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- Museokatu laneway
Apartment windows look out over open parking behind five storey buildings with commercial businesses that face the street on the other side. View west doesn't provide much sunlight, and dusk is relatively early at this northern latitude. Having a three-metre day, grading student work for tomorrow's lecture. (Hellsten Parliament Apartments, Museokatu, Helsinki, Finland) 20160204 - Kiasma
Art is free on first Friday night of the month at the Kiasma. The exhibition of "Demonstrating Minds: Disagreements in Contemporary Art" may reflect the prevailing pessimistic mood in the country. The long slow ramp up to the second floor is a famous feature designed by architect Stephen Holl. (Kiasma, Helsinki, Finland) 20160205 - Kiinalainen Uusivuosi
Lantern dance at 10th Chinese New Year festival in Helsinki. Program of dancers, musicians and kung fu ran throughout Sunday afternoon to usher in the Year of the Monkey. With the foggy day persistent after sunset, the fireworks over nearby Töölönlahti seemed to explode low altitude for a public show. (Keskuskatu, Helsinki, Finland) 20160107 - Ravintola Jing Cheng
Chinese cuisine executed well, but recipe lacking in green vegetables may be preferred by Nordic clientele. Venue convenient to the apartment where I'm staying, but local foods and cooking by my own hands are superior. Met with once-removed acquaintance, exchange perspectives on dual careers in academia and commercial practice. (Kiinalainen Ravintola Jing Cheng, Töölö, Helsinki, Finland) 20160211 - Steam Hellsinki
Invited by students for after-class visit to bar by central bus station. Interior decorated in steampunk style, we moved chairs together for conversation, waitress says crowd arrives at 8 pm. Can't recall if I've ever been in a Finnish bar in 12 years. (Steam Hellsinki, Kamppi, Helsinki) 20160212 - S Market
Displays of Karelian pies prepared commercially in large quantities are indicative of Finnish palates. Wheat pastry with topping of rice and egg butter is a light savoury snack, tasty, wholesome and inexpensive. Many times, I have eaten these directly after checkout, to tide over the appetite before getting back to the apartment to prepare dinner. Homemade would likely be better, but economically uncompetitive. (S Market, Mannerheimentie, Helsinki, Finland) 20160214 - Hesperia Park
Steps up to viewpoint just north of Finlandia Hall not cleared of snow, yet still a better pedestrian option than sliding on the granite face. Natural promontory overlooking Töölönlahti bay, and new developments in Finlandia Park. A film crew lighting the front entrance of Finlandia Hall suggests movie production, not news. (Hesperian Puisto, Helsinki, Finland) 20150215 - Ravintola Mezopotamya
Knitting together parallel histories on systems thinking and university research projects. Careers and social ties had intersected many times, but the women had never met. Bonding proved strong when comparing photos on mobile phones of cats. Language switched to Finnish when I left the table, and back to English when I rejoined. Casual Kurdish buffet cafe was a quiet place for 3 hour conversation on a weekday evening. (Cafe Caisa / Ravintola Mezopotamya, Kaisaniemi, Helsinki) 20160216 - Gongfu tea ceremony
Chinese New Year celebration at Tongji Lounge at Aalto U. included welcomes from the Chinese consulate, Tongji U. in Shanghai and local student organizations. Snacks for casual time in the Moose Lounge of Aalto Ventures Program, dancing in contemporary (not traditional styles), then jigsaw and chopsticks games. Formal tea tasting by Xinyuan Sui from Teemaa Tea House in Helsinki. (Tongji Lounge, TUAS building, Otaniemi, Aalto University, Espoo, Finland) 20160217 - Helsinki Music Centre
Kirsi Kaulanen (2011) "Gaia" sculpture in main lobby used as public thoroughfare by pedestrians from Eduskuntapuisto eastbound towards Central Railway Station. I followed others from the traffic lights into an aesthetically better route, since Kansalaistori Square is a construction zone for new Central Library. (Helsinki Music Centre, Finland) 20160218 - Sanomatalo
Happened into Kaiti Kink band performance in Close Encounters Jazz Festival live broadcast. Paused for a few tunes. Had wanted to see music on another evening, but my schedule has been too busy. I was trying out a new short cut in bad weather through a glass tower on the way to the tax office. Serendipity wins. (Helsinki Pop and Jazz Conservatory, Sanomatalo, Helsinki, Finland) 20160218 - Why join the navy when you can be a pirate
Enthusiastic students, after Friday course completion, picked a bar with name quoted from Steve Jobs. Actually, it's a cafe that serves alcoholic drinks, mixed juices and smoothies. At 5 p.m., some of the clientele still had laptop computers open, and were tapping away as the sound levels rose. (Why join the navy when you can be a pirate, Annankatu, Helsinki, Finland) 20160219 - Helsinki Airport T1
Train from city centre arrived at 12:49pm downstairs for 2:00pm departure. Star Alliance Gold check-in counter moved to far side of economy line, so slight stress to find right place. Worth maintaining frequent flyer status to speed through airport. Built up sweat dragging 2 checked bags plus carry-on through Helsinki snow. (Helsinki Airport, Vantaa, Finland) 20160220 - Frankfurt Airport
Cool welcome to Germany with stairs to bus to Terminal A. Long immigration lines to B gates. (Frankfurt Airport, Germany) 20160220 - Pearson Terminal 1
Passenger volume to U.S. flights heavy on Sunday morning 7 a.m., but lines are moving. Full staff on at Air Canada check-in, lots of automated passport reading machines, backlog mostly at x-ray scanners. Warm weather in Toronto, so travellers expecting to escape chilly temperatures booked a while ago. (Toronto Pearson Airport, Terminal 1) 20160221