Espoo
This post is a part of #BlogchatterA2Z Challenge 2023.
Before taking you into
the content of this post, I would like to make a little confession. I collected
this post from the draft folder which was supposed to be published on 5th
April and started writing it from where I had left off. Since Easter was around
the corner then, you would come across the word “Easter” in my post.
I was confused between choosing ‘Espoo’
and ‘Easter’ for the letter ‘E’ and ended up choosing Espoo over
Easter[Coincidentally Easter Holidays were some days away from the day I had
decided to write on ‘E’.] for sharing my personal experiences. What could be a
better way to cherish memories of moving to a new place and slowly making it
your home until the next move, who knows!
It has been close to 11 months since we
moved to Finland and there has been a lot to explore in this country. Initially,
we lived in Helsinki, a few tram stations away from the city center but later
moved to the Espoo region. Unlike the hustle and bustle of Helsinki, Espoo is a
quiet place. I would often miss the sound of the tram which would pass in front
of the apartment where we lived in Helsinki, after shifting to Espoo. Every
place has some pros and cons and it’s always a matter of time before adjusting
to the new place. The view that the living room of our apartment provides is
simply phenomenal. It feels like living in a fairyland and I am always so grateful
for that.
Ever since we moved to Espoo, I have been
exploring this place. We live about 700 meters away from the metro station and
that makes it easy to catch the metro and move easily. The following are the places in Espoo. that I’ve
visited so far:
1) Iso Omena
It’s a mall in Matinkylรค metro station. It is a 3-storeyed tall
building with all kinds of stores ranging from grocery, fashion accessories,
cosmetics, and pharmacy, Home and sports accessories, to Cafes, restaurants,
etc. The 3rd floor has a library, health center, pathology lab, government
offices like kela office, etc. I like window shopping when not shopping in
general and can be found spending time in the library.
2) Iso Omena Library
I have a membership card for Iso Omena Library.
I have visited there many times and issued a lot of books. It has books in
various languages like English, Finnish, Swedish, Russian, etc. There’s an
automatic issue and return system. Helmet is the website covering the libraries
of Espoo, Vanta and Helsinki. Various events take place in the library. Every year,
a Helmet Reading Challenge is released to encourage readers to read books of different
genres.
3) Aalto University
Aalto University is 3 metro stations,
about 5 km away from where we live. It’s an international institute having
different branches like Aalto School of Engineering, Aalto School of Business,
and Aalto School of Arts. It’s connected to the metro station. Recently, I completed
an open university course at Aalto University and got the chance to study a
course from the course professor. It was great to get connected to the good old
days of my student life and I felt it as a privilege for which I am so
grateful. The result of the course is pending, and I hope it comes out well (fingers
crossed).
4) Aalto University Library
Aalto University library is close to the
metro station. I have visited the library many times and I like the couches on
the first floor which make the sitting too comfortable. I also have got a membership
card and as an open university student, I have access to all e-books, magazines,
and journals.
5) Technopolis, Innopoli 2
It’s close to Aalto University, I think
one or two bus stops away. I have attended some events of the Career Club or Espoo
City related to self and career development. The advantage of joining such
events is to get to meet so many like-minded people. I made a lot of
connections through such events.
6) Tapiola
It’s an important place in Espoo where one
can get enough connecting buses. It’s 2 metro stations away from where we live.
Each metro station has a shopping mall connected to it. Similarly, Ainoa is the
mall associated with Tapiola metro Station. It also has a health center, around
1 km away from the metro station.
7) Leppavara
Leppavara is a prime location in Espoo as
it has a train station as well as a bus stop. There are many connecting trains
to Helsinki or faraway places. I’ve seen tram tracks being laid out, close to the
station, which may be operational soon.
8) Sello Mall
It’s a shopping mall in Leppavara. It has
a lot of stores in different categories. It takes around 40 minutes from my
home to reach there. There are a lot of Indian and middle east grocery stores
nearby.
9) Sello Library
It’s not a part of the Sello Mall but a completely
different building. I have visited this library many times and attended some of
the events like job fairs, Helsinki Toastmaster’s meetings, etc.
10) Sai Baba Temple
It’s about 1 kilometer away from Sello
Mall. I have visited there once as it is open during evening hours only on Thursdays
and Saturdays. I’ve shared my experience of visiting the Sai Temple in this
post. Please have a read.
What I find interesting here, in Finland, is
the level of safety. It’s very safe here to travel. I mostly travel alone, and
I enjoy it. People are very honest and I have recovered lost things back either
in the mall or on the train. Finland has been topping the list of the Happiest
Country in the world consecutively for the last 6 years and the reason is the
collective awareness to focus on work, society and make it a better place to
live.
All Rights Reserved!
Swati Sarangi
05.05.2023
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