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Hello all,

I must confess that Helsinki has rocketed up my list of desired destinations after reading this weekend’s feature from Laura Studarus on the Finnish capital city’s awe-inspiring, thoughtfully designed subterranean spaces. She visited a swimming hole carved into the granite, an underground go-kart track (the only one of its kind), a surreal-looking art museum below a playground-like square, and a stunning chapel embedded into the earth.

The city’s vast array of underground buildings is an obvious byproduct of brutal winters and urban sprawl, but as Studarus notes, most of them can be used as bunkers. The prevailing reason? Russia.

Speaking of life below the surface, I’m reminded of Candida Moss’ compelling look at a massive ancient Turkish underground city that archaeologists recently unearthed. Most news reports suggested the sprawling network of tunnels may have housed early Christians seeking refuge, but as Moss explained, the truth may be far more complicated.

I’m also reminded of two classic Beast Travel stories about destinations that have confronted their own dark pasts: Natchez, Mississippi, which we labeled as “one of America’s beautiful cities,” having leaned into its history of racist cruelty and redemption; and Sparta, which was infamous for its blood sport but now beckons visitors looking for a more unique side of Greece.

Enjoy!

— Andrew Kirell, Senior Editor

The City Where Life Happens Underground

From churches to art museums to swimming holes—Helsinki is full of wonderfully designed, thoughtful subterranean spaces. But why?

Turkey’s Ancient Underground City Isn’t What Everybody Says It Is

Archeologists in Turkey have discovered an almost 2000-year-old underground city that may have housed up to 70,000 people.

One of America’s Beautiful Cities Leans Into Its Dark Past

This river city is now reckoning with its unique and dramatic history of excessive wealth, unyielding cruelty, and transformative resistance.

This Ancient City Known for Blood Sport Is Still Around

Despite what you may think, today’s Spartans are alive and well and excited to receive visitors.

“There’s a rumor that Helsinki’s complex system of bunkers is all interconnected—bringing to mind some retro-futuristic subterranean city… However, the long tale of how being forced to fortify the city has affected it is far more interesting than the myth.”

—Laura Studarus investigates the real reasons for Helsinki’s underground life.

These Chic Bags From Béis Won’t Break the Bank

Béis’s Weekender Water Repellent Tote Bag is the ultimate carry-on for two to three-day getaways. The tote bag has a structured silhouette with a flat base and protective metal feet, and a couple of exterior pockets (one that you can even unzip to slide onto your luggage). The bottom of the Weekender bag also unzips to store your dirty shoes or anything else you may want separate from your clothes and other valuables, which is truly an ingenious feature. This strap is also padded, because comfort matters.

—Scouted by Mia Maguire

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Travel Into an Icon of Venice’s World

It’s a slim book, but Fortuny: Time, Space, Light packs a design history punch. In his lifetime from the end of the 19th century until the middle of the 20th, few designers impacted the visual world as much as Mariano Fortuny. Born in Spain to one of its greatest painters, Fortuny made his mark in Paris and then became synonymous with Venice–so much so that none other than Proust would write how seeing one of his dresses took one back to La Serenissima.

This new tome by Wendy Ligon Smith, published by Yale University Press, explores Fortuny’s legacy. It dives into his experiments with light, electricity, and other technologies. This is a man who was once compared to Edison and Goethe and had a patent for his pleating machine. He transformed fashion, theater, and design–his dresses are still worn more than a century later and the same goes for his lighting techniques and fabrics. While the book is certainly more academic than the typical book you might pick up on a friend’s coffee table, it’s a perfect fit for our series Just Booked.

After all, while the casual tourist to Venice will rhapsodize over the Doge’s Palace or the Rialto Bridge, but get a true lover of Venice and they will tell you one place you simply must go is the Palazzo Fortuny.

Don’t miss our other selections for our series on gorgeous travel-related coffee table books, Just Booked.

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