Monica J. Pileggi

We had lost another hour last night. I never like to wish my vacation to go by quickly, but I was looking forward to gaining back the hours we lost. Our ship arrived an hour earlier than planned. Helsinki was a very nice visit and one of the nicer days, weather-wise. In fact it was the only day I wore my light jacket, rather than the heavier one. Our group got off the ship around 10:15am and we took the courtesy bus to town. From there, it was a 10-minute walk along the Esplanade to the market square (about 5 city blocks). Toni and Shaun had decided to do a bus tour and went on their way. I loved the market square! Many items were for sale, including fur hats and coats, fresh fruits, vegetables, fish and meats, souvenirs and local crafts. Jeff had gone off to find an ATM machine, so Robin and I checked out the shopping options. I already had some Euros from a previous trip. We took a short ferry ride to the Soumenlinna Maritime Fortress, which was founded in 1748. There was a museum, but we didn’t go in. We just wandered around the fortress and underground corridors. In one area, a WWII German sub was dry-docked. In addition to the fortress, about 900 people actually live on the island. The island is a nice place to walk around and relax.

We took the wrong ferry back to the market square and ended up paying another 3 Euros. Our next stop was to the onion-domed Uspenski Orthodox Church. The church sits at the top of a hill near the market square. Inside it is absolutely beautiful. It made me think of our upcoming visit to St. Petersburg Russia!

Near the market square is the old market hall. Inside were food stalls. I purchased a shrimp dish along with a reindeer stuffed pastry. It was mixed with potatoes, so I didn’t really get to taste the meat. But it was delicious.

The Senate Square sits behind the palace. From there, we walked to the train station. The design of the building is gothic. In fact, I read that design was used in the Batman movies.

We ran into Sabrina as we started to head to the center of town, when she told us that the Church in the Rock (Temppeliaukio Church) was only 10 minutes away. Our feet were getting tired, but being only a 10-minute walk, we decided to check it out. The small church is literally built into the rock with a copper/skylight dome. I sat for a few minutes to rest and look a round. It was a unique Church.

The walk back to the bus stop took about 20 minutes. We were glad to be on the bus, as we walked quite a bit.