It was surprising for everybody here in Finland to experience last summer.  Winter was very cold and snowy for Finnish standards and summer came in strong and lasted the mandatory 3 months.  We reached temperatures of 35°C in parts of the country and even in Helsinki it was above 30°C for most of July.  Now the rains have started and the summer seems but a memory, so this post is a homage to the warmest, most tropical season in recorded Finnish history.

Continues from part I.

The middle of the 3 Gorges of the Yangtze River, Qutang Gorge.

Shennong Stream off Yangtze River. Before the construction of the 3 Gorges Dam, the river was so difficult to sail that to go upstream you needed to be pulled along by trackers. Clothing optional.

Behold the 3 Gorges Dam.

Another view of the 3 Gorges Dam

The hotel in Yichang was nice. The city itself was not that interesting. They seemed to have ads for a local corn-based liquor everywhere.

Pudong panorama from the Bund.

Pudong at dusk.

Skyscrapers in the Shanghainese night

Trying to get out of the vantage point of the previous picture at the Oriental Pearl TV tower. This is why we were surprised by the lack of courteousness in Chinese crowds: people would run, push and shove as much as possible in a situation that was potentially very dangerous.

Tea House at the Yuyuan gardens. The bridge is built in zigzag as bad spirits can't turn corners.

The area around the Yuyuan gardens is full of shops and built in traditional Chinese style.

Chinese painting at Shanghai museum. Probably the best museum in China, the ceramic, jade, copper and painting collections are worth the visit.

Mexican pavillion at the World Expo: Replica of the Bell of Independence from the church of Dolores Hidalgo, Guanajuato.

The Mexican pavillion had an introduction to Mexican art & history, but my favourites where these masks where you could see different parts of Mexico through the eyes of someone living there.

The Finnish pavillion had an overview of Finnish design, and while there was not a lot of food on offer there was a big space for Nokia

The Belgian pavillion focused more than anything on science and technology (and beer and chocolate, sure). They had a video that Frank de Winne, Belgian ESA astronaut, recorded from space for the Expo.

Many pavillions remained unseen, even if we spent there the whole day.

The former French concession at Xintiandi was a nice stop. After two weeks, we were starting to miss certain European comforts like street cafés, sandwiches or good beer.

Even during the night it was very hot, up to 30°C.

Ready to fly back from Beijing. One of the decisive factors that convinced us to go to China was that it is only a 8 hour direct flight with Finnair.

After being asked a couple of times what is there to see in Helsinki, I decided to write this guide using a previous post about Brussels for guidance.

Helsinki, at the northeastern corner of the continent, can be easily missed when touring Europe.  While it is not the largest, nor the most cosmopolitan city of the Nordic countries, it definitely holds its own with a very interesting position and history between Western Europe and Russia.  It is a medium-sized city between the forests and the seas with very marked seasonal changes. The majority language is Finnish, Swedish is spoken by a minority and almost everybody has a working knowledge of English.  Other languages such as French, German, Spanish or Russian might not be as widely understood, but you might get lucky.

When to arrive?
Plan well according to the weather.  Helsinki is 60 °N (as far north as Alaska) even if the climate is milder, so if you want to see snow you might get lucky in January-February, whereas June-July will be the highest part of summer.

How to arrive?

• By plane to Helsinki-Vantaa airport, one of the best in the world and an important hub between Europe and Asia.
• By train to the Central Railway station from other parts of Finland and Russia.
• By bus (e.g. Matkahuolto)
• By ferry or cruise to the Port of Helsinki from Germany, Sweden, Russia or the Baltic States (e.g. Tallink, Silja Line, Viking Line).

From the airport to the city
Quite easy. Local route 615 takes you from the airport to downtown (4 EUR), while Finnair also runs a bus service (5.90 EUR).  A taxi ride to downtown will be approximately 30 EUR.

Transport within the city
Helsinki has one and a half  metro lines, buses, trains & trams. I would recommend buying a 1-7 day travel card or if you plan to visit a lot of museums and sights, a Helsinki card which has those included.

