I have participated in five IW’s (of which 4 were the Helsinki IW) but I have never EVER experienced such a big post-IW depression! And no, it is not just the feeling after Sillis. I can’t believe that the week went by so fast! And I can’t believe I only remembered to take my camera with me starting from the III round! But those memories will be with me, no matter if I didn’t capture them on film. (But physical pictures would help in the long run…)

Anyway, let’s get back into the final days of the week. After III-round all of us organizers went to KY at 10am (and I even went to the store before, woot!) refreshed as ever (:D ) and started to make the brunch which would start at 11am. We were really afraid that none would appear as by the state of lot of people the night before, people were probably quite…ahum, tired. And we had so much food! Load of bread, kilos of apples, dozens of bananas (or at least dozens of banana halves), juice, cookies, cheese, spinach patties, ham, leftovers from the Seminar… Luckily people did arrive eventually quite well so we were also able to give almost everyone their skates and head to the ice rink.

Unfortunately I did not make it to the skating, but I heard (and saw a couple of videos on FB) that people had fun. Especially as they were watching one of the foreign student’s skating. Hey, it’s never easy if it’s the first time! I did meet them for lunch at Johto and then quickly bought a gift for the Fairwells and rushed home to FINALLY do the dishes and wash the laundry! Didn’t have time to do them once during the week so was running out of clean socks, bowls and long spoons! Although I had been eating so little at home during the week, that it was wonder how I managed to use even that much of stuff….

Ok, sorry, getting little sidetracked here. Anyway, in the evening we had the Alien sitsi party. Godda say, the waitresses did portion the starter salad a bit funnily as I had quite a lot of cottage cheese and olives but the host sitting next to me had like on of each! Well, as I am such a nice girl, I donated him some of mine. Sitsi party was nice and there were quite a few punishments to go around. I also participated in one task which demanded drinking a can of beer really fast and then going around yourself as fast as you could while at the same time holding the can to the floor. Or close to the floor. So almost like “Tukkihumala”. Isch.

Afterparty was a little bit sad as I had to say already goodby to two foreigners as they had to fly home the next day. Sigh… But theere was not too much time to feel sad yet as we were about to get even sadder at the Fairwells. Where did the week go? I just picked one of the foreigners up from the airport and now it was the final party? *sob* Our organizing team was on the brink of tears when the project coordinator held her final speech. *SOB* But despite the sad feeling behind the party, we had a great time. And oh boy, did we have a lot of sparkling wine! And an actual Santa Claus! Everybody could go sit on his lap and tell him their wish.  And then he granted the wish…or something like that. I got chocolate, which at that point was not anymore my wish!

Boston night was next and I nearly killed my feet with my killer heels! But it was worth it. Great food (although I just kept with the starters), good company, nice performances and of course Boston Promenade. After party was again at KY where we demolished nearly all the rest of the champagne bottles. And dances the night away! Luckily some people managed to get a video of our “row dancing”. And then I had to go home and say goodbye to all! *megasob*

The next day was Sillis and some of the foreigners managed to come there as well and it was especially sad to say goodby to the two amazing Danish guys who had, dare I say, been the life of many of the parties. But hey, I shouldn’t have any favourites. Everyone was great and I am going to miss all.

The last week was thus the best week I had in…well, I can say ever. Too much partying? Hell yes. Too much good food and not enought exercising? Definitely. Would do it all again? In a heart beat. It was so hard to wake up this Monday and realise that it all was gone and now it was just work, thesis and…well, everyday life without all the people! Now I wish I had been in all of the events and had my camera with me in all the events…

But hey, can’t too depressed about what should have been done. We had an amazing week and I can’t thank everyone enough! Especially as my emails and other means of communication were sometimes extremely confusing! But eventually everything worked just fine! Is there life after Helsinki IW? Hopefully there is… The week is over, but the memories remain. I hope to see all of the people again somewhere! Helsinki IW 2011 is over and out. Exhausted, buffled, confused, but happy.

