Impressions From My Home Town

Blogging did in the end feel quite distant to me during my nine, impression-filled days in Helsinki. Being back felt both good and strange. I have enjoyed living in Århus immensely, but calling it home would feel like exaggerating. I currently live and study there, and like it a lot – but my home is in Helsinki.

Now I'm already sitting at the plane back to Denmark, although my stay there will be only for a short while. However, the holidays are now over and it's time to get going with several projects. Before that I thought I'd share a few memories from the days in Helsinki.

I have very few pictures of all the lovely encounters I had during this week due to two simple reasons. First, taking pictures is rarely on my mind when meeting with friends and having a good time. Secondly, I always ask people of their permission, if they can be recognized from the pictures. My significant other for example is OK with being featured in a few pictures, but prefers not to be mentioned by name. It even took me a while to get used to the thought of posting a picture with my face featured - after all, it's publicly out there for anyone to see. Making these decisions on someone elses behalf is not something I want to do. However, there are a few pictures I'd like to share. 

One of the first things that struck me was that the autumn colors felt much more vivid and deep in Helsinki. Perhaps it's purely the slightly colder climate that makes the leaves blush even more?

One of the first meals my boyfriend cooked for me when we were dating was Gordon Ramsays version of tikka  masala. At the time, elegant as I am, I managed to sprinkle red sauce all over my dress even before the food was ready… But the recipe has been a favorite ever since!

After three intensive and packed days in Helsinki I was tired, wet-footed and feeling a flu creeping up on me. So when a friend offered me this lovely pair of pink and DRY shoes, she really made my day. The feet of my boyfriend are also featured in the picture - strangely enough his shoes look much bigger than mine, although we have the same shoe size.

My studies at the Sibelius Academy have mostly been situated in the Helsinki Music Centre since it opened in August 2011. I've worked as a guide there almost as long as I've studied in the building, and this stay also included doing four guided tours. Apart from working, I also practiced a little, met a lot of friends and drank a lot of the best student coffee in town (just 1€, but you have to know to ask for it!).

The excellent coffee at the Music Centre isn't the only Finnish food ware that I've missed in Denmark. Having a bag of good old Finnish pick & mix candy made me very excited (and high on sugar) one afternoon!

A friend told me about this new place that serves excellent curry to a very affordable price in Aikatalo, right across the street from the Central Railway Station. My dining companions also liked the food, although Ilo though that there could have been more of it. Ilo also writes a blog in English - check it out!

My dear vocal group Ensemble Norma has mainly been on hold this autumn, but during my stay we were all in action again. Such a sweet reunion! We're participating in a Finnish vocal group competition that is held in Orivesi 27-28.10, so preparing our competition program stood high on the agenda. Our sessions ended with an exciting dress rehearsal for friends and family - it went well, even though we also learned a few things about what we'd like to do even better at the competition!

I used to live just a short way away from the city center, so biking around has been a habit long before I went to Århus. Now, staying at my boyfriends place approximately 8 km away from town, biking wasn't really an option. That meant a lot of trams, trains and busses - and even the occasional nostalgic trip with the metro! The nostalgia is mostly due to the fact that I used to travel daily to town by metro between ages 12 to 19…

Helsinki has got a few new and silly-looking tram stops since I left. I just had to take a picture.