August 9 to 13
Finland

Main Church Helsinki

Off to the ferry to cross to Finland. Another 14 hours, another one of "those ferries". We were really happy with this opportunity. Last year we missed Finland because of the weather. The contrast between Russia and Finland was as big as the channel that goes across them. Even though Helsinki is not spectacular by any means (in truth I was expecting a much more vibrant and modern city) the easiness, the cleanness, the friendly people and the great weather make such a great experience for us. They do have a very pretty harbour with a promenade and a huge park were the embassies are. We took a small ferry to Suomenlinna and we did what helsinkiners do, laying on the rocks! The modern art museum and the design museum taught us about being minimalist with twist lines of their style, something that can be seen in shops, houses, clothes.

We rented a car and venture afar Helsinki and discover a quiet, relax and pretty country side. One of the most interesting things was to see "public saunas" in the middle of national parks!! They are everywhere and it is a "must" in every home. We were upset that we didn't bring SalSolcito with us so we couldn't just go and getting into the millions of lakes that they have. And an unexpected encounter made our trip even much more interesting (more in "people we meet")

Turku

Porvoo