Locating Helsinki

by HSS student Ivona Jerkovic 

Rastila is a housing area in the east part of Helsinki. It looks like one of those “forgotten places”. It got old, probably it was never very beautiful, it is staying there waiting to be renovated, waiting for some “new” architectural ideas, for some new houses, for some new colours, waiting for some new people to come. My friend is living there for almost two years now. He will move soon… Every city has that kind of places, that “unconscious” places. I have asked myself – what does this place need, what does Rastila need? Then the things started to poop up: landmarks, beautiful buildings, branding of the place- promoting its potentials, changing the image of the place, some new attractive functions and so on, and on, and on … And I was here in Helsinki for two weeks, and it was sunny and warm, and then, yesterday it started to rain at two o’clock in the morning. It started to be gray and just like that, I have lost my “ideas”! I took a taxi to Rastila, looked at the “hill”, passed beside the “beach”, get out at the “entrance”, walked beside the “tower”, and slowly across the “square” and at the end I got to the apartment and went to sleep. What does it need? I do not know! I the morning I started to think: What does Rastila have? … Maybe that were the things that I had to think of first! But, I go home on friday morning and I leave you with tuulahdus lähiöstä….