The middle part of my Saturday in Helsinki was fluid. My original and overly aggressive plan for Saturday was to take a train to Tampere for a day trip, similar to what I did
with Porvoo. Tampere would be a 90 minute train each way. And I had a hockey game to see at 5pm (next post in the queue). So while I would have loved to have seen some of Tampere (like the
Stable Yards), I made the executive decision to bail and spend more time in Helsinki. This decision was easier to make as the
VR train service offers insurance so you can cancel your trip and pay like 10 euros instead of eating the 70 or 80 euros it would be for the round trip. I bought the insurance, canceled my ticket, received my refund. Very nicely done, Finland.
Back to what I did do on this Saturday. The first part of the day was spent visiting
Puu-Vallila and biking around the city. I returned the bike to a station near Kamppi. I should say, with the help of a nice local who saw me struggling I was able to return the bike. Helsinki's City bikes are known to be a bit challenging to return to their docks. I had no problems with my
first ride. But I wasn't getting it at Kamppi. This younger woman and her like 7 year old came over to save the day. I thanked them and then turned to the
Kamppi commercial center.
Found it was having a little NHL experience on the plaza in front. Pretty low key when I was there. Not sure if this kind of thing happens regularly or was scheduled deliberately to coincide with the
HIFK v
Ilves game I was going to later that afternoon.
Inside the mall I buzzed through a few different places before I was presented with my first MUJI encounter. I now see that MUJI has made it to the US, with some stores in NY and Boston having opened up since 2017 (i.e., after I left). MUJI is not in Mexico and was not on my radar. This place is a retail experience. Even moreso in the moment as I thought it was some unusual Helsinki secret. They do have other
locations in Europe and I probably walked by the one in Lisbon without realizing it. Regardless, I was legit astonished at what I was seeing. It's like Ikea + Container Store + Crate & Barrel + Old Navy + Zara fused into a more stylish version of all of them combined. Whoa. Did not actually buy anything. But if I do make it back to Helsinki with Judy this place will be on the short list of things to do when we're there.
The mall overall was quite nice. Good vibes / feel, and more than a few restaurant options, such as these.
Eventually I popped back outside and saw a Lidl across the way.
Had to duck in there for a survey of the snack options. Saw some fun things that didn't disappoint. But refrained from buying either of them.
Was compelled by the bakery section. Pulled a few of these out of their little containers to come home with me.
Noticed that the Taco Bell seemed to be delivery vehicle central. Wondered if that's where the guys were eating, or if they were anticipating a wave of imminent orders. Either way, there's a Taco Bell in central Helsinki, fyi.
Don't know what these guys were all about, but they had a beer pong set up and were playing Fight for Your Right to Party at volume, but in the least aggressive and obtrusive way possible.
Couple more vibe shots, including the
silent chapel.
Decided to take a slightly different path back to the apartment. Had been to / through Bulevardi and the Design District enough times at this point. So I wound up heading south along
Kasarmikatu and the plaza around the
Winter War Memorial caught my eye. Glad I passed this way.
Back at the apartment I tucked into these guys that I pulled from the Lidl bakery. (Had already chomped the pig-in-a-croissant-blanket immediately upon exiting the store.) One on the left was some kind of bacon and cheese deal. Middle one was legit delicious. Think it was called Hawaiian something. Unclear why. But it was great. Last one was a pretzel bun kind of thing. Fine, but definitely the runt of this litter.
Now time for a brief rest before heading to the hockey game.
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