Santa looked a lot like daddy…
In the early 1960s, Santa Claus is wearing a gray coat. The world is black and white. In a small square-shaped photograph, the camera lens has captured the large man in the middle, who has […]
Avainsana: In English
The youth center called Spittoon
The reason why the youth center of the Tapiola parish, officially named Olotila, started being called Räkälä – in English, it might have been Spittoon – is unclear. The name, however, perfectly suited the large […]
The Age of Aquarius
Räkälä, as the church’s youth club was called, had burnt to the ground and Heikintori’s disco didn’t even have a B-license. Teenagers on the verge of adulthood could smoke cigarettes publicly – if they dared. […]
So mean?
It is as if playing pranks is encoded into boys’ DNA. There’s clearly a noticeable section in the code that reads: ”the condensation of stupidity”. We managed to engage in all sorts of mischief as […]
My Sweet Lord
We, the semi-professional construction workers, celebrated the end of the renovation of the sauna section in Veli-Matti’s terraced house in traditional fashion. I learned a valuable lesson that it’s not wise to play football after […]
The Trenches of Vallarit
– Dad, what are those?– Where?– Over there, behind the trees.– Those are trenches. Fortifications. Do you wanna go and see? It’s quite a scary place.– Yes! Let’s go! On a spring Sunday afternoon, we […]
Silkkiniitty – Tapiola’s lungs
My friend, Hassan, taught me how to make fishing dough. The recipe was very simple: when water and wheat flour are mixed in the right proportion, it creates a sticky mass that stays on the […]
Mäntyviita – The Heart of Tapiola
Tapiola’s original, old town center is practically Mäntyviita; a short stretch of a road between the streets of Menninkäisentie and Kimmeltie. The first tower, Mäntytorni, completed in 1954, rises towards the sky as a bold […]
A Pool in the Middle of the Village
In the beginning, Aarne Ervi created the Central Pool. Tapiola was formless and empty. Dirt and sand covered everything, but the spirit of the Garden City was hovering over the area. The 49-meter-high Central Tower, […]
Kinosaur
You need to take 223 steps to get from our apartment door to Kino Tapiola’s ticket counter: I once calculated that distance. Rush down the stairs to the front door, walk 10 metres straight, then […]