In the heart of Helsinki

Helsinki

Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...

, the capital of Finland

Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

, the two streets constituting Esplanadi are officially named Pohjoisesplanadi (Finnish for the North Esplanade Street, Swedish: Norra Esplanaden) and Eteläesplanadi (Finnish for the South Esplanade street, Swedish: Södra Esplanaden). They lead from Erottaja

Erottaja

Erottaja , meaning "the separator", is a public square near the centre of Helsinki, Finland.Erottaja square has been selected as the official geographic "zero point" of Helsinki. Distances to all other cities in Finland are measured starting from here. In practice, the square functions as the...

 Square to the Market Square

Market Square, Helsinki

The Market Square is a central square in Helsinki, Finland, and one of the most famous market places and tourist attractions in the city....

 (Kauppatori), and the North Esplanade Street extends along the border of the Market Square up to the Katajanokka

Katajanokka

Katajanokka is a neighbourhood of Helsinki, Finland, with around 4000 inhabitants in 2005. The district is located adjacent to the immediate downtown area, though in the first major town plan for Helsinki from the mid-18th century, the area fell outside the fortifications planned to encircle the...

 Channel. Parallel to Pohjoisesplanadi, a little northwards, is Aleksanterinkatu

Aleksanterinkatu

Aleksanterinkatu is a street in the centre of Helsinki, Finland. In the city plan by Carl Ludvig Engel, it was the Decumanus Maximus, the main east-west street in the city, crossing the Cardo, Unioninkatu at the corner of the Senate Square.The street begins near the Presidential Palace and...

. Esplanadi is colloquially called "Espa".
The big green area between the two streets is very active in summer, where many Finns come to have a picnic

Picnic

In contemporary usage, a picnic can be defined simply as a pleasure excursion at which a meal is eaten outdoors , ideally taking place in a beautiful landscape such as a park, beside a lake or with an interesting view and possibly at a public event such as before an open air theatre performance,...

. There are also numerous live music performances on a special outdoor stage in front of Cafe Kappeli. There is a statue of Johan Ludwig Runeberg by his son Walter Runeberg in the park. The park was originally opened in 1812.