Moving to Minnesota from Finland (Minneapolis: university, club, activities)

[faliston]

I might move to Minnesota from Helsinki, Finland and I'm scared in a way.
How do I get to know people in there? I'm not going to study anything but I might go to work. Okay, working is a one place to meet new people and make few friends but outside of work? Any advice?

[Chzanne]

Hmm...Where in Minnesota are you moving? And what are you interested in? There are several different adult league sports if you like sports. For example I played adult league Soccer during the spring and summer and I played adult league broomball (cross between ice hockey and soccer) during the winter.

There are special interest groups for almost anything. examples like book clubs, international clubs, etc.

Also, volunteer work will introduce you to a bunch of new people.

If you are religous, there is always the church community.

You said you are not taking any classes, but you could do a short course in a hobby you are interested in, such as a cooking class.

[Glenfield]

Here's a thought. Take a look at this organization. It looks like a place where you might be able to connect with Americans of Finnish descent. It looks like they do a lot of fund raising and have some social activities.
Finlandia Foundation National is the most important private source of support for Finnish culture in the United States.

[sondra_finchley]

If you play salibandy then come out and play with the Minneapolis Floorball club - we play several times a week and it is an informal gathering of people who just want to play. A good way to get out and get exercise too.

[chilaili]

You could also try contacting the Immigration History Research Centre at the University (Immigration History Research Center : University of Minnesota). They hold events for local immigrant communities and I know from experience that some of the staff are active participants in local groups. They may be able to point you in the direction of some places to meet new people. There is also Do something, Learn something, Share something, Change something - Meetup where you can search for groups with all kinds of interests and activities in your area.

[west336]

There are like a million Scandanavians here....you'll fit right in!

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by west336

There are like a million Scandanavians here....you'll fit right in!

Assuming that Wikipedia is approximately accurate:

32.1% Scandinavian (16.8% Norwegian, 9.5% Swedish, Finnish, Danish, Icelandic, Faroese and Karelian) of 5,344,861 people is...

1,715,700.381 people of Scandanavian ancestry.

Not sure about that .381 person, tho. Stuck in a wood chipper somewhere?

[west336]

Originally Posted by rcsteiner

Assuming that Wikipedia is approximately accurate:

32.1% Scandinavian (16.8% Norwegian, 9.5% Swedish, Finnish, Danish, Icelandic, Faroese and Karelian) of 5,344,861 people is...

1,715,700.381 people of Scandanavian ancestry.

Not sure about that .381 person, tho. Stuck in a wood chipper somewhere?

WOW! It's essentially an extension of Scandanavia!

[htfdcolt]

Originally Posted by west336

There are like a million Scandanavians here....you'll fit right in!

Not to nitpick, but...Finland is not a Scandinavian country!

[UserFinn]

Originally Posted by rajmelk

Not to nitpick, but...Finland is not a Scandinavian country!

In fact Finland is part of Fenno-Scandia but when speaking at all levels about Scandinavian countries, Finland is part of these.
We can think this issue also from this side: Finland has been part of Sweden (600 years) and Sweden belongs to the Scandinavia, where goes the border or time-line what is Scandinavian country and what is not?

If we are just thinking Scandinavia with out any borders,then just south-Sweden and Norway (But not northern Norway and northern Sweden, these areas are part of Fenno-Scandia) belongs to the peninsula of Scandinavia. Same with Denmark and Iceland, they are not part of Scandinavia but "Belongs" to the Scandinavia and same with Finland.

This is how it is.