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Thursday, May 9

 
 
YEAR:  2024 | Tags:  | | |
 
 
 
 
 

Itäväylä, 11:00

 
 

Today Finland comes to a partial halt because of Ascension Day, a public holiday of the shops-closing kind. I can remember when this meant that every shop closed everywhere, but with the advent of 24 hour shopping this has changed.

I went for a walk and stopped at the Teboil gas station to get some milk from the shop there. The shop – indeed the whole gas station – stood empty: closed for Ascension Day. While I read the notice on the door two cars drove in, checked the closure, and drove off.

I walk home the long way, past Alepa which now opens 24 hours a day almost every day of the year, and pause to photograph the automatic Shell gas pumps, two hundred metres from Teboil, which also operate 24 hours a day.

How does Teboil manage to stay afloat, since the shop (which basically sells beer, snacks and candy) closes at 19:00 or 18:00 at weekends?