• Don’t try to take the public transport without a ticket. Even though It is possible, the fines are quite steep.
• There are only night buses during weekends, so I recommend staying at a hotel within walking distance of downtown.

Accomodation
If you’re on a budget, check the hostels from the Finnish Hostel Organization. Otherwise, budget hotels like Omenahotelli are a safe bet.  If you’ve got more leeway, international chains like Radisson, Holiday Inn and Finland’s very own Sokos Hotels have some very good locations in town.

Basic tourist information
Preparing yourself

• Printable Map of central Helsinki.
• Map of the tram line system (useful for downtown)

What to see?
Basics

• The Lutheran Cathedral and Senate Square (Tuomiokirkko & Senaatintori)
• Market Square (Kauppatori)
• Esplanadi park
• Suomenlinna, The Gibraltar of the North.  An island 20 minutes away from the Market square with an imposing fortress.
• The Church in the Rock (Temppeliaukion kirkko). How do you carve a church out of solid granite?

Further away

• Seurasaari open air museum, see how Finns used to live in centuries past.
• Uspenski Cathedral, the largest Russian Orthodox church in Western Europe.
• Kiasma Museum of Contemporary art.  Location is centric, but it’s not for everybody.
• National History Museum.  From Fenni to Vikings, to Swedes to Russians to Independence.
• Sibelius Monument. An interesting piece of art that doubles as a wind organ.
• Finlandia Hall: One of the most famous buildings by designer and architect Alvar Aalto.

Within 3 hours of the city centre

• Nuuksio national park in Espoo, 45 minutes from downtown.
• The wooden town of Porvoo, 1 hour from downtown.
• The old town of Turku with its castle and cathedral.

Where to eat, drink & shop in Helsinki?
Eat

• Finnish food haunts like Konstan Möljä (Hietalahdenkatu 14), Manala (Dagmarinkatu 2), Kosmos (Kalevankatu 3) or Zetor (Mannerheimintie 3-5) are usually a good idea for an introduction to the salmon, herring, reindeer, potatoes and dill that make the basis of traditional Finnish cuisine (around 20 EUR for a meal).
• Saaga (Bulevardi 35) seems to be the best Lappish restaurant in town, even if it’s a little bit kitsch and prices are somewhat steep (50 EUR for a full meal).
• Before the fall of the Soviet Union, Helsinki was renowned for having better Russian restaurants than Moscow or St. Petersburg.  Favourites are Saslik (Neitsytpolku 12), Kasakka (Meritullinkatu 13) or Bellevue (Rahapajankatu 3) (meals between 30-70 EUR).
• If what you want is good international cuisine and budget is not an issue, places like Postres (Eteläesplanadi 8), Luomo (Vironkatu and Olo (Kasarmikatu 44)are quite nice.

Drink

• If you’re a teetotaller, you’ll be happy to discover that Finns drink plenty of berry juices.
• In case you’re not, you’ll be happy to discover that Finns drink. A lot.   Especially recommended are Finlandia and Koskenkorva vodkas (or at least, that’s what my friends who drink vodka say).  Finnish beers (especially the famous Lapin Kulta) are not particularly great but drinkable.  My personal favourite is Sandels.  There is also berry-based liquors and interesting concoctions (and national institutions) such as salmiakkikossu or fissu for the more adventurous.
• As for the bars themselves, I like Belge for its assortment of Belgian beers and relaxed atmosphere, Praha for its music selection and Nolla for the company.  Some people I know prefer Teatteri for its yuppie atmosphere, though . There is also plenty of bars along Iso Roobertinkatu (Iso Roba) for those with interest in a long night out.

Shop

• Stockmann department store is the largest in Finland, and its souvenir selection is usually both good and with taste.  Sokos is another department store in town.
• Souvenirs are also available at the Market Square for those so inclined.
• While not cheap, fans of Nordic design should definitely check the shops in Design District Helsinki in the area bordered by Uudenmaankatu, Iso Roobertinkatu and Erottajankatu.
• Kämp Galleria, one of the fanciest shopping malls in Finland, is right in the middle of the city and has Marimekko, Iittala and Moomin shops.
• Other malls in central Helsinki include Forum and Kamppi.

