In previous blog posts we have already shown you that foreigners and newcomers in general are very welcome at Grand Cru. Still not convinced? Helsinki not your 1st choice yet?

Let’s hear what James, one of our newest Crumates, has to say about life here in the Great North.

Ranking as one of the top 10 most liveable cities in the world, Helsinki is one of Europe’s best kept secrets. However, a word many yet to visit the region might use to describe it is simply “cold.” Another might be “dark.” This only tells a small part of the story, the rest is much better.

Finland’s marketing department might have a lot to answer for - searching online for information about life in Helsinki often results in many images of things covered in snow and ice, and people wrapped in hundreds of layers of clothing. The rest of the year is often ignored.

So it’s no wonder that when I tell friends from back home that I live in Helsinki, it’s common to hear the standard response: “you do know its cold there, right?” Before moving here some ex-colleagues even bought me some thermal underwear to “help with survival.”

Often this is because cold weather in other parts of the world can cause chaos as transport grinds to a halt, old women slip and break limbs, people aren’t able to go to work - snow makes everything worse. And yet here in Helsinki life goes on - trams zip around the city like clockwork, people walk the streets with ease, the dark days make us more productive - life in Helsinki is easy even during the winter, and the snow makes everything glisten.

But it’s during the long summers that the city really comes alive. This is the part of the year that really goes unsung as Helsinki’s residents, freed from their thick layers of clothing, make the most of the warm climate, long days and short nights. For the whole month of June it barely even goes dark before the sun rises again. The city’s hundreds of green spaces and parks are full all summer long.

Even in the centre of Helsinki you are never more than a few minutes away from a forest, a secluded lakeside spot or miles upon miles of unspoiled coastline. Finland’s natural beauty is breathtaking and abundant.

Here in Kallio we are only a short walk from the coast, where it is possible to take a ferry to one of the islands off the peninsula and spend the day lazing in the sun. If that’s not your thing then you can always head to the Vaasankatu, which closes to traffic for the whole of the summer and is home to some of the best bars in the city.

During the summer there are literally hundreds of free activities to join in on and thousands of places to explore. And if you’re lucky enough to know someone that works for Grand Cru, you can enjoy a beer and barbecue on the most exclusive roof terrace in the city!

So as we pass the autumnal equinox and drift ever closer towards winter, the city changes colour once again and we get to enjoy a few short weeks of yellow and red hues, lit by the fading sunlight before the blanket of snow, ice and darkness take over and the army of city workers and their snow-shifting gangs take to the roads and the roofs.

All in all it is easy to see why Helsinki ranks so highly on both the liveability and happiness scales. I personally wouldn’t swap life here for anything!