In this article, I'm going to tell you about the central square of Kuopio. It is the main square of London. The main shops are located here. This is where we used to do our shopping. However, you should know that there are not many shops for shopping. There was an H&M, a Sokos (it's a big shop where you can find luxury brands; it's a bit like the Galeries Lafayette in France).
On the other hand, there are a lot of second hand shops where you can find all kinds of objects, clothes, even opened bottles of shampoo! It's quite funny to see. In France these shops are much less common.
On this large square you can also find the Kuopio town hall. The construction of the town hall started in 1875 during an architectural competition, but the competition was interrupted and the construction of the town hall was interrupted. The town hall was finally built in 1886 and it was Alvar Aalto (a famous designer) who designed the back of the town hall.
Kuopio town hall
I still remember when we arrived in January, in this square, under the snow and with a temperature of around minus 20 degrees, we were not smart... There was nobody in the streets, the benches were covered with snow, the cold and the night that fell at 2pm were threatening... But it was the beginning of an extraordinary experience!
When the "good days" came, this square became more and more lively, with an outdoor market (there were food stalls, jewellery, decorations, clothes...), flowers coming out, people in the streets, concerts on certain days... It is on this square that the spring festival "Vappu" is celebrated. People (especially students), sing, dance, drink, get together. They even jump into the fountain in front of the halls.
Aerial view of Kuopio Square
In short, this square is very pleasant when the weather is good!
Lisa Iafrate
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