Made it to Helsinki, a day late

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Not writing this until St. Pete, because I never found time to find an internet cafe until now.

No problem taking the morning train to Helsinki. We made it a leisurely morning. Amy went to a designer store for large fashions just down from our hotel, and then we hit the road. At the train station in Helsinki, the first thing we did was buy our train tickets to St. Petersburg. No problem. Caught the tram to our hotel. Made a slick move that slipped and took an extra five minutes to catch the tram (matters with heavy luggage). The hotel we booked (Hilton) was nice. On a small river (many in Helsinki) and close to town/tram line. Spent the rest of the day exploring Helsinki. A pretty town. Nice market by the water where the cruise ships dock. Bought some cheese at the market for our trip to Tallinn, but left it in the church. Oh well, at least we tasted it. Nice jazz on the main drag near the market, and we relaxed. Went out to a really interesting church -- church in the rock. Literally set inside a carved out rock. You'll have to see the post cards. Went to the Sibelius monument nearby. Also a bit strange -- just pipes. Found a cafe, as usual, for a light meal. It's really hard to get over the sun not setting until 10 p.m. And I still don't know when it gets dark -- can't stay up that late.

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