Civil Defense Shelters

I grew up in East Tennessee in the 1980s and 1990s and didn't consider war in my reality very often.  The Cold War dominated much of the news, but there were no physical signs, symbols or reminders, other than the few "Fallout Shelter" signs that I remember seeing on public buildings.  The biggest looming (perceived) "threat" was a large storage tank for Liquified Natural Gas, which I remember my father pointing out as something that would be a good target for a bomb. 

I'm realizing how significantly different it must be (have been) for people growing up in Finland.  Finland itself is a relatively young independent republic (1917-1918).  Sweden and Russia traded the terriority back and forth for quite a while.  Russia is the dominant neighboring country, especially from our perspective here in Eastern Finland.  I've come to find out that Finland takes Civil Defense quite seriously, and it is physically present in the landscape of day-to-day activities.  

Civil Defense Shelters are one physical manifestation of the Finnish reality that I find quite fascinating.  We noticed them right away on our walks and along bus routes, but it took a meeting with the City Engineer for me to finally ask someone what these cave-like openings with doors were all about.

Bedrock Civil Defense Shelters are still constructed by law in Finland whenever there is new construction of housing.  There are rules for how much shelter space there must be within a determined distance of housing units.  Builders are required to provide new shelter space along with all new housing units of a certain size.  There are at least three shelters such as the one pictured above in our neighborhood of Puijonlaakso.  

To our surprise, we started noticing people going in to these shelters quite casually.  I learned from the City Engineer that the municipality has found interesting ways of using the space of these shelters in non-war times.  Many of them are Gyms.  One of them is equipped with ping-pong equipment.  One I read about actually contains a sports facility complete with an indoor swimming pool.

I got bold and tried the door to a shelter along one of my walks.  It was locked.  I headed to another shelter I'd spotted and found an unlocked door.  It was definitely an experience that was new to me.

 I found it full of workout equipment.  Weights, lifting machines, stationary bikes, a set up for archery, a track for hurdles, a sand pit for long jump, and a boxing ring.

There were also side doors that led to rooms and hallways that I was not brave enough to go down.  It was quite incredible and certainly left an impression on me.  I spoke with someone waiting for a friend by a locked door to another shelter and learned that residents can secure keys to the doors of the shelters and that the one he was waiting to enter (his friend had the key) contained gym equipment and a place to practice golf swings.  My residency permit arrived today, so I may just have to find out how to get a key.

I also learned from the City Engineer that there are several empty Civil Defense Shelters in the city center and in some of the outlying areas and that repurposing them was not always easy, as they do not comply with current laws about multiple egresses.  In one area he mentioned that the city now owned about 10,000 square meters of empty shelter space.  I did the math and put that in perspective ~ 2.5 acres of underground shelter space.  Now there is a design challenge!!

I hope that I can add a few more of these to my adventures before we leave Finland.   I am completely intrigued.

It's starting to look and feel like autumn.

The temperature is dropping, the days are getting a noticeably shorter, and the leaves are starting to turn and fall.  We're enjoying the changes - and that we won't have any leaves to rake this year!

Next level graffiti

I've been enjoying the graffiti I encounter on my walks.  I don't know if it is that I am new to being in a more urban setting, or if there really is more talent among the street artists here in Kuopio, but I'm impressed nonetheless.

For more graffiti from around Kuopio, you can visit:  http://www.urbaani.org/

Happy Birthday Annabelle!

Annabelle turns 7 today.  Our little girl isn't so little anymore.
We love you, Anna!

First KAP flight in Kuopio

The weather wasn't perfect, but I had the time to take advantage of a steady breeze (~ 4 m/s) to get my Fled and two cameras up today at the base of Puijon Torni.  Sights include Puijon Torni, the ski jumps, the city of Kuopio, and Lake Kallavesi.

Olavinlinna

On Saturday, we rented a car (bright red VW Polo) and ventured a bit further afield.  We drove to Savonlinna, to see Olavinlinna - a Medieval Castle built in 1475.  Though a bit nervous, Annabelle was reassured that it was only a mid-evil castle and not pure-evil.

On our way, we noticed on the map that the road we were taking seemed to dead end at a lake and continue on the other side.  Ever hopeful, we drove on and discovered that there was a free ferry service to connect the dots.

James was thrilled.

We arrived in the beautiful lakeside city of Savonlinna in time for lunch.

And, then we headed to Olavinlinna!

Our tour was led in Russian by Svetlana.  It turns out that we were only 30 miles from the border, and in our group of 25 or more people, we were the only non-Russian speakers.   We had English text to read, and Svetlana did well by us.  We were impressed by all we saw and enjoyed the tour enormously.

We were all thrilled by the experience and look forward to more adventures such as this in the near future.  For now we are putting our efforts into celebrating Annabelle's 7th birthday tomorrow.  

All is well with us in Finland.

Valkeinen Birch

I found this birch growing into a gazebo frame along the path that circumnavigates Valkeinen (a lake near the center of Kuopio, Finland).  It immediately reminded me of the work of my colleague, Dan Ladd, who is the artist in residence at the Smith College MacLeish Field Station, which I manage.  This birch was a nice reminder of home.

Craftsman's Baby/Dog Gate

We benefit from not being the only Americans in town.  Friends Keith & Lara (Fulbright fellows with Liz), invited us to the home in which they are living for their daughter Brielle's birthday.  The home is lovely and in a wonderfully designed waterfront neighborhood.  There are many things about which I could write, but what really caught my attention was an incredible handmade Baby/Dog Gate that the owner of the home seems to have designed himself.

The design is elegantly simple.  These images and a new graphic I've created with Canva attempt to capture it so that I might try to replicate it once I'm back home near my tools. 

We've got to contain that Pug!

Rant #1: Why can't the U.S. do better with pedestrians and bikes?

I've mentioned before that pedestrians and bikes are well accommodated by the path system here in Kuopio. One thing struck me yesterday that seems to be a significant difference between U.S. and Finnish infrastructure - Sidewalks are much wider here.  And, there seems to be a much greater likelihood of finding sidewalks on both sides of the street.

Here, a typical cross-section looks like this:

At home, the road width for the same type of road would be in excess of 25-30', and you'd be lucky to get a 5-6' sidewalk on one side.

Here, bikes and pedestrians share a much wider sidewalk, and motorized vehicles share a somewhat narrower roadway.  At home, you are more likely to see signs prohibiting bikes from narrower sidewalks - leaving their riders to fend for themselves in heavier motorized traffic.  The one place that bikes and pedestrians share infrastructure is on the bike paths or "multi-use paths" that might connect municipalities but rarely provide easy access to schools, shopping, or other amenities.   Take for example the Norwottuck Rail Trail connecting Amherst to Northampton by way of Hadley.  I can count on one hand the number of places that the rail trail allows direct access to shopping or other amenities along the 8-mile stretch of trail - and it not for a lack of shopping in Hadley!

My conclusion:  The U.S. needs wider sidewalks, narrower roads, and more connections from "multi-use paths" to amenities - especially where paths and amenities are already adjacent (Hadley Mall).  

None of this is news.  It happens to be on my mind and in my face as I enjoy making my way about a city (that has roughly the same number of inhabitants as Amherst, Hadley, and Northampton combined) without need or want for a car. 

Shutters, Doors, & Details

Finns know doors.  They know windows and fine details as well.  Judging from our time visiting Seurasaari, they have had a keen eye for detail and aesthetic for  quite some time.  I've taken a look back at my photos so far and share some of these shutters, doors, and details now.