From Visit Finland, Spring/Summer 2008
Helsinki started the millennium in 2000 as the European Capital of Culture, and that's how it continues to think of itself. And why not? It has romantic architecture, splendid museums, a wonderful location, and a unique personality - A nordic liberal with a dash of melancholy. Did you know that Finns are obsessed with the mournful strains of the tango?
In 1995 the country joined the EU and has prospered. Flush with cash and self-confidence, the 'White City of the North teems with contagious energy. Last year, it was ranked one of the world's top ten destinations by the Lonely Planet guide. It's also the cleanest city in Europe.
Design is important to Helsinki. Modernist architects and designers like Alvar Aalto, Eliel Saarinen, and Timo Sarpaneva are already world-famous, and Jackie Kennedy put Marimekko on the map when she bought its bold fabrics in the 1960s. Now, there's a new wave of designers, led by the much-garlanded Harri Koskinen, and Julia Lundsten, whose shoe designs have been taken up by Manolo Blahnik. Look out, too, for Tonfisk and Saara Renvall; also Secco, which turns tyre inner tubes into handbags.
Such is the importance of design that Helsinki now has a designated Design District - five or six blocks straddling Mannerheimintie, the main boulevard. The area also encompasses the Design Museum and Museum of Finnish Architecture, and it is a good place to start exploring Helsinki, a city easily navigated on foot or by bicycle.
As a base you could do worse than the revamped Hotel Klaus K on elegant Bulevardi, now a hotspot with three sleek restaurants and the Ahjo nightclub. From the 'Kurki', slip round the corner to Uudenmaankatu, Helsinki's most happening street.
Do you collect glass? Finnish littala glassware is a global brand, but do check out no. 2 and the work of the Nuutajärvi Glass Village at Grayscale Helsinki. Couture? No. 15 is the HQ of IVANAHelsinki, a hip fashion label of Paola Suhonen, whom last year became the first Finn to show at Paris fashion week. Peckish? Step across the road to the bistro Rafla, at no. 9 - great for a quick bite while eyeballing Helsinki's trendies.
Then, go one block to Design Forum Finland at Erottajankatu 7 and treat yourself to a brilliant desk lamp by young lighting designer Elina Järvinen, or something interesting by the sister couturier duo of Päivi and Jaana Haaksiluoto. Of course, Artek, the famous design house selling Aalto furniture, must also be on your itinerary.
Aalto is to Helsinki what Gaudí is to Barcelona, and his Finlandia concert hall, completed in 1971, is a modernist masterpiece in a city that comfortably encompasses modernism, art nouveau, and neo-classicism. The city's compact size emphasizes these differences in style, ranging from Carl Ludvig Engel's 19th-century, neo-classical waterfront and Senate Square to Saarinen's magnificent train station (1919), with its pairs of forbidding stone giants flanking the entrance.
In striking contrast is the Kiasma Museum of Contemporary Art (1998), with its shining walls of curving aluminum. Different again is the rock church of Temppeliaukio (1969), hewn from solid rock, whose perfect acoustics have made it a major concert venue.
Helsinki is not all culture, bars, and shopping, however. It's also about nature, especially water. The geography, on a Baltic peninsula surrounded by islands, is magnificent, with abundant parks and a bustling harbor. It's ideal for boating, walking and cycling. It's worth investing €33 in a 24-hour Helsinki Card, a transport ticket that will get you into 5o attractions.
It costs nothing, however, to stroll through Kaivopuisto Park, Helsinki's oldest, or ride a green 'citybike' (€2 returnable deposit) to the beach at Hietaranta, one of several in the city. For a good day trip, take the ferry to Suomenlinna, Helsinki's ancient sea fortress, or ride horses and swim in the lake at the Nuuksio National Park.
Fish is at the heart of Finnish cuisine and food lovers should make their way to the kauppatori, the market square near the harbour, for salmon and whitefish. The Russo-Finnish restaurant Bellevue does great herring in mustard and sour cream. Carnivores looking for authenticity at reasonable prices should check out the HelsinkiMenu, a scheme promoting restaurants specializing in Finnish dishes.
More proof of this capital of cool' is to be found at the new Korjaamo Culture Factory, where photographer Raoul Grünstein has transformed a former train-repair shop into a 24/7 arts centre, with a club that showcases rising Finnish comics. Yes, Finns like to laugh as well as tango.