Blogs from Finland, Europe - page 11

Geo: 60.1498, 24.9236Helsinki, the capital city of Finland is known as the "White City of the North" for its neoclassical beauty and Art Nouveau grace. It is the only European capital with no medieval past. Although it was founded in the 16th century by the Swedes it never amounted to more than a village until the 18th century. In 1746 Sweden built a huge fortress on an island outside Helsinki's harbor and the economy boomed as it supplied the fortress. After taking over Finland n 1809, the Russians decided to move Finland's capital and university closer to St. Petersburg to Helsinki. They hired a young German architect, Carl Ludwig Engel, to design new public buildings for Helsinki and told him to use St. Petersburg as a model. This is why the oldest parts of Helsinki around ... read more

You know how it is when you're super tired and sleepy from a long day but you're avoiding going to bed because it's a block of ice? That's how it was last night and I'd paid a lot of money for the privilege. Sitting in the lounge area behind reception with a roaring fire, we weren't the only ones procrastinating. A German couple had downed two bottles of wine by way of getting ready, but at €35 per bottle, this was not for me. When Glyn saw that the temperature had dropped down to -14, we decided this was our cue to go and stepped out into the cold. In the locker room, we got ready for bed. Now the guide earlier in the day had recommended just one layer of clothing, but that seemed too ... read more

Flying across a frozen lake in a creaky wooden sled pulled by five energetic Arctic huskies that never want to be stopped has to be on everyone's bucket list. This is how I spent my morning in Rovaniemi and I can't recommend it highly enough. We woke at 6 after not the best nights sleep. The glass igloos seem very warm at first, but after a while tucked up in bed, Glyn asked me if I thought the heating was on.... Maybe not as I was curled up in a tight ball trying to stay warm. We were supplied with two single beds that are just a little small for sharing although sharing was needed. So I'd woken up a couple of times in the night but sadly not because the northern lights alarm had gone ... read more

Lying in a warm bed, staring at the winter sky through a glass ceiling is an amazing experience and was how the day ended as this is what we came for. Glyn and I got up at 7am so as to see a little more of Helsinki before its time to fly up to Rovanemi. The temperature was a dry chill of -9 as we stepped out and immediately headed off in the wrong direction as I'd gotten confused with the various numbers in my tiny map that is only readable in extremely bright light. Eventually we ended up at some bended wooden chapel thing that is unusual looking but not that exciting. Then we trudged up past Bar Bakkari to the a rock Church which unfortunately is not some form of extreme metal palace of ... read more

When telling people that I was visiting Finland during February, I was often told that 'yes it is cold, BUT a different type of cold', thus insinuating that the colder temperatures of Finland are somehow more bearable than the wet and grey cold nights of England. What a load of cobblers. Let me tell you: there's cold, there's extremely cold, there's 'oh no I can't stand this much longer' and then there is a whole lot colder than that. Finland in February stings your skin and makes your eyes water, you need to spend at least a month's wages on cold weather gear to survive it - it was -7 when we arrived sinking to -9 later. And if that isn't cold enough for you, why not step into a bar where the barman is wearing ... read more