Oodi

I don’t even know how to begin to describe the fantastic Helsinki library. The Wi-Fi in the spy thriller hotel has been driving me nuts. It lasts about five minutes and then it cuts off and you get all of these warnings about people trying to steal your identify and everything else. If the phone wifi works, the computer doesn’t. It has been a challenge to try and get any work done but that is where Oodi comes in. I do love a good library and often work in them somewhere in the world, but this one was just amazing. Not terribly amazing for old women but amazing all the same. The building has large curves all through it, so people lie around on the steep curved pine floor that reminded me of a sinking Titanic, or on concrete steps where you sit cross legged with your laptop on your knee. There are lovely mid-century type chairs that sit precariously on the sloping ship deck. There are prams everywhere, screaming children, people sewing, binding books, playing computer games, and sleeping in the sun streaming through the massive Titanic glass structure. I loved the communal sewing machines and the young people bringing their mending in to do. They call it a library, but the subtitle is Helsinki’s community living room. It was definitely that. Oodi fits with the whole philosophy of Finnish culture. Now the buildings might not be beautiful (except for Oodi) but the focus on education, childcare, and health and well-being is inspiring.

I eventually found a sort of conventional desk to work at in one of the lovely coffee shops but felt boringly conservative so packed up, sat on the steps and worked on my knee. The problem was that the people watching was far more interesting than the work and even there, the spies played havoc with my Wi-Fi.