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Let loose tour Chapter 2.
  • Jo Lowe
  • Jo Lowe

Let loose tour Chapter 2.

A 36-day adventure by Jo Read more
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  • Jo LoweLet loose tour Chapter 2.Jo Lowe

    Hello Helsinki

    September 6, 2025 in Finland ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    Im unexpectedly in Helsinki for an extended period .I should have returned to the UK 🇬🇧 on 8th September but the commitment I had for the air ambulance was cancelled, so flight changed and I am able to travel for longer and include Tallin and Stockholm.
    As I had my luggage with Me and the next accommodation resisted giving early check in ,I spent most of the day near the free cups of tea .🤣in the airport hotel reception, planning future trips to India, ( oct )Costa Rica and South America (December to February )
    Eventually arrived at my accommodation in a taxi ( a long journey! and a place Id never have found alone.!) The outside was seriously unwelcoming ....grill gates ,a key code ,concrete steps inside and out ,a tiny lift and lights on a corridor with no windows, that only go on when you trigger them in passing ....an unpleasant and unnerving experience, as it was an unfamiliar location, the same in Moss side was just normal and no problem!🤣🤣
    Room is stark and I seriously considered bailing and going elsewhere...but it was Evening and I decided to make the best of it ..after all it was clean .
    Best thing about the location is taxis outside .
    Despite my reservations I did sleep well    Read more

  • Jo LoweLet loose tour Chapter 2.Jo Lowe
    The Russian orthodox Cathedral2Street foodStreet food...potato and sausage mixHarbour viewsViews from boat cruiseMilitary islandBoat cruise viewsHarbour viewSome of the Helsinki islandsHelsinki CathedralHelsinki CathedralHelsinki ArchitectureThe organ in Helsinki CathedralThe indoor marketThe indoor market2Indoor marketThe sauna and swim placeA bridge where tourists have put padlocks2

    Discovering Helsinki

    September 7, 2025 in Finland ⋅ ☁️ 20 °C

    After a slow start to my time in Helsinki, I ventured out ,with the help of a taxi ,to the harbour. I remain disappointed with my accommodation, the reviews said good location but ,its 2km from the harbour and all the main events
    I started with a cup of tea in the market place ,from a tented cafe and then a harbour cruise .I didn't realise that Helsinki is a number of Islands and the history is very embroiled in conflict with Russia and Sweden. Its also obvious that it is a growing city with evidence of construction
    The cruise was enjoyable .
    I had some street food available from the market stalls by the harbour, but avoided Reindeer burgers....I cant imagine eating rudolph !
    A wander round the centre took me to the Cathedral where a choir rehearsal was taking place. It was beautiful to listen to .The organ in thr Cathedral is impressive and Id have liked to hear it
    After a further cup of tea in a traditional cafe served by an elderly and rather strange man i took the hop on Hop.off bus tour which covered a wide area id never have seen otherwise. It also served to show how big of a city Helsinki is .
    Returning to thr market place I called into the indoor market which was a lovely traditional place with organised stalls and cafes, some selling caviar ,others selling Reindeer balls! Across from the market was the outdoor pool and sauna, where apparently all generations will attend together and go together in the sauna naked,..I cannot imagine doing this.🤣 ... Then I tried to find the right place for the boat to Tallin but was unsuccessful. I returned instead to my accommodation,once again doing battle with bars and key codes
    I like the architecture in Helsinki, I like its symmetry..but I've not got to grips with the vibe here ,...yet    Read more

  • Jo LoweLet loose tour Chapter 2.Jo Lowe
    My accommodationA rather striking looking lady outside my accommodation!

    The church in the Rock

    September 8, 2025 in Finland ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    After catching up with my penguins app ,I set out to find the Church in the rock ...that had been reccomended to me by my friend Claire.
    I realised it was relatively close to where Im staying so decided to walk as it was a nice day .
    En route,I got side tracked into a shopping centre. However it was useful as I found a cafe for some lunch and discovered that the bus and trams ran from this point
    The Church in the rocks was really lovely. Very neutral, very calming and people appeared to be affected by it in this way as everyone was super quiet and generally just sitting to savour the atmosphere. There was the gentle sound of piano music being played, very soothing 😌 ✨️ It has an amazing curved roof with a copper ceiling.
    Back out in the sunshine, I walked back to my accommodation,although Id considered going to the market square, I decided against it    Read more

  • Jo LoweLet loose tour Chapter 2.Jo Lowe
    2

    Day trip to Tallin.

