Åbo Geophysics course 2024

Text and photos by Erik Sturkell

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In late October (20 Oct.) I traveled east to Åbo in Finland to give a two weeklong intensive course in geophysics. This was the tenth time I gave this course (first time in 2011), and its popularity has steadily been growing. This year I had 30 students. It was Joffi (Olav Eklund, figure 1) and I who initiated this Erasmus exchange back 2010, where the first exchange, as mentioned above, took place in 2011. In recent years, I have visited Åbo every second year to teach this course. As it happens, Joffi plans to retire in autumn 2025 but hopefully the Erasmus exchange can continue.

For ten years I have stayed at the Centro hotel downtown. Prior to this I stayed three times at the Akademis retreat Domus Aboensis on Biskopsgatan, Centro hotel was an upgrade. The hotel has a central location on Universitetsgatan but quiet (figure 2) and less than ten minutes’ walk from the Department of Geology. The hotel is good and serves a nice breakfast, but it has deteriorating slightly over the years. No newspapers anymore and no longer Prosecco on weekends (figure 3). The restaurant Trattoria Romana (figure 4) at Tavaststreet has changed owners, it is still good but not the same.

Also, some nostalgia during the visit. I went to the Bar Semafori (figure 5) across the railway, a place I visited many years ago. This place has character and matches my memories of a rustic bar at the end of the scale. Beer is cheap, only 6€ for 0.5l. This bar has the character of the 70-ies and is in the Finish category “räkälä” only for the professionals.

Figure 1. Joffi in a popular habitat.

Figure 2. The view from the hotel window.

Figure 3. a: The weekend breakfast at centro hotel I 2022 and b: today. 

Figure 4. Trattoria Romana restaurant.

Figure 5. Bar Semafori across the railroad.