Temppeliaukio Kirkko in Helsinki (Helsinki)

Member Name: stmatth

Product:	Helsinki
Date:	14/08/00 (81 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Beauty

Disadvantages: It's difficult to leave again

An intriguing mixture of natural and architectural beauty, the Temppeliaukio Kirkko (Church) in Helsinki is certainly one of the most fascinating buildings that I have ever seen. From the outside, it is hardly more than one of the hundreds of granite hills that are so common all along the Finnish Coast. But inside this natural rock, an enormous cave was blasted, and the top covered with a dome of glass and copper, so that beams of sunlight enter the church and produce an eerie display of light and shadow in this half natural, half man-made space. Add to this the amazing acoustics and the organ music, and you could almost believe that you are in the hall of the (fairy) mountain king.
Not only in Helsinki there are many examples of the unique architectural achievements of Finnland, which seems to have the ability to combine natural, traditional and progressive elements into harmonious creations - and the Temppeliaukio Kirkko is one of the finest.

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