VisitKouvolaKOUVOLA’s most read tOURISM MAGAZINE HOUSING FAIR 2019 The City of Alvar Aalto ANU PENTIK´S 4 X Story at Kouvola HIGH City Theatre POINT REPOVESI VERLA TYKKIMÄKI ARBORETUM MUSTILA FINLAND TABLE OF CONTENTS 5 My Kouvola Sports journalist Mika Saukkonen is a son of Kouvola. 6–7 Events This year, Kouvola will be hosting the Housing Fair plus offer lots more to see and enjoy. 10–11 Along Highway 6 Arboretum Mustila, Moisio Manor and wine tastings. 13 The city centre Three different days in Kouvola. 15 Sports city In Kouvola, you can be a spectator or take up almost any sport you like. 16 The Verla of stories A UNESCO World Heritage Site full of fascinating stories. REPOVESI 17 17 Repovesi A UNIQUE WILDERNESS How to enjoy the national park. 19 Repovesi Nature Photography Competition Repovesi Nature Photography Competition is seeking inspiring photos from the Repovesi National Park. VERLA 16 20–21 The Tykkimäki area A UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE Amusement park, Aquapark and much more. 23 Facts about Kouvola Kouvola is a big, delicious raisin bun. 24–25 Along the River Kymijoki New life is flowing in the old paper makers’ buildings. 26–27 The city of Alvar Aalto Alvar Aalto’s hand is clearly visible in Kouvola. 28–29 Samplings of Kouvola Cheese pot, boutiques and a model railroad. Social media and media personality Janni Hussi: “When you mention Kouvola, what springs to There are plenty of sports and exercise facili- mind for lots of people is the city centre, but ties, and lots of events for armchair athletes. Kouvola is so much more – such as its incred- In the summer, I watch pesäpallo and in ibly beautiful nature. I like to tell everyone the winter, ice hockey and basketball. I used about the Repovesi National Park. I hike there to play football in the Sudet Kouvola club every summer. for more than ten years. If you want to go When I’m in town, I visit my family who still shopping, I recommend the Veturi Shopping live in Kouvola. As a child-friendly city, Kouvola Centre. was a good place for me to grow up. I have I’m proud of my roots and talk about small but precious moments of my childhood Kouvola whenever I get a chance. My “per- etched in my memory, such as the small hill sonal” photographer, Nadi Hammouda, also near my home in Kankaronmäki where we happens to have grown up in Kouvola. When used to sledge before sauna. At the time, it I hosted the Miss Finland beauty pageant and seemed like a huge mountain. Nadi was the photographer, we once again bonded over our hometown Kouvola.” Photograph: Julius Konttinen. VisitKouvola Publisher: Kouvola Innovation Oy / Live & VisitKouvola Editor: Raija Sierman / Texts: Wirke / Layout: Mirja Näkki Oy / Print run: 50,000 (Finnish 30,000 / Russian 12,000 / English 8,000) / Place of printing: Forssa Print IN ALVAR AALTO’S 26 FOOTSTEPS IN ANJALA TAIDERUUKKI 24 ART IN REPOVESI 17 A FACTORY AREA A UNIQUE WILDERNESS SNIPPETS OF KOUVOLA 28 URBAN AREAS, NATURE, COUNTRYSIDE Musician Aleksanteri Hakaniemi: “I get a certain satisfaction from being an lived there. underdog. A musician from Helsinki might go There are some strong stereotypes relat- to the Sibelius Upper Secondary School and ing to Kouvola. I try not to pass them on. get picked up by a record label there, whereas Instead, I tell a different kind of story about I started as a busker on Kävelykatu Manski in what the city has to offer. It has tons of cul- Kouvola. I was spotted there when I was still a ture and sports and excellent minor and was hired by Bar Cafe Columbia. I facilities. When I was a little boy, also performed in their tent at the Kotka Mari- Tykkimäki was a huge paradise time Festival. I like having to work to achieve to me. something. For anyone who hasn’t been Whenever I come to Kouvola, as well as to Kouvola before I recommend home, I always stop at BarQ. It’s an important the best-known attractions, such as place for me. That’s where my album was Verla. The city also has many excel- released and where I meet friends. I’m show- lent restaurants. Ice hockey thrives ing signs of becoming a nostalgic old man. here, but basketball was my favourite I’ve found myself driving around Kaunisnurmi game. And football, until the music and reminiscing. I used to take guitar lessons took over.” at the music college and a lot of my friends Photograph: Kerttu Malinen Publisher: Kouvola Innovation Oy / Live & VisitKouvola Editor: Raija Sierman / Texts: Wirke / Layout: Mirja Näkki Oy / Print