Turku Times 1/2024

220, 221 or 300

Take a bussline: and head to Myllynkatu 1, 21280 Raisio.

Opening hours: Mon–Sat 10 AM–08 PM Sun 11 AM–07 PM

Hello you miraculous person, you seem to be new here, so a hearty welcome.

Let me introduce myself.

I am Tower of Shopping Centre Mylly; attraction and trend setter for the most miraculous shopping centre in the world. In Raisio.

Mylly is the largest shopping centre in the southwest of Finland hosting more than 150 shops, restaurants and services only a 15-minute drive from the heart of Turku. And when you see me, you are not far away.

I hope to see you soon.

With love, Tower of Shopping Centre Mylly

www.kauppakeskusmylly.fi

The

hottest Neapolitan

pizzas in Turku and much more

The Old Market Hall restaurants offer tastes from around the world – and the best of local produce.

Open Monday to Saturday at Eerikinkatu 16. Warmly welcome.

Open Monday to Friday 8-18 and Saturday 8-16. Address: Eerikinkatu 16.

The (b)oldest city in Finland!

I am pleased to welcome you to Turku - the oldest and boldest city in Finland.

A historic, yet innovative city

History is ever present in Turku. Yet new things are built in our city all the time. Our new, great Market Square is a good example of this. In addition to the market trade and local and fresh products, it also provides a relaxed venue for events and meetings in the heart of the city.

As a city, Turku is also an internationally recognised pioneer in climate matters. Our ambitious goal is to be a carbon-positive city in 2029 when our city will celebrate its 800th anniversary. We will also enhance biodiversity and promote the circular economy with the aim of being a resource-wise and waste-free city by 2040.

Turku – a city of students and excellence

With a total of six universities and universities of applied sciences and their about 40,000 students, our city is guaranteed to be brimming with energy, intelligence, creativity and the ability to renew. All our universities are international. The unique status of Åbo Akademi, the only Swedish-speaking university in Finland, is a significant part of the identity of our bilingual city.

The success of Turku is also guaranteed by the long-term, regional cooperation between higher education institutions, companies and the city. This cooperation provides a strong starting point for business and innovation. We are an internationally renowned centre of expertise in fields such as bioeconomy, circular economy, pharmaceutical development and the maritime industry. As an international city of science and culture, we often serve as the stage for international congresses and encounters of experts in different fields.

Culture for all senses

Those interested in culture can visit plenty of interesting events in our city, such as concerts, theatre, fairs, art exhibitions and festivals all year round. We call our riverbank the Cultural Riverside because you

can find all forms of culture along the river. The city is an experience centre throughout the year.

Turku is also known for its high-quality and versatile food and café culture. A lunch made with local producers’ fresh ingredients or a Michelin-level dinner – our city has much to offer! The milieus in our eating and drinking places are also interesting – in Turku, you can eat on a riverboat, in a former prison or admire the city from a bird's-eye view from one of the city's many roof terraces. You should also visit a traditional market hall to taste local delicacies and specialities, at least the piispanmunkki doughnut!

A city where nature is always present

River Aurajoki is the heart and soul of Turku. That is why you can get to know Turku easily by walking or cycling along the riverbank. The path from the Cathedral to Turku Castle is teeming with history and life. Along the river, you can find beautiful landscapes, museums and art, as well as cosy and high-quality cafés and restaurants where you take a break from walking.

The sea and nature are also an integral part of Turku. You could say that this is the capital city of the world’s most beautiful archipelago. You can sense this maritime atmosphere already a few kilometres away from the city centre on Ruissalo Island, by the enchanting oak forests, pristine beaches, and winding nature trails.

AS A city, Turku is an attractive combination of history, modern urban culture, and maritime experiences. For me, however, Turku is above all a matter of heart. I hope it conquers your heart during your visit and makes you come back to our city again and again.

Minna Arve mAyor of turku

➊ Turku Cathedral

Tuomiokirkontori 1, Turku

Open daily 9–18 (5 Jun – 28 Aug, guide tour on Wednesdays at 2 pm)

Summer Café 11 am – 5 pm (18 May – 18 Aug)

Cathedral Museum (2/1 €)

➌ St Michael’s Church

Mon–Fri 11 am – 6 pm, Sat–Sun 11 am – 2 pm (3 Jun – 4 Aug, except 22 Jun)

Guides and summer cafe (3 Jun – 2 Aug)

(Opening hours until 3 Jun and after 7 Aug:

Wed–Fri 11 am – 5 pm, Sat–Sun 11 am – 2 pm)

➍ Martin’s Church

Huovinkatu, Turku

Open for visitors during the Tall Ships Race

Thu–Sun 18 – 21 July 12 noon – 6 pm

➎ St Catherine’s Church

Kirkkotie 46, Turku

Opening hours, please contact the Church Sexton, tel. +358 40 3417 130

➏ Kuusisto Church

Linnarauniontie 157, Kaarina Opening hours, please contact the Church Sexton, tel. +358 40 3417 177

Welcome to visit Turku and Kaarina Churches EXPERIENCE UNIQUE ATMOSPHERE, CULTURAL HISTORY AND ARCHITECTURE

Our roadside churches cover a timeline from the year 1300 to the 20th century. Wherever you go, you will have more than 700 years of prayer, faith and trust in God for company.

➋ St Mary’s Chruch

Maunu Tavastin katu 2, Turku

Mon–Fri 12 noon – 6 pm (3 Jun – 8 Aug, except 21 Jun) Guide available

Layout and pictures: Erkki Kiiski Original photos: Timo Jakonen

Photo: Jussi Vierimaa

Midsummer: A night of magic

There is one striking commonality in the old Finnish Midsummer magic rituals: everything must be done naked.

Midsummer, which falls on June 21–23 this year, is one of the most, if not the most, beloved celebrations of the year for Finns. On Midsummer, we celebrate the longest day of the year, when the sun doesn’t set at all. It’s called the nightless night, and it has its own very special magic.

On Midsummer, every Finn is willing to do whatever it takes to escape to their summer cottage. The cities empty out, and it was even more extreme in the old days – nowadays the shops at least stay open. But even today, the cities are remarkably quiet on Midsummer Day,

and even in Helsinki, you can walk down the middle of the street without worrying about being hit by a car.

If you hate people and you want to be alone, Finland is exactly the place to be during Midsummer!

Evil spirits begone!

Since the sun never sets, Midsummer Night is associated with strange magic and magical rites. For example, Finns light bonfires on Midsummer. We’re talking proper, impressive bonfires along the shore in front of practically every summer cottage – though the authorities usually forbid it, citing the risk of forest fires. Often they are lit regardless.

