Today we travelled to the Island Fortress of Suomenlinna, which is in the mouth of the main port of Helsinki. It only takes about 15 minutes by ferry to reach the main jetty. It is not only a very popular day destination for tourists, but also for Finns who love to go there for picnics and swimming. Suomenlinna is actually 4 very small rock islands interconnected by small bridges. It is a combination of historical buildings, cafes and resturants, private homes, buildings available for hire for conferences and weddings and a naval acadeny. All of these activities in such a confined area lends the island to a very unique atmosphere. As you travel around the island you can tourists snapping away with their cameras, local inhabitants going about their daily business, school groups on excursions and ... read more

After nearly 5 weeks in Asia we have arrived in Scandinavia ready for the wedding. Alex is absolutely rapt that people have stopped following him around and pinching his cheeks (the Fins are pretty tall so probably don't see him). Our flight from Dehli to Helsinki was excellent. Because the average male here is 185cm and the average female is 170cm (yes I am the avearge height of a Finnish women) so we had plenty of leg room on the plane. It was a very comfortable flight. A CF of 8 to Finnair and those tall Finnish people. It was about Sunday lunchtime when we landed and most of the people were catching connecting flights to other destinations. As a result there were not many of us who went through immigration and out of the airport. ... read more

After spending a couple of days in Mumbai, adjusting to the harsh realities of India, we have made our way to Dehli for a couple of days before heading to Europe and the wedding in Finland. We had to be up early to get to the airport on time. Due to the traffic being a total nightmare in Mumbai we left 90 minutes defore we had to, even though it was only a 30 - 40 minute drive. It is just as well we did. We were running early and were a bit hungry due to our small and rushed breakfast. We decided to check in first and then get a bite to eat. When we got to the counter designated for our flight, we were told that it had been cancelled and that we were ... read more

Today is our last real day in Thailand before we fly off to India. However we have been able to get a few last adventures in. For our last day on Koh Phi Phi, Jo and the kids went to a Fish Spa to have all the dead skin nibbled off their feet. They start off by cleaning your feet thoroughly, apparently they don't want the fish to die. Then for the next 20 minutes the fish nibble away. Jo, Alex and Phoebe all said that initially that it felt very wierd and then tickled a fair bit and then they finally got used to it. I can't believe even Alex liked it. When we got there, there was a bunch of local Thai guys watching a Muay Thai match at a bar across from the ... read more

Finally the monsoonal rain has broken, just in time for our first day on Kho Phi Phi. However the rain gods did have a final parting gift with a storm front on our way from Ao Nang to Koh Phi Phi. Still the trip was actually very smooth, so you can imagine my compassion for a traveller who started to be sea sick as soon as we left the dock. The ferry had not even got past the headlands of Ao Nang and out came some sick bags. Yes I am with you; I would have gone out onto the open deck to hurl, not in the main isle next to the door. So to that particular individual a big CF of 1. When we got to Koh Phi Phi it started to bucket down. Some ... read more