Citysherpa

Citysherpas have finished their jobs for the summer.

Citysherpa is a service which gives a tourist the chance to meet someone who lives in Helsinki and who wants to show his or her city.

Sherpas will not be paid a salary, and it doesn't cost anything for a tourist to use their services. The job they do is entirely voluntary.

How does it work?
Read the presentations of sherpas and send an e-mail to the person you wish to show Helsinki to you. Citysherpa says yes, if it is all right for him or her. There is no defined length for the tour, it can take an hour, or a day. The tour as such doesn't cost anything, but you are expected to pay entrance fees and other such expenses yourself.

The weekly supplement of the Helsingin Sanomat newspaper and the best local radio station in Helsinki, Radio Helsinki, will follow sherpas during the summer. On some of the tours, a reporter may join you.

When the tour is over, we hope that you will thank by telling about your stay in Helsinki using the sherpablog at HS.fi/citysherpa.

The tours are available from 23 June to 18 August in 2006.

Summer '06 Citysherpas

Antti, 31
speciality: music

Antti wants to show you his favourite disc shops and flea markets. He is sure that rock'n roll / hip hop / heavy / pop / r&b / jazz / dance / tecno / punk etc. conscious tourists cannot say no to the things Helsinki has to offer.

If you are interested in cars, Antti has a well-tuned Citroen 2 CV.

Antti speaks Finnish, English, and German.

Antti is on a working trip from July the 13th to August the 7th, so during that time he is not able to book any tours.

Iksu, 32
speciality: for japanese

A Japanese in Helsinki. In her application, Iksu told she had fallen in love with Helsinki. She wishes to present the city from a Japanese point of view. For the Japanese, she would like to give an alternative since they, she says, may tend to follow the travel guides a bit too literally.

Iksu wants to show small shops, the Pihlajasaari recreatioal island, the Kaivopuisto park by the sea and her favourite restaurants. The romantic Tamminiemi Café might be included in the tour. Furthermore, she could take you for a yoga lesson, and later at night, to hear Finnish music groups.

Iksu speaks Japanese and English.

E-mail: Iksu@citysherpa.fi

Kari, 47 and Maria, 22
specialities: urban stories, nature

Kari and Maria would like to present Helsinki by stories, and show the city to, for example, a middle-aged couple or a family. They are planning to walk, use public transport, or hire bikes.

Kari knows a lot of stories about Helsinki. He could tell about Eino Leino's statue and about the coin the poet holds in his hand, or stories from the Russian time in Finland.

Maria's specialities include the Baltic Sea and nature as part of the city and living in Helsinki.

Kari and Maria speak Finnish and English.

E-mail: KarijaMaria@citysherpa.fi

Marsu, 25
specialities: art history and spain

Marsu would like to show you art museums since she has studied art history in Zaragoza, Spain, among others.

During a walking tour in the centre of Helsinki, she would like to show, for example, old houses in Eira. She could take you for a picnic in the Koff park, or for sunbathing on the nearby Uunisaari island. And later on, for a pub tour in the areas of Punavuori or Kallio.

Marsu speaks Finnish, English, and Spanish.

E-mail: Marsu@citysherpa.fi

Masa, 67
specialities: EU- and history

Masa is a Helsinki dweller by birth. During his career, he guided hundreds of foreign politicians and journalists, often with wives and families, in and around Helsinki for 30 years. His latest job was for the City of Helsinki, where he was the head of EU matters from 1995 to 2003. He has also been lobbying for the Finnish industry abroad. Masa wishes to tell his guests about the war years as well since wrong ideas still go round.

He has a breathtaking amount of hobbies: history, choral singing, literature, hunting, antiquities, cross-country skiing, and photography.

Masa speaks Finnish, English, Swedish, German, and French.

Unfortunately the current Finnish EU Presidency has caused so much unexpected work for EU-specialist Masa that he has to cut his Citysherpa-career shorter than expected. Masa is not booking any more tours, but is giving the tours that have already been arranged.

E-mail: Masa@citysherpa.fi

Nuppu, 24
speciality: chill out

Nuppu just spent five months in Australia, and the best she can think of were the days with the locals. She would now like to guide someone in Helsinki with the same kindness she experienced in Australia.

She would surprise a traveller with a local rock gig. Go to a small club with strange Finnish music. Before that, get beer from the shop and drink it in the park, maybe take a grill along. Almost a must is the Linnunlaulu villa's café, and the city's outdoor swimming pool. She is a keen photographer, so, should it not be the real tourist weather, you would at least have good pictures to take home.

Nuppu speaks Finnish and English.

E-mail: Nuppu@citysherpa.fi

Paula, 20
speciality: urban culture

Paula studies history and art history and certainly knows the basic facts about culture in Helsinki. Her application was filled with two pages of ideas how to spend summer in Helsinki.

She could take you to a tour starting from a comic strip vending machine made from an old cigarette vending machine. Good movies are shown at Orion, and souvenirs can be found at least at antique shops, museum shops, and Finnish design shops. Also, Paula could take you for a swim at one of the nearby islands or to the indoor pool downtown Helsinki.

A good place for late hunger would be a stand in front of the Old Student House serving vegeburgers.

Paula speaks Finnish, Swedish, and English.

E-mail: Paula@citysherpa.fi

Sean, 36
specialities: running and culture

Sean plans to make use of his hobby, long-distance running. He wants to run together with you, on tracks in parks and beautiful areas tourists usually don't see.

There's no doubt whether he can - Sean is also for ultra long runs, runs longer than the marathon. A tour could take one to seven hours. He could talk about, say, music, literature, and movies. He works as school welfare office, and has a private business as psychotherapist. This might give you a chance to have a look at the Finnish mentality, too.

Sean speaks English, Finnish, Swedish, and some French. He understands Norwegian and Danish.

E-mail: Sean@citysherpa.fi