Day 19 – Helsinki

 

Day 19 – Helsinki

Our impressions of Helsinki are colored by our difficulties in getting proper tram passes and then navigating the city.  Perhaps if we had more time to appreciate its character we would be more enthusiastic.  It is a large, mostly modern city with good public transit – but it is also growing rapidly with lots of construction and obstructions.  After considerable flailing we got transit passes and went to the “Rock Church”, perhaps Helsinki’s most notable feature.  While this church, built by blasting out solid granite, is unique we found it uninspiring.  We considered walking to the Sibelius monument, but decided it was too far since it had no transit connections.  We walked around the central core of the city near the port and particularly enjoyed the Uspenski cathedral – a massive brick structure that looks more Protestant than Russian Orthodox on the outside, but is clearly Russian Orthodox on the inside.  Perhaps this is representative of the historical push and pull of two cultures that have long influenced the Finnish people.  In contrast, the Lutheran Cathedral – only a few blocks away – is bright white with a soaring central dome, is Greek revival, and sits atop a huge plaza with massive stairs.  About as dramatic a contrast as could be achieved.

Many of the large buildings look like they were designed by Communist architects, with massive plain facades and uninspired open spaces.  However, several tree-lined esplanades with whimsical sculptures and nice fountains provide pleasant walking and gathering places.  An indoor “food court” near the ship provided a  picturesque  old world feeling and a look at Finnish street food.

As has occurred in multiple ports on this trip, we had a lovely sail away with blue skies and scattered clouds, providing gorgeous views of the harbor, surrounding islands, and sailboats enjoying the good weather.  All in all, we had a nice day, but our lingering feeling is of disappointment.

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