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.

* 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 Finnland. 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 olympique stadion. From here you can climb the tower of the stadion 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. The 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...