Helsinki Full Day

The hotel room is small and comfortable. We thought it best to leave the window open overnight as was a warm evening. High flying mosquitoes decided to visit. They were viscous.. By the time Julie worked it out she had multiple welts. 2am and we were hunting them down. Close to 10 of the little blighters that exploded with Julie’s blood when we killed them. A bit messy. Apologies for the detail. Not what we wanted to be doing. Sunset here was at 11pm and sunrise at 4am. Twilight was short.

A leisurely walk down to the markets for breakfast. Fresh strawberries and raspberries. Then hopped on the ferry to discover Suomenlinna. This is an old fort at the entrance to the harbour which is now a World Heritage area. The fort was built from 1749. Russia took it over during the Finnish war in 1808 then Finland declared independence in 1917 then annexed the fort back from Russia in 1918. The stone walls are very thick and solid.
The weather is warm and sunny again. Sunblock in use and we enjoyed any shade we could find.

Once back in town it was a rest with coffee and cake then climbed the steps to Helsinki Cathedral in Senate Square. This was completed in 1852. We wandered back to the hotel via the main shopping streets, there are some very tasteful things that tempted me. Unfortunately when I doubled the price they were left behind.

Dinner was yet another Italian restaurant then we meandered back to the hotel via the design precinct. Fascinating ornaments in lots of shop windows and we found the vintage clothing area too. I expect return there tomorrow for a closer look.Read more