With the tournament wrapped up and the Exchange coming to the end, Sunday was a welcome free day for all. Several parents went to Catholic Easter services in English in the morning. Other Hawks families took advantage of the late weekend breakfast time (served until 11:00 a.m.!) to get a little extra sleep. There was also a relaxed trip to Suomenlinna, Helsinki's island fortress. Most families spent some time packing and weighing their luggage, with a bit of walking around the city one last time. Meanwhile, many of the Finnish hosts took their charges to the floorball rink we had visited on the first day, to let the Vikings and Hawks players run around informally together for a couple of hours.
By 5:00 p.m., however, the Hawks parents started heading for the clean and efficient Helsinki Metro one last time. The Viikingit club was hosting a farewell party at the ice rink from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. for players, families, and past Exchange participants. The party featured open ice, great food, camaraderie, and beverages brought over from Tallinn. (Tallinn is to Helsinki as Delaware is to Pennsylvania: a source of cheap alcohol.) And of course, there were speeches and gifts to commemorate another wonderful year of the Exchange. (And where there are gifts, a certain inhabitant of northern Finland tends to show up, complete with his red suit, rosy cheeks, and full sack. But he came in through the door, not the chimney, and his reindeer stayed parked outside.)
All of the Vikings and Hawks parents who were involved in this year's Exchange were thanked with gifts, but perhaps the most special gift of all was given to John Wert, the organizer for the Hawks, who was presented with the very first of the newly designed 2012-2013 Viikingit jerseys, with his name on the back. The Vikings players had not even seen the new jerseys before this, much less received them, so they were excited to get a glimpse of their new sweaters. In addition, in keeping with the Vikings tradition, the club named the top performers from the Hawks and the Vikings for the Exchange tournament. Everhett Grimes received the award for the Gibson team, and DJ Sucher took it home for the Cappo team.
The farewell party wound to a close, but there was no need for sadness just yet. Though the boys went home to get a good night's rest (or not), the Hawks parents joined their new Finnish friends for what was billed as the "After-Party" at a nearby nightclub. Entertainment was provided by "The Tosivisio" (translation: "The True Vision"), a Finnish band led by none other than Viikingit organizer Kimmo Tenhunen (www.tosivisio.com). Though the week's activities had left him with a diminished voice, Kimmo's daughter Laura filled in on vocals, and Kimmo himself was still well able to keep the party lively despite his hoarseness. In the festive atmosphere, people danced who (clearly) hadn't danced in years. For one number, Hawks parents (and grandparents) were called to the stage to sing background a la the Pips. For another lengthy segment, Kimmo led a hotly contested Saturday Night Fever dance contest that had the entire place in stitches and led to a "Dancing King" title for Hawks coach Eric Cappo. To say it was a good time is a massive understatement. Eventually, however, the Hawks parents had to think about the long journey ahead and return to the hotel for a final night.
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