Local company brainstorming the way to global change.

A product of long-term co-operation between the City of Helsinki and Helsinki University, Helsinki Think Company is a meeting place for a new kind of international entrepreneurship and networking where students, researchers and entrepreneurial minds alike can gather to brainstorm, build networks and watch new ideas grow into groundbreaking, world changing innovative initiatives.

The annual international singing contest continues to grow in popularity.

WITH the Grande Finale staged back in early October, the Ourvision Song Context has proven once again that immigrants in Finland do have a voice, and it’s not a bad one to boot. Established by Caisa, Helsinki’s international cultural center, Ourvision is billed as “a Eurovision – but for everyone”. From humble beginnings the contest has evolved into a slick show with serious contenders that match their singing capabilities with a cultural diversity that is very much Helsinki today.

While many travel to Luxor and Aswan to experience ancient Egyptian civilization and others turn to Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada for some Red Sea diving and snorkeling, the historic city of Cairo has histroically been a popular stop on any vacation. One must only learn to navigate through Egyptian traffic to take a trip through history, as the city now houses around 18 million inhabitants and was recently ranked number one on the list of cities that never sleep.

Recent news has it that Finns are now the most overweight of the Nordic nations, just ahead of Iceland, YLE reports. Those living in proximity of Helsinki boast the slimmest waistlines in the country, things loosen up beyond the Capital Region, with the largest residents living in the northern and eastern regions of the country.

Local names have a variety of origins..

Finnish names, like other names around the world, have interesting meanings and origins. The origins mostly vary among Greek, German, English, Estonian and Finnish ones.

In terms of the names with Greek origin, Kari is a male name and shortened from the Greek Christian name Makari, which in turn originates from Greek Makarios which means “happy” or “blissful”. Katariina, a female name, comes originally from the Greek name Aikatherinee, meaning “always pure”. Pekka, a male name, is derived from the old Finnish name Petrus, which in turn comes from the Greek name Petros and means “rock”.