Impressions

Two hours of wondering around Tapiola. Some impressions:

Visited Heikintori. A place full of Chinese stuff, a fur shop, Alko, lots of different smells.. It's now actually quite far from this idealistic vision about the 1st American style shopping paradise in Finland (was it 1968?).

In Tapiola there's also a big information office where you can find lots of information and maps about the metro they're building at the moment. Many people in Espoo have been worried (in media) about this metro because it's been said it will bring "wrong kind of people" to the area. After 2015 - that's when it's supposed to be ready - it's going to be an easy way to reach Espoo from not-so-well-doing East Helsinki.

I realized I really need to deal with my own prejudice. Maybe the reason is the commercial nature of the area. It might also be my own memories about Tapiola and it's people when I was a kid and a teen. I keep imagining that this NIMBY is going strong in Espoo (Espoo doesn't really want to be joined to Helsinki or other worse doing cities in the area). I really have to change my attitude and this project is really good for that. Don't know yet how to do it.

The cute and small swimming hall might be a good place to take a closer look at. I was fascinated about it's outdoor pool and this middle aged man that spent time around it with only swimming trunks on. I'm thinking of using that as the starting point of my ideas. I mean not the man, but the water.