Originally, the purpose of the Midsummer bonfire was to ward off evil spirits. Nowadays, people mostly gather around them to indulge in a different kind of spirits.

Written by roope Lipasti transLated by Christina saarinen

Midsummer dances are also traditional, gathering people together in some remote village to celebrate. A Midsummer sauna is self-evident. The Finnish flag plays a role, being hoisted on the flagpoles at 6 p.m. on Midsummer Eve. In Swedish-speaking areas in particular, a Midsummer pole is erected: crossbeams are attached to a tall, flagpole-like post and decorated with flowers and greenery. Unlike in the movie “Midsommar”, however, no one ends up sacrificed.

Seeking a spouse

Midsummer, like many other festivals of the year, was originally a celebration related to ancient beliefs and light that has since been replaced by Christianity: Midsummer now celebrates the birthday of John the Baptist, hence its Finnish name, Juhannus.

So it’s no wonder that many kinds of spirits are said to be active on Midsummer Night, and that it’s also particularly auspicious for magic. The biggest objective of Midsummer magic by far is to improve one’s marital fortunes and hopefully see one’s future spouse in advance. (That’s wise, so you know to run away when the big moment draws near.)

For some strange reason, the magic also often requires that young maidens parade around in various places without clothes. Old-time wishful thinking, no doubt.

Nonetheless, the most well-known Midsummer magic is chaste: if you collect seven different kinds of flowers on Midsummer Night and place them under your pillow, you will see your future spouse in your dreams. An alternative outcome is hay fever.

Naked in a field

If you’re especially eager to get out of your clothes, Midsummer Eve is a splendid opportunity. For example, if you look into a well,

pond or spring on Midsummer Night – while naked – you will see your future spouse.

It’s especially lucky for finding a spouse if on Midsummer Night you roll around naked in a dewy meadow. You might want to warn the neighbors in advance so they don’t call the police on you.

Every Finn knows the Midsummer magic that says that if you run naked from the sauna along the ditches of a rye field, you’ll find your groom at the ninth ditch. Don’t worry about the first eight. Of course, finding a rye field can be challenging these days.

Fortunately, other fields are also of use: if you circle a triangular field naked three times on Midsummer Night, you’ll come across your future life partner on the third lap. What a wonderful first meeting!

Another way to see your future spouse, and without so much physical effort, is by entering a rapid on Midsummer Eve and sitting on a rock in the water completely naked except for a straw belt. In Finland, the rapids are always full of shivering maidens during Midsummer, you see.

But why bother going the extra mile: if on Midsummer Night a girl sweeps the floor of her bedroom stark naked, with just a red string around her waist, the ghost of her fiancé will come to greet her. A bit creepy, admittedly.

Modern timeS hAve contributed to Midsummer magic as well. For the sake of equality, this magic is for the men: If on Midsummer, you spend three days at the cottage fall-down drunk, run pantless to the neighbor’s cottage looking to score, and on the way back stop to piss on the bonfire and fall in, then in the evening when you go to sleep, you can see, on the other side of the bed, your very-soon-to-be ex-wife. s

Turku Castle

The stately Turku Castle has guarded the mouth of the Aura River since the late 13th century. The tall granite walls conceal unique moments from history within them. Over the course of its history, the castle has been defended and besieged, its governors changed and during Duke John’s era, the castle became a stage for court life. The medieval rooms of the keep and the ballrooms built by Duke John allow visitors to experience the splendour and bleakness of times past.

Exhibition The Princess’s Journey will whisk you into the world of Princess Catherine Jagiellon. It is an action-filled adventure that plays out like a fairy tale. Through stories and activities, children get to the learn about the many events in Catherine Jagiellon’s life and her upbringing as a princess.

Guided Tours turku.fi/en/turkucastle

Opening Hours Tue–Sun 10am–6pm /

3 June–1 Sep Mon–Sun 10am–6pm

Linnankatu 80, tel. +358 2262 0300 | turunlinna@turku.fi

Luostarinmäki

Pharmacy Museum and the Qwensel House

The Qwensel House is the oldest remaining wooden building by the river Aura in Turku, featuring a bourgeois home from the 18th century and a pharmacy from the 19th century.

The Pharmacy Museum’s storefront houses the oldest remaining pharmacy interior in Finland, dating back to 1858. The museum also includes workrooms for the self-sufficient pharmacy: the materials room, two laboratories and an herb room. In the Qwensel House, you can explore this period in Turku and the life of the family of Qwensel’s most famous resident, Joseph Pipping, the father of Finnish surgery. The interior is decorated in the Rococo and Gustavian styles of the late 18th century.

During summer the courtyard comes to life and the kids are welcome to play pharmacist and customer in the children’s pharmacy. The quaint Cafe Qwensel offers sweet and savoury delights as well as homemade, 18th century style beverages.

Guided Tours turku.fi/en/pharmacymuseum

Opening Hours Tue–Sun 10am–6pm /

3 June–1 Sep Mon–Sun 10am–6pm

Läntinen Rantakatu 13b, tel. +358 2262 0280 | apteekkimuseo@turku.fi

The Luostarinmäki museum quarter is the only district of wooden houses that survived the Great Fire of Turku in 1827. The more than 200-year-old buildings stand on their original sites, and the alleys, yards, and homes of the block form a unique environment in the middle of the city.

Dive into Luostarinmäki’s colourful history from the perspective of people that used to live here. You will find the stories of schoolchildren and midwives, musicians and circus performers. In Kids’ Luostarinmäki you can get to know history by doing and experimenting yourself. Play in the cottage, the Little Watchmaker’s Shop, and the Little Huckster’s Shop. Activity spots will help you learn more in a fun way about life and history in the old days.

Guided Tours turku.fi/en/luostarinmaki

Opening Hours 4 May–2 June Tue–Sun 9am–5pm / 3 June–11 Aug Mon–Sun 10am–6pm / 12 Aug–15 Sep Tue–Sun 9am–5pm Vartiovuorenkatu 2, tel. +358 2262 0350 | luostarinmaki@turku.fi

The Biological Museum

Located in a beautiful Art Nouveau building dating back to 1907, the Biological Museum presents Finnish flora and fauna all the way from the Turku archipelago to the fells of Lapland. You can take a peek at the outer archipelago in spring, or wonder at the diversity of species in the Ruissalo grove, for example.

The museum is a great experience for all those interested in nature. It is especially popular with children and fami-lies. In addition to natural landscapes, the museum has temporary exhibitions that showcase topical matters and phenomena related to animals and nature.

