Loving Helsinki

Smultronställe is one of my favourite Swedish expressions. Literally, it's a place where wild strawberries grow. In its more commonly used figurative sense, it's a beloved, treasured place - usually off the most-trodden paths.

Unlike the best berry-picking places, which are never made public, my favourite spots in Helsinki are not terribly secret. Some of them are even on the most trodden tourist trails, like this one:

Suomenlinna

This UNESCO World Heritage site really deserves its place on the tourist itineraries.

Pack a picnic, hop on the ferry, and take at least half a day to explore and enjoy the islands of this old fortress. 

And please walk all the way around Kustaanmiekka.

Oh, and if you forget the picnic, there are cafés and restaurants on the island - check the website for details.

Harakka Island - Nature Centre

Another great island to visit. Literally "Magpie Island", it's a home to many kinds of birds and other wildlife, and there are small exhibitions about the Baltic Sea, too. Sometimes, there are also nature courses or guided tours. So, it's a good place for an educational trip - and also just for fun. Walk around (on the marked trails), observe, and enjoy the nature.

Check out the details and the boat timetables from the website, and remember to pack that picnic, too.

And when you come back from Harakka, buy an ice cream from the booth of Helsingin Jäätelötehdas on the seafront. The price may seem high but their scoops are really big :) #icecreamforlunch

Helsinki City Library on Rikhardinkatu

I visited this library a lot when I was studying at Helsinki University. They have a large department of books in English, including the British Collection (donated by the British Council), and the building is just beautiful. I especially love its interior, the "book tower" with winding stairs and the balconies with bookshelves...

(I'm sorry I don't have pictures of the interior.) 

I don't suggest you pack a picnic when you go to the library... :) Browse the library to your heart's content, then have the picnic at the nearby Esplanadi Park. And since this library is in the centre of Helsinki, there are lots of cafés and restaurants to choose from, if you like. 

 

Malminkartano Hill

Ex-landfill, now the highest hill in Helsinki.

Ultra runners and other crazy sportspeople use it for hill training. (Like these guys, who are training for mountain races.) Well, regular walkers also come here.

Wikipedia says there are 426 steps, but you can also use one of the paths to get to the top, which is what I personally prefer - trying to fit my stride length and rhythm to the steps gets a bit awkward.

 This picture was taken this spring; when the summer comes and trees get their leaves, it's prettier...

Hope Springs - Spring Hopes

Little blooms of sunshine have been springing up for a couple of weeks already. These little yellow flowers are usually the very first flowers here. (Wikispecies lists so many English names that I don't know what to pick.)

Crocuses peek out of the lawn in front of our house. 

 

"Snowbells" (snowdrops?) grow among the dead-looking branches: a promise of more to come. Not more snow, I hope. More flowers. More green leaves. More growth.

My blue favourites are also already here. From Wikispecies, I found out it has three names in English:kidneywort, liverwort and pennywort. I know I have no right to criticize the language of other people, but these names strike me as rather odd - kidneywort and liverwort sound more like some kind of diseases than a pretty flower...?

A part of my favourite walking route

Hope springs, too, with the spring coming back in my steps. I'm back to walking and trying to run at intervals, too. The ankle does not hurt so much any more, though there's sometimes pain afterwards. But better to train and have some pain than not to train and not get better either.

Another sign of spring in our home is my son's birthday. Junior Bookworm is now 9 years old. He was born on Easter Sunday, ten days past the due date, by C-section after a drawn-out delivery. I'm sure there's a lesson, a parable, a powerful message there, but I can't quite put it into words yet. Maybe that's because it is his story, after all, and it is still in progress.

Thanks for these years, son. It's a privilege to know the person you are and the person you are becoming, and the unfolding of your story.

Thank you, God, for all things that spring up, and grow, and bloom, and bear fruit.

Thank you for those things, too, that die so that new life can grow.