Baltic Cruise: Helsinki

JUNE 2016

Helsinki was the perfect city to enjoy right after our busy 2 days in St. Petersburg. The city itself was very industrial, and the Russian influence was obvious. While we were in Russia, our guide talked about how some people will go to Finland for the day just to enjoy cheap gas, or different types of food. In fact, Helsinki was built by Russians, but they wanted it to feel more "European" so they imported an architect from Germany to give it a different vibe. Today, the city feels like a city with Russian roots and a modern, Nordic culture.

As with all of our other ports (with the exception of St. Petersburg) we didn't book an excursion with the cruise line and opted to explore the city on our own, with the assistance of Rick Steves. We were dropped off by the cruise shuttle near the Stockmann Department Store, and began our tour in the heart of the city.

Our next stop was the Three Blacksmiths statue. It was built in 1932, and is open to interpretation. Today, locals say it celebrates Finnish character, and represents their labor and cooperation with one another. At the base of the statue there are bullet holes from WWII, when the Soviet Union invaded Finland.

We wandered past the train station, and found ourselves at the Kamppi Chapel of Silence. The structure is ginormous and simple. We went inside to rest our feet for a minute and enjoy the serenity provided by the chapel. We had the place to ourselves, and could totally understand how this giant room could provide peace to anyone who entered it.

From the chapel, we walked to the outskirts of the city, past the music center, and found ourselves Finlandia Hall. The hall itself was closed since we were there on a Sunday, so we walked around and enjoyed the seaside park, complete with dozens of geese.

Our most interesting stop on our day in Helsinki was the Temppeliaukio Church. Also known as the "Church in the Rock," this house of worship was blasted out of solid granite. The decorations are simple, just a golden organ and a few crosses. The top of the church is made of a 13 mile long copper coil that makes the acoustics of the building amazing! The pianist played a few songs at the grand piano, and the sound totally filled the room. Temppeliaukio is also known for sitting above a bomb shelter built for 6,000 people. Hopefully, the shelter is as pretty as the church.

Since the Church in the Rock was our farthest stop from the port, we decided to hop on public transit and wrap up our day at the local market. Also, the public transit was in the form of these super cute trams, so we couldn't resist the opportunity to take a ride!

Market Square is located right on the harbor, and is home to vendors selling fruits and vegetables, magnets, trinkets, housewares, clothes, flowers, and most importantly, food! 

We wandered through the market, bought our magnet souvenir along with a juniper trivet (when you put hot food on it, it releases a floral scent!), and made our way to a yummy-looking food tent. Our favorite thing about the tent we ate at, was that it was an actual tent and therefore protected our yummy lunch from the birds. We saw countless market-goers dodging the birds and defending their food! 

We scarfed down our seafood paella and fried shrimp, and made our way to Senate Square. The statue in the center of the square is of Russian Czar Alexander II, and the borders of the square were made up of a Luthern Cathedral, the Senate building, and the National Library. This was clearly a popular spot, and we had trouble taking pictures without tour busses in the background! 

Our final stop on our walking tour was through the Esplanade. On this Sunday, it felt like an extension of the market, sprinkled with food carts and locals lounging on the benches. This definitely felt like the boulevard to see and be seen. This beautiful boulevard park was sandwiched between two popular high-end shopping streets. Constructed in the 1830s, this area has always been the ritziest neighborhood of Helsinki.

Final Thoughts. 

Helsinki was a great place to stop for the day, but for our exploring style, there would definitely not have been enough to do for an entire weekend. Sure, there were some museums and things that we skipped over, but with the whirlwind days in Russia prior to our time in Helsinki, it was a well-timed stop at a leisurely pace. We really enjoyed walking around the city without much of an itinerary, and we still feel like we got a good feel for what Finland is all about: relaxation and yummy seafood, with a hint of Russian influence.