Opening Hours 22 May–1 Sep Mon–Sun 10am–6pm / 2 Sep–30 Dec Tue–Sun 9am–5pm Neitsytpolku 1, tel. +358 2262 0340 | biologinenmuseo@turku.fi

See

feel real ships, exhibits and stories! From historic tall ships to intricate scale models From

Maritime Museum to rugged warships Linnankatu 72 20100 Turku The museum ships and exhibitions are open daily from June 3rd to August 18th, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. www.forum-marinum.fi

Murder in Iceland and Finland

Satu Rämö’s Hildur series has captured the hearts of Finns.

Written by

I found Iceland appealing from the beginning. It’s incredibly beautiful there - and the weather is always terrible.

Acouple of years ago, an interesting new acquaintance came to the attention of Finnish detective-novel fans: an Icelandic police officer named Hildur, who solves crimes in the rugged landscapes of her homeland. The force behind Hildur is a Finn, however: Satu Rämö, who has lived with her husband on the island of fairy tales since 2008.

Readers have now followed Hildur’s story across three books, which have been an exceptional success. Of the three top bestselling Finnish books of 2023, three were by Satu Rämö! Hildur’s appeal has also been recognized abroad: the translation rights to the books have been sold into many languages, and of course a TV series is also in the works.

The author herself is a little embarrassed by the success because Hildur was her first work of fiction, though she has been writing her entire life:

“I’ve always thought that the coolest thing you can do in life is write. For me, writing is a way of organizing the chaos inside my head into the form of text. I had previously done several nonfiction books and worked as a journalist. But the big question was, can I write fiction? There was only one way to find out, by giving it a try.”

The first Hildur book will be published in Icelandic this fall:

“It’s exciting to find out what Icelanders think about it. Will they read it as some foreigner writing about their country, and does she even know anything about it? Or will they just read it like a crime novel?”

Enthralled by Iceland

Rämö has an Icelandic husband, but it’s not the usual following-one’s-spouse-abroad story:

“I fell in love with Iceland first and only met my husband later. I think it was a good thing, too. This way, you don’t feel like you’ve been half-forced to follow after someone else. I found Iceland appealing from the beginning. It’s incredibly beautiful there – and the weather is always terrible. I met my husband the classic way, in a bar, on a trip in 2006, and when we met, I thought to myself that if we started dating seriously, it would be a good excuse to move there.”

And they’re still on that road, although last year the family spent a long stretch in Lapland, in Äkäslompolo:

“I love winter, and we go to Lapland every year for downhill and cross-country skiing because Iceland doesn’t have winter like in Finland. We also hoped that our kids would learn to write Finnish properly – they do speak it, but writing requires a little more work. So we decided to spend time in Finland so they can go to school here. And while we were at it, I got the idea that we could go to a place where you can ski. It was just a visit, though. Our home is in Iceland.”

roope Lipasti transLated by Christina saarinen

photos by björgvin hiLmarsson

Marketing and books

Rämö is a typical writer in the sense that up until now, she has worked other jobs in order to be able to write. In terms of her education, however, she is an exception: Rämö has graduated from business school. She believes it has been useful in her work as a writer:

“When the story is in your head and you need to get it out onto paper, what they teach at business school will at least help you manage your own work. I mean, that you need to have a plan, and carry it out step by step, and so on – it’s a bit of an engineer’s approach to things, which suits me.”

Rämö’s specialization was in marketing:

“A lot of people in business school thought that marketing is a bit silly, but it really isn’t! It’s psychology, and you also learn how people behave. I still do work in digital marketing.”

A shared experience of nature

I’ve always thought that the coolest thing you can do in life is write.

Iceland is a special country in many ways, but it also has something in common with Finland:

“The allure of Iceland is not just the nature but also that it’s so sparsely populated. You can be alone there: That is my mountain, and that is my waterfall. In Finland, you might find something similar on the remote islands of the outer archipelago, maybe somewhere out by Åland. When we visited Utö, Finland’s southernmost inhabited island, my kid said ‘Mom, it’s kind of like Iceland here.’ Maybe it’s the feeling that nature is big and I am small. It’s probably what tourists are looking for, too. And, of course, it’s similar to Iceland in Lapland,” Rämö says.

Fifteen years of Icelandic living has also taught her to see the good things in her native country:

“From the perspective of Iceland, Finland looks wonderful! Everything here always works. Well, when you actually live in Finland, you realize it’s not quite true. But from the outside, it really seems that way: recycling works, healthcare works, the trains are running, there are libraries in every village, you don’t have to own a car. The services in Iceland aren’t as good because there are so few people.”

Finns are more methodical

There are also personality differences between Iceland and Finland: “People live much more strongly in the moment there than in Finland. In Finland, people always make proper plans, and everyone knows how to fall into two straight lines and march smoothly forward, but in Iceland everyone does their own thing and they spontaneously try all kinds of things. There’s a lack of continuity and planning,” Rämö says.

Her theory is that it is due to nature: “In Finland, you aren’t bothered by volcanoes or winds that are so dangerous that it’s forbidden to go outside. So the moment you’re able to do anything in Iceland, you do it to the fullest. Personally, I find it a bit annoying, since I’m such a big planner. Fortunately, my work is mostly in Finland, so I don’t have to deal with Icelanders!”

A small amount of Icelandic exuberance, however, is a good thing: “It’s something Finns could maybe learn from. The courage to do things you haven’t done before. For example, when I was still wondering whether I would be able to write fiction, my husband immediately said, try it and you’ll find out.”

Moonlighting with a knitting book

Alongside the Hildur novels, Rämö has also found time to write a small knitting book, Siggan ja Satun islantilaiset villapaidat (Sigga ja Satu’s Icelandic sweaters). But Rämö vehemently denies being a good knitter:

“In Hildur, the second main character, a man, knits sweaters as a hobby, so I had to find out how it’s done. I tried to learn from YouTube videos at my office. Sigga happened to be my officemate and wondered what I was doing. I explained that I needed to learn how to knit for my book. She said it was the most absurd reason she had ever heard, but she promised to teach me.”

It turned out that Sigga was a professional in the field. And that’s not all: she said she had been dreaming of writing a book and had all kinds of sweater designs ready, but she didn’t have the skills to write it. So she asked Satu.

“I really didn’t have time for it, but on the other hand, she had taught me to knit, so I owed her. She had the instructions ready, but I had to dig up stories for the patterns and do the writing. It turned out to be a really nice book. There are slightly easier patterns that even I could make, and then there are more difficult ones. Knitting really is very relaxing. The repetition, repetition, repetition – while you’re doing it, all kinds of things come to mind,” Rämö says.