    September 9, 2025 in Estonia ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Part of extending my time away was to be able to go to Tallin in Estonia 🇪🇪 as id seen photos and it looked beautiful.
    An early ish start and I took a taxi to the harbour and bought a foot passenger day trip to Tallin
    It was a 2.5hr cruise on a ship much bigger than the one for my Greenland cruise and there was an incredible amount of people going to Tallin, many with suitcases also children and dogs
    The inside of the boat was noisy and chaotic so after a brew in an on board cafe, I went to find a place outside
    I located a place at the back of the ship, where it wasn't windy and had great views, it was also quiet ...being on the 10th floor
    On arrival in Tallin I paid for thn jumped on the hop on hop off bus .For once this was a bad idea ,it wasn't going to set off for a further 20mins ( time was at a premium, as boat back to Helsinki was at 5pm and boarding 4.30pm...the time i got on the bus was 1pm and it set off at 1.20pm. I anxiously stayed on the bus experiencing the wider areas of modern Tallin whilst clock watching ,as i was keen to have enough time to explore the old town, which is what I'd come for .
    An hour later I was able to get off the bus near a striking Cathedral. A nearby stall was selling fresh orange which was delicious.
    Inside the church was stunning but photos weren't allowed
    I wandered the picturesque cobbled streets of the old town stopping briefly for a brew
    My mission complete i returned to the ship ....which i didn't bargain on being half an hours walk away
    Once on board, I again spent most of the journey outside, going in only to have a meal just before arriving back in Helsinki
    Its been an enjoyable day    Read more

  • Jo LoweLet loose tour Chapter 2.Jo Lowe
    The Russian orthodox Cathedral
    Inside the Russian orthodox CathedralViews from being on the boatThe swim / sauna placeThe Le jardin de something exhibition..pointless!Another exhibit ..The wierd cupViews from.torpedo islandIn the samsonite shop comparing my bag with othersInside the Russian orthodox Cathedral

    Haphazard day in Helsinki

    September 10, 2025 in Finland ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    As the Russian orthodox Cathedral was open today i decided to explore inside this building which stands in a prominent position in the centre of Helsinki. Its a stark contrast to the simplicity of the church in the rock as its very ornate. .I didn’t care for it
    After wards I went to the harbour front and complete with ice cream and water on this rather hot day,I went on a boat trip ,that I thought was going to go round the islands and canal...so I didn't get off at the island..However I was mistaken and it simply returned to the harbour.
    I jumped on a different boat ,it too went solely to an island so I thought, best just get off and look around. It was thr location for Helsinki Biennial ,seemingly from the displays a wierd art festival, random fabric hung in a darkened room ,with the displays being called Le Jardin de something or other...wierd !!
    Returned to the place id got off the boat only to be told by someone involved in the exhibition that id not be allowed to get back On the boat at this point but Id have to walk to Torpedo island!😳 which is the pick up point.
    Dutifully setting off I passed a wierd unnecessary display of pipes finally reaching the shores of torpedo island
    There were a couple of cafes so decided to have a brew which I had to drink out of a wierd cup possibly made from Reindeer horns ,that had come from Lapland ...the tea tasted wierd in it
    Returning to the harbour, I was in time to get a meal from the pop up market. The salmon was delicious. Id noticed a Samsonite luggage shop in the city centre and unfortunately it was still open !🤦‍♀️...I just had to go in .The shopkeeper was from Finland but had lived 35yrs in UK
    We had a lovely chat. I succumbed to a purchase..but ...I've to take it to the global blue counter at the airport, before I leave Helsinki and I'll get my tax back on my purchase! .I saw this tax free shopping in Norway too ...but didn't appreciate what it meant for me.    Read more

  • Jo LoweLet loose tour Chapter 2.Jo Lowe
    The massive knife for my steak ,actually too hard to ur

    A lazy day

    September 11, 2025 in Finland ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    I' ve somewhat run out of steam with Helsinki, having genuinely done the main tourist things
    I had a telephone meeting and just chilled in my accommodation..
    Ultimately nipped out for an evening meal ,which is where things looked up ...I had meal and afterwards as I was about to leave i asked for a cup of tea to take away....then I noticed, it's a Strawberry hotels, who do free tea and coffee for members, im a member, so I nipped across the road for chocolate and back again ,where i enjoyed the ambience of the hotel with my brew and chocolate
    Before leaving I asked for tea to take away but they'd run out of the right kind of tea bags ,so hot water and milk and my emergency Yorkshire teabags to the rescue    Read more

