Autumn.

Fall is here... and as fast as it came, I'm pretty sure it's also going and winter is quickly arriving. Yesterday was my friend Mia's birthday[!] and I walked over to her place and it was snowing... there and back. These were just tiny snowflakes but the point is, it was below 0. Pretty soon, it looks like I'll be busting out my marshmallow knee-length coat and wearing proper hats.

I started thinking about how I felt about impending winter and whether moving here in January had been advantageous or not. I decided there was no better time to more to Finland than January... though it may depend on your personality. Here's the break down:

Summer - hands down, easiest time to move here
Fall - beautiful season, it gets colder but not too cold, unless you're from a tropical country... or Spain... or anywhere outside of Canada.
Winter --> divided in 2:
1. Before December 21st, I'm told, it's very dark and quite depressing as the days get shorter and shorter. If there's snow, the landscape appears more lit and it's not as bad. If there's no snow, or worse, slush, it seems even darker... and since Finns enjoy walking places, it also adds an impediment.

Now - I moved here last January, on the 3d. Meaning that it was just about the darkest time of the year. I had a hard time waking up before 11am and that was when I had to drag myself out of bed. But to put things in perspective, every day was a little longer than the one before! After you get through that, you have summer to look forward to and now, I'm just experiencing fall for the first time. But having seen the "worst" of it last year, I feel well-prepared. It also helps that I have things to do now, like school and work, so though it may seem dark outside when I wake up, I know I'll be seeing people that day and doing productive things!

On the other hand, if you move to Finland in the summer, you'll have a blast, but the shock between +25 and -25 may be harder to handle [depending where you come from]. Obviously everyone is different, and each winter is a little different than the last but perspective and attitude can go a long way in this case, especially since most foreigners, choose to be here.