Travel Diary

It was downstairs again for another fine breakfast. We got to eat outside in a courtyard area since the weather was nice. Then we made our way to the waterfront again and took a ride on the Ferris wheel. It was fun, although I’m not sure the view bested some of the other vantage points in the area. Nevertheless, it had to be tried.

After that, we headed over to get tickets for a bus tour around the city. It really is the most logical way to hit the key spots and the audio systems are fairly well done now. We got to see some of the nice parts of town and a fine waterfront area. Then we got off downtown as Andy wanted to visit the Helsinki Hard Rock café. I just had a beer. Shocking, I know.

We got on the bus again and exited in the part of the city that they had built for the 1952 Olympics. The area was keen but the actual main stadium was under renovation so we could not go inside. In its current state, the stadium is anything but impressive. Not much else was there to do so we returned to the bus and finished out our tour.

We headed back to the hotel, but there was plenty of light left. I darted back out and didn’t even bring the main camera along--just the iPhone. After about 20 minutes of that, I raced back to the hotel and got the iPhone. There was too much opportunity to only have a smartphone camera. I think I even had a few withdrawals.

I hit the main cathedral first and then the smaller one. And then just kept walking. I found a nice park where I could relax on a bench a while and kept on moving again. Some light rain pestered me, but soon gave up and moved along. Then I found a fancy church with twin spires that was situated well in the evening light.

From there, I kept walking along the streets and then back into the main part of town where I came across some musicians playing stringed instruments. They were quite talented so I watched and listened for a long time. I felt I should tip but only had 20 euros with me. That would be a little steep. Thus, I walked onward until I found a Burger King, and I bought a small ice cream (I only needed change really). I then returned to the musicians, tipped a 5-euro note and kept watching for a spell. It was really beautiful music and I found it moving.

I then raced back to the first two cathedrals yet again to take even more photos with the waning light. I think I’d been there three times that day, with each visit offering morning, afternoon, and evening light.