60 minutes in Helsink
Next stop on the whistlestop tour round the Nordic and Baltic region - Finland.
I arrived in Helsinki late last night on a quick-hop ferry from Tallin. There was just time for a quick dinner and a few drinks before hitting the sack.
This morning I had an hour to kill wandering around the city while my host took a business meeting. First stop was the Designmuseo which celebrates all the best of Finnish design.
The feature exhibit was a walk through California and American culture. There were pieces from some of the biggest names in technology and creativity as well as counter-culture and design.
But immersing myself in American culture while in Finland seemed rather counter productive so it was back out into the snow and off to my next stop.
My next meeting was the Fazer cafe. Karl Fazer, a Franco-German baker and chocolatier, founded his confectionery brand in Helsinki in 1891 and the main cafe still retains the deco style from the period.
The walk through town took me through the snow-strewn parks of Helsinki.
This chap was loving life with his reindeer.
The city itself is beautiful, with old buildings along the roadside and trams rattling through the streets.
Good statues too. An hour really was not enough to do this city justice. I think I'll have to be back.
