The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round

I missed posting on my blog yesterday and I wondered where my time in Turku is flying to since I am not working. I realize I spend a lot of time on the bus. This has been Sophia's first full week of school and I have been riding to school with her and then riding back to school to ride home with her. This accompanying Soph is at least 2 hours of my day. I am hoping that this next week she will feel familiar enough to at least come home on her own. There is no school bus system in Turku. Instead the kids ride the city buses wherever they need to go. Life feels so safe here when you see unescorted children walking around the city carrying hockey sticks or book bags. Today, in my rush to get to Sophia's school, I jumped on the wrong bus. I realized my mistake when I saw the hospital for the first time. I jumped off the bus and then did the very unFinnish thing of jaywalking across 4 lanes of traffic to head back in the other direction. More jay walking, more running after buses and I arrived sweaty and panicky to find Sophia alone on a snowy playground. To help calm down from the panic, we treated ourselves to a slab of chocolate cake at our favorite coffee shop.
Above the coffee shop pictures are 1) a picture of the lights on the trees over the river; 2) my friend Keisha on our way to Finnish class; 3) the wocking great wedge of cake; 4) the lantern outside the coffee shop. Everywhere you go there are lanterns outside shops. Even the aquarium shop near our house has a lantern marking the doorway.