Helsinki
A long way to go south
After I have recovered from the pouring rain on my way to Sodankylä, I head
for the south. The diary is up to date and the bile is better off than ever.
1370 km long is the way from the border to Helsinki. I take advantage of
the flat territory and the good weather after Oulu. When I find a camping
to be too expensive I just roll on - upto 180 km a day.
Sometimes I feel lost on those straight roads where I see the cars melt with
the sky in a distance of 10 miles. But I appreciate the fact that the roads
are not too busy, so I get along quite well. However, days become remarkably
shorter and colder now and so do the nights. There are ice pads on my tent in the
morning sometimes.
I pass by Pyhäjärvi, Äänekoski, Jyväskylä and Lahti on the road to
Helsinki. There are people who come here to sight-see the
«scandinavian cities». I wonder what that is. I never saw one except the
three big ones! However, even Helsinki is not that impressive, though the
only city worth a word in Finland. Who ever comes here for anything else
but nature is on the wrong track...
I check in the hostel of Helsinki, situated in the walls of the olympic
stadium. From here you can climb the tower of the stadium and have a wonderful
view over the town and the harbour area. I take a day off after so many
kilometers during the last week. I meet a teacher from the Netherlands and
we go down town for a visit.
Helsinki has an international reputation based on the tension between the
east and the west. The town has been the stage for most important political
meetings. In 1984 we are still in the middle of all conflicts - and no
solution in sight. I walk along the harbour and the parks an see every
day life. There are people who drown their fears in drinks and too many of the
older people still living in the past, speaking german and greeting us:
«Heil Hitler!». I think, they have died out by now...