Love,

Heidi

Head of Communications 2011

Welcome to the update number two! This time I will guide you trough Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. At least as well as I can as again I was not able to participate in all of the events…and of course somes stuff which happens in IW, stays in  IW…

Anyway, Tuesday started at KY with Metso’s presentation. Unfortunately I had to go to work and thus I missed it and I also missed the KY historye exhibition, but the people I asked said that the exhibition was interesting. They especially had admired the overalls. The main thing (at least if you ask me) was the evening’s pool party which took place in the old premises of Kauppalehti in Southern Esplanad 20. There was a pool, sauna, couches, snacks, two (soon-to-be) cooks making hamburgers, a bartender making drinks…and an afterparty. It was so much fun! I especially enjoyed the moment when the bartender went on a break and I get to stand behind the counter and say people “No, you have to wait untill she gets back.” and “No, I am not going to make you a drink. No, you can’t make your own.” I love to be bossy

I have to say that going to the after party was a little mistake on my part as the next day I did not wake up on time to get to the start of the Helsinki sightseeing by tram and then as I had to go to work, I also missed the Helsinki orienteering check points. (Hmm, maybe I should have asked someone else to cover for those events? Sigh…) But the thing was that the guys went around Helsinki by the route of tram 3B and had commentator presenting interesting places. And the check points included connecting a photo and a Finnish word, buying something from Stockmann, taking photos…and something else which escapes me. It was quite cold and people were really tired so it was quite rough, but they liked it.

The roughness of the day was visible during the Seminar as so many people looked they were ready to fall asleep. But all in all, the Seminar was good. Food ordered from Delicatessen was good, company presentations were interesting (although unfortunately we were missing one company) and…well, I did not go to the after party but they went to Torni. People in general liked the presentations, especially the one from TeliaSonera.

As Thursday rolled on the participants went to visit more companies! First TeliaSonera and then Ruukki. Interesting stuff again, I heard. (And that the food at Ruukki was good.) I was, again, at work ( I start to repeat myself with that…), but luckily I was able to participate on the III round pub crawl! We started early with the shots at KY (which were quite  killer, so strong! Had to use the cream) and then going to eat dinner a Rax. Sooo classy, perfect place before the beer rally, really.

It was quite a logistical challenge to try to keep everyone together but we managed it pretty well. And it took us a lot of time to go from place to place and to order, of course. Imagine 45 people in line with all the other students. Quite crazy at times. But we did it and I hope everyone had fun! I will not go into too much details even though I do remember all what happened…but I want to respect some people’s privacy.

The week is almost come to an end, oh no! Only two days left: the sitsi party and the Fairwells with Boston Night. And some people are already leaving so early on Saturday they can’t make it to the Farewells. All good has to come to an end. But before that: sitsi party! (And before that: dishes and laundry. The first time in a week…)

Helsinki International Week’s Seminar is today at Yläkertsi! Starting from 6pm you will have the opportunity to hear interesting speeches from our corporate partners about the week’s theme, Corporate Branding. The program will be as followed:

18.00 Welcome speech and drink
18.15 Ruukki
18.30 Sanoma
18.45 TeliaSonera
19.00 Brandworxx
19.15 Little cocktail food offered
19.45 Panel discussion hosted by Tommi Huuska, Brandworxx
20.45 Free discussion
21.15 After party

Dresscode is business so don’t show up in your jeans and a t-shirts. This is a perfect opportunity to meet some company specialists and gain new insights about the importance of corporate branding. This is something in which you won’t be able to participate in your average Wednesday evening! And the participants will also receive the week’s fabulous overall patch!

Heidi

Head of Communications 2011

Oh my gosh, what an International Week it has been! So incredibly filled with activities that I’ve barely had time to sleep and do the dishes let alone blog! All other life except work is put on hold during this week but so far it has totally been worth it. Now, let me tell you something about what we have done so far:

The week started last Saturday with the welcome evening at KY. Or, actually, the week had already started the previous Friday as some of the first foreign students were picked up from the airport. Even though there was some last minute panicking with flights, everybody got to their hosts’ safe and sound. First task of the week accomplished!

Unfortunately I could not participate for the welcome evening, but there were some sparkling wine and punch offered, the program of the week and important information introduced and then it was time for some getting-to-know-everyone games. Speed dating, memory games and all kinds of funny games for helping people to put a name to the face. I arrived only just before the evening ended with three guys who arrived late but still it seemed like a good night. (And the night actually did not end there for some of the people, but that is a story not to be disclosed here… )

The next day we all gathered to Yläkertsi to hear country presentations. We have over 10 different nationalities and it was very interesting to hear about different countries. After a quick lunch we packed into buses and drove off to Kiljava to start the cottage weekend! Oh boy, that was a trip I personally was greatly expecting, and I think I was not the only one.

At the cottage we had the Finnish Olympics with “sports” like log drunkenness (tukkihumala), Mölkky and boot throwing. The winner was the team number three, also knows as “Bug” and their gorgeous prize was…a bottle of vodka! And, as a tradition, there was also the international dinner (which started only one hour late from the scheduled time ) and boy, was there lots and lots of food from all the countries. And different boozes as well! Ukrainian chocolate, Belgian chocolate, Chinese sweets, Japanese omelets (the rest of the batter was cooked for a late night snack at 1am ), Finnish bread cheese, blueberry pie and Carelian pies,  Indian curry, Danish hotdogs and smorrebrod… I could go on and on, there was so much food! So much that all the sausages and meat pies (plus veg options) we had reserved in case people got hungry after sauna were not used. Everybody were stuffed.