Things like ideas for new novels?

Yes, indeed:

“From the beginning, I had three stories in mind for Hildur, but as it often goes, the story started to grow. I didn’t have time to deal with this or that, and that other thing could also be interesting, and so on. So the fourth book, Rakel, will come out in the fall. Maybe it’s a little like what my grandmother used to say when she really didn’t feel up to going for a walk: if she went anyway, it would give her energy, and she would manage better next time. Doing the thing doesn’t take away your energy, it adds to it. In the same way, the stories feed each other.” s

The ultimate shopping destination in Turku center awaits you!

Opening hours:

Mon–Fri 10 am–8 pm Sat 10 am–7 pm Sun 12 am–6 pm

Yliopistonkatu 20, 20100 Turku

Tracking down the Ice Age

Written by roope Lipasti

transLated by Christina saarinen

Finland’s surface area is 75 percent forest. The forests are an endless treasure trove, where you can even see signs of the Ice Age.

Finns are often considered a somewhat cold people. Maybe one reason for that is that Finland was only finally freed from the clutches of a huge ice mass around 10,000 years ago. It takes a while to thaw out after that, especially since 20,000 years ago, there was a glacier up to 2.5 kilometers thick covering Finland.

Traces of that massive chunk of ice can still be seen in the Finnish landscape. One thing that Finnish forests are especially good for – besides getting lost – is looking for signs of the Ice Age. The forests, including Finland’s urban forests, are full of them. Let’s head to the forest, then!

There are plenty of options for where to go – after all, Finland is Europe’s most-forested country relative to surface area. Even better, Finland has an arrangement called “Everyman’s Rights,” which means that the forests are public, in the sense that everyone is free to visit them to enjoy nature

and the fresh air, as well as to forage for berries or mushrooms.

The Ice Age of a Thousand Lakes

A 2.5-kilometer-thick piece of ice weighs quite a lot, and it pressed a dimple into the earth’s surface, as if it were a football with too little air. Around Turku, for example, the land sank 800 meters, although most of it quickly rebounded once the ice melted. Nonetheless, the land on the west coast of Finland is still rising half a meter every hundred years.

The most visible signs of the Ice Age in Finland are the country’s thousands of lakes. They number around 168,000 in total, depending on how you count. Many of them were born when the ice pressed a hole in the ground, which then filled with meltwater.

Such large bodies of water as Lake Päijänne and Lake Saimaa originated in the Ice Age, for example. The shallow lakes near the coast are much younger.

Another massive relic of the Ice Age in the Finnish landscape are eskers, long ridges of sediment that formed under glaciers, the largest being Salpausselkä in southern Finland (or actually the Salpauselkäs – there are three of them). Smaller sandy eskers are scattered around Finland. When driving almost anywhere in the country, you’ll come across large sand pits where sand has been excavated for the construction industry.

When the ice melted at the end of the Ice Age, large, swift rivers flowed inside it. The rivers carried sediment and gravel as they flowed, forming eskers. The eskers are old riverbeds.

From Kusikivi to Kummakivi

One sign of the Ice Age you’ll find everywhere is the large boulders called glacial erratics. Actually, all the stones dotting the forests are from the Ice Age, but the erratics are the most impressive. When the ice began to melt, its power was tremendous. Glaciers and water broke the bedrock and snatched up large stones the size of houses; they ended up in the strangest places.

Finland’s largest glacial erratic can be found in the sea off the coast near Turku. Its name is Kukkarokivi, and according to the story, it was thrown there by an angry giant. The stone is the size of a large detached house.

Many stone curiosities can be found in Finland, such as huge glacial erratics that are so acrobatically arranged that if you push them, they will sway, but always return to their place.

One beautiful example is the Kummakivi, located in Ruokolahti, which is a car-sized boulder that rests atop another rock, but with such a small point of contact that it almost seems to float.

Glacial erratics have also made good boundary markers through the ages because they are impossible to move. Another curiosity perhaps worth mentioning is the Kusikivi, or “Peeing Stone,” in Ostrobothnia, which according to the locals, is an important attraction at a certain road crossing. The stone is not very big, but reportedly, the king of Sweden once ducked behind it to do his business.

A field plowed by a devil

One of the most extraordinary signs of the Ice Age are so-called devil’s fields. They are areas where the ground is completely covered with large stones. In the old days, people didn’t know what they were, so

Finland’s Everyman’s Rights allow you to…

• walk, ski, cycle and swim in nature, as long as you’re not in someone’s yard or in cultivated fields, for example

• stay temporarily (for example, in a tent) in any area you are allowed to move through

• pick berries and mushrooms, and plants that are not protected by conservation law

• fish with line and rod and ice fish

• travel over ice and on waterways.

Everyman’s Rights do not allow you to…

• cause harm to others, disturb anyone’s home, or litter or damage the environment

• disturb animals or their nests

• collect moss, lichen, soil or wood

• drive a motor vehicle off-road without the landowner’s permission

• fish by any method other than line and rod

it was thought that some malicious being had made them. The fields were so rocky that only a devil could have plowed them.

In reality, the devil’s fields are old sea beds, and the rocks were carried by the waves. The stones remained where they were when the earth’s surface rose and the sea receded.

Also in the category of features formed by water are “giant’s kettles,” circular holes in the bedrock that can be meters deep and are sometimes filled with water. They can be small enough that not even a child could bathe in them, or so large that you could easily go for a swim.

They were created when the movement of the ice caused stones to rub against the bedrock and slowly grind a hole in it, almost as if the stones were drill bits. Giant’s kettles aren’t terribly rare, either; even in Helsinki, you can find a dozen.

The Finnish name for giant’s kettles, hiidenkirnu, contains the word hiisi, which once referred to a sacred site but later came to mean a malevolent being.

On the coASt, the most visible evidence of the Ice Age can be seen in the formations called roches moutonnées: the smooth, rounded mounds of exposed bedrock. They rock surfaces are so smooth that it almost seems as if someone has polished them. And in a way, that’s exactly what happened: ice and water polished the rocks.

As it melted, the ice slid across Finland from northwest to southeast, as can often be seen by the direction of the grooves on the polished surfaces of the rock. s

A rocky field, a so called devil's field, in the Kirnuvaara hill in the Maksniemi village in Finland.