Important to know

• Tipping is not needed.
• Kaisaniemi park is best avoided at night, even if during the day is pretty OK.
• Summer is high season for pickpockets.  We seem to import them from neighbouring countries.
• During winter the sidewalks can be very icy.  Sounds like a joke until you break an arm or ankle.

References

• Wikitravel
• Wikipedia
• Helsinki Expert

You can also check my pictures about Helsinki in Flickr.

Was invited to attend the second edition of TEDx Helsinki last week, and I have to thank the organizers for a fantastic event.  We had great speakers, awesome videos from official TED conferences and some very interesting insights.  A quick bullet-point summary below.

1. Sebastian Wernicke and how to create the ultimate TED talk using statistics (video).  “Tool” available from get-tedpad.com.
2. Esa Saarinen introduced us to the idea of Baby Radicalism, or what should we learn from toddler behaviour in our daily life: the power of smiling, growth and love.
3. Juuso Nissilä went over how our biology hasn’t evolved as fast as our culture and society, and our bodies struggle to catch up with our conduct and environment.
4. Bjarke Ingels showed us the power of letting ideas evolve in the architectural design process (video).
5. Virpi Kuitunen gave us a very personal talk on the challenges of giving up something. “The most difficult thing of quitting is not leaving stuff behind, is starting anew as you don’t know what lies ahead”.
6. Reidar Wasenius put the audience to exercise their brains for a little while.
7. Anssi Vanjoki explored the power of volunteering and volunteer organisations.  He mentioned the open source software movement and sports clubs as good examples, while contrasting them with the sad state of political party volunteering in Finland.
8. Mikael Jungner talked about the illusion of control and how it affects the decision-making process giving biting examples from his time at the helm of YLE.
9. Tom Wujec on the nature of collaboration (video).  Openness, expertise and facilitation will go a long way.
10. Kirsti Lonka showed us some of the challenges the Digital Natives pose to the way the education system in Finland currently works, and what are they doing to change it.
11. Teppo Turkki talked about the rising economic, technological and even cultural influence of South Korea, Japan and China.
12. Temple Grandin on how autistic minds work, and why they can and should be allowed to contribute to society (video).
13. Jufo Peltomaa showed why the coming singularity won’t mean the end of the human race.  In fact the emerging AIs will evolve so fast they will not care more for us than we do of, say, wolverines.
14. Miina Savolainen closed the event with a bang, talking about the empowering quality of portrait photography: what it says of the photographer’s values and ways of communication.  When you look at pictures, don’t only focus on what’s present, but also on what is not being photographed.  More info on her website.  You’ll never see family albums in the same way again.

All in all an enjoyable and inspirational occasion which I hope I can attend again.

If you don’t know how May Day is celebrated in Finland and why it’s important, this old Helsingin Sanomat article will give you the lowdown.  This year it was a little bit chilly but not unseasonably cold.  I noticed there was less people wearing high school graduation caps and more “carnival” style headwear.  I guess some sort of ethnographic inventory is in order, as still people don’t know what my cap is all about.

Havis Amanda after being crowned

Havis Amanda Panorama on May Day Eve (Vappuaatto)

Kaivopuisto full of revelers on May Day (Vappu)

The Great Ice Age of 2009-2010 is finally over and with the big melt behind us spring is upon the land, with summer not far behind.  A chronicle in pictures of the changes brought by April below.

After the latest soundbites from mainstream Finnish politicians regarding their stance against immigration and their apparent lack of hard knowledge of the subject, I decided to set the record straight.

With the help of Statistics Finland (Tilastokeskus), it was not difficult to find the exact numbers of immigrants living in Finland as of end of last year.  The breakdown in the chart below.

