Thursday 9 January 2020 We left Helsinki on the 10:00 Allegro service to St Petersburg in bright sunshine. This would have been a much better day to visit the Suomenlinna Fortress: what a difference the weather can make. Shortly after departure we were offered a choice of fish, meat or vegetarian meal, with fruit juice and either a brownie or a yoghurt [see Dish of the day]. Many people, including Robert, chose to eat this immediately but it seemed more like lunch than breakfast so Matilda saved hers for later and thought of the myriad school children on a trip who eat their packed lunch almost before the coach has passed out of the school gate. We were in first class and so could help ourselves to unlimited water, tea or coffee from a refreshment station in the middle of the carriage. The Allegro train is a purpose-built, high speed Alstrom Pendolino [tilting] train: top speed 140mph. These trains are purpose-built because they need to cope with two different voltages on the Finnish and Russian train systems, as well as the two different gauges of railway track. The journey takes 3 hours and 27 minutes and both customs checks and […]
Finland
Thursday 8 January 2020 We probably chose the worst day to visit Suomenlinna as there was driving rain and a bitterly cold wind almost strong enough to knock you over in some exposed areas – see Video of the day below. However as this would be our only opportunity this trip to visit the fortified islands, we caught the boat from the harbour past the ferry to Tallinn: Matilda was very pleased to note that we will be travelling the next leg of our journey by train. Suomenlinna was originally called Sveaborg [Swedish] or Viapori [which is apparently its phonetic equivalent in Finnish] and the signs on the quay give both Suomenlinna and Sveaborg as destinations which is potentially confusing. Suomenlinna means the Castle of Finland and the fort has been known by this name since 1918. When we disembarked there was a blue trail to follow to the King’s Gate [see feature photo], an imposing entrance which was started in 1753 to mark the place where King Adolf Frederick of Sweden’s ship was anchored when he came to inspect the building works in 1752. The boat from Helsinki leaves you at the opposite end of the island fortress to […]
Tuesday 7th January 2020 The rain and warmer temperatures had cleared the pavements of snow and ice so that it was much easier to walk about, but unfortunately the warm air had also brought with it a low mist. We were therefore pleased that we had been able to take a photo of the outside of the Uspenski Eastern Orthodox Cathedral in better light the day before [below left]. Built between 1862 and 1868, it has an imposing position on a hillside on the Katajanokka peninsula close to the water. It is apparently usually closed on Mondays so this may not have been attributable to the public holiday yesterday. Looking back from Helsinki Cathedral many of the older buildings are in warm shades of yellow and ochre with just a hint of pink. The Cathedral itself was built between 1830 and 1852 as a tribute to the Grand Duke of Finland, Tsar Nicholas I of Russia and prior to Finnish Independence in 1917 it was also known as St Nicholas’ Church. The green domes with golden stars are particularly striking. The Lutheran interior seems rather minimalist compared to the decorations in the Uspenski Cathedral, but it is still beautiful. Apparently […]
Sunday 5th to Monday 6th January 2020 Two members of the Herd had to return to the UK to fulfil work and study commitments so having said a fond farewell to our beautiful offspring and the beautiful . . . . . . Apukka Resort [where you can stay in an ice cabin if you wish] . . . . . . we dropped them at the airport by taxi before going and depositing our bags in the luggage lockers at Rovaniemi train station. We then walked into the town to visit the shops and try to replace the gloves and hat we had lost the previous evening before heading to the Arktikum Science Centre and Museum. Extended exhibits show how native Finnish people have adapted to life within the Arctic Circle and the impact of global warming here. The museum has a strong ecological theme and it is a thought-provoking experience. The atrium is particularly impressive and its silhouette is a landmark in the city. Robert had been unable to book a sleeper berth for us for the overnight journey to Helsinki. Robert is normally very good at maintaining a spreadsheet detailing the first day all train tickets go on […]
Saturday 4th January 2020 As we walked to breakfast, although sunrise was not for another couple of hours, light was slowly rising over the Apukka Resort. An ice wall and two slides have been constructed out of the snow and ice here and rubber rings are provided as the means of transport down the slides. When we checked in we were encouraged to use the slides and have fun. However, it is possible that they were constructed with slightly younger children than ours in mind as our daughters managed to build up a fair amount of momentum. As well as yesterday’s Aurora Husky Tour, we had also pre-booked the Aurora Snowmobiling Tour making sure we had a snowmobile each. The Apukka Resort brochure clearly states that, in order to take part in the Aurora Snowmobiling Tour, you need to be in possession of a driving licence which is valid/accepted in the EU. In addition, there is a zero tolerance policy for alcohol or other mind-altering substances. One couple who had booked on the tour were sitting in reception with an open bottle of wine just before we were due to depart. They both failed a breathalyser test and were not […]
Friday 3rd January 2020 Before checking out of our hotel we decided to go for a walk around Rovaniemi. However, rain overnight and an unseasonably warm spell had resulted in a thaw and re-freeze which made the pavements truly treacherous whilst the snow sculpture from yesterday’s Selfie of the day had completely collapsed. [Robert had a heavy fall last night, made worse by his successful attempt to save the late night chips]. We walked very carefully down to the Jätkänkynttilä Bridge. This was the winning entry in a competition held in 1982/3 and as the design is intended to pay homage to the city’s logging heritage, it is also known as the Lumberjack Candle Bridge. According to Matilda’s research a lumberjack candle is a popular form of outdoor lighting/heating made by repeatedly sawing partway down a log to create equal sized triangular segments. You can use the wood shavings this creates, or other combustible material, to light a fire in the central channel which will apparently burn for sometime providing light and heat to cook by. A total of 36 sodium fluorescent lights burn night and day at the top of the two main columns on the Jätkänkynttilä Bridge. The […]
Wednesday 1st to Thursday 2nd January 2020 To start our second family quest to see the Northern Lights, Robert and Matilda travelled by train to Gatwick whilst their daughters drove themselves there with the larger items of luggage. With a two hour time difference between the UK and Finland most of the day was taken up with travel. Having checked in to our hotel we had limited time to find a restaurant with suitable vegetarian options for our evening meal. The choice of restaurant was further restricted by the fact that we had arrived on New Year’s Day and many places were closing early or offering a limited menu following the previous night’s revelry. The hotel was opposite a well-known fast food chain however, so if all else failed we knew we could at least order fries. Walking round the town we passed immense snow and ice sculptures – see selfie of the day. We eventually identified a bar offering a wide range of local beers and both meat and vegetarian burgers. With the evening meal planned, we first visited a pub for an aperitif and then returned to eat. The bar also featured an alcove at the rear with […]