Hey (Hello) Helsinki

This was our first full day in Helsinki and, as no rain was predicted until till this evening, we thought we would just walk around the city and make the most of a rain free day. It was very chilly but we had sunshine and a blue sky. We walked along Esplanade Park to Market Square, where a few stalls were being set up, so we headed to Senate Square and the Helsinki Cathedral. We popped into the (Lutheran) Cathedral, which is quite austere compared to a Catholic one. We then walked back down to the waterfront market where I bought a headband to keep my ears warm, as my little beanie wasn’t cutting the mustard. After, we wandered around for a bit and took some snaps across the harbour.

Next, we passed the Presidential Palace, with only one guard in sight. Nearby was the Uspenski Cathedral, which is a Greek Orthodox cathedral built in 1868, and is the largest Greek Orthodox Church in both Northern and Western Europe. We then headed into the city, past Senate Square. We found a lovely café so we stopped in for a coffee. While I was ordering, I noticed some oval pastries on the counter. I asked what they were and was told they were Karelian pastries, which are rye pastry filled with rice pudding and baked. They are normally served with egg butter, but they hadn’t made the topping yet so we had them without. They are quite plain tasting, but I enjoyed it with my coffee.

We continued our walk past the central train station and up to Eduskuntatalo, which is the Finnish Parliament House. We then walked across the road to Kansalaistori, a modern public square with the Sibelius Academy, the ultramodern Oodi building (Helsinki’s Central Library) and Kiasma, which is the Museum of Contemporary Art.

We then crossed the road in search of another new museum Ian was interested in called Amos Rex, a privately run art gallery. As the weather is looking pretty wet and cold tomorrow we were scoping out possible “indoor” activities. We are also interested in revisiting the Design Museum, which is only about 200 metres from our apartment.

We spent the next couple of hours shopping, eating lunch, admiring the architecture and discovering what we have in our neighbourhood. As part of the shopping we went Marimekko, and Ian bought me a lovely dress and a woollen headband, which are early birthday presents.Read more