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19 ScAndic plAzA turku

Yliopistonkatu 29, 20100 Turku

Tel. +358 30 030 8421

www.scandichotels.fi

20 Solo SokoS hotel

turun SeurAhuone

Eerikinkatu 23, 20100 Turku

Tel. +358 10 786 4000

www.sokoshotels.fi

21 tuure bed And breAkfASt

Tuureporinkatu 17, 20100 Turku

Tel. +358 2 233 0230

www.tuure.fi

Turku timeline

1229

The Pope orders the bishopric to be moved from Nousiainen to the new city of Turku. By the river Aura in Koroinen, there is a white memorial cross standing in the place where the Bishop’s little castle once was. It is a nice place to visit, as is the entire riverbank, where one can walk or go jogging.

1300

The Turku cathedral is inaugurated. It is the most beautiful cathedral in Finland. Not least because it is also the only proper cathedral in Finland.

1308

The first documented mention of the Turku Castle, although the construction probably began as early as the 1280s. Builders in Turku were in no hurry, as the castle wasn’t completed until 1588. The most magnificent Renaissance period in the history of Finland was seen in Turku castle during the reign of Catharina Jagiellon and Duke John (later king John III) 1562–1563.

1414

The first bridge over river Aura is built. It was called The Pennybridge.

1500

Turku is not quite a Hanseatic city, but almost. It is one of the major cities in Sweden and its international trade is significant.

1543

Mikael Agricola, the father of written Finnish, publishes his first book. It is also a milestone of Protestantism in Finland.

1634

The first map of Turku is published, and for a good reason, too: there were already 6,000 habitants, so the city was huge!

1640

The University of Turku is established. Nowadays, Turku is still a renowned city of higher education with more than 40,000 students studying at six universities.

1642

Finlands first printing house is established in Turku. It prints books, among them the thesis Aboa Vetus et Nova by Mr Daniel Juslenius (1676–1752), in which he studies the birth of Turku. His conclusion was that the people in Turku are decendants of Jaafet, the third son of Noah.

1812

Sweden loses Finland to Russia in 1809, and in 1812 Helsinki is declared as the new capital – something that still slightly upsets people in Turku.

1827

Turku burns down and almost the whole city must be built again, which is the reason why Turku doesn’t have a medieval centre anymore.

1900

The first Christmas tree illuminated with electric lamps is erected in front of the Cathedral. The tradition became regular in the 1930s.

1917

Finland declares independence.

1922

The University of Turku is established again, since the original Academy was moved to Helsinki after the great fire in 1827. Åbo Akademi University, the only university in Finland with Swedish as official language, was founded in 1918. (Åbo is the name of Turku in Swedish.)

1939–1945

Finland is at war with Russia. Turku suffers great damage during the bombings, among other buildings the castle is partly burned.

1956, 1976, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2010. TPS, the biggest ice-hockey club in Turku, wins the Finnish championship.

1960–1980

Turku suffers from the so called “Turku sickness” – meaning that many beautiful old buildings were demolished in order to be replaced with modern blockhouses.

2011

Turku is the European Capital of Culture.

2024

Turku is the sixth largest city in Finland with 202,000 inhabitants. It also is one of the nicest cities and most popular holiday destinations in Finland, with its historical attractions and magnificent archipelago. s

Written by roope Lipasti

KIMITO

SAGALUND

MUSEUM & CHILDRENS

CULTURAL CENTER

DALSBRUK IRONWORKS MUSEUM

BJÖRKBODA LOCKMUSEUM

www.sagalund .fi

www.bruksmuseum.fi

www.lasmuseum.fi

Naantali Museum

In the heart of the Old Town

Our museum explores the history of the Brigittine convent, as well as life and crafts in Naantali. Temporary exhibition for 2024 presents Kultaranta, the summer residence of the Finnish presidents.

Opening hours during summer 15.5.–31.8. 11.00am–18.00pm, Tue–Fri / Closed on Friday 21 June

Naantali Museum accepts Museum Card

Mannerheiminkatu 21 | tel. +358 (0)2 435 2727 museo@naantali.fi | www.naantali.fi/museo (in Finnish)

SOUVENIRS FROM TURKU. TURKU-AIHEISET TUOTTEET.

TUE-FRI, TI-PE 11-17 SAT-LA 11-15

Vanha Suurtori 3, Brinkkalan talo turkuseura.fi/foripuoti

Craft Love in Turku old town

Vanha Suurtori 3 Turku

Luostarinmäki

- A unique piece of Nordic heritage

The outdoor museum Luostarinmäki nearTurku city centre is a remarkable neighbourhood, where the over 200-year-old wooden houses are still standing on their original building site. It survived the 1827 Great Fire of Turku, which is considered the most destructive urban fire in Nordic history. Luostarinmäki tells its visitors stories about life in the area and its various inhabitants, representing unique wood-building heritage. In 2024, the museum is nominated for both European Museum of the Year and Finnish Museum of the Year Award.

Written by anniina Lehtokari

Home on the outskirts of the city

Luostarinmäki is located on Vartiovuori, one of Turku’s seven hills. The first residents arrived there in the 1770s. Affordable land on the edge of the city gave many rural people who came to the city for work an opportunity to own a patch of land and a house. The first houses were built on the lower slope of the hill, where the ground was flatter and easier to build on. Many of the new inhabitants brought their old log houses with them from their former place of residence and rebuilt them on on their new plots. The houses could be extended when needed for the growing family as well as for tenants. Eventually, each plot was bordered by residential and outbuildings forming an inner courtyard, and when the gates were closed, the courtyard became a sheltered little oasis surrounded by buildings.

For the first hundred years, the inhabitants of Luostarinmäki led a rural self-sufficient lifestyle. Livestock such as goats, sheep, chickens, pigs and even cows were kept. Cabbage, turnips and other useful plants were grown in small vegetable patches in the courtyard, and geraniums, hot water plants and balsams on windowsills for decorative purposes. Bread was home-baked in a large baking oven found in every house, and food was stored in a warehouse in the courtyard.

Luostarinmäki served as a residential area for more than 160 years. According to records, the very first residents included a cobbler, seamen, plank carriers, packers, guards and their families. In the 1800s, numerous joiners also moved to the quarter. Their trade made it easy to build their own house. For extra income, the house owners also built rooms for tenants.

The inhabitants of Luostarinmäki had all kinds of backgrounds and professions, from circus acrobats and orchestra musicians to vagrants and innkeepers. The owners of the houses and especially their tenants changed frequently. Families with several children lived in even the smallest spaces. Although the quarter was mostly populated by people of modest means, there were also a few wealthier households. By the beginning of the 20th century, majority of the residents were single women and elderly tenants. After the area was converted into a museum, some tenants remained, and there are still a few apartments in private use in the museum area.

