Nine hours in Helsinki
“What is the difference between a Finnish introvert and a Finnish extrovert?” George, our cheery Finnish guide asked our small group. He laughed and said, “An extrovert looks at the other person’s shoes. The introvert looks at his own.”
If you know anyone from Finland, this joke might make sense. Finns tend to be shy. According to George, people from Finland love their personal space, silence and nature. Finns survive the long dark winters with the help of three things: saunas, coffee and alcohol.
As Europe’s most northern country, it’s geographically remote, winter weather is severe, and days are short. There’s only about five hours a daylight in the winter, but by mid June, the sun shines for up to nineteen hours. The night we ferried across the Baltic Sea to Finland, the sun set at 11pm. I saw it as we pulled into the harbor of Åland. Åland is an island and a separate region of Finland that is not subject to the EU tax. By stopping there, even for a few minutes, it allows the ferry to sell tax-free goods on board.
I’ve never seen such a sunset like this one. It was gorgeous.
Our ferry left Stockholm at 4pm. We splurged and reserved a room with a bed and living area. Our room was at the bow. We were front and center. I was excited! The journey leaving Stockholm was gorgeous. We passed by thousands of archipelago islands on our way out to the open sea. Some of the islands have towns. Some are small with a few houses and docks. Some islands are empty. Happy I was not on a flight, the scenery was magnificent.
Two large ferry companies run routes between Stockholm and Helsinki each day. Both have reputations for hard-partying passengers. Thanks to the Åland loophole, the booze on board is tax-free. Many travelers stay up all drinking at the on-board casino and disco. Happy to have another option, we delighted in our private cabin with the sea view.
We left our room for two meals. I reserved a table in the dining for us at 7pm. We wandered down to the restaurant and walked into an enormous dinner buffet. Matt counted herring prepared nine different ways. I preferred the smoked salmon. I tried a few typical Finnish dishes like “Squeaky cheese”, rye bread and a local pastry called a Karelian pie, similar to a pirogue. It was all pretty good. But I liked the ice cream sundae bar for dessert. I learned later that Finns love ice cream. I wonder if my Grandma Pearl was part Finnish?
That night I slept OK - not great. The Baltic Sea is relatively calm, but I still worried about feeling sea sick. I never did, but I had a hard time falling asleep. Before long, we were at another buffet for breakfast. It was coffee time! YAY. I love coffee. I love the taste, the ritual, and the caffeine. When I heard that Finnish people consume more coffee than any other nation in the world, I knew I’d be right at home.
We arrived into the Port of Helsinki at 10am. We stashed our luggage in a locker and headed out for the day. The ferry building was less than a mile to the city center. We meandered along the sea until we saw a church on the hill. We checked it out and then continued to the Market Square. It’s the most famous market in the city. A swanky coffee shop beckoned us in we sat down and sipped an oat milk latte. We then made a decision which I soon regretted.
It was a coffee shop in the front and a theater in the back. Our barista talked us into the Flying Cinema Tour of Finland. He said it was a must, especially since we were in town for only one day. With enthusiasm, we bought tickets. We settled into the empty theatre and put on our 3d glasses. The show started and I immediately felt sick. This virtual cinema ride over the beautiful landscape of Finland was hell. I was nauseous. I couldn’t wait for the twelve minute film to stop. We left and I survived. But it took me a couple hours to stop feeling sick. I sucked it up and we headed to check out the city.
We booked a walking tour at 2:30pm and so we had our morning to explore. We were going to go out to see the Fortress of Sveaborg & the Suomenlinna Islands but fortunately the tickets were sold out. The thought of boarding a boat was too much anyway. We strolled through the parks, pedestrian walk ways, and explored the small city.
We walked past a place called the Brewster Bar. We stopped in to see if they had any merchandise. It wasn’t that kind of place that sold merch. It was a dive bar. By lunchtime, I finally felt better. We decided on a sandwich shop called Holy Døner. Their tag line: Sandwiches made in HEL. We ordered pita sandwiches with fries on the inside and a cup of coffee. Refills were free.
After lunch it rained. Looking for shelter, we popped into the English department store, Mark’s and Spencer’s which reminded me of my years in London. We each bought a Finnish made black sweater. Matt’s was a zip-up cardigan, mine cashmere. We left feeing a little cozier, and headed to the park to meet our guide George. The rain stopped just as we started the tour. Right from the start, I liked George. He had plenty to share about a city and country I knew very little about.
Finland is a smaller than California. Only five million people live in Finland versus California’s population of forty million. Two thirds of Finland is forest. Finland has more bodies of water than any other country in the world, and over 175,000 islands.
The Finns love their sauna. They pronounce it “sow-na” as opposed “saw-na”. 99% of Finnish people take one at least once a week and more in the winter. There are public saunas, private saunas, resort saunas and “hippy” saunas. Saunas for everyone. When the weather is warm, George said he takes a sauna and then jumps in the sea and returns to the hot sauna. And then drinks a beer. It’s his perfect day.
(Disappointed that our nine hour day didn’t include a sauna, I was pleased when we arrived in Estonia and our apartment had one in the bathroom. They too love their saunas.)
George grew up in Helsinki and joyfully showed us the city’s churches, statues, and squares. We started at the Helsinki Cathedral, and then walked to the new central library Oodi which opened in December, 2018. A modern building within a large park, it serves as a community center offering activities for all ages. A percentage of the budget was spent on public art. My favorite display was a collection of words describing different population groups, lining a stairwell. It was designed by Otto Karvonen and is a dedication to the library’s users. I’ve never seen a more inclusive list of words describing the wide variety of people living on this earth. George beamed with pride when he showed us.
We took a walk through the city and up the hill to a most unusual Lutheran Church called the Rock Church. Plans for this church started in 1930s and was interrupted by World War II. A few decades later, there was a design competition and all of the plans were for traditional churches except for one. Two brothers, Timo and Tuomo Suomalainen won the contest with their unique design to build the church straight into the rock.
The Rock Church walls are stone and the domed ceiling is lined with cooper coils. Skylights allow the natural light to filter in. Both a place of worship and a world class concert venue, the acoustics of the church are exquisite.
When we walked in, George audibly squealed. An orchestra filled the pit and had just begun rehearsing. George whispered, “I have brought 99 tours here and only once - just once - today you will hear music. You are SO lucky!” I felt lucky. Silently, we sat and listened to the incredible sounds of the orchestra in the Rock Church. It was a holy moment indeed.
From the Rock Church, we walked back into the city center to Narinkka Square. Right in the middle of the busy urban area was a modern wooden structured called the "Chapel of Silence”. People in Helsinki come to sit and have a moment of silence and find calm. They stop in before work, during work, after work. I just can’t imagine a place like that being used in the US. I think we could use it though. I loved the Chapel of Silence. It was a beautiful end to our day in Helsinki.
Our friend Thomas (pronounced Too-mas) is Finnish. We’ve known and adored him and his parents for years. They were very excited for us to visit Helsinki. After we left, I texted him from the ferry to Tallin (our next stop) I shared my observations. I told him I felt I understood him a little more. He responded, “I had a STEAMER of a sauna last night, drank tequila, and had a huge coffee to go this morning as I run the trail side portion of the extreme cup next three days. Is that a pattern that fits? And I do like ice cream too.” The Finns know what they like and take care of themselves. I love their authenticity.