Miss Helsinki
Frowny lady on Bulevardi who smiled right after I took this photo
People ask me if I miss Finland. Very much. First off, there’s the story about the guy yelling at the tram conductor for being two minutes late: Helsinki’s a shockingly functional town and sometimes I miss that. Helsinki wants you to stay; in New York, it’s a constant grind to keep your apartment and get to work on time. But my affection goes beyond well-oiled trains and a humming bureaucracy. In addition to the stately architecture, dignified swimming halls, and friendly people (those stern stereotypes simply aren’t true), Helsinki was recently declared the World Design Capital of 2012 for its use of “embedded design” (I’m still trying to define this) and the city is engaged in some interesting long-term planning for its waterfront.
Like any country, there are strange quirks and habits that are difficult to describe. For instance, Finland provides its citizens with a legal right to broadband and affordable health care. Another example: I’ve given up trying to explain things like Vappu to people. “National holiday,” I say. “They get together for a few drinks. No big deal.”
Yes, I miss it. And I left some good men behind. I’m plotting a return visit in January and I’d like to take a trip up north. Riding a train to Lapland in the endless summer was big fun and I imagine that an endless midnight might be even more fun — or perhaps it will fill me with a dreadful melancholy. Either way, let me know if you’d like to go to the North Pole with me.
* * *
Another nice thing about Finland is the music, particularly when it comes to precise techno (Sähkö), frozen soundscapes (Vladislav Delay), and lighters-in-the-sky psychedelic rock (Shogun Kunitoki). These two tracks from forty years ago fall squarely in the latter category, drawn from Psychedelic Phinland: Finnish Hippie & Underground Music 1967-1974, an unfortunately-titled yet eye-opening compilation that I recently stumbled across.
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Apollo – Ajatuksia
from Psychedelic Phinland. Love Records, 1970
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Charlies – Taiteen Kritiikistä
from Psychedelic Phinland. Love Records, 1970
The Lordsburg Killings 
Meeting Elvis 
Babushka Lady 
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“Finland provides its citizens with free internet”
It doesn’t mean we’ll all get internet and pay nothing. It means everyone will be able to have *access* to it. Even in the wilds someone must provide it to you, even though it might be rather expensive in those cases.
But maybe that’s what you meant anyway
Free as in speech, not free as in beer.
And thanks for the music.
Thanks for catching that, Hugo — I’ve clarified that point.
(Although I wonder at what point the interweb will be free for people? It’s odd how you’ve got many public parks covered with free wifi, yet hotels still charge $9.95 per day for it.)