Description of the attraction
Esplanade Park is located between two streets - North and South esplanade. It was Engel who included this park in the city's development plan already in 1812, and he also gave Espa, as the locals call this green island, that elegance that made it not only a place of recreation, but also a city landmark.
At the beginning of the park is the Kappeli restaurant, built in 1867 and rebuilt several times. In summer, performances are held daily on the open stage.
In the center of the Esplanade Park there is a sculpture of the national poet of Finland, author of the text of the country's national anthem J. L. Runeberg by the poet's son Walter Runeberg. The monument was inaugurated in 1885, ten years after the death of the poet.
At the eastern end of the Esplanade Park is a fountain decorated with a bronze figure of a girl. When the veils fell from the girl at the opening of the fountain in 1908, respectable residents of Helsinki were shocked. Now naked Havis Amanda (translated from Swedish means "sea nymph"), the work of the sculptor Ville Walgren, is a decoration of the park and no longer bothers anyone.