Saved from the largest urban fire in Nordic history

On 4th of September in 1827, at nine o’clock in the evening, a fire broke out on the other side of Aurajoki river, on Aninkaistenmäki hill. The area was tightly packed with wooden houses, whose birch bark and peat roofs were dry from the summer, making them highly flammable. A strong wind blew sparks and embers, and soon the entire city was in flames. The fire lasted nearly 24 hours and destroyed three quarters of the city. Luostarinmäki, protected by Vartiovuori, was saved from destruction, and hundreds of now homeless citizens went there to look for a roof over their heads. After the fire, the population of Luostarinmäki nearly doubled.

Architect C. L. Engel drafted a new city plan for Turku. Following the ideals of neoclassicism, the grid-based plan emphasized fire safety: the streets were wider and the quarters more open. This meant that the densely built houses of Luostarinmäki would be condemned. However, the demolition plans were shelved in favour of rebuilding other areas of Turku, and life on Luostarinmäki continued in the middle of the growing city. At the same time, there was a discussion about the significance of the area as an embodiment of the cityscape and life in Turku before the fire. After decades of debate for and against, a decision was made in 1937 to turn Luostarinmäki into an open-air museum presenting handicraft professions.

From a residential area to a museum

With industrialization, artisan workshops began to disappear from the cityscape and the old professions became a thing of the past. A place was needed where the workshops of old craft trades would be preserved, so that the history of Turku as a centre of urban handicrafts could be told. However, the purpose of the museum was not only to preserve craft professions, but also to keep them alive with the help of real artisans.

When the museum was founded, the buildings in the area were in the same condition as the residents had left them when they moved out in the 1930s. For example, a large part of the original baking ovens had been replaced with newer stoves and the walls were covered with several layers of wallpaper. The interiors of the buildings were restored to match the originals, and master artisans helped build the museum's workshops by donating workshop ensembles with tools. The workshops are still operated by various handicraft professionals in the summer.

A living and reforming museum

In 2022, Luostarinmäki was reformed after several years of project. The aim was to create an outdoor museum of the 2020s that combines old traditions and new approaches. The various destinies and life stories

of the Luostarinmäki residents have gained more emphasis, as the approachable and touching stories of people of different ages and backgrounds shed light on the life of the area, connecting it with the events of the city and the world. The museum offers visitors dozens of stories to read or listen to through an audio guide.

In the new themed exhibitions, museum visitors can get to know the building tradition of the area, the families living and working in the quarter during the museum activities, the seamen of Luostarinmäki and the history of the innkeepers. With the reform, the children got their own miniature Luostarinmäki, where they can explore the life and history of the area in the 19th century through play and various task points.

The purpose of the reform is also to offer museum visitors new ways to experience the exhibition, for example information found through the touch screen and by exploring and touching. In addition to this, sounds and scents amplify the museum experience in the already multisensory environment. The staff is dressed according to the era, and their conversations with museum visitors and the daily chores and crafts they perform in the homes of Luostarinmäki really bring history to life.

As part of the reform, Luostarinmäki is now also available digitally. The 3D model of Turku in 1827 is a virtual reconstruction of the area and the surrounding city just moments before the Great Fire. It shows what the quarter was like in its early days and how its surroundings have changed over time. The Turku 1827 city model can be found at digimuseo.fi/en.

Nominated for two major museum awards

Luostarinmäki is one of the finalists in the 2024 EMYA European Museum of the Year Award competition, which is a top-level contest for European museums that have undergone significant reformation or are less than three years old. Luostarinmäki also competes for the national title of Museum of the Year in Finland (Vuoden museo 2024 by Finnish Museum Association and ICOM). Both competitions strive to acknowledge quality, excellence, and innovative approaches in the museum industry. s

WELCOME TO LUOSTARINMÄKI!

Opening hours

4 May – 2 June Tue–Sun 9am–5pm

3 June – 11 Aug Mon–Sun 10am–6pm

12 Aug–15 Sep Tue–Sun 9am–5pm, and during winter season 30 Nov – 30 Dec Tue–Sun 9am–5pm. For exceptions to opening hours, please check turku.fi/en/luostarinmaki.

Admission fees

adults 10 € / children (7–15 years) 4 € students, pensioners, unemployed, conscripts 5 € / family ticket 24 €

The Museum shop sells books, postcards and high-quality handicrafts, from traditional pottery and fur slippers to beautiful silver jewellery. The 19th century general store’s product range includes popular candies packed in paper cones. turku.fi/en/luostarinmaki

SEE ON MAP (PAGE 21).

Lifestyle store in Turku center. We have many traditional quality brands for men and women.

Come and visit our shop at the center of Turku

Myymme laadukkaita klassikkomerkkien vaatteita.

Tervetuloa tutustumaan myymäläämme kävelykadulla.

Tampere-Helsinki-Turku

Yliopistonkatu 24 050-3734583

Intian Helmi brings you the finest Indian cuisine With over 15 years of experience come and indulge in our authentic Indian dishes. Freshly prepared food using traditional techniques, a clay oven to lock in those flavours and the blends of different sauces that are famous all around the world and can be experienced right here.

Paris, Finland 1924-2024

Paris will host the Olympics this summer after a 100-year hiatus. A lot has changed in that time, both in Paris and in Finland.

Written by matti mäkeLä transLated by Christina saarinen

In 1924, PAriS is the pulsating center of a world recovering from the First World War; it’s everything that New York and London would be later. Ernest Hemingway arrived in the city back in 1921, and Gertrude Stein is running her cultural salon, supporting writers and artists such as Pablo Picasso, who has been living in the city for 20 years. Josephine Baker, perhaps the most iconic symbol of the 1920s “Années folles” in Paris, arrives the following year and immediately becomes a superstar. Later, this African-American dancer and singer will be named a Chevalier of the French Legion of Honor and awarded a medal for her work in the French Resistance during World War II.

Cross-country race (10,650 m) at the Paris Olympics on 12 July 1924. PaavoNurmi (right) leads the race, Sweden's Edvin Wide (left) is second, and Ville Ritola on the stone fence. Finland won the competition with the team Nurmi, Ritola and Heikki Liimatainen.

The allure of Paris does not go unnoticed by Finns either. Mika Waltari, who rose to world fame with his novel The Egyptian, described the bohemian decadence of Paris in his early novel Suuri illusioni (The Grand Illusion): “God, how they live here! Only now have I discovered how depraved a person can be. Go stand at the bar of Le Select one night and you’ll see. I don’t care to say more. … It’s good to be here, anyway, to lose a little of those youthful dreams about the essential goodness of people and other garbage."