Nearly all participated in the sauna, which was nice and crowded and the water was so chilly that when you got out your feet were hurting quite bad. Awesome trip!

On Monday the very tired lot was driven back to Helsinki and then they hopped on a boat which took the on a little cruise around the Helsinki coast area. Unfortunately I had to go to work, but the other organizers on the boat said that the trip did not go as well as planned as it was very cold and rainy and the boat was rocking quite hard. Not a good thing if you are suffering from a slight “the morning after” feeling, as many probably did. Oh well, you can’t predict the weather.

After the cruise the people got to warm themselves with some Finnish folk dances at KY. Hih, I have to say that it was quite a sight as…well, let’s just say that it was fun a funny to watch. I hope that the guys enjoyed as well, and I think it was quite fun for the to also try to remember on which leg they should hop and how many times and how to dance with a pair while hopping around…. The evening was spent calmly with some lasagna and a movie and quite many left early as, like the undersigned, everyone was more or less beaten by the long day and little sleep. And the next day would start again early, but that will be another blog post coming soon…

Heidi

Head of Communications 2011

After months and months of calling after corporate partnerships, updating the websites, brainstorming the program, calling bus companies and cruise companies, calling to companies, twisting Photo Shop, making flyers, printing posters, emailing back and worth, organizing and reorganizing about a gazillion times the foreign students and their hosts finally FINALLY it all comes down to this one week!

Helsinki International Week 2011 starts today! Couple of guests have already arrived and nearly all will arrive today and will be taken to their hosts or straight to the Welcome Evening. Then ahead of us will be interesting country presentations, a cottage trip, cruise, fold dances, pool party, corporate partners visits, a Seminar, III Round pub crawl, Sitsi party and Boston night. Just to mention the biggest events, more fun is to be had I am sure!

The week’s Seminar on the 12th is open for eveyone! Be at KY’s Yläkertsi next Wednesday at 6pm and hear interesting speeches from Ruukki, Sanoma, TeliaSonera and Brandworxx about Corporate Branding. Check the event for more information on FB here.

It has been a busy couple of weeks trying to get everything together and the next week is going to be even busier! I am so excited to meet new people from all over the world and get to know all the participants of the week, hosts of course included. Let’s hope everyhting will go according to the plan!

Heidi

Head of Communications 2011

Hei vaan hei!

Majoittajahaku on nyt päättynyt, kiitos kaikille hakijoille ja onnittelut valituille! Ja jos et nyt tullut valituksi niin asia ei vielä välttämättä ole tässä, sillä paikkoja viikolle on vapaana ja yritämme vielä markkinoida sitä yhteistyökouluille. Joten tilanne elää vielä…

Joka tapauksessa jos tulit valituksi, niin olepas kuulolla: 5.10. järjestetään siis majoittajaninfo KY:n saunalla klo 17 alkaen. Sinne kannattaa ehdottomasti tulla, sillä selostamme siellä tärppejä viikon ohjelmasta ja uudet majoittajat voivat kysellä yleisiä kysymyksiä “vanhoilta” osallistujilta.

Tähän alkuun kuitenkin sellainen info, että majoittajat saavat III-kierroksen (0 €), Bostonin(12,5 €) ja Silliksen (20 €) liput jonon ohi. HUOM! Avec-lippuja ei ole mahdollista saada.

Lähetelkää siis meille asap pyydetyt infot ja ottakaa myös asap yhteyttä teille annettuun ulkkariin! Koska emme ole saaneet heiltä kaikkia tarvittavia tietoja, niin toivomme, että kun tarpeeksi monta eri tahoa pyytelee, niin joku tärppää.

Ei tässä muuta tällä haavaa! Toivottavasti mahdollisimman moni pääsee paikalle keskiviikkona!

Heidi

Viestintävastaava 2011

Vielä viikko aikaa hakea kv-viikon majoittajaksi! Haku päättyy 25.9.

There’s still a week to apply as a host for the international week! The application time ends at the 25 of September!

Älä jää paitsi syksyn mahtavimmasta viikosta! Don’t be left out from the best week of the fall! Klick and apply!

Terkuin,

Heidi

Viestintävastaava 2011

Heihei!

