A walk in Helsinki

It had been hot, low 30’s, the whole week I’d been here but I was eager to get a log walk in. So it goes. I’d taken a few pleasant walks earlier in the week but this had a little extra focus and miles to it. Out by 9am from Pohjois-Haaga. Real hot already. The plan follow, roughly the main cycle pass towards Helsinki and veer off towards Töölö and the coast ending up at the Sibelius monument. Nice.

Along the grass verges at Huopalahti station city workers are cutting the grass verges with remote controlled lawnmowers. It looks like a strange vision of the future. I have no real idea why they are doing this. Seems cool though. 

The walk towards Pasila is hot and gets hotter along the way. I cross over the ring road bridge just before Pasila station and enter the cool forest heading westwards. The cool trees shave a little of the heat off. But I’m still feeling it. 

Spiel through the woods coast bound a few wrong turns - obviously. Not used to forest paths and I’m a little over confident - stupid too. Finally leave the woods on Mannerheimintie. Road works growl. It seems louder after the sanctuary of the woods. Dust. Heat. Noise. Yellow green trams. The wildness of a city coming into noon after a sleepy languid morning. 

Find the coast and harbour. Paciuksenkatu. Strange green algae around the boats. Feel scared to breath it in. But holding my breath is not an option. I don’t die or explode. Breath out. Ah. People walking - disinterested, I presume, in my respiratory paranoia. People sitting on benches. Also disinterested. Some commuting to work on hip bicycles. Definitely disinterested. 

Follow the road down. A Mad Max convoy of tourist buses highlights my destination. Oh. I find the monument beautiful in between tourists pretending to hold it up. Gobshites. 

Slightly let down by the swarm of tourists I decide to take a peak at the olympic stadium. From the park I higgledy-piggledy through some side streets until the amazonian concrete and steel behemoths break the skyline. The ‘52 Olympic stadium is still being renovated - I was here 2 years ago and it was being worked on then. HJK’s stadium the Sonera is no slouch - must catch a game here some time. The Ice hockey stadium is here too. Everything is so compact in this city - I’m told it’s because of the harsh winters - keep everything together so people don’t have to hoof about unnecessarily and risk bear and wolf attacks.  

I take a few obligatory photos. After all I’m a higher grade gobshite tourist. I head back through the woods Pohjois-Haaga bound. On the way stop for pop and sweets. I lick a Tupla bar off the roof of my mouth as I pass through the last of the apartment blocks and home.