Finland
One of Europe's last great wildernesses, home to all kinds of wildlife long extinct from the rest of the continent, such as wolf, wolverine, moose and bear. In the far north Finland has a population of Sami people, previously called Laplanders, who herd reindeer and have their own distinctive culture which spans the borders of the other Scandinavian countries. Perhaps the best way to understand Finland is to take a sauna: strip off with a bunch of complete strangers, sit in a wood-panelled oven until you are beginning to stew, give each other a brisk thrashing with a bunch of birch twigs to warm up and then jump into an icy lake.
