About a month ago I started a series on”What to do in Jyväskylä”. The first edition was about a wintery walk on Jyväsjärvi and here I have the next installment. This time I wanted to write about places where I like to sit and drink a cup of coffee or tea. The teahouse Teeleidi and art and culture hostel the Local are those spots where you can escape the everyday life or change your home office setup to something different.

When I have travelled around the world one of the strongest memories I collect are those from cafes and restaurants. The athmosphere and the people stay in the back of my mind and I always hoped that I would get the same sensation in a place at home. I think that is why I have such strong feelings towards these two places in Jyväskylä.

I have wanted to incorporate filmmaking to my blog for a longer time and I was so happy when the owners of both these places let me come visit and interview them about their own places. International Womens Day was appropriately during the week as both companies are women own which I think is amazing.

Coffee drinker in tea heaven;

Teeleidi helps you find your tea

I am a selfmade coffee addict. I fell for coffee over 10 years ago. I found tea properly only few years ago and one of the first places where I drank tea was at Teeleidi. Teeleidi has a special place in my heart as there I went for one of my first dates with my partner. During my first visit to Teeleidi I knew very little about tea. Not going to lie, I still know very little. But in the past two odd years I have slowly began to enjoy my occasional cup of tea.

Teeleidi is definitely the place for people like me. Those who would maybe like to drink tea but also do not really know where to start from. This is because in Teeleidi you are helped to pick a tea of your choice. The amazing part of Teeleidi is how many kinds of teas they produce. The walls of their teahouse are covered in different jars of tea. There is all kinds, green, black and the others I do not even know about. The teahouse itself is also stunning, as it is in an old historical building near the University of Jyväskylä campus. The staff know their stuff and one can ask pretty much everything from them to help pick the tea you might like. I for example wanted to try a green tea. I like black tea too, but the day I was visiting I felt like green tea would be appropriate. From there the owner Anne led me on by asking questions of the flavors I might like and suggested ones that could suit my liking. I ended up picking a tea that had mango and other fruits in it. It was lovely, and contrary to my prominent belief that teas taste like leaves that tea I drank tasted very very pleasant. Which of course was a pleasant surprise to me.

The day when I visited the place was full of people. Afternoon tea and the International Women’s Day had brought people in groups to drink tea and chat. I was surrounded by smiling faces, big bright windows and many small details from intricate wallpaper to the artifacts surrounding the space. Teeleidi is truly created from love of tea. I was also fortunate enough to interview the owner Anne about Teeleidi, its story and what makes the place special for her. Check it out down below or by clicking here!

Hostel with the right feel

In the oldest brick building in Jyväskylä one can find the Local

Disclaimer. I love hostels. Love them. More than anything. Which is why my exitement could not be measured when I found out Jyväskylä would be getting its own hostel, the Local. Hostel culture in Finland has been almost non-existent during my life here. Slowly with the rise of tourism is hostel culture arriving here too, but the movement is rather slow. The Local comes to tackle the need for one.

The Local has the right feel of a hostel. That sense of wonder and something that just makes me very happy. I have sat in the cafe side of the local drinking coffee and editing blog posts a good few times since its opening. The cafe is a beautiful open space that was once a library. I love the fact that I can sit up on the railing part and look at other customers. The Local fills my need for people watching.

The Local is strongly connected to the local culture of Finland and Jyväskylä. In the decoration of the rooms and the hallways one can admire either the colorscheme and sense of Finnish nature, look at a graffiti of the Kuokkala bridge or admire a painting of Wivi Lönn. There are also flyers and brochures of local places and things to do. I was lucky that I got to talk with the owners Minna and Rinna about their hostel. You can see the interview here or underneath (it will get subtitles in the coming days)!