Location: Helsinki, Finland
Travel Time: June 20-27, 2016

The moment finally arrived: visiting Helsinki, Finland! As most of you may know, the purpose of our 2016 European trip was to attend the “Remain Loyal to Jehovah” Special Convention. I think you will find that on this particular trip, we had quite a few setbacks. However, the love and support that was extended to us by the friends was astonishing. As the previous post stated, we were departing from Geneva, Switzerland. The Nash Hotel was great with checkout and had free transportation to the airport. We arrived with plenty of time to check in our bags. Our flight was on Vueling Airlines; we had a connecting flight in Barcelona and we were due to arrive in Helsinki that afternoon. At about 8:00am, there was an announcement that our flight to Barcelona would be delayed. Naturally, TJ and I began to worry. The problem was there is only one flight from Barcelona to Helsinki and it only departs every two days. We were afraid we would be trapped in Barcelona for two days and miss some of our Special Convention activities. We waited patiently and at the last minute, our flight was scheduled to depart. After some incessant prayer, we were on our way. Upon landing in Barcelona, we realized we had 10 minutes before the departure of our next flight. Of course, the gate was in a different section of the airport. We ran like the wind and made it to the gate just in time; we didn’t even have boarding passes! We were so thankful to Jehovah that we made it to Helsinki safely. And what a pleasure having our brothers and sisters there at the airport to greet us!

Even though we were able to make our connecting flight, our bags were not as fortunate. With all the mayhem, they somehow got lost. Since we were backpacking, those bags were all we had. I will say, I wasn’t super pleased with the way Vueling handled the issue. It seemed they had no information or way of locating where our bags were. We also had to fight tooth and nail just to get any sort of compensation for unnecessary expenses. When we arrived at the Holiday Inn Helsinki City Center, the friends had a ‘welcome booth’ set up for all the delegates. I suppose they could tell we had a slight look of disappointment on our faces. After explaining what happened, the friends went out of their way to take care of us. They offered clothing, toiletries and even makeup. We were so grateful. The hotel was very accommodating as well. They offered us a few luxury items at no extra charge. (http://www.booking.com/hotel/fi/holiday-inn-helsinki-city-centre.html) Fortunately, TJ and I had shipped all of our Convention gifts directly to the hotel and in that package, we included our clothes for the convention. So we managed to get by!

On Tuesday, the branch had arranged for us to engage in field service in the morning and a tour of the Finland Branch in the afternoon. When we arrived at the Kingdom Hall that morning, our Finnish brothers and sisters were waiting with signs in their hands for partners to work with. I was paired up with a dear sister named Merita. Come to find out, we had mutual friends! We had a great time getting to know each other and even shared our goals of serving where the need is great. It was a great interchange of encouragement. Back at the Kingdom Hall, the friends had a banquet of food for us and prepared a special presentation for all of the delegates. Kleenex was definitely being kept in business!

That afternoon, we took a bus ride to the Finnish Branch. The friends went above and beyond with the tour. From the beginning, they had a live musical presentation. Then, they gave us a complete rundown of all the departments being used at Bethel. It was so nice how every department we visited had a special gift for us. I personally enjoyed the sign language department. They had a green screen set up where we could take a photo pretending we were in paradise. Unfortunately, my dress was green so I mostly looked like a floating head. *laughs* I also really enjoyed learning about the history of our preaching work in Finland. We also learned a very important fact about Finns: they LOVE to sauna. In fact, there’s even a sauna in Bethel! I guess that’s one way to deal with the cold (and the lack of sunlight in the winter). We ended the day at Bethel with a nice dinner and some traditional polka dancing. How many people can say they’ve danced at Bethel? Such fun memories.

On Wednesday, we had a tour scheduled for World Heritage Site. This was probably the most powerful part of our convention activities. We took a boat to Suomenlinna Island. Here, we saw the history of Christian neutrality in Finland. They provided a lovely meal and shared personal experiences from those who had been imprisoned for their faith. Then they showed us the actual jail cells where our brothers were being held. One brother showed us a photo of our brothers who dressed up as sisters so as not to get caught by the police. Then he proceeded to tell us that the brother in the photo was him! What an experience!

After the historical tour, we had a little fun and took some photos before leaving the island. It was time to head back and prepare for the evening gathering. When I tell you… those brothers went ALL OUT! It legit felt like a professional theater performance with interviews, ballet and a full reenactment of how the truth began in Finland. Afterwards, they had a reception where we could enjoy some delicious appetizers and fellowship. They even had live music. It felt like a gala with all of our brothers dressed up. The next day, Tj woke up feeling sick which really put a damper in our plans. However, the brothers insisted that today’s activity would help him feel a little better so we continued with joining the group. We took the bus up to  Nuuksio National Park. It was absolutely serene and picturesque. As we hiked through the park, our hearts were truly warmed by our dear brothers singing ‘Joy of Conventions.’ After crying happy tears, our hearts were then ‘warmed’ by a little peach schnapps and squeaky cheese. The ‘warmth’ continued with a little reindeer soup which we never had before but it was delicious. At this point, Tj said he was feeling a little better but still not totally good. We enjoyed a bountiful lunch and continued taking in the fresh air. Then came the best part: SAUNA! The brothers and sisters went separate ways at this point. We went to the changing rooms to put on our swimsuits. Then, it was time to sit in the sauna. When going to a sauna in Finland you may see or hear about a whipping ritual that includes a bundle of fresh birch. It’s believed that hitting yourself with it increases blood circulation and smoothes the skin. And when I say whipping, I mean whipping! Lol. Surprisingly, it felt really good. Once you are all hot and steamy, it’s time for you to run outside and jump in the cold lake. At first I was super nervous 1: because it was cold and 2: because I can’t really swim. But when I walked out onto the dock, I heard a loud energized scream and low and behold who was it? Tj! He was living his best life. It was as if for that hour or so of sauna, lake, repeat – he completely forgot about feeling sick. Everyone got such a laugh out of it. He had been so quiet the entire day but for that moment, he was back to his normal self. Even though he wasn’t ‘cured’ it did help us get an amazing night sleep the next day and be ready for day 1 of the convention program.

Up next was 3 days of a Spiritual Paradise. Having already experienced an International Convention in Greece (and Tj in Rome), we assumed we would know what to expect. But honestly, the privilege is just that – a privilege. You never cease to be in awe of Jehovah’s organization and the love that his people display. It really cannot be put into words. (For those who perhaps are reading this article but are not familiar with Special Conventions held by Jehovah’s Witnesses, click on the link for a full video description: https://www.jw.org/finder?srcid=share&wtlocale=E&lank=pub-jwb_202012_10_VIDEO ) The hugs, the gifts, the banners, the singing, the discourses – it really makes you anticipate what a beautiful future we have ahead under God’s Kingdom. We had a lot of laughs and even shed a few tears. We cannot thank Jehovah enough for this amazing opportunity we were able to partake in. And for any of our Finnish brothers or sisters who might be reading, we love you so much and you will always have a piece of our heart!

For the full album, please ‘click’ on the link below:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/dYTqboCNnpC9rw2d7

Enjoy the photos!

Agape,

Asia Johnson