  • Jo LoweLet loose tour Chapter 2.Jo Lowe

    Abba ,here I come

    September 12, 2025 in Sweden ⋅ ☁️ 16 °C

    Finally checked out of my Helsinki room and went straight to the airport....to the Global blue counter to reclaim my tax on my Samsonite purchase...but ,apparently I cant claim it till I am leaving the EU,so il have to do it in Stockholm
    This is a nuisance as I intended to put ths stuff from my backpack into the new backpack but now have the problem of too much carry on luggage. My wheeled bag ended up being checked in
    The security queue was like nothing I had ever experienced! Join the 8 lane queue which actually starts with you going away from the security channel to come back and filter in a 2 lane queue in the right direction..manic !
    One FUN fact about this trip ,is that ,due to the time difference between Finland and Sweden I will ARRIVE in Sweden at the same time as LEFT Finland.
    Arriving at Stockholm i collected my bag ,got the Arlanda express train to town ...a real suprise ,workstations on the train with red lamps .Further suprise was the grey cord carpet on the platform
    I went to the nearest restaurant as id not eaten all day .The food was lovely, they offered extra bread and whilst I didn't eat it I hid it in my hoody pockets ...for tomorrow!🤣
    Settled into my next Strawberry hotel and may seek out that free brew !    Read more

  • Jo LoweLet loose tour Chapter 2.Jo Lowe
    Some of the outfitsThe studio where the music was createdThe office where the words were written and lots of other key things happenedA studio mock up with original instrumentsMemorabeliaAwards everywhere2Mama miaThe avatar where u could pretend to be on stage with Abba2Note the replacement band member2

    Ist stop..ABBA Museum

    September 13, 2025 in Sweden ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    Today was all about going to the Abba Museum. I was about to call a taxi when I saw the hop on hop off bus and jumped on that instead
    There was a queue at the Museum, but I managed to get tickets for 1pm.,about half an hour wait.
    In the meantime, I had a walk around, discovered a theme park with rides and the waterfront with boat trips
    On entering the museum i became really emotional, irrational really ,lots of young people around and i was thinking, yeah but I knew this when it actually was happening. Id not been allowed to listen to pop music at home and used to go to my friends house and we would chat and listen to Abba.
    Huge nostalgia and really interesting to see what they'd all gone on to do.Id not realised that Benny and Bjorn were behind the music for Chess ,the musical.
    I feel i missed out on Abba the Voyage ,when I saw they'd recreated performances using Avatar ...There was an interactive Avatar where you could go on stage and appear to sing with them ...I was tempted to do it but didn't have anyone to record it on my phone and didn't want to ask someone to do it .There was a silent disco room as well as booths you could go in and sing
    The whole thing was excellent. Everywhere you looked, there were awards ,either as a group or individually
    I inevitably succumbed to the souvenir shop !🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️ and then had Swedish meatballs in the cafe attached to the venue
    Also on my radar for today was the Vas Museum which houses an enormous wreck of a viking ship.
    The weather was hot and I wandered along the waterfront past a Viking Museum, a drinking Museum a boat Museum and a wrecks museum
    There wasnt time to go in all of them .
    When i arrived at the Vas Museum I was told it would take 90mins to go round and decided that id not have sufficient time today to look properly
    I left and returned back to my hotel using the hop on Hop.offA bus
    A really great start to being in Stockholm,which has a lovely vibe,great architecture and lots to do    Read more

  • Jo LoweLet loose tour Chapter 2.Jo Lowe

    Sightseeing Stockholm

    September 14, 2025 in Sweden ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    Using the hop on hop off bus i went to the beautiful city hall.having explored the gorgeous waterfront gardens i joined the tour to see inside. The blue hall holds the Nobel prize dinner for over 1000 people
    This confused me as Id been to the Nobel peace building in Oslo and thought that was the only building associated with the event. However oslo just has the peace award as at the time of the decision Norway was deemed to be more neutral than Sweden .Sweden's Nobel award is for all other categories, eg science, medicine, technology
    Councillors in Sweden are generally unpaid volunteers apart from a few ,so.most have other paid jobs .The council only meets once a month .Voting in Sweden is not compulsory
    I moved on to the old town which is full of windy cobbled streets and coloured buildings past the Parliament buildings .and through the grounds of the Royal palace...much more relaxed approach than in the UK
    Afterwards I took a very interesting and enjoyable trip round the islands of Stockholm some of which are inhabited. I saw several posh houses as well as the traditional red summer houses
    Overall a very interesting and enjoyable day..    Read more

