Finland: Helsinki

Helsinki is the Capital of Finland. It has a population of around 610,000 and is seen as a friendly and cultural city. 


History of Helsinki
In 1550, the Swedish King founded Helsinki on the Vantaanjoki River which would help him in the Baltic sea trade. Sweden built the Suomenlinna Maritime Fortress in 1748 to stop the threat of Russia, however Finland was conquered anyway in 1809. This did however bring a lot more people to Helsinki to live and work. Russia had planned for the city to look like St. Petersburg. In 1917 the country became independent  and the architecture was inspired by classicism and functionalism. 

Hotel Fabian
This is a hotel in Helsinki, and I love the branding and identity for it. The logo incorporates the F and the H as well as the tall building in one icon and I think that works really well and reflects the quality design in Helsinki,

Helsinki Zoo

This is one of the oldest zoos in the world as it opened in 1889. There are about 200 different animal species which include bears, bison, mink, leopards, lions and tigers.

The zoo also holds events, such as the Night of the Cats. This is an evening show where they introduce and feed the cats. It also presents the Amur Festival which hosts Finnish singers at the zoo theatre.

Helsinki Cathedral
Designed by Carl Ludvig Engel in 1917, this neoclassical cathedral is a landmark in Helsinki, and a big tourist attraction. It has distinctive green domes and a white exterior.

Sibelius Monument 
Jean Sibelius was a Finnish composer in the Romantic period, and this sculpture was made by Eila Hiltunen in honour of him in 1967. It is supposed to be organ pipes made out of welded steel and is 8.5m high.

Temppeliaukio
This church is very unique as the inside walls are naturally made out of rock. It was designed by Timo and Tuomo Suomalainen after they entered a competition and finished in 1969. At first they wasn't going to include the rock walls, but after conductors told how it would create good acoustics, they did and now it holds a lot of concerts for this reason.

The Funkiest
This has been a hip hop hangout since 1995, and has been important in supporting Finnish hip hop arists by distributing mixtapes. The owner is that laidback there 'used to be a “if I’m not late” written under the opening hours'. 

Helsinki10
This has everything you could ever want - clothes, music, a bar, art and design all under one roof. Products range from vintage to established designers from all over Europe.

Design District

This is a shopping area of Helsinki which consists of lots of different shops, galleries, hotels and bars. To know something is part of the Design District it will have a black sticker on it saying what it is, so you know what to expect. There are many different products on sale such as clothes, jewellery, and antiques but as there is also plenty of artwork to look at in the galleries.

Design Forum

This is a very unique cafe - it sells Finnish design objects too, such as jewellery, clothes, accessories, glass design, bags and many other things. The products are always changing and range from industrial designs to one off pieces. Aside from that, it also sells cakes and always has design magazines stocked to read.

Shanghai Cowboys

This is a little restaurant with a unique atmosphere and menu to match. Here is part of a review of the place: 

A Finnish magazine City wrote about the restaurant and I have to quote them: Shanghai Cowboys is “too cool and unintended kitch” because I just can’t better way to describe the place. 

The service is friendly, food is delicious and adventurous: how does a Coke and Chocolate Ribs served with corn bread and cabbage slaw sound for a main or a Grilled Banana with vanilla mascarpone and chili chocolate sauce for a dessert?

Cafe Tin Tin Tango
This is quite a unconventional concept of a restaurant as it combines not only food but a laundrette as well. It is known for its French and European style breakfasts which are served all day. It also serves soups and sandwiches.

Restaurant Kynsilaukka

This restaurant is a little different - absolutely everything on the menu is made with garlic, including the dessert - garlic ice cream. It's open 365 days a year and was established in 1987.