May 15, Tram Ride & Trip to Suomenlinna Island

  Today was a lovely day in Helsinki, mostly sunny and in the 50s.

 

Cafe at Train Station, Helsinki

Having "piglets" (like doughnuts) City Market

 Mark finally got out and about - still has a swollen knee and cramp in his back thigh. Fran met us and we walked to a tram that circles the inner city. We got off at the City Market place, walked through the indoor market with its beautiful wood cubicles and onto the square with tents selling food and other items.

On Suomenlinna Island

   We all had a delicious salmon soup with sweet rye bread. That was followed up by a Finnish filled doughnut called "piglets" as they have little bumps, rather like the legs of a pig. These were filled with apple jam. Yum!

   After that, Mark walked home, getting more acquainted with our neighborhood. He went to the grocery store and prepared a delicious dinner of chicken, mushrooms and roasted potatoes accompanied by a salad. The three of us gave it nods of approval.

    Meanwhile, Barbara and Fran took a public ferry. (2.2 Euros each way) to Suomenlinna Island, a place dear to Fran and her family from their years here. It is called the Fortress of Finland, a World Heritage Site. 

City Market over 100 years ago, from a painting in Ateneum

     Construction on the fortress began in the 1700s and it continued to be important to Finland for centuries. It is now a tourist attraction for day visitors; there are no hotels or short-term rentals. About 600 people live there.

     It is a short ride (25 minutes?) to get there and many of those who live there commute daily.

     One of the first sites that you come to is a church that began as a Russian Orthodox Church with typical onion-shaped domes. When the Finns became independent, the church became a Lutheran Church and the domes were removed. Interestingly, it may be the only church in the world to double as a lighthouse.

    Note: There are two state religions in Finland - Russian Orthodox and Lutheran. People generally are taxed for one or the other, although exceptions are made for those who belong to other, or. no, denominations.

      Fran and Barbara walked to the end of the fortress and back. It is beautiful. You can see out to "pilot island" which is there big ships have to pick up pilots to navigate them in and out of the harbor.

Cathedral, Central Helsinki, Lutheran

Russian Orthodox Church

     Both picked up some postcards at the museum - the Finns have a lot of whimsical postcards.

     Then, they walked back to our flat and the three of us had dinner together.