Helsinki
was not always on our list of dream places to travel in the world. We
chose it because it was Darrin's "suicide pick" several years ago, when
I posed the question to him, "Where would you go if you lost your job
and got a severance package, and could go anywhere in the world?" He
kept saying he didn't know, so I demanded he just pick a place, and he
blurted out "Helsinki." He said he liked the sound of the city name.
Plus, it was where Jennifer Garner always seemed to be sent to in
Alias for her next "adventure assignment." So that's how Helsinki made
it into the flight plan. We land in sparkling clean Helsinki, Finland.
The airport is spotless, the public busses into the city run on time
and are squeaky clean. We ride the bus to the central train station
and make our way through well labeled streets to find our hostel.
Out
and about on the streets, Helsinki-ites are curious and friendly. As
locals approach us on the streets, we are caught off guard, and back up
with trepidation, wondering what they are wanting to sell us. We've
been in Asia far too long, we view everyone who we don't know as a
potential tout out to sell to us, or scam us. Instead, we're greeted
with friendly smiles and voluntary assistance to help us find our way.
We must look like clueless tourists, but their warmth and openness is
a welcome change to the touts of the streets of Asia. The air here is
clean, we can breath with ease, and we don't see trash anywhere on the
streets. There are no mosquitos, and concern about malaria and dengue
risk quickly fade. The temperature is in the 70's Fahrenheit, and dry.
It's the first time in months that we're not drenched in sweat. The
streets are lined with historically architected buildings that remind
us that we're in Europe... but all around us are also sleek, new modern
architecture which reminds us of Ikea - wood, metal and glass aligned
with hard angles and clean lines, all of which we'd expect to see
lining the pages of Architectural Digest. The locals are equally as
trendy, hip and cool, wearing the latest fashions, donning the latest
craze-color hair and tattoos & piercings that symbolize the era and
a generation of fierce independence and individualism. Hair color is
big, and we even see older women with bright red and orange dye jobs to
match their outfits.
The
days here are long. The sun rises around 5:00 a.m. and doesn't set
until nearly 10:00 p.m. Beer gardens line the streets and a social
scene emerges through the day, continuing late into the evening. Bands
spring up on portable stages throughout the city, drawing audiences and
playing for "pleasure" and no charge. Everyone is out enjoying the
beautiful weather, and it's tough even to find a seat at a cafe or beer
garden. We finally hunker down at a prime main street corner cafe and
waste away time sitting back, sipping cool drinks and watching life
cruise by on the streets. We wonder what life here is like during the
winter. While summer sees sunlight nearly 24 hours a day during a
couple of months, winters must be dark, cold and snowy. We imagine it
must be beautiful here, blanketed with snow, but we're not so sure how
we'd be able to cope with long days of darkness. The Nordic countries
are known for their winter sports, so I'm sure it's a winter sports
wonderland here and that we'd enjoy spending time here in this outdoor
playground.
The
harbor-side fresh market is amazing here. Fresh fruits, veggies and
huge hunks of salmon are grilling up with capers and peppercorns. Our
stomachs rumble with the thought of being able to eat fresh fruit and
veggies and not have to peel or boil them to death to have them be safe
and edible. We settle for some seafood paella. We spend the rest of
our big day out in Helsinki getting lost in the city streets. We wish
we spoke the language here; it's been difficult to strike up meaningful
conversations with locals over a beer, as many don't respond to our
English. Knowing the language would also allow us to have a real
glimpse into the culture here. We'll have to come back some day and
spend more than just a day here.
Our
one day has been a welcome change. The climate is ideal, the streets
are clean, no one is spitting on the streets. The air is fresh, and we
can drink the tap water in the hostel. There are no touts trying to
sell us anything. Actually, we are no longer seen as walking ATM
machines. Here our US dollars are so weak compared to Euros, that it's
actually quite a sad state of affairs. A glass of draught beer costs
$7 USD, a coffee is just under $5 USD, and our youth hostel room
consisting of two tiny single roll away costs in a shabby room with
shared bath amongst 10 guests costs us just under $100 USD/night. It's
probably a good thing that we're only here for two nights and a day.
Our days of traveling Asia for under $40 USD/day have sadly come to a
screeching halt. Welcome to the Western World!
