Helsinki, Finland: February 11 - 14, 2025

Spiral Staircase at Oodi

Our two days in Helsinki were rather gray with morning snow flurries and gray skies outside. Inside Oodi, the Helsinki Central Library, nothing was gray. It is a lively place with books, of course, but so many other offerings. There are: chess tables, workspaces with computers, large format printers and 3-D printers for which you pay only for the supplies used, sound booths for recording podcasts or music, musical instruments for borrowing, digital gaming rooms, comfortable seating for reading, an urban workshop area with sewing machines, 2 cafes, and a children's section with a sound-dampening ceiling. Outside are basketball hoops and if you don't have your own ball, you can borrow one from the library.

Finnish does not have prepositions as English speakers know them. The prepositional word, in this case "ille" is tacked onto the end of the words written around the spiral stairway (above photo). The first word "kaikille" means "for everyone, "harhailijoille" (for wanderers),"muukalaisille" (for strangers) and continuing with possibly every noun that describes a human.

Our walking tour with Tours by Locals continued after the library visit with some of Helsinki's sights: Helsinki Cathedral (1852, Lutheran) sits on Senate Square. The interior of the church is said to be austere and there is an 8 € entrance fee. We didn't go in. The large expanse of pavement called Senate Square sits below the cathedral. Senate Square is surrounded by lovely Neoclassical buildings. During the Cold War era, the square was used by filmmakers to stand in for Red Square in Moscow. On the day we visited, gray and cold, nothing was going on, but later in the season it is a vibrant place with frequent public celebrations.

The red brick, golden-domed structure is the 1868 Uspenski Orthodox Cathedral. The red bricks were brought from St. Petersburg, Russia, and architecturally it is Russian-Byzantine style. Even at the time the Uspenski was built, only a small percentage of the population was Orthodox.

The Old Market Hall opened to customers in 1889. Vendors sell cheese, fish, shellfish, caviar, truffles, meats, vegetables, fruits, spices, coffee and teas. There is an Alko store within. Alko is the national alcolholic beverage retailer in Finland and the only retailer that can sell beer, wine, and spirits greater than 5.5% alcohol by volume. We ate a slice of the whitefish tartare called Siika Leipa with a slice of rye bread. The flavor was very delicate.

Icebreakers are made by only two countries: Finland and Russia. Finland leads the world in icebreaker design and function. Shown below are three of Finland's icebreakers. The two yellow ones are older while the blue and white is Polaris. Built in 2016 by Arctech Helsinki Shipyard, Polaris is the most powerful icebreaker ever to fly the Finnish flag.

The 2025 White House has inquired about buying an icebreaker. Finland does not have an icebreaker showroom and it takes on average five years to produce an icebreaker. In November 2024 a trilateral agreement was made between the US (Biden), Canada, and Finland to "begin working together to develop world-class Arctic and polar icebreakers through the exchange of knowledge, information, and resources in each of our countries" (Dept of Homeland Security MOU). I'm pretty sure that one is off the table as POTUS has alienated our neighbor, and Finland would rather not risk their relationship with their neighbor Denmark by doing a deal with 47.

There are 5.5 million people living in Finland and there are 3.3 million saunas (private and public). The above right photo is of one of the many public saunas.

The two bottom photos above were taken on the Esplanade an elegant and wide Golden Age pedestrian street. In good weather, it is a site of concerts. The lower right photo is of Kappeli a restaurant that first opened in 1867. Salmon soup is a popular item in Helsinki, and it was great at Kappeli. We stayed at Hotel Kämp which opened in 1887 and is also on the Esplanade.

We had another Tours by Locals adventure booked for the next day. Our guide took us to the picturesque town of Porvoo. Porvoo is one of the oldest towns in Finland. Old town Porvoo has traditional wooden houses, a Gothic Cathedral, and the former Town Hall now a museum. Red warehouses still line the frozen river.

This stop would have been better in warmer weather and with more time. Helsinki is an easy city to get around in. On February 14 we walked to the central station and boarded a train to the airport arriving home later that night.

Particulars:

Restaurant - Kappeli on the Esplanade.Excellent food.

Hotel Kämp on the Esplanade. Beautiful rooms and common areas. Wonderful breakfast. Convenient location.

Fazer Cafe and Chocolates founded in 1891 across from the Hotel Kämp - chocolate and exquisite desserts