Should You Move to Finland?
Insights and reflections from people who've done it, Åland Islands edition.
I have a dear friend who is Finnish. She is honest, open and kind. As someone who has trouble with direct communication and anything remotely confrontational, oddly, I find her directness reassuring because I don’t have to waste time inferring meaning or unscrambling mixed messages. Direct and to the point is the Finnish credo, even when it hurts.
Now it’s Lisa Bolin’s turn, from Flucking Flourishing and
, to give it to us straight about her move from Australia to Finland—like running from a sauna directly into a frozen lake, it’s a shock to the system, but good for the soul.Is a small Island off the coast of Finland right for you? Read on…
Lisa Bolin, Finland
1. Background:
Country of origin: Australia
Country of current residence: Finland
Length of time living abroad: 12 years (not all in Finland). Current stretch: 7 years
2. Motivation:
What was the primary reason for your move? (e.g., work, study, retirement, lifestyle):
Love
3. Practicalities:
How challenging was the visa and work permit process?
Pretty difficult. We decided I’d move to Finland rather than vice versa. Moving to Australia is expensive and complex, and my partner had lived in other places before and hadn’t felt at home there (he’s since changed that view).
I got a job waiting tables at a restaurant because the owner was willing to sponsor me. I’m a qualified & experienced teacher. I hadn’t waited tables since I was in my teens.
I couldn’t get an interview at immigration in my local area until the following year (it was September), and we decided to just book the closest date with the closest place, which was a 6-hour ferry trip and a 6-hour drive. All that for a 30-minute interview. We ended up getting married because my visa was connected to the branch I worked in, i.e., hospitality. It meant I couldn’t work as a teacher, even a relief teacher. It was pretty stressful.
What were the biggest hurdles in setting up your life abroad (e.g., housing, healthcare, banking)?
Housing was covered because my new partner had a place. Banking was okay because I got a personal ID number with my visa. Healthcare isn’t so straightforward, but I was eligible to use public healthcare with my visa. It’s similar to Australia’s, but you’re navigating everything in a different language in a culture where they take for granted that everyone knows everything.
4. Cultural Adaptation:
What were the most significant cultural adjustments you had to make?
I could already speak some Swedish. (Finland has two official languages, Swedish and Finnish, with 5% of the population Swedish speaking. The archipelago I live on is Swedish-speaking and an autonomous province of Finland).
Fitting in and finding friends has been a long process. As I mentioned, I spoke Swedish but hadn’t actually spoken it for over 20 years. It comes back slowly. I’ve learned lots since, and most people don’t notice I’m not Swedish-speaking now. It’s taken a long time to find friends because it just does as an adult. In the beginning, I couldn’t do small talk, and being in noisy places, I couldn’t understand what people were saying.
How did you handle language barriers and cultural misunderstandings?
I’m old enough to kind of roll with it, but working with kids is sometimes hard. They pick on every little thing sometimes, such as “That’s not how you say my name!” when I botch it or say it wrong. It’s usually in the middle of something else. Afterward, I told them I’m not from the area and have another mother tongue.
5. Quality of Life:
How would you rate your overall quality of life compared to Australia?
I have a similar quality of life. Healthcare is similar, although I’d go as far as to say that Australia is better in many ways. I live in an isolated place that governs its own healthcare, so it may be because of this. I worked as a teacher in Australia, had school holidays, and was very well paid. Here, if I work as a teacher, I’m not paid anywhere near as much. I live close to nature and can get out into the forest in five minutes. I lived in Adelaide for a very long time and loved it, then moved to Melbourne, which I didn’t love. I’m not a big city person.
Are you satisfied with the cost of living, healthcare, and education systems in your host country?
The cost of living is high where I live due to the isolation (it’s an archipelago of 6500 islands between Finland and Sweden, called the Åland Islands). Everything is expensive, and I’ve never had a job that pays enough for me to live on my own (not that I want to, but it is an indication that, as a solo person, it would be difficult here).
I know the cost of living has increased in Australia since I left, housing in particular, but food is still cheaper there than here.
