Every design for Pornainen

Pornainen sits in the green countryside of Uusimaa, with Askola to the east, Mäntsälä to the north, Porvoo to the south-east and Sipoo to the south-west, and Järvenpää a short drive away. Through the middle runs the Mustijoki, and the road follows its bends past fields and steep rocky slopes. It is the smallest municipality of the Helsinki region by population, close enough to the capital for a daily commute and far enough for real quiet.

For many Finns the place feels oddly familiar before they ever arrive. Film crews have worked here for generations, and the trade press once named Pornainen the most photographed locality in Finland, which earned it the nickname Hollywood of Finland. The village of Laukkoski drew summer visitors such as the writers Mika Waltari and Juhani Aho and the actress Regina Linnanheimo. Around Kirveskoski, the church village, Hyötinmäki and Korkeamäki rise above the farmland, and MIL-Safarit is one of the local attractions.

The parish bell was bought long ago with linen the local women grew, spun and sold in Stockholm, and the bell and spindles still sit on the coat of arms. Turn off the road from Järvenpää, see the river again, and you know you are back.