Helsinki, Finland

On Tuesday, May 20 we were in Helsinki, Finland

Sailing into Helsinki

We gained one hour back on the clock last night after leaving St. Petersburg.  That was nice; we needed the extra rest.  Today’s tour is our 4^th city tour with Alla Tours.  It is mostly a riding-the-bus tour, and it will be nice that it won’t be a strenuous day. We are still tired from our days in St. Petersburg.  Another option would have been to take the shuttle to town and do a walking tour or use the HOHO bus which stops right at the port.  Helsinki would be very doable on your own.

Helsinki is the only European capital with no medieval past.  Although it was founded in the 16^th century by the Swedes in hopes of countering Tallinn as a strategic Baltic port, it never amounted to more than a village until the 18^th century.  The Russians took over Finland in 1809.

Our tour guide was Jenny and was very pleasant.  As we traveled along on the bus, Jenny told us of life here in Helsinki and pointed out sites along the way.

We passed by Tsarina’s Stone, which is a red granite obelisk topped by a globe and a double-headed eagle.  The double headed eagle is also the emblem used by the Russian tsars.

We caught a glimpse of the Uspenski Orthodox Cathedral.  It was built in 1868 for the Russian military when Finland belong to Russia. It is the biggest Russian Orthodox church in the Nordic region. We did not stop to go inside.

Our first stop was at Sibelius Park with its huge steel monument.  

Six hundred stainless –steel pipes called “Love of Music” honor Finland’s greatest composer, Jean Sibelius. 

The artist, Eila Hiltunen, was forced to add a bust of the composer’s face to silence critics of her otherwise abstract work.

Our friend, Gil posing for a photo

Back on the bus we drove to Temppeliaukio Church, aka The Rock Church.  This church in the rock was blasted out of solid granite in 1969.  

One simply cross on the exterior

Our guide, Jenny

This unique church is a highlight for most visitors to Helsinki, and is considered to be one of Europe's most interesting churches. It was carved out of solid rock from the side of a mountain and is topped by a copper dome.

Many tour buses arrived when it was time to enter the church

There is little décor except for a couple of simple crosses and the organ.

The organ

Under the floor of the church is an air-raid shelter that can accommodate 6,000 people.

Terry with Gwen and Jerry inside the church

Back on the bus, we drove by the Olympic Stadium that was home to Finland’s Olympic hero, Paavo Nurmi.  He won nine gold and three silver medals in the three Olympics during the 1920’s as well as setting 22 world running records.

Our last stop on the tour was at Senate Square.  The square is the tourist hub for Helsinki.  At the top of the steps is the Lutheran Cathedral, with its prominent green dome.

The statue in the center of the square honors Russian Tsar Alexander II.  He wasn’t liked in Russia (he was assassinated) but the Finns liked him because he gave Finland more autonomy in 1863 and never pushed Russianization  on them.

At the square we were given about an hour of free time.  Gwen wanted to find a Starbucks mug and another couple wanted to find a liquor store for a special liqueur sold only in Finland. Jenny said she knew where the stores were so off we went. 

We first stopped by the Parliament building and the most interesting thing was this statue of fingers.

Our walk through the busy downtown streets was interesting and Gwen found her Starbucks mug.

It was then back to the port for a restful afternoon on the ship before sailing away towards Sweden for our next and last port before we disembark in Copenhagen.

Watching the ships go by before we leave Helsinki