Many Swedes defend Sweden's infection and death rates by saying that Sweden kept its freedom; that in Sweden, unlike elsewhere, you can go out to motion and have fresh air, you can go to school, restaurant, hairdresser's, shops and a bike workshop.

Thread.

Also Swedish authorities say the same, eg. the health minister and the director of the Public Health Agency. Swedish Tweeters have told me that in my home country Finland, schools have been closed the whole time and that Finns can't go to a florist.

So I made a tour today in Turku, Finland (marked with X on the map), to check all these places that are supposedly closed here, unlike in Sweden, the Scandinavian land of the free.

Going out to get fresh air and motion, check. There were also school children in the park. It gave the impression as if there were schools nearby that were open.

The museum was open* (for max. 10 people; you book a time). It's compulsory to wear a mask in the museum.

*It was closed before, for a short period of time.

I visited a school (grades 1-6; ages 7-12). It was open. There was a note on the door reminding the kids to wear masks.

My kids are that age. The youngest hasn't been in distance learning, the oldest has been for two school days before the holidays: the same lessons as normally but online. It went great. They used iPads that they got from the city.

Students have had more distance learning.

I had been told in Swedish Twitter that florists are closed in Finland, so I had to see it with my own eyes. Nope, they were open and have been open the whole time.

I visited a fleamarket. It was open and has been the whole time. The entrance reminded customers to wear masks (and to not to visit when drunk). And they did. I did, too, of course. I had an FFP2. No customer limits in any shops.

Grocery shops are also open and have been the whole time. The customers are told to wear a mask, and they do.

Restaurants and cafés - open.

They were closed for a short period but they could sell takeaway.

Library - open, but for max. 10 people. Mask recommended.

Café. The note says: "Please use the mask until sitting at the table - thank you."

Restaurant boats in the Aura River are open.

"Show that you care."

An open restaurant. The sign asks to use a mask when moving indoors.

Shopping centres are open and have been the whole time. No limits as to how many are allowed to sit by a table in a café / restaurant in a shopping centre. But still many of them were quite empty.

Mask signs in the shopping centre. The message: Let's take care of each other.

I don't know what the current situation is in Sweden, but the messaging there has too often been that you can wear a mask if you are afraid for your own sake - not mentioning protecting others.

Boutiques, pharmacies, hairdressers open. Have been the whole time.

More barbershops open in the background, but actually I wanted to take a photo of this ad that is unrelated to the thread. I think you have to know Finnish food culture to understand the picture in the ad.

I went out grocery shopping when it was almost 2 am. My nearest shop is open 24/7. No curfew. Fastfood places were also open.

At the shop entrance: "Did you forget a mask? Take one here and pay at the cash register when you leave. Let's take care of one another!"

It's a small shop but they sell a lot of different masks, also FFP2s.

So, an eternal "full lockdown" is not the reason why Finland has had far fewer cases than Sweden. In brief: contact tracing, quarantines, two short lockdowns, masks, different attitude from different information (in Sweden: "you won't notice it & everyone will get it").

My husband and kids didn't even notice Finland's lockdown before I told them (our kids were in contact learning, and we only buy takeaway during the pandemic anyway, instead of eating inside the restaurant). https://twitter.com/VirpiFlyg/status/1370064580358066180