2 week "break" in Finland - Part 2 Turku and Helsinki


10th to 12th June - Turku and Helsinki


We're keen to get back to our boat but we reckon we'd be mad to dash off without seeing a bit more of Finland. We might get back here by boat sometime, maybe next summer, so it's an opportunity to do a bit of a recce.


There must be thousands of miles of road just like this in Finland - we accepted a lift with Howard's employer so it's a view from the car not from a bus

Turku Castle - it's medieval - in fact the largest surviving medieval building in Finland and one of the oldest buildings still in use - as a Museum of course (Finland's most visited museum) but I'm afraid we weren't in a museum mood so I can't tell you more.

Green roof? Copper?

Wooden houses we saw were built on stone bases but perhaps this is how it used to be done

We gravitate towards the waterfront and the nautical exhibits

Prop envy sets in

Mine on its trolley

Bigger mine, bigger trolley

Elvis is in town - or rather a few Elvises though only one of the crooners we heard was in costume

This guitarist was singing like Elvis but he didn't look very Elvisy - in contrast the chef is posing like a King

Howard is not very interested in fake Elvises

Flower power

Clearly a good place for Baltic Traders - Daddy, Mummy and baby Baltic Trader.

Not some hideous intsrument of torture, not for dunking witches, it's an ancient beacon.
They'd light a fire in the bucket and then hoist it high.

We liked the fountain and the gaffer

Close up of the fountain

...and the gaffer

Howard was curious about this device mounted between the masts of Sigyn (built 1887)
Close up - any ideas?

Here's the answer.


Not such a pretty gaffer - not when you consider that that is the bow!

That is Turku Cathedral in the background - also one of the oldest medieval blah blah blah
The ferry in the foreground is displaying 2 black balls which  means 'not under command' and we hadn't seen this on a ferry before. Perhaps someone has stolen the diamond between the balls for 'restricted in ability to manoevre'? 

Looks under command

We managed to visit this floating drinking spot a couple of times - nice!


Something to get in a sweat about?

Last thing before we set off by train to Helsinki next day is a lunchtime drink in a Cafe we wished we had discovered sooner. It was half the price of the bar on the boat - called The Daily News. I tried a white drink I'd seen lots of people drinking. I couldn't believe that many people were drinking lemonade and sure enough, no - it's a gin based drink flavoured with grapefruit. Delicious! Imaginatively named "Gin Long Drink".


Gin Long Drink and Beer Long Drink at the Daily News Cafe

Onwards to Helsinki

Helsinki is much grander - although I think dignity is lost here

Cathedral - dazzling when the sun came out



As usual we found our way to the interesting boats
These monsters are ice breakers, waiting out the summer to work in the winter keeping traffic moving in the Baltic

Hang on - that's not a boat....


We wandered around the various waterfronts and checked out a couple of marinas ready for the day we turn up in our own boat - then it was time to turn in ready for an early start to catch tram, train, flight, train, another train and finally a cab back to Bonify in the Netherlands


Comments

Post a Comment

We've set this up so anyone can comment - though we'll see your comment before it's published on the blog - please comment away!

Popular posts from this blog

Inland Schleswig-Holstein

Image
Wednesday 19th July to Thursday 20th July - River Eider inland Reasons to take the River Eider route to the Baltic: 1. It's easier to get to from Heligoland (in the right conditions). 2. You avoid travelling (and crossing) the River Elbe with all its traffic and strong current. 3. You avoid the massive ship lock at Brunsbüttel where we have heard of yachts having to wait as long as 4 hours out in the Elbe before locking in. There are some issues with the locks and they are not all operating. 4. There's no commercial traffic, till you join up with the Kiel Canal 5. Once in, it's more interesting to travel along a river with small towns to visit than 100km of straight ship canal. So, Tönning was our first town with its small harbour a feature in itself overlooked by houses and cafés. When the tide went out overnight we didn't see the mud, we just floated in almost no water.  On Wednesday we moved on to Friedrichstadt, just 10nm further on, a pleasant short trip with withi
Read more

Denmark. Mission accomplished!

Image
Thursday 27th July Schleimünde to Sønderborg - 18 nm The final leg to Denmark is achieved under sail. Goose-winged to start with (from 7.30am) then pole down as the wind veered.  9.45: into Danish waters, time for a new courtesy flag. White cross on red ground duly hoisted. 11am: tied up on Sønderborg quay, prime spot with great view of the castle (Slot). We left the east coast of England back in May with the aim of cruising "towards Denmark" and now we're here. Mission accomplished. We've travelled about 830 miles, mostly with the assistance of the engine, especially inland in the canals, but we've also had some great sails on the way. We've enjoyed visiting Kent, northern France, Belgium, the Netherlands including the Wadden Islands, the German Watten, Heligoland, Schleswig-Holstein and now we're in Denmark.  Sønderborg on the island of Als seems to be the current mooring place for the Danish royal yacht so we're in good company. We've still
Read more

Rigging screws? Hmm...

Image
Sunday 23rd July - guest crew join at Rendsburg. If you believe what you read in Riddle of the Sands (sorry, here we go again) then guest crew joining your yacht in the Baltic can be prevailed upon to bring any number of weird and wonderful items of equipment.  Carruthers brought rigging screws, a prismatic compass, a pound of Raven mixture for Davies's pipe and a No. 3 Rippingille stove.  We thought that a replacement heating system was rather a lot to ask of guests trying to stay within the Ryanair hand baggage limit, and in any case the current heating system is not quite ready to be consigned to the deep. Though Howard does distort its name from Webasto to Webastard sometimes, so it may only be a matter of time. Anyway Pete and Sarah very kindly made room in their bags for our new cockpit cover (now adjusted since its first fitting back in Bergen op Zoom) and a pair of shorts we'd asked for. Pete had also packed a rigging screw which we hadn't asked for, but you can see
Read more