In the S ummer of 1924, Finland is a young, poor and agriculture-dominated country that gained independence just seven years earlier, and only six years have passed since the end of the bloody civil war that divided the country. Finland’s three largest cities have a combined population of around 300,000 people (in Paris, there are nearly three million), and despite young Finnish artists’ enthusiasm for Paris, Finland is an inward-looking country where a visit by Josephine Baker led to protests as late as 1933.

Sports are of great interest to Finns, however, and are considered a way to increase national morale and make the country internationally known. Hopes are high leading up to the Paris Olympic Games because four years earlier, in Antwerp, Finland had won no less than 35 medals.

Those expectations are not disappointed, as Finnish athletes achieve a record of 37 medals in Paris, of which 14 are gold. On the medal table, Finland ranks second, after the United States. Finland’s achievement and the disproportionateness of the competition between the countries is emphasized by the fact that at the time, the United States already had more than 105 million inhabitants, while Finland had a little over 3 million.

Finland has changed enormously in a hundred years. The population has moved from the countryside to the cities, and the focus of business life has shifted from agriculture to technology, services and innovations. The combined population of Finland’s three largest urban areas is now roughly the same as that of Paris, a little over two million. (Of course, Greater Paris has more than twice as many inhabitants as the whole of Finland.) The new heroes are the founders and developers of companies like Supercell and Wolt, not long-distance runners. Even our sports heroes are generally extroverted stars of team sports, not silent loners like Paavo Nurmi.

However, not everything has changed. Somewhat surprisingly, Finland’s modest hopes for medals in Paris are in the same sports as a hundred years ago: athletics, martial arts, shooting and sailing. And despite the country’s internationalization and modernization (Josephine Baker would hardly cause protests in Finland these days), even in this year’s presidential election, opinion polls showed that a third of voters considered the homosexuality of one of the leading candidates as a reason not to vote for him.

Somewhat surprisingly, Finland’s modest hopes for medals in Paris are in the same sports as a hundred years ago: athletics, martial arts, shooting and sailing.

The biggest star of the games is Paavo Nurmi, who wins five gold medals, including both the 1,500-meter and 5,000-meter gold medals in the span of an hour. The cross-country race would also go down in history, with an overwhelming victory in almost 40-degree heat. Of the 40 participants, only 15 made it to the finish line, all of them more or less barely conscious, except for the superhumanly strong Nurmi. Finnish journalist and sports writer Martti Jukola described the dramatic final stages of the race: “Only when we see men collapsing on the field and others running back and forth, or from one side of the track to the other as if mad, do we suspect that our boys have fallen victim to the scorching sun. Some can no longer stand the excitement and cover their eyes when a Spaniard rounds a course marker like a rooster with its head cut off.”

At the 2024 Olympic GAmeS, Finland will no longer be in the running to win the medal table, and no Finnish athlete has a chance of becoming one of the brightest stars of the games. In the summer games of the new millennium, Finland has so far achieved a total of 12 medals, and only one gold. At the current rate, the medal haul of Paris 1924 will only be matched in 2064, and in terms of gold medals, in 2284.

And W h At A bout PA ri S ? Paris remains a favorite filming location for TV series and movies and is considered by many to be the most beautiful and romantic city in the world. According to another point of view, the city has become the world’s largest open-air museum, where the cafes are no longer populated by Hemingway, Picasso, Sartre, Camus or countless other lesser-known artists and writers, but by tourists looking for their ancient haunts. Paris seems to lack the dynamism that continues to characterize New York and London – its two main rivals over the last century. Paris enjoys admiration inspired by its past glory, while London and New York still look to the future. London and New York are world cities; Paris is just a really big French city.

On the other hand, this assessment may be overly harsh. Paris is still one of the world’s most important cities for culture, food and fashion, and hosting its third Olympic Games (only London has been able to do so previously) says a lot about the city’s international weight. Perhaps this is the prelude to a new era for a city that was founded in Roman times. Punk and rap may not have been born on the streets of Paris, but the next big thing may already be on the horizon, which will – to quote Asterix – make Paris the “greatest city in the world.” A metropolis that moves young poets like it did Mika Waltari a hundred years ago: "How could I imagine all that. The eyes of the semaphores and the hundreds of glowing lights of switch lanterns on the great railway yard, a sea of fire in a strange city, a big city, the splendor of advertisements on the walls of grand hotels." s

The Paris Olympics will take place July 26 to August 11, 2024.

The Forbidden Kalevala

Finland’s national epic is a cleaned-up version of the material that was collected. The raunchiest folk poems would make OnlyFans blush.

Written by roope Lipasti transLated by Christina saarinen

Everyone knows the Kalevala, Finland’s national epic. You know, the one that is generally mentioned in the same context as lofty works like the Odyssey and the Iliad or even Gilgamesh

But though the name is familiar, few have read the whole thing, and that’s true for Finns as well. So here’s a refresher: The Kalevala is a loosely-plotted story about the various disputes, revenge missions, wooing trips and other misadventures of the people of Kalevala and Pohjola.

The wizard Väinämöinen is one main character, but there are plenty of others involved. The smith Ilmarinen,

The poems depict the joy of sexuality, longing for sex when you aren’t having it, passion, love magic and all the other things that we associate with sex even today.

for example, is a key character who forges the Sampo, a kind of wealth-producing miracle machine, which is later stolen by the wicked Pohjola. In addition, there is a seemingly endless number of young men who all fare more or less poorly.

There are women too: The Mistress of Pohjola is Väinämöinen’s evil opponent. The beautiful maiden Aino, on the other hand, is Väinämöinen’s desired bride, but the young girl herself isn’t so hot about the idea. The famous painting by Akseli Gallen-Kallela captures the #metoo spirit of the situation.

All in all, the Kalevala is an exciting and heroic story that could easily be made into a Marvel-type movie. But despite all the folklore ingredients, it is largely the product of Elias Lönnrot’s (1802–1884) pen. The poems themselves are largely authentic, though Lönnrot shaped them in places to make them sound better. But Lönnrot is the father of the Kalevala in the sense that he created the plotline for the story. He edited out what he felt was unnecessary, took pieces from here and there, and forged everything together to fit in one book.

Looking for love

Elias Lönnrot was a Fennophile through and through. When he was traveling around Finland and the surrounding areas from the 1820s to the 1840s, writing down old folklore, the goal was nothing more and nothing less than creating Finland – a nation that could one day become independent. And how could it not, when it had such a noble past, as the Kalevala’s beautiful and skillful poems indubitably proved.

But that visionary national awakening didn’t require quite all of the material Lönnrot collected. And certainly not the most obscene of the poems – of which there was no shortage!

