The Sea of Memories is a cultural project of the John Nurminen Foundation on Finnish memories related to the sea. The aim of the Sea of Memories project is to open up perspectives on people's images and beliefs about the sea and to activate Finns to think about their relationship with the Baltic Sea. www.johnnurmisensaatio.fi
"I hate boating and I hate the sea. I dated a man for a long time, for whom the boat was primarily a status factor. The equipment included two flat-screen TVs and a luxurious kitchen. In the ports, the man kept saying that gas costs 40,000 euros during the summer, but the child's navigational skills remained in his shoes, because we always went with automatic steering! When we got off the platform, the same Tommi came out of the gentleman, who doesn't speak clearly. To the sea and larvae. On the last trip, my fears came true. Between Tammisaari?Helsinki, the man sinks into bed with his shoes on, the engine revs to full speed and the home port approaches. Only in the port basin does it climb into the cockpit with a thud. Tells me to jump on the platform, but the pace is fast. I'm on deck and I'm calling for help. A scramble. I fly over the railing into the sea, and when I get to the pier, I get such barks from familiar neighbors that I will never forget. Goodbye, Tommi, and Goodbye Baltic Sea."
Where
"In August 1997, we sailed to Visby on my godfather's big steel-hulled boat. I'm not an experienced sailor, but our crew was small and even the skipper had to get some sleep. Because of this, it happened that I was alone at the helm in the open sea in the morning while the others were sleeping. The sky was black but clear, so that the GPS screen shone green in the dark, competing with the stars. We had a nice tailwind that rocked the heavy boat gently, and the ships passed far away from us in the night. A beautiful night, the smell of the sea, distant ships on the horizon and big white sails. No other sounds but the waves and the wind. At that moment, I understood why people go on round-the-world sailing trips and why my grandfather and his ancestors in seven generations were sea captains. I could have continued as far as the sea would go. My son can still hear jokes about this sailing: 'Many have sailed the Gotland Runt, but only really tough sailors go around its head down.' (He was included but had not yet been born.)”
Soon
"We got to know each other at the Kajuutta bar. Raineri came to me and immediately said that Botski is leaving now. We sailed together for 40 years."
Ritta
"Before my family had its own sailboat, my father used to rent a boat near Turku in the summer, and my father, my older sister and I, the core of the family, would go to sea for a week. We sailed to Mariehamn and back, on the way we ate flounder and island bread. One summer trip took a nasty turn. I, as an early teenager, started with back pain, then it spread from the back to the front. Nothing helped, and the pain became severe, especially when the boat hit the waves. There was still some time left to sail to Mariehamn, and the end point seemed to be flying further away, the sailing seemed to last an eternity, if not another. Even the roller coaster caused by the wake waves of large cruise ships did not make us happy. Finally, the low features of Mariehamn appeared on the horizon, and soon we had attached the ropes to the guest marina. Every sailor knows where he goes almost first when he comes to port: the bathroom. There, the reason for the severe pain was revealed to me, which caused quite a bit of confusion and uncertainty. The next thing I remember I was standing in the middle of the deck of our boat, the only place where the GPS phone could be heard, and I called my mother at home. The connection was bad, and I had to tell my mother the news in a rather loud voice: 'Mom, I started having the first problems of my life.' I would have liked to sink in shame under the pier and deeper, when the whole harbor was guaranteed to hear the call. At that time, in the late 1990s, talking about menstruation among family members or even in public was not as common or accepted as it is today, so the event took on a special character. The rest of the trip went a little better, thanks to my mother's advice, which I received via mobile phone from the mainland."
Feminine problems
"The Lappeenranta library had a quiz in the 80s, one question of which was: 'What is the most polluted sea in the world?' I thought of some distant sea on the other side of the globe as the answer, but to my horror the correct answer was the Baltic Sea."
Snare
"It's evening. The sun will soon set behind the sea. The air must be suffocated. We start the engine, the journey home can begin. Fortunately, it's cooler at sea when the wind gets stronger. We get to enjoy ourselves for a little while longer. I'm lying on the foredeck, our speed is maximum and the waves are at their roughest. I hold on to the lump tire and watch the green water splash on the bow. The anchor rope wraps around my leg and I feel trapped by it all? to the sun, the smell of the sea, the speed. For a little while longer we will fly towards the wind, towards the evening sun, towards the gusts."
The wind