Majoittajahakuun on tullut kiitettävästi hakemuksia ja on siis aika vähän selventää asioita. Kaikki hakeneet saavat tiedon, ovatko päässeet mukaan VASTA hakujen päätyttyä. Mitään hyväksymismailia ei lähetetä yksitellen hakijoille, joten nyt vain pitää luottaa, että sähköpostit ovat tulleet oikeaan osoitteeseen.

Kaikille kyllä ilmoitetaan ennen Boston Nightin lipunmyyntiä, joka on 25.9. jälkeisenä viikkona, joten ne, joita ei tällä kertaa valittu (jos niin ikävästi käy, että pitää karsia!), ehtivät sitten vielä jonottamaan cocktail-iltalippuja. Lisää informaatiota tulee siis seuraamaan tuossa mailissa siitä, mitä jatkossa tulee tapahtumaan.

Jos siis et ole vielä hakenut, niin pistä se menemään tästä! Hakuaikaa vielä 25.9. asti!

Heidi Kärkkäinen

Viestintävastaava 2011

Haku KV-viikon majoittajaksi on nyt auki! Tiedossa on aivan mahtava viikko, joten nyt kannattaa hakea! Majoittajana majoitat siis kotiisi 8.-15.10 väliseksi ajaksi ulkomaalaisen ja tämän palveluksen ansiosta pääset mukaan kaikkiin viikon mahtaviin tapahtumiin, kuten mökkireissulle, yritysesittelyihin, Boston Nightiin, III-kierrokselle ja Sillikselle ja Alien Sitseille ja tutustut ihmisiin ympäri maailmaa! Edessäsi tulee todellakin olemaan ikimuistonen viikko! Kannattaa olla nopea ja laittaa hakemus täältä. Dedis on 25.9. Lisää infoa viikosta saat osoitteesta www.iwhelsinki.com. info (a) iwhelsinki.com palvelee myös kaikissa viikkoon littyvissä kysymyksissä.

The application time for being an International Week host is now open! The week is going to be amazing so apply or be square! By offering a home for a foreign student during the 8th and 15th of October you can take part in all the amazing events during the week like the cottage trip, company presentation, the III round pub crawl, Boston Night and the Alien Sitsi party, not to mention getting to now people from all over the world! There is really an unforgettable week in head of you! Don’t be left out and send your application trough this link. The deadline is the 25th of September. Visit www.iwhelsinki.com for more info. Any other questions? Email to info (a) iwhelsinki.com

Heidi Kärkkäinen

Viestintävastaava/Head of Communications

Helsinki IW 2011

Helsinki Kansainvälisen viikon järkkäily lähti todenteolla käyntiin huhtikuussa, kun rahoituksen hankkiminen aloitettiin. Jokaisen KV-viikon järjestelyryhmässä mukana olevan oli soitettava yrityksiin ja yritettävä saada heitä lähtemään mukaan yhteistyökumppaniksi. Monelle tämä oli ensi kosketus ns. cold callingiin.

Tarvittavat yhteistyökumppanit saatiinkin mukaan melko nopeasti, yksi syy tähän varmasti oli tämän vuoden teema eli corporate branding. Teemaa ei kauheasti tarvinnut selittää yrityksille ja jokaisella yrityksellä on jotain sanottavaa aiheesta. Tiimistämme löytyi myös luonnonlahjakkuuksia joiden ansiosta saimme uskomattoman hyviä yhteistyökumppaneita. Puhelun yhteydessä sovittiin tapaaminen mahdollisten yhteistyökumppaneiden kanssa, jossa keskusteltiin tarkemmin KV-viikon yksityiskohdista. Tämän jälkeen yritysten kanssa tehtiin yhteistyösopimukset. Tämän vuode yhteistyökumppaneina toimivat mm. Sonera, Metso, Sanoma ja Ruukki. Tällä hetkellä yrityssuhdetiimi on yhteydessä yrityksiin ja varmistaa, että heille luvattu näkyvyys toteutuu.

Mahtavat yhteistyökumppanit takaavat sen, että tämän vuoden KV-viikkosta on odotettavissa poikkeuksellisen upeaa! Yritysvierailut tulevat varmasti olemaan mielenkiintoisia ja tämän vuoden seminaarin puhujat asiantuntevia ja vaikuttavia. Lisäksi olen varma, että tämän vuoden ohjelma tulee olemaan mahtava! Joten, jos et ole aiemmin toiminut KV-viikon majoittajana tämä vuosi on erinomainen tilaisuus saada yksi upea kokemus lisää!! Ja mikäli olet aiemmin toiminut majoittajana tiedät, ettet halua missata tämän vuoden KV-viikkoa!!

Klaus Anjala

Yrityssuhdevastaava  2011