  • Jo LoweLet loose tour Chapter 2.Jo Lowe
    The front of the shipTrying to show the sizeTrying to show the sizeTrying to show size and detailSo remarkably intact and so hugeDetails on the boatTrying to show how enormous it is and the detailStaggering details so incredible that its remainedDetails on the back of the boatDecorative figures from the boatThe ships long boatA model of how life on board would have beenShoes and glovesThe divers suit for retrieving the boat (1961)

    A Salvaged ship from 1628

    September 15, 2025 in Sweden ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    I decided to start the day with a boat trip that was part of a Combi ticket for the hop on hop off bus .I was told that it had now stopped running for the end of the season..as a trade off I got an extra 24hrs for the bus,great for getting around Stockholm.
    I took an alternative cruise around one of the islands including a beautiful canal section...
    On my return, I made for the Vasa museum...it has an intact ship salvaged from the sea in 1961 dated 1628
    Wow !!! It was incredible!! Absolutely brilliant !! Huge !!
    I could not believe it .I don't generally do museums but this was Special...! Id seen pictures of it when looking for things to do but it exceeded my expectations
    The sheer size ,the details of the carvings .The decorative figures...just Everything about it was fantastic. The pictures just don't do it justice .it was also incredible how intact it was
    I overheard the guide saying that it sank on its 1st voyage ,the ship builders and the Captain knew it wasn't sea worthy but didn't feel able to tell the King this information as he wouldn't have been pleased ...so they set sail hoping for the best .Really enjoyable place to visit. The design of the museum is such that it gives the best chance to see all aspects of the boat. The building is 6 storeys high ...and even then there was a platform on the 6th floor so you could see the boat from a slightly different/ higher angle.
    It was well worth the visit and time spent there    Read more

  • Jo LoweLet loose tour Chapter 2.Jo Lowe
    The tax refund counter and my Samsonite purchaseViking boat building demoBeautiful Nordic Museum buildingBeautiful Grand hotel buildingThe canal areaSeen in a shop1Seen in a shop in the old townFluffy clouds !🤣1Details on the boat in the Vasa MuseumWaterfront from the boat

    Time to go home. Manchester here I come

    September 16, 2025 in Sweden ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C

    I intended to go into the centre of Stockholm to see the changing of the guard at the Royal Palace, which apparently involves playing Abba music ,as well as going to IKEA in the centre for meatballs 😀...I have seen ikea in passing on the bus ,so that will have to do for now.
    However I didn't make it ,so il simply have to go back to Stockholm one day !
    I took the train to the airport and went to the Global blue counter with my purchase from the Samsonite shop in Helsinki..to get a tax refund....Getting this refund hasn't been straightforward!...In Helsinki, the Global blue counter wouldn't do it as I was going to another EU country and the Stockholm Global blue wouldn't do it until id gone to their customs office to get the form stamped (because id brought the goods from another EU country !🤦‍♀️) At the customs office i had to ring on a phone and was told someone would come, so I expected to wait and someone would arrive..but i was taken aback that a screen slid back and a female customs officer suddenly appeared....I want to giggle but didn't dare she looked a bit grim!😅..Form.signed ,refund authorised, I was finally able to use my Samsonite backpack purchase .It had been in a carrier with tape on saying do not use / open in the EU....I did check with Customs 1st !
    Irrationally I've always wanted to fly with SAS airline and today I have my chance ...Very comfy seats....good job as we were stuck on the airfield for 30mins unable to set off as the weather was bad over the North sea and there were too many planes which air traffic control were trying to thin out.
    I have to comment that the clouds were sooo fluffy looking this evening ..( worrying observation!😅)
    Matthew collected me from the airport which was nice as travel/ transfer days are often long days
    So Im back in Manchester 🤪...for now....until the next one..
    I can't wait ! 🛫🛫🛫🛫
    Photos are from today and others I've not managed to include elsewhere.    Read more

    Trip end
    September 16, 2025