Those who know of my predilection for cemetery picnics are either fellow enthusiasts or mystified nay-sayers - very rarely does the suggestion of feasting amongst the tombstones provoke apathy. But really, what could be nicer? A calm idyll in the centre of the city, dotted with sun-dappled groves of evergreens and lawn, and all around you the solemn yet peaceful air of eternal rest (or eterno riposo). If I were one of the formerly mobile, I'd be thrilled to have a bit of lively company six feet over. I've never felt disrespectful or sacrilegious in my appreciation of the plots and their permanent tenants - in fact I'm pleased to integrate them back into the community, albeit briefly. A man occasionally practices trumpet in one of its rotundas; many more use its main road as a pleasant shortcut to the university. The cemetery is dead; long live the cemetery.
My dear friend, there's actually a park in Helsinki which used to be cemetery! I think we walked past it, maybe I forgot to mention.
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