Fortunately, Lönnrot was a scientist to the core. He was a doctor, researcher, journalist, linguist and botanist. So when he crisscrossed the deep forests of eastern Finland, Estonia and Karelia, for the most part on foot, he fastidiously made note of everything he found.

A scientist doesn’t blush, so presumably Lönnrot didn’t either – or at most, just a little – when he recorded this love spell from Ilomantsi in 1828:

Ahoy cock, arise cock, Here on this lass’s cunt, Here on this child’s hips, Here on this bird’s tail!

Set the cocks plowing, The balls clanging, The sacks squealing, Free the cocks from their bonds, The furry shafts from their shackles.

Lush as life

Lönnrot wasn’t the only one collecting folk poetry. At one point, there was a whole slew of them in the forests of Karelia, and the competition was fierce. It was hard to beat Lönnrot, however, who collected tens of thousands of verses.

The juiciest of them weren’t used, but they were stored through the decades in the back room of the Finnish Literature Society, where researchers were able to access them.

About ten years ago, these sex poems were compiled into a little book called Tupa ryskyi, parret paukkui (The House is Rocking, the Joists are Popping).

The book contains birth poems for genitalia, odes, spells and satirical poems as well as various sexually suggestive songs.

The poems depict the joy of sexuality, longing for sex when you aren’t having it, passion, love magic and all the other things that we associate with sex even today. You would think that if more of these poems were taught in school, even the youth would be more interested in the old poetic traditions.

For example:

Oh, what a bother

Not having a wife, Stuck with a cock

Always standing upright.

(Collected by Lönnrot in Karelia in 1837)

But a temperate man

In general, both the Kalevala and Lönnrot have left a somewhat dusty image for posterity. It’s a shame, because the former is interesting (though the language is difficult for the modern reader), and the latter was an extremely multifaceted and talented man.

For example, Lönnrot’s industriousness was not limited to nation-building and science (he wrote no fewer than four doctoral theses), but he was a man of enlightenment from top to toe.

As a doctor, Lönnrot was concerned about the scourge of alcohol, and he founded Finland’s first temperance society in 1834. Even then, he showed the same open-mindedness as when collecting erotic poems.

In the first volume of Lönnrot’s selected works, he describes the rules of his temperance club:

Each day, club members are allowed three drinks with meals, except if fish is being eaten – in that case, an additional drink is permitted. You can start the morning with a drink, and if desired, drinks are also appropriate at 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. Two toddies in the evening is the absolute maximum, but a third is okay if it’s taken with a piece of sugar. The consumption of wine and beer is not restricted in any way.

The rules of the club were so well thought-out that the majority of Finns still follow the key principles of Lönnrot’s temperance ideology today. s

Safe havens

“Would you like to see the rooftop terrace?”

“I would love to.”

The year was 2012, and I had been invited as a guest to a literary festival in Algiers, the capital of Algeria. I arrived at my hotel in the evening alone, and the receptionist offered to show me around. I followed him up the narrow stairs to the rooftop terrace, which offered a broad view of the sunset-gilded city. There on the terrace, the receptionist suddenly put his arms around me and tried to kiss me.

I froze. I was pregnant, my belly already clearly visible under my dress. The first thing I thought of was the baby: what would happen if we got into a physical fight? I forced myself to stay calm. I broke away from his grip and told him I was tired from the trip and wanted to go to my room to rest.

In the room, I started shaking. The lock on the door was so flimsy that I suspected it could be opened with a hairpin. With a chest of drawers and chairs, I built a barricade in front of the door and placed two water glasses from the bathroom on top, which would fall with a clatter if someone tried to push the door open.

The unpleasant situation on the rooftop terrace has remained a strong memory for two reasons: because I was pregnant, and because it took place in a hotel, and I’ve loved hotels for as long as I can remember.

More accurately, I love the idea of a hotel. For me, a hotel is first and foremost a place where it is possible, in a neatly made bed, in a space encompassed by clean-smelling pillows, to escape one’s own life for a while.

I’ve spent the night in many different places during my travels, from a tent on the roof of a car to the lobby of a police station. These overnight spots have always been interesting, but when it comes to hotels, it’s not just about the lodging, but something bigger: a temporary escape from your own world.

I’ve checked into hotels exhausted, in love, or heartbroken, when I’ve been looking for a place to recover, and when I’ve longed for a space for my own thoughts, away from everyday life. At best, even a single night in a hotel can open up a space in one’s day-to-day life from which it is possible to see beyond the usual, where there is room for what is most important: imagination, silence, play and dreaming.

I have never understood people who complain that hotels are impersonal. For me, that’s the whole idea. When you check into a

hotel, especially when alone, you have the chance to momentarily escape your own personality as well.

One of my most intense memories related to hotels is the night I spent in a hotel in Oulu at the end of August 2021. The Taliban had taken over Kabul a couple of weeks earlier, and I had spent the previous days trying to get my Afghan friend and his family to safety.

When my friend’s family was finally safe, I went on a work trip and spent the night alone in a hotel. I went swimming, took a sauna, did yoga and read the work of a female Afghan writer. I hardly spoke to anyone for a day. That night alone in a hotel helped me make the return from the days filled with fear to a life that could once again consist of more mundane things than a friend in mortal danger.

I Am very aware that the opportunity to spend nights in hotels is a rare privilege. That’s why, in the end, the most important thing in a hotel is not what it offers me, but what it offers its environment and employees. A little while ago, I visited an expensive hotel where an important detail caught my eye: the employees wore ill-fitting uniforms. They looked uncomfortable in their clothing, and I had to wonder what kinds of conditions they were otherwise working under. Were they valued? Were the working climate, pay and terms of employment as they should be? The doubts gnawed at me even more strongly than the harassment I had experienced on the rooftop terrace of the Algerian hotel.

I love hotels, but more important than that is fairness and valuing people. Even the loveliest hotel loses its charm immediately if the people who work there are not treated well. s

Elina Hirvonen is an award-winning author and documentary filmmaker who would like to spend the rest of her life in the world’s best hammams under clouds of soap bubbles.

Written by eLina hirvonen transLated by Christina saarinen

TIMES-LEHDET TAVOITTAVAT

2,5 MILJOONAA

HOTELLIYÖPYJÄÄ VUODESSA

Varmista näkyvyytesi: Puh. 045 656 7216

In the heart of Turku you will find Lone Star, which has become a classic. Probably best burgers, ribs and wings in town!

In and out and back to enjoying

There are so many amazing things to see, do and experience in Turku area. When you do all your shopping smoothly in Skanssi, you’ll have more time to enjoy the sights.