Helsinki Finland. The start of my Scandinavian adventures!
Helsinki Cathedral constructed from 1830-1852 in tribute to the Grand Duke of Finland, Tsar Nicholas I of Russia. White on White on White.
February 24, 2012
I arrived in Helsinki, named the World Design Capital for 2012, and was welcomed by a fresh batch of snow, something I missed during my visit home. A taxi dropped me off at Johanna Harjus’ flat, located on Matksuoko Street.
Johanna teaches yoga and performs Reiki out of her home, so she provides a very unique approach to healing. Her newest project is call Finland Dreams, which is a documentary following ordinary people and their quest to reach their goals within the course of one year. It would take a lot of courage to publicly share your dreams in that way, but doing so also makes you publicly accountable. If you create a sense of external accountability, usually your internal motivation increases.
Breakfast on the floor. Johanna sold all of her furniture before traveling to India and was enjoying a much simpler life upon her return. I happily enjoyed a freshly juiced meal my first morning in Helsinki.
For the first day I toured around downtown Helsinki and became acquainted with Finnish culture, which has only been free from Russian rule since 1913. The largest cathedral in Helsinki looked impressive from outside, but the inside was fairly boring.
Churches often have a weird atmosphere, and it’s not difficult to understand why when you consider the number of baptisms, weddings, funerals and other major events that have taken place in that one location. It’s astounding to think about, and the vibes can be overwhelming.
At 6 p.m. we attended a modern dance class. I have never been to a dance class before, but I had no good excuse to turn down Johanna’s invitation, and it was a good opportunity to take on a new challenge. It was hard for me to suppress my laughter. I couldn’t believe what I was doing, but whatever, who cares? It was a little tough to follow the instructions in Finnish, so I had to pay close attention to the moves; I have no natural dancing talent, but the modern style allowed a lot of freedom of movement. Also, it was a good challenge for my ego—to not think about what I looked like or how good or bad I was. I doubt I’ll join a class anytime soon, but it was fun to experience moving in a ‘modern way."
Johanna and I after the dance class with the teacher who guided us through the beginner sequence.
The next morning, we walked down to a very local café for a breakfast on the ocean. It was the smallest place, and was all the more crowded with decorations reminiscent of the early 20th century. As I watched the locals come in for their morning coffee and cinnamon bun, I knew I was experiencing Finnish culture in a way your average tourist would not likely find. The highlight was a ski chair ride outside, which made me wish that we had adult playgrounds. Imagine having recess again instead of boring coffee break!
A rocking chair with custom skis, two pieces of wood and some grade 9 physics equals a great ride!
February 25, 2012
Today was my official tourist day in Helsinki, so I made a solo mission-plan and headed off to experience its culture. First I went for an hour-long walk along a busy path. I love people-watching in a place where you see everyone from a young mother pushing a stroller to a seventy-year-old man jogging, or even a couple in their mid-fifties walking with Nordic hiking poles (which were first introduced in Finland). They all looked like they were enjoying themselves.
My first stop was at the National Museum of History. The one fact I took away from there was that the first traces of human life in Finland dates back to 8000 BC. It’s crazy to think of how we’ve evolved since that time. The exhibits highlighted how our development and interactions with our environment evolved through the creation of tools, which gradually became more sophisticated as thousands of years passed.
An old piece of functional art used as a horse collar.
It made me take a step back and consider how our world has recently changed in such a fast period of time, all thanks to the development of powerful technology. I also considered how we’re continuing to change at break-neck speed. It’s like we’re currently in the eye of a storm. It’s still so calm in some places, but you can nonetheless see the confusion spreading all around you, and eventually we’ll all have to face it head-on. Social Media is the latest creation to change our way of life more dramatically than anyone can yet understand.
Next stop was a museum of stuffed animals. I wasn’t there long before the creepy feeling of looking at a zoo on pause prompted me to leave.
From there I journeyed over to an underground church, something I have never seen or experienced before. It was a huge circular structure, with walls of rock that made it feel like a massive bunker.
Temppeliaukio Kirkko or Rock Church was completed after one year of blasting the ground creating the famous building designed by architect brothers Timo and Tuomo Suomalainen. The ceiling is made of copper wire and the design creates great acoustics for the classical concerts that are frequently held here.
The last stop was a contemporary art museum. When it comes to art I have never been anything close to educated, so when I stare at a piece of artwork for ten minutes without gaining a clue about its meaning, I get frustrated and bored. Sometimes I think the ambiguity is really just representative of a lack of talent.
The walkway was the start of my confusion leading into the modern museum of art.
The main exhibit featured how music has influenced society, especially since the MTV age. Music and imagery are so intimately interwoven, and the effect they have on each of us, especially on our emotions and memory, is unbelievable. The magic of music is in its ability it to unite people as they enjoy the vibrations of sound waves and together find common ground. Finding music that jives with your soul is a liberating feeling.
Downtown. Watch out for snow falling off the buildings that kills people every winter. One woman died three days before I landed there.
I watched the movie Waking Life, created by Richard Linklater, and its definitely a movie that doesn’t require any drugs to make you feel a little trippy. The movie examines dreams, particularly how you can develop the ability to have lucid dreams. This type of thinking can be interesting, but I have met people who were so caught up in trying to control their dream worlds that they neglected to practice meaningful action in their conscious lives. One of the best ways to create the dreams you want is to live them everyday.
February 26, 2012
A group of Johanna’s close friends. Juho brought together a party full of life.
Johanna’s friend Juho hosted his 32nd birthday party on an island in downtown’s Helsinki Harbor. The island has a party complex, with facilities that include a club house, sauna, and even an ice hole. The party started with an outdoor fire, as lots of young families enjoyed the mild winter day. At 6 p.m. we headed inside to chill while the women went in for the first hour of the sauna. At 7 p.m. it was the guys’ turn. That famously relaxed European sexuality was evident when the guys and girls shared the change room during the exchange time. No big deal right?
The island was a great spot to meditate on the sunset.
In the sauna, one of the guys told me that this (the sauna) is similar to a lot of things that the Fins do; it’s not very comfortable in the moment, but afterwards you feel like you’ve had a good experience. I laughed as I was sitting thigh-to-thigh with a bunch of naked dudes who were hammering back beer and whisky.
they told me about the dive, I knew I had no choice other than to participate in this local tradition. The walk to the hole was actually pretty warm. When it was my turn to jump in, I took a deep breath and felt the blood rush to my vital organs. There is nothing more important in cold water than staying focused on your breath, especially the exhalations that allow you to regulate yourself and keep calm. Walking out of the water was the coldest part, but within ten seconds I felt the blood starting to rush back to my peripheral circulatory system, and it was actually pretty warm walking back to the sauna.
We returned back to the clubhouse for the rest of the night. One conversation I had focused on politics, but not in the usual sense. Instead of the usual bullshit, we talked about how most politicians are similar to puppets; it’s the corporations that we have to watch! Voting to elect a party of our choice is important, but we can all vote everyday if we are aware of our actions! We vote in the form of what we eat, what we wear, and how we choose to transport ourselves. The biggest lie that the corporations propagate is that we lack power to change the system; the truth is that we have all the power we need. If you are willing to change your behavior and realize that everything you do has a cause and effect, your every action will become one of significance!