Since December 2023, I anticipated the trip to Helsinki. Was I excited? Excited was an understatement. I was super, really super excited. In fact, I was tagged as the trip leader – officially, and a position that I only assume because, why not, I love to travel. Well, technically speaking, I was the official trip leader. It was a trip that the UP Diliman Chancellor requested me and ten other individuals to conduct benchmarking and do some consultations with the University of Helsinki and the Aalto University regarding the UP Diliman Culture Bearers-in-Residence Program. As the project leader of the program, I was de facto the trip leader of the group. On the other hand, this trip leader thingy really attracted me to perform one of my favorite things I do each time I travel – design the itinerary. If my career in the academe did not prosper, I believe I would be managing my own travel company.

Anyhow, this trip to North Europe, to the Scandinavian region, borrowing the tagline of our lodging, Hotel Kattajanokka, was an escape from the ordinary! It was a memorable trip for various reasons. Several firsts.

It was a first time for me to travel via Turkish Airline. According to many colleagues and friends who had experienced the carrier, Turkish Airline was an experience of luxury in the sky. Whatever that means, I was not really sure if this meant traveling ala business class even if you are in the economy class. I am not sure though if I could say luxury was really experienced but on my way to Istanbul, our first stop or lay-over from Manila, I was given the opportunity to eat both dinner options: chicken and fish. But I digress.

It was a first time to experience winter in this European region, which is considered one of the coldest places on earth. I was hoping to catch a glimpse of the Aurora Borealis or the Northern Lights, but no, it did not show itself to us. But was it cold? It was – but I thought my experience in Beijing in December 2018 was colder.

It was a first time to stay in a historical lodging – a retrofitted building that used to be the Royal or Crown Prison. Originally built in 1837, the Helsinki County Prison was opened with 12 prison rooms, two guard rooms and a chapel. The chapel is still functional (it’s the white stucco building) and it is considered the second oldest church in Helsinki. Unfortunately, it was under restoration at the time of our visit.

It was also a first time for us to be greeted, “welcome to prison” by the hotel receptionists. The jest greeting of the receptionists Rita and Vin made our stay at the hotel more intriguing. It made us – or perhaps, just me – want to know more about the history of the place. As we engaged with both Rita and Vin, we learned that the once-upon-a-time Helsinki County Prison (Skatta or Nokka in the Finnish and Swedish languages) was opened as an investigative prison. The inmates consisted of criminals awaiting their trials and people imprisoned for unpaid fines. There was a time that 200 persons awaited trial in its 164 cells.

It was only in 2002 (that recent) when the building ceased to operate as a prison. A decree was signed by the Prime Minister and all inmates were transferred to the Vantaa Prison. The site was then developed as a hotel, initiated by the Best Western chain of hotels. In 2016, the management decides to leave the Best Western chain and became and independent lifestyle hotel. It adapted “escape the ordinary” as its official tagline, which I thought to be a playful but a fantastic way to describe the experience of staying at the hotel. Since then, the hotel received numerous recognitions including World Luxury Hotel Award, TripAdvisor’s Travellers’ Choice Award, and Evento Award. Today, Hotel Katajanokka is a proud member of the Marriott International’s Tribute Portfolio hotels and continuously earns several recognitions from various travel groups and international hotel organizations.

The hotel retained its historical structure outside but the interior is very modern, chic, and regal; hence, its branding of escaping the ordinary – because there is nothing ordinary in the hotel. Staying there was extraordinary – the staff were kind and very hospitable. The food was nice. The amenities were okay. The rooms were a bit smaller for a luxury hotel but it is the usual European room size between 21 and 25 square-meters for double occupancy. A lot of the doors were the same doors prison guards opened and closed during the time they bring in and bring out prisoners. Many of these are unusually small: my estimation: more or less a meter wide.

I guess the point is – Hotel Katajanokka is a destination in itself. It reminds me of The Rizal Park Hotel in Manila, which originally was the Manila Army and Navy Club Building, established in 1911.

We arrived at exactly 12 noon. Thanks to the very accommodating hotel staff, our rooms were already prepared. Rita said that they were anticipating our tiredness due to the long trip from Manila via Istanbul. After checking-in, we decided to stroll around the nearby area since the next activity was scheduled in the evening of that day.

The Katajanokka District was amazing. I thought the snow surrounding in the area gave it a very unusual flavor in a very good way. Our first stop was the Uspenski Cathedral, completed in 1868. The cathedral is the largest orthodox church in Western Europe. With its golden cupolas and redbrick facade, the Uspenski Cathedral is one of the clearest symbols of the Russian impact on Finnish history. As Catholics, of course, we stayed for at least 15 minutes inside the church, made the sign of the cross and prayed even though the church was only a reminder of the churches in the Philippines. As an Orthodox Church, the interiors are two-dimensional representations of the scriptures compared to the three-dimensional representations of the sacred and holy in the Philippines. Anyhow, I thought the prayers made by my colleagues were thanksgivings, gratitude for traveling safely from Manila and gratitude for having a stress-free arrival in Helsinki. But more than a call for prayer, I thought the necessity to get inside was strong because it was 1 degree outside.

So we continued our first day stroll and had a quick snack at a make-shift cafeteria along the esplanade opposite the Museum of Helsinki History and Culture, Helsinki City Hall, and the Supreme Court of Finland. After a hearty snack, we went to the Old Market Hall where I experienced another first.

The excitement was transformed into anxiety, disillusionment, fear, and anger. Of course, being tourists we were in full awe of the new things we saw around. We took pictures there, and then there, and then another there. After about 30 minutes of looking for possible restaurants for the entire group in the next two days, I went to the toilet to pee, only to realize that my body bag was open and my entire wallet was missing. My heart skipped a beat because all of my money were in the wallet and all my cards were also there. And yes, I was a victim of theft in the happiest country in the world.

Our hotel was a former prison as mentioned earlier. I was slapped in the face by the irony of the luxury that is Hotel Katajanokka and the happy disposition of the Scandinavian city. In the end, I was still grateful and I thought I was able to – still escape the ordinary. The hotel staff were very helpful. We reported the incident to the police. My colleagues (who are also my dear, dear friends ensured that everything would be alright). I thought it was a good thing that I was not alone in this official trip, which most of the time was the case. Had this happened during my solo travel, I might end up losing my sanity. I was still grateful that I had my passport with me. Currently, there is no Philippine consulate office in Helsinki. The nearest one is in Stockholm, almost 400 kms away from where we were.

My first day in Helsinki? I was looking forward to this trip. Did the experience ruin it? Of course it did. But I had to confront it. It was just the first of the eight-day trip. Besides, I had my friends with me who were willing to help me go through the ordeal.

I was very affected by this traumatic encounter at the Old Market Hall. In fact, I remember not enjoying my dinner at a nearby Nepalese Restaurant recommended by the kind hotel staff. I though I needed to sleep it off and wake up feeling brand new in the morning.