Heidi Joensuu, arriving for the interview on a Tuesday afternoon in February, has had exciting and busy couple of weeks. Chicret, a shop focusing on ecological and responsible fashion and cosmetics which she opened last summer, has just moved to its new premises in Kumpeelenkuja, a location with a long tradition of selling high-quality underwear.

It's been about five and a half years since Heidi moved back to her old home town. In the past, she had moved from Raahe first to Oulu to study, and then to Kajaani, where Heidi set up her first brick-and-mortar shop.

Tomi Kyröläinen plays ball together with his 8-year-old son Onni in the new Antinkangas community centre's gym, where Kyröläinen's house was completed only two weeks earlier.

In peace in the middle of a historic setting but still close to everything. Anniina and Eetu are new residents of Old Raahe, natives of Raahe, who returned to their old home town after many twists and turns, and ended up living in a culturally valuable wooden house in Saaristokatu.

Anniina is familiar with wooden Raahe, as she spent her childhood in the Oinonen house in Kauppakatu in Old Raahe. The idea of buying a house in the old town began to fascinate Anniina and Eetu when they lived in a balcony access block for a year.

A city of just the right size. Big enough to contain all the essentials, but still small enough to retain the village-like spirit of helping others. This is what Roippa thinks of his home town of Raahe.

At some point, Roippa noticed that he was becoming an ordinary small-towner who often thought that the grass was greener on the other side of the fence, and his attention seemed to be increasingly focused on the negative.

The home is perfect for Maritta: it has everything she needs, and nothing more. The setting is peaceful and cosy, and the view from the window to the church is stunning at all times of the year. As well as Maritta, her one-year-old dog Ami enjoys life in Raahe’s old town.

Raahe is quite diverse in its housing options. In addition to the compact city centre, the maritime residential areas, the idyllic Old Raahe and the cosy urban areas, Raahe offers charming, communal and nature-friendly villages, located a short drive from the services of the city.

When you drive about ten kilometres south of the city centre, you will come to the village of Haapajoki-Arkkukari. There you will find the paradise of Tita, who works as the city gardener.

Tita says she was picked up and brought to Raahe 25 years ago.

On a grey Friday in November, Hannu has a remote work day. In the morning, he takes his 4-year-old child on foot to the day-care centre one kilometre away and continues with his usual morning run. The route takes him through Old Raahe to Pikkulahti and from there via Fantti to Pitkäkari, and the end point is Kylmäniemi beach. Hannu washes away the sweat raised by a run of just under 10 kilometres by taking a dip in the sea, a routine with which he has kicked off his working day since the summer.