So you're about to head to Finland for a few days of meetings. All your bags are packed, you're ready to go. You're standing there outside your door. And you realize: you have no idea what Finland is like.

[Note: If you'd like to get an idea of what this app is like, check out the free Sampler app, available in the App Store via search term "ridicsampler".]

Sure, you know where you're staying. Maybe you've got a guidebook that says where to visit if you manage to scrape together a few hours of sightseeing. But what's Finland really like? More practically:

How should you greet your business partners?

If you're invited to someone's house, should you be on time? What sort of gift should you bring? What sort of gift, if any, should you bring to your initial business meeting?

Are there any special considerations for female travelers?
Or female business associates?

What do the electrical outlets look like?

Perhaps most importantly: if you order the pappilan hätävara, what on Earth is that going to look like?


Finland: Business Traveler's Passport is an iPhone/iPad app for business travelers. It contains a few hundred pages of information on Finland, focusing on areas of particular concern to the business traveler. While it does contain a small amount of information on hotels and sightseeing opportunities, these sections are intentionally light. Instead, it has entire sections of information on:

• Finland Basics: A brief history of Finland, with some background and historical highlights.
• Country Facts: demographics and other statistical data.
• Doing Business: Greetings & courtesies, meeting protocol, business attire, business entertaining, etc.

• Women: As travelers, are there any special considerations in Finland? As a businesswoman, are any extra measures needed? How are Finnish women treated in their own country?

• Money: What does the money look like? How much should different service people be tipped, if at all?

• Travel: Visa info, embassy & consulate locations, departure formalities, electrical system, etc.

• Safety: Emergency numbers, notes on street crime, hospital locations, health & medical care

• Points of Interest: Some interesting museums and cultural sites, in case there's time in between meetings.

• City Views: Background on Helsinki, with a handful of hotel descriptions.

• Telephone System: The subtleties of dialing to & from Finland. There's even a section on how to use the different Finnish pay phones (without needing to speak Finnish).
• Life Cycle: From birth to marriage to old age, what's life like?
• Gift Giving: A few pages on the subtleties of giving personal or business gifts.

• Holidays and Festivals: Solid background on the popular holidays and festivals.
• Religion: Background on Finland's varying religious climates.
• Superstitions and Folklore: Common superstitions, along with Finnish stereotypes.
• Food and Recipes: Descriptions of common Finnish foods, along with recipes for appetizers, main dishes, side dishes, and desserts, including smoked fish salad, kalakukko, kaalikääryleet, the aforementioned pappilan hätävara, and even the tongue-twisting lihamakaronilaatikko.

• Terms Dictionary: Over 100 words & phrases translated into Finnish.

• Embassies: Embassy locations and contact info for dozens of countries with representation in Finland.
  

Being part of the Business Traveler's Passport series means that the app also has easy navigation, editable bookmarks, changeable font sizes, is searchable, and has an array of text & background color choices. If you've got any questions, do drop us a note! Shockingly, we actually enjoy talking to our customers.