run: 50,000 (Finnish 30,000 / Russian 12,000 / English 8,000) / Place of printing: Forssa Print VERLA. A WORLD HERITAGE SITE FULL OF STORIES. Verla is an unparalleled historical factory village, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a Finnish cultural treasure. Admire this beautiful rural milieu during a day trip, or take lodgings in one of the workers‘ houses in the lush, green surroundings of the factory museum, which are brimming with 19th century charm. Find out more at verla.fi NIO M O UN IM D R T IA A L • P • VERLA MILL MUSEUM W L O A I R D L D N H O E M R Verlantie 295, 47850 Verla I E TA IN G O E • PATRIM tel. +358 2041 52170 [email protected] Verla is owned and maintained by UPM. 4 www.visitkouvola.fi Sports journalist Mika Saukkonen: Revealing “I tell all my friends what a great city the jewel Kouvola is. It’s a small town where every- thing is close by and everything works. A LOT OF PEOPLE don’t know much about Kou- When I go home for a visit, I usually vola. Even its location seems to be unclear. A train stop at cafe Allun Torikahvila on the journey from Kouvola to Helsinki takes just slightly market square to chat with my mates. I over an hour and to St. Petersburg two hours. still have a lot of friends in Kouvola. Often What makes Kouvola a fascinating small town is I also go to see an ice hockey, basketball the fact that it has its own Repovesi National Park, or pesäpallo match. Kouvola has an im- its own UNESCO World Heritage Site Verla, its own pressive range of successful sports clubs: Tykkimäki Amusement Park and its own Arbore- KooKoo in the Finnish Elite League for tum Mustila with an abundance of tree species. ice hockey, KPL for pesäpallo, Kouvot for Sports are highly valued here. Basketball, ice hockey and pesäpallo are played here at the Divi- basketball, MyPa and Sudet for football. sion 1 level. Kouvola is also a culture city where Of course, you can’ forget liquorice you can go to one of the Kymi Sinfonietta’s con- from Kouvolan Lakritsi, which I often certs or see a play at the Kouvola City Theatre. have delivered to me in Helsinki, along with Pulla Peltola’s first-class bread. KOUVOLA IS surrounded by beautiful landscapes. These are the two things I buy as soon The majority of the city consists of peaceful rural ”Kouvola has an impressive as I arrive in Kouvola or at my summer areas, forests and lakes. With its 7,700 summer range of successful sports cottage by Lake Rapojärvi in Valkeala. It’s cottages, Kouvola is one of the largest localities for summer homes. clubs: KooKoo in the Finnish always good to come back to my home town. The city’s almost thirty manors speak of its long history, as do its old barracks and industrial build- Elite League for ice hockey, I have a lot of great memories from ings, which have found a new use. KPL for pesäpallo, Kouvot my teenage years in sports. I remember for basketball, MyPa and Tornionmäki, the Sarkola school and MOST PEOPLE DON’T know everything about the legendary slack of the Sarkola track Sudet for football.” Kouvola because Kouvola residents don’t make a and field ground. When I was young, lot of noise about their home town. It’s been kept my mates and I used to hang out in the a hidden jewel. centre of town on the weekends. We Of course, this year the secret may come out spent quite a few late nights there. At the and information about Kouvola’s special treasures Kultainen Kannus restaurant, I ordered may spread all over Finland and the rest of the my first Black Russian. world. That’s because there will be a flood of peo- ple to see the wonderful Housing Fair. Kouvola is my hometown and I’ve never At the same time, visitors may want to see some been ashamed of it. I’m proud to be from older architecture too. Another fairly well hidden Kouvola.” secret is the fact that there is an entire factory and residential area in Kouvola designed by Alvar Aalto. I’M PROUD TO BE Editor Raija Sierman, Live & VisitKouvola FROM KOUVOLA www.visitkouvola.fi 5 The large 35 square metre patio faces the evening sun. Welcome to our home Anne Hasu and Paavo Hakkarainen will move into their new house after more than a hundred thousand strangers have visited it. TEXT JUKKA BEHM / photoGRAPHS JOHANNES WIEHN AT THE PIONEER PARK IN KORIA, the first are building a one-storied home for an aging house to be raised to roof level in the Hous- couple,” explains Hasu, who runs the Moisio ing Fair area was Anne Hasu and Paavo Manor with its art and catering services.