walking is just great!

Then, the forests. Forests are something I just love. I have always loved forests. Now the trees here are bare, the branches bleak. Summer forests, this is total magic. Almost mythical feeling. Well, winter forests too, so white, sleeping under snow and icy cristals. Walking in the woods is my total fascination. Magic above all.

In these sleepy autumn hours I recall again how I walked... miles, many miles in those FINNISH FORESTS. Just walked and walked and walked. The woods in Finland are something special, really. Significant feeling, so significant atmosphere. The glitter of the light; the light up North is different. Then, the glitter of soft darkness. The rustle in the wind. Every now and then, a pond. A swamp. So old and wild they seem; nobody rules those ancient woods, the trees are masters of their lives. Quiet forests. Elvish forests. Wise and secret forests. Finnish woods know several oldest secrets of this world, I am sure.

And yes, in Finland there is profound attitude towards nature. One can feel this everywhere. Respect. Awareness.

I miss those Finnish forests. I wonder how they look like now...

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yes, and picking chestnuts too! ;)

ब्रह्मकमळ said...

There's nothing more beautiful. I just wish there weren't trash everywhere, old washing machines and such, in the forests around here.

kaneli said...

Banshee, thanks for your chestnut-picking-Elvish-Orkish-slightly perverted (hehe!) story and congratulations again! ;)

Yes,the trash is something I did not happen to spot in Finnish woods. Oh, Alessa, but I saw so called moose-fly and moose's excrements! Too bad only there was no actual moose; only those two mentioned traces.

However, these ''wild rubbish dumps'' in forests around here just suck. By all means. Such stupidity and lazy nastiness.

Anonymous said...

Maybe I should go and take a picture? The first snow fell almost a week ago here in Southwest Finland (I guess Lapland got it's share ages ago). We got a lot of it. It'll probably all - or most of it - melt during this week. Plus temperatures and raining it'll be.

Since the frost and snow came I haven't been able to ride a bicycle to work, I have walked instead. I know some crazy people ride bicycles in all condition (Jukka being one of them), but this is not for me. It takes around 45 minutes or more one way and the work itself is physical, so I haven't been up to wander around woods too much lately.

If I find some extra energy I'll go out with my camera.

Aelfsciene said...

I only spent some minutes in a Finnish forest (on our way to Jouni's house).
But as for forests here - I love long walks in woods (but no hills, please), specially in winter when the snow is fresh.

Anonymous said...

Hei taas!
Kyllä suomalaisissa metsissä tosiaan on jotain erityistä. Tosin itse en ole muiden maiden metsissä ollut:) Varsinkin tuossa kuvassa metsä näyttää houkuttelevan vihreältä. Tällä hetkellä metsät näyttävät melko ankeilta, kun lehdet ovat varisseet eikä ole vielä kunnolla lunta.

kaneli said...

Hello to all! Now I will try to reply in the languages used in the comments...

Kaarlo-Hermanni:
Thank you for the news! Oh, it would be nice to experience those woods in winter too... during Pakkasleiri I got just a brief feeling. I guess those ponds in Nuuksio get very nicely frozen. And not to mention cross-country skiing. I used to ski cross-country; ages ago, though...

Please do take a picture (thanks, I am looking forward). Just beware of the wolves in case of wandering in the woods, okay? Within my Finnish class I was told the wolves are attacking places around Savonlinna these days. Well, those beautiful creatures just want to eat, totally understandable. Also Savonlinna region is not any near your place, but nevertheless...

Aelfsciene:
Yep, I agree, no hills for me as well!Long and more or less narrow woodland paths, this rules.Such a tipical Slovenians we are, right? ;)

Alcessa:
:D Now I can be very nasty and I can dare to say - well, perhaps the kind Finns have rather copied these cunning deeds from the Swedes, thus preventing the tourists would come to Sweden only? Or at least with the hope to get more tourists then Sweden...

However, there IS a REAL moose in the woods. Somewhere. Keep the faith! ;)

Mooch:
Kuule, metsä tässä kuvassa on todella suomalainen metsä. :) Kurjenrahkan Kansallispuisto tämä on. Kuten sanottu - houkuttelevan vihreä. Niin Nuuksiokin. No metsät Sloveniassa ovat myös oikein kauniita, mutta... onhan jokin erikoinen ero näiden metsien välillä.