We arrived in Helsinki just after 10am – unfortunately the rain had followed us from Stockholm so we disembarked and made our way to the tram stop in pouring rain. As usual we were on a mission to pick up our Helsinki cards at the Central Station. We alighted from the tram and dragged our suitcases several blocks to the station while trying to avoid the puddles.

Ironically what we didn't know when we stepped off the tram was that our hotel was located directly opposite the Tram stop thus we could have booked into the hotel and left our luggage there instead of dragging it all the way to the station in pouring rain! Oh well, the extra exercise is keeping us fit and didn’t someone once tell us that "life wasn’t meant to be easy".

Fortunately when we did book into the GLO Hotel we were rewarded with newly renovated adjoining rooms – very nice! By this time the rain had stopped so we could now explore our new surroundings and it didn’t take long for us to decide that Helsinki is a charming and beautiful city to visit.

We lunched at the lovely Karl Fazer Chocolatier café opposite before Sal and I set off to do some sightseeing - (Trev opted out). Our first stop was the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games Stadium. Sally had always been interested in seeing the stadium having been a fan of the Aussie gold medalist Marjorie Jackson (Nelson) since the age of eight.

With Sal as our guide we jumped on a tram and made our way to the stadium. Once there we toured the on-site museum dedicated to Finland’s elite athletes. We were fortunate when the guard on duty allowed us to slip into the stadium through a side door where Sal and I sat in the aging stand above the track where Marjorie had run and won her Olympic gold medal for Australia.  

Sal was ecstatic - she had fulfilled a 60 year old dream which could now be ticked off her bucket list. We returned to the hotel to find Trev was now ready to join us in exploring the streets of this lovely and interesting city.

It’s not hard to determine that this is a city with pride - the streets are clean and lined with beautiful flowers cascading from hanging baskets. It appears to be quite an affluent city as it boasts many exclusive 5 star hotels and the shops are the best we’ve seen so far. Oh, if only we had more time to shop!

Helsinki is the first city we’ve visited (other than Singapore) where the currency doesn’t end with multiple zeros. Unlike other Scandinavian countries Helsinki is a member of the EU so Euros are the legal tender.  Denmark, Norway and Sweden each have their own version of Kroner so every few days we’ve been changing to a new currency which fortunately we bought with us.

Our benchmark for currency is always a cup of coffee so in Helsinki a Capaccino is 3.90 Euro (or $5.20 AUD) and a Latte 4.30 Euro or $5.70 AUD (based on the conversion rate when we left home) – so while Helsinki is expensive it is a little cheaper than the other Scandinavian cities we’ve visited.

On our second day we breakfasted in the hotel dining room only to be seated next to a lady from Canberra! She and her husband live in Watson however she was born in Helsinki. The couple had just completed a month long tour through Finland in a Motorhome and after arriving in Helsinki her husband had gone to visit his family in Amsterdam while she remained at the hotel to visit her family in Helsinki. As I’ve mention previously – it doesn’t matter where you go in the world, you’ll always find a fellow Aussie tourist!

To continue our sightseeing we decided on a morning harbour and archipelago cruise then in the afternoon a bus tour.  On the cruise we first toured the Harbour learning about the Fins affinity with the sea – we viewed its ancient fort contrasted by its modern harbour amenities built to facilitate the many Ice breakers and cruise ships who visit the city.

We learnt how the residents of Helsinki opt to live in apartments so they can afford to buy summer holiday homes on one of the many surrounding islands in the archipelago. Despite the warmer weather only lasting from May to October - the Fins like to make the most of summer while it lasts.

Our afternoon bus tour started at Esplanade Park which is the very popular main promenade by the harbour where residents come to enjoy the beautiful gardens and dine in the trendy restaurants. The first stop was the very unusual Temppeliaukio Church which was quarried out of natural bedrock and completed in 1969 – quite a feat and very impressive!  

We also visited many city landmarks including the Helsinki Cathedral and Senate Square. The impressive Cathedral was commissioned by Alexander II when the Russians inhabited Helsinki in the 1800’s.

We arrived back in time for Sal and I to indulge in some retail therapy visiting Helsinki’s oldest department store Stockmans which is their version of Harrods (but not quite on the same scale). We were very tempted by the lovely clothes on offer but were restrained when the thought of adding extra weight to our luggage entered the equation.  

After purchasing just a few small trinkets as mementos of our visit it was time to return to the hotel to get ready for dinner. We had selected a little Italian Restaurant where we enjoyed the Helsinki version of Italian food. It was then time to return to our hotel to pack in readiness for our train journey to St. Petersburg the following morning.