It has been on my mind already for a long time. There are many unique things in Finland and it is great to discover and appreciate them. One of those little curiosities is that Helsinki has the world's northernmost metro station. It is located at the end (beginning?) of the north branch of the only metro line in Helsinki.
Once, years ago, I asked here a stranger on the street about the supermarket in the neighbourhood. He politely told me how to get there, and then he added: "but it's Finland - don't expect too much!" I find this one of the most brilliant advices I have ever heard.
Having this wisdom in mind, living closer to the other end of the metro line, I have never gone to Mellunmäki. Luckily, this summer I had a good excuse to hop on the metro and finally visit this very special station. This is how it looks like:
Well, yes, this is not exactly a rush hour. In case you wonder, Finland is not very famous for having very crowded public spaces. But yes, I waited maybe a minute to have no one in the photo.
I wandered a bit around the station, thinking I could find some commemorative plaque, some information about the uniqueness of Mellunmäki station. In vain, or I overlooked it. So I headed outside:
The usual bus terminal next to the station. In case you wonder, in Finland quite often the things are well-thought and work relatively well. The bridge to the right of the picture is where the metro actually runs. In the east of Helsinki, the metro line runs on the surface.
Looking back from the same place:
This looks like a cute, cosy restaurant. I bet those walls have seen quite a lot. Maybe visiting that place for a pint will motivate me to go to Mellunmäki again. Maybe not.
That’s it for this travel report to the World’s northernmost metro station!