#2 Helsinki Serendipity

Since the last week of February,  I have spent 13 days at home and not consecutively. We didn't plan to spend that much time away but events happen as they will. I didn't quite realize how tired and spent I was until I tried on Friday to transition into holiday mode in Helsinki. Monday and Tuesday were travel days, Wednesday was a jet lag acclimation day where we did some preliminary reconnaissance walking in the pouring rain. Thursday Dale gave his conference paper and I worked on a writing project. Friday, Dale was at the conference and I thought I'd spend my day alone enjoying and exploring a new city. I expected I'd wake up early and be dashing out the door to start my adventure.  After breakfast, I went back to our room to gather my things for the day and found I could hardly get off my bed.  The weeks had really caught up with me in ways I had not anticipated. As much as I tried to rally myself, I started toying with the idea of staying in my room and reading a novel until I had to meet Dale at 7 PM.  But then I remembered something my mum told me my aunt (her sister) said on a trip: 'It doesn't matter to me what we do, just as long as we do something.' I think of those words often when I travel and Friday I used it to get me off my bed. My favourite things to do in a city involve walking, art, and lunch so I looked up the Helsinki Design museum, plotted the directions on my phone, and was out the door of the hotel in 5 minutes. I think it took about 10 steps for me to feel myself waking up and feeling excited about a whole day to myself in a new city. And right about then, the sun came out for the first time.

I set my course for the Design museum and walked briskly and happily in the nearly sunny streets of Helsinki. I walked up a street with a very long name and many ks and toward the Esplanade where I saw a crowd gathering in the park.  A crowd of women, mostly. I saw a stage area with marimekko signs on it. Interesting, I thought, but  I was feeling a bit like the March Hare 'can't stop, on my way to the Design museum' when it hit me: there is no place I have to be for 8 hours and the world is my oyster in ways it has not been for many weeks. I ambled over to the park and found a place to stand. A buzz was developing. Women of all ages were smiling in anticipation: some with friends, but many alone like me, smiling to themselves. I had no idea what was coming up but I looked over to the sidewalk where I had been walking and was suddenly grateful I'd stepped off my planned path. On the half hour, the bubbling ambient music stopped and 3 people came out. One explained in Finnish then English that this was the marimekko summer collection fashion show. Cool! And then she introduced the man with her who was the director of the Finnish National Ballet and who described how his dancers would be performing pieces choreographed to highlight the clothing and the Company. I nearly laughed aloud. One of the first things I did when I learned we were going to Finland was to look up if the Finnish National Ballet would be performing while we were there. I was disappointed to find they were not yet here I was 5 feet away from the Finnish National Ballet dancing in a park on a gorgeous spring day.  I wanted to give myself a high five: if I had left the hotel earlier or later, I would have missed this.  If I'd kept on my original path, I would have missed this. The dancing was fantastic and I loved every second of it. 

After the show, I made my way to the Design museum-- a great museum-- had a nice lunch and coffee there, allowed myself to wander around that neighbourhood where the mood took me. I also stumbled upon a beautiful dress shop made up of dresses inspired by vintage pin-up girls. Fell in love with a dress or two but bought none. Then I made my way to the botanic garden-- one of my other favourite things to do. I lost myself there for a while and then walked some more. I bought a coffee and sat by the water and watched dogs go for their walks and thought how this was one of my nicest days ever and I almost spent it reading in a hotel room. Travel is a funny thing: you never know what you'll see or find. You just have to be open and also kind to yourself. And, as Eleanor Lavish said in my favourite movie of all time, you must allow yourself to 'simply drift.'