Helsinki, Finland: Tuesday August 26, 2014

Terve Terve –

First whole day in Helsinki

For those following the travails… It’s great to be back in Finland (even though I was just here in October). I truly love Helsinki and am happy to return whenever I can, although the general plan is to come every 5 years and we’ve been doing that consistently for the past 25 years. It’s great to return to a place that you know fairly well, where you have friends, and where you can also see change (and be able to support and be critical of that change).

We tried to get an early start this morning, but it was slow going with my foot… So the first stop today was to the Apteeki (pharmacy) where I bought a cane! I’m not very good with the cane and nearly killed myself tripping over it.. But I’m getting the hang of it. Once fitted with the cane, we walked to the next block to have breakfast/lunch at Ekberg.. our favorite bread and pastry place in all of Helsinki.. with a history of more than 170 years in the same location on Bulevardi in downtown Helsinki. How convenient that the Apteeki was just a block away!

After this, we took the Metro to Herttoniemi.. Given that I can’t walk much or for great distances we decided that we’d head out to get some gifts at the Marimekko factory store which we could reach by Metro (although once you exit the Metro it’s about a 3/4 mile walk).. It seemed like shopping would be a good activity since we had plans to meet friends later in the afternoon and with limited mobility this seemed like the plan.. Herttoniemi is a neighborhood (we might call it a suburb) in Helsinki. It’s about 7 km east of the city center and takes about 10 minutes by Metro. There was once a large harbor in Herttoniemi, but in the 1990s, the industrial harbor was demolished and replaced by a residential area and marina. but there is still the feeling of industry in the center.. and Marimekko has some functions there. As most people now know Marimekko is a wonderful Finnish design company that is an incredible export of the country. The name Marimekko came about with the first four letters as an anagram of the first name of the company’s founder (Armi = Mari).. and the word “mekko” means “dress” in Finnish.. And it was the dresses that Armi Ratia designed and the fabrics she silk screened that started Marimekko… in the early 1950s. When I lived in Finland there were about four Marimekko stores and the only way to purchase Marimekko products was to be in Finland.. Now it’s an industry with stores all around the world and many many more products than just fabrics and dresses. And the prices reflect the growth and success.

Anyway, after Herttoniemi (I walked back to the Metro station… so by now I had walked about 2 miles).. we came back downtown.. had a very quick lunch at some Nepalese place near the Metro station.. and headed to the hotel to freshen up to meet friends. Took Metro out to Myllypouru where our friends have lived for many years. By the way the Metro in Helsinki … which didn’t exist when we lived here … is just one line that goes about 17 stops and covers about 14 miles.. After about 11 stops it splits and one line goes to Vuosaari and the other goes to Mellunmaki.. In general it ties the downtown to the eastern suburbs. Anyway, after a nice reunion, a great dinner, champagne, and wine, we headed back to the hotel, to pack up as we decided to relocate to a different hotel.

We are headed to the Hotelli Kamp… It’s a wonderful hotel situated right in the center, just off the Esplanaadi. Long story about the change, maybe to be explained tomorrow.

All my best

Tervetuloa –

Fern