Omicron, flights, Christmas and Finland

Hi guys, here's a quick update from me. I was supposed to go to Scotland this week to meet up with my sister in law's family at Ben Nevis (the UK's highest mountain), however the weather forecast changed and instead of getting snow, they're getting a lot of rain this week. It would be pointless visiting the mountains when it will be pouring with rain, you'll be sitting in a cafe looking out of the window saying, "ooh what terrible weather we're having." So instead, there was a last minute change of plan and we're now going to Tampere in Finland instead for five days. But trying to plan a last minute trip to Finland is nothing like pre-Covid times, it is so much more stressful despite the fact that I have been to Finland seven times before and this will be my eighth trip there, so it is actually a country I know really well. I found cheap flights to both Lanzarote in Spain and Tampere in Finland, so when we looked at the weather forecast, it was a question of "do you want +20 degrees or -20 degrees?" Obviously, being me, I chose Finland. So here's the challenge, there's actually a lot I need to book for this trip, so let me share the list of things I have to do between now and Tuesday: 

1. Book pre-departure Covid test in London

2. Book return flights to Tampere, Finland

3. Book rental car at Tampere airport 

4. Book two nights accommodation in or near Himos, Finland

5. Book ski passes and arrange ski rental at Himos ski resort 

6. Book two nights accommodation in Tampere city center

7. Book Covid test in Tampere city center the day before I am due to fly back to London

8. Book the day-2 post arrival PCR test in London 

I have a couple of other things on my to-do list like "revise my Finnish" but those are the key things on my to-do list but here's the worrying thing. Finland will gladly welcome me as a tourist if I test negative prior to getting on that flight, but with Omicron circulating at an alarming rate, I don't dare to book anything yet just in case I test positive for Omicron the day prior to my departure. I don't want to go down the route of "get Covid travel insurance, then you can claim it all back if you test positive", I'd rather just get the negative test then book it, but that means booking everything the night before I travel to Finland - oh I really hate doing things last minute, but I have little choice in this case. We're both getting tested about 24 hours before our flight to Finland, so that'll mean we get our test results on Monday evening, if everything is okay, then we'll spend Monday evening manically booking items 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 on the list. I have already booked the flights as they were very cheap and I didn't want to risk the price going up; I can get item 8 on the list and even if I don't travel to Finland this time, I can still keep it for another occasion. I have done all my research, I know exactly what I need to book and I run the risk of not getting my first choice or the price going up when I try to book it on Monday night, but such is the stress of traveling during a pandemic. I feel fine right now, I've even been tested today, so I don't think I have the Omicron variant (I've had Covid before and I was really quite sick back then). Fingers crossed, so far so good I think. 

After all, everything is different with Omicron - people who are fully vaccinated are getting Omicron, people who have had Covid before are getting reinfected with Omicron, albeit with milder or little/no symptoms, but they would still fail a Covid test even if they are not feeling particularly ill. This was why I liked the idea of traveling to Scotland for a holiday as I don't need a Covid test to travel domestically but I am going to be tested a lot to cross an international border to go to somewhere like Finland. This is stressful of course and that's why so many people have decided to do domestic holidays instead but I am looking on social media and seeing many of my friends traveling - it can be done, they are abroad so that did prompt me to want to do this. Look, if I had planned this trip to Finland a little bit more in advance, what I would have done was self-isolate for a week or two the moment I stopped going to the office (my last day in the office was the 17th December) so I would definitely not have had any contact with anyone until I was ready to board the plane on the 28th December. But hindsight is 2020, back on the 17th December I thought I was going to Scotland not Finland, I wasn't intending to leave the country then so I had simply carried on as before - I was meeting friends, going shopping, going to the gym and talking to loads of people there. Mind you, it is 26th December Boxing Day as I write this and I've just taken a lateral flow test - it is negative but this is just for my peace of mind, it is not acceptable for travel. I have to go take a test at a commercial clinic tomorrow for clearance to board my flight tomorrow - thus I will literally be going directly to the clinic with my mask, getting the swab done and then not meeting anyone, not even going to the supermarket afterwards. 

And then of course, I also don't want to get stuck in Finland once I actually get there, so I will have to be very careful about keeping social distance from others whilst I'm on holiday which is a necessary precaution of course, but at least I take comfort in the fact that the infection rates in Finland are much lower than in the UK. So much for the Christmas break being a time to relax and take a break from work, this actually feels like a lot of work and right now, I'm feeling, "why on earth did I decide to go to Finland at short notice?" I'm sure I'll have fun whilst I get there but otherwise, the next 48 hours are going to be very stressful, until I actually get that negative test and get onto that plane (given the number of flight cancellations because of staff being unable to work as they are either ill or forced to self-isolate), then I will relax once I get to Finland. Oh and in amongst all the chaos, I also managed to complete my tax return on the afternoon of Boxing Day as well. I'll give you guys a quick update if and when I get the all clear to fly to Finland - remember you can always follow all my travel stories on my Instagram profile dedicated to my travel adventures. I certainly hope you've all had a more peaceful and restful holiday break compared to me! I'm sure I'll be a lot happier once I get to Finland, even when I do something as mundane as walk down the street and see all the signs in Finnish or even just play with the snow in the car park at Tampere airport. Please leave a comment below, many thanks for reading. Kiitoksia oiken paljon!