RASHA'S TIPS FOR TURKU CAFÉS
- Cafe Art
"My favourite café with a wonderful river view. My favourite there is the carrot cake. I’m basically vegan, but I can make an exception to my diet, for example, for carrot cake."
- Fontana
"A cosy place to sit right in the centre of Turku. In Fontana I like to have a chai latte and double chocolate cookie. It has so much sugar that it goes well with a latte."
- Kembuz Café
"Really nice little café with a good selection of vegan products. Their speciality is beetroot latte. It has a very special taste; strange but good!"
For Rasha Elmansuri, all roads lead to Turku. Although sometimes the roads can take her temporarily out of Turku but her return to the banks of the Aura River is always inevitable.
"Turku has its own magic. I can’t explain it but this place has a magical pull so you never want to leave. Sure, you can go somewhere else, but you always want to come back", she laughs.
Elmansuri settled in Turku over eight years ago. Prior to that, she lived in Libya, Egypt, and the UK. Before the corona pandemic, she travelled extensively and spent her exchange student years in Amsterdam. Seeing the world has not diluted Elmansuri's love for Turku.
"I really like to travel a lot, but it's wonderful to come back here. I can't leave Turku."
Turku has everything a student needs
What is so attractive about Turku? The Aura River and its wonderful banks, for example. Elmansuri often walks along the river, sometimes daily.
"Every time I walk along the river, I have to take a picture. I’ve lived here for over eight years and walked along the river numerous times, but I still can’t pass through without taking a photo", she laughs.
Elmansuri, who has graduated from Turku University of Applied Sciences and is now pursuing a master's degree at the University of Turku, also considers Turku to be a great city for students.
"Everything a student could need is here and everything is within walking distance. People are also nice and social, especially in the summer. I feel welcome in Turku."
Turku's lovely cafés
Elmansuri is also fascinated by Turku's café culture. She doesn’t want to buy take away coffee in a hurry but enjoys sitting in cafés.
"I go to a café either with friends or alone with a book. During the corona lock down, it was frustrating when the cafés were closed, but now thankfully they are open again."
Her favourite café is the riverside Café Art. It appeals to Elmansuri not only because of its location, but also because of its other characteristics.
"It's kind of wonderfully homely. It was also the first café I sat in when I moved to Turku. There are a lot of memories involved", she smiles.
"Coffee is like water"
Elmansuri's favourite cafés also include Fontana on Aurakatu and Kembuz Café on Hämeenkatu. On the other hand, coffee tastes good even when she makes it at home.
"I like that coffee is not such a big deal here in the same way as in Libya, for example. There, coffee is a big thing, and you have to make an effort when serving it. There you have to have great serving dishes and you must always offer something with the coffee. Here, coffee is a normal thing, like water", Elmansuri laughs.
However, Elmansuri enjoys baking and sometimes likes to make something to accompany the coffee. Chocolate-filled brioches, a recipe she promises to reveal on Study in Turku's Instagram account on 9th July, are well suited for that.
"Of the Finnish delicacies, I especially like cinnamon buns and lingonberry pie with ice cream."