Education is a tricky one and is a whole series of articles on its own. Where I live, they run their education system using the Finnish curriculum as a guide, so I could only comment on what I’ve seen in schools here, not Finland as a whole. Australia is generally better. (I’ve worked as a teacher in two Australian states)
6. Professional Experience:
How has living abroad impacted your career?
I don’t have a career anymore. I gave it up. If I’d stayed in Australia I might have been a principal by now.
Were you able to find employment easily?
Yes and No. It’s been hard overall to find something I can really get my teeth into. I’ve done all sorts of low-paying jobs and relief positions. Part of it is the language—to work as a teacher in another language means you lose and miss so much.
I’ve been a senior high school teacher in Australia, teaching English, Sociology and History. I could teach English here, but it’s mind-numbingly boring. I’m used to teaching Shakespeare and rich texts, deep questioning, and making connections, none of which would happen in English class here.
I’ve worked in a restaurant, and in a couple of museums—which sounds amazing, but it was very low paid; one position included cleaning the premises, something they forgot to mention in the job ad.
I also said yes to things like teaching German (I speak German and lived in Germany for 2 years, two decades ago), not really thinking that I’d be teaching it in Swedish! It was six hours a week and was for years 7, 8 & 9. It nearly killed me! Those six hours required so much prep time that nothing was left of me. I would wake up dreaming in three languages. I lasted six months.
I started my own business instead, Flourish Mind & Body, mentoring and coaching women to discover calm, creativity and connection with themselves and others. It’s in its fledgling stages but will provide me with income and definitely more joy! I write with two publications here on Substack, but they aren’t providing income yet.
7. Advice for Future Expats:
What are the top three things you wish you knew before moving abroad?
That Covid would happen. This global event meant I didn’t see my family, including my children (who were in their late teens/ twenties at the time), for two years.
That the jobs I could get would mean I couldn’t save money to travel home when needed. I had thought they would (a bit of hope going in), but that hasn’t been the case.
What advice would you give to someone considering a similar move?
Do your research well. I did some, but it was hard to find where to research, even for my husband, who is from here. Because it’s a self-governing province, the information about mainland Finland wasn’t relevant.
8. Overall Experience:
Looking back, would you say moving abroad was a positive experience? Why or why not?
Despite what I’ve written here, it’s been amazing in so many ways. I am living with my soul mate. We travel often, and for me, hopping over to the UK or down to Montenegro is so quick, even with a 6-hour ferry trip. All of Europe is on my doorstep, and my partner is super adventurous and loves traveling, too. If it hadn’t been for the Internet, I don’t think I would have moved here. It allows me to connect with people all over the world yet still walk out into the forest or to the water. I’ve made some amazing friends and connections, many of whom I’ve never actually met in real life! We’ve had lots of visitors too, which is lovely.
9. Additional Comments:
Please feel free to share any other insights or experiences you have.
If you’re choosing to leave to save your own life, it’s a very different choice. I chose love, and here I am. At this stage, I’m safe, although sharing a long land border with Russia isn’t super comfortable for me. Especially as I happen to live on a key strategic shipping spot leading to the Gulf of Bothnia. Apparently, the name of the islands is the most mentioned place in Finland in the Russian media. That fills me with dread. Saying that, every single building with more than a certain number of people has a bomb shelter. They practice air raid sirens and alarms on the first day of every month at noon. They’re all used to it.
It can be an amazing experience, really. But it’s a brave move because there’s a lot of uncertainty at times in who you are, your worth and your value—especially if you’re like me and have left a career—and in those awkward cultural misunderstandings. It takes energy and a big toolbox of practices to keep you regulated and focused on the present.
You can connect with Lisa on her website, Flourish, and learn more about her life on a tiny Finnish island on her two Stacks: Flucking Flourishing and
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I’m so glad you did this, as I love Lisa’s writing and “aura”, and would never have known all these incredibly brave and interesting things about her. What a strong lady you are, Lisa! We do such incredibly hard things, sometimes, don’t we. Yet we are all so resilient. Thank you!
Great story!