Going underground ...

For the last couple of weeks, I have been hoping for snow, lots of it. This may seem strange, as for most of my time here the thought of snow has been a bit grim. Of course, it does make the place look like a proper winter capital and enhance the light, but it comes with a downside if you park on the street. You need to clear the snow off the car before you can drive. If the snowplough has been past, you may also need to dig your way out.

All this changed two Fridays ago when I finally got a place in the parking garage beneath my apartment building. There has been a waiting list since I moved in, but over the holidays my name moved to the top of the list and I got a mail from my landlady's agent at Nordea to say I could rent a place. On the day my wife was due over for the weekend, I visited the service company, taking proof that I had paid the security deposit into their bank account, so that I could sign the contract (written in Finnish, of course) and collect the keys and the transmitter for the door and gate.

The rental cost works out to around the cost of a latte a day, which at this time of year seems well worth it. Being able to drive out with clear windows and above zero inside temperatures still seems a novelty. Of course, with the space come some rules. I can't use the space for anything other than a car, I need to keep the space clean and tidy, can't repair the car or wash it in the space and I can't sub-let it.

What surprised me, considering the waiting list, was just how may spaces are empty, all the time. There are also some rather cool cars down there, a big old Rolls Royce, an American cruiser (as yet unidentified) and several Porsches. However, Gunther is not going to get ideas above his standing as there are also several Audi A3's in there as well.