As you can see, 155k people of foreign citizenship live here (2.9% of the population and one of the lowest proportions in Europe).  Of those, 34k are refugees, i.e. 22% of all foreigners in Finland and 0.64% of the total population of the country.  Therefore, it is ridiculous to keep on mixing refugees with immigrants if they are only one fifth of the total amount of foreigners living here. By the way, that most demonised group of all, the Somalis, are less than 5k people in the whole country.

Now, after a little dose of facts, let’s tackle the 3 statements that have caught my attention lately:

• “Maassa maan tavalla”: This phrase, part “In Rome do as the Romans”, part “Love it or leave it” was uttered to great effect by the leader of the Finnish Social Democrats.  She went further on to talk about the need for foreigers to obey the law and learn the language.  My first problem with this statement is not its content, but its patronising tone.  When you move abroad you know you will face new situations and have to adapt to your environment, which does include learning at least some of the local language.  Following the law is also part of this process (who wants to move thousands of kilometres at a considerable cost only to end up in jail?).  Furthermore, my second concern is related to the fact that Finnish laws and Finnish customs are not the same thing. Are we a tolerant enough society to accept people who look, dress and sound different as long as they contribute to society and pay their taxes, or is there an ideal of Finnishness they need to adhere to?  Have we agreed on what that ideal is?
• Immigrants coming to Finland take jobs from Finns:  Eero Heinäluoma, another SDP figure, took this cheap stab recently in an interview, further saying that if there is racism it’s because there aren’t enough jobs around.  Let me get this straight: first we’re worried that foreigners (that “very homogeneous” group including e.g. IT workers, PhD students and people with low education from all over the world) don’t contribute to society and live off social security, then we’re worried because they have jobs?  Furthermore, Mr. Heinäluoma doesn’t seem to have a firm grasp of elementary economics: the amount of jobs available is not fixed, it fluctuates with supply and demand. In a functioning market economy such as Finland’s the more people employed means an increased demand for other products and services, generating a ripple effect accross the market.  As one of the Ilta-rags joked, the only thing he was missing was saying that “foreigners steal our women“.
• Ville Rydman’s views on immigration: I’ve been meaning to comment on the platform of this young National Coalition Party leader for some time.  He mentions that recieving skilled migrants is challenging as Finland would be depriving developing countries of talent, while opening the doors to unskilled migration will create an uneducated underclass.  He’s wrong on both measures: skilled migrants earn experience in Finland that can later be transferred to their countries of origin, while unskilled ones have here educational opportunities probably unavailable for them otherwise.  I personally know examples of both.  He then reveals his true colours by saying that immigrants should integrate “fully” to Finnish laws (which is fine) and Finnish ways (discussed above) while expressing that multiculturalism is both wrong and dangerous, without amplifying much further on either statement.  If you simply don’t want people coming here, then why don’t you say so straight up and stop the posturing?

These are only 3 recent examples from 2 mainstream parties, but also certain Centre candidates share the same views (Paavo Väyrynen anyone?) and obviously our “friends” the True Finns are the reason why this whole brouhaha started, after their critical stance of immigration won them many votes in the last elections.  With the economy in the doldrums we knew immigration, with its demostration of the fear of otherness, was going to be an easy target to fish votes and unfortunately were not proved wrong.

Finland deserves better politicians (and politics) than this.

My ride

Originally uploaded by Chiva Congelado

The snow and ice are fully gone and cycling season is on. Already close to 100km done in the past couple of weeks and I’m one happy camper (I mean, happy biker).
I could almost swear my body is adjusting to the exercise .

This is a post in the Belgian beer review series.

Chocolate caramel colour. Bouquet of blueberry toffee. Creamy but not mushy head. Intial taste of bitter trappist, later becomes softer, gitst of saaristoleipä initially, then notes of blueberry, cream and honey. Awesome experience, great beer. No wonder it is regarded as the best beer in Belgium and probably the world.

Two music genres separated at birth: humppa & norteña.  Maybe they could collaborate at some point?