"Not Scandinavia - Not Russia" Helsinki by Ken-out-of-Bath

It is a common misconception that Finland is part of Scandinavia.

Finnish people will soon put you right on that point! They like the fact that they are unique and can't be grouped together with others.

And although, over the years, Finland has been a part of Russia they were always left to run their own affairs.

Because of this Finland has a great mix of European, Scandinavian and Russian influences that have blended together to make something very unique and very special.

Street Life

As you'd expect in a country that gets very cold and icy and where everything is so efficient, Helsinki have pipes running under the pavement that carry warm water to keep the pavements free of snow and ice.

We have a similar system in England. The pavements get icy, people slip and fall over, sliding their warm bottoms over the ice. Once enough bottoms have warmed it up the ice will eventually melt .

White nights

I know that 24 hour days - or nights - can be very boring if you live there but I love going out for a beer after work when it feels like a lunch time!

Then when I leave the first bar and go onto Molly's it is still light.

From Molly's I would go on to a club and you can get there easily because it is so light!

And when you leave the club to go home for breakfast it is light enough to see any obstacles that may trip up the weary traveller.

It ranks right up there with pavement heating in my book!

Cafe Life

Be very careful how you refer to Finnish people.

Usually people that know no better refer to them as Finns but Finn can sometimes sound like Finni which in Finnish is the word for a spot or pimple...

• Pros:A beautiful city with an eclectic mix of cultures
• Cons:Can be expensive
• In a nutshell:I like Helsinki!