Friday, September 17, 2004

Ando dropped me off at the ferry terminal, and I was able to check my suitcase once on-board for the 3.5 hour trip over to Helsinki. That made exploring the ship much easier.

What I soon discovered is that there were maybe 12 seats inside for people that were in a non-paying area of the ship. The remainder of the seats--and I bet there were at least several hundred people on board--were in lounges, discos, casinos, restaurants, and the fast food area. I watched one guy in the fast food area dip his spoon in and out of his cup of tea for probably 2 hours, going throught the motions to protect his seat. Fortunately, it was almost pleasant outside, and I spent an hour or more sitting outside and wandering those decks.

It appeared that a primary reason for Finns to visit Tallinn is to go shopping. Beer and vodka must be considerably cheaper there, for that is what made up much of the carry-on luggage. If that wasn't enough, a grocery of sorts in the middle of the ship was packed for most of the voyage with people buying more spirits. They left the ship with hand carts loaded with four, five, six and more cases of their favorite brew or drink.

In the ferry terminal on the Helsinki side, I figured out that only two busses left the terminal, and I would need to change at the main station to get to my hotel. Wrestling my big suitcase on board and showing the map of where my hotel is to the driver, a lady behind me began asking lots of questions using fair english, and offered help in knowing how to get to my destination. She sat down in front of me, next to another stranger, and soon both were looking at maps and making suggestions. I gave them each one of my RTW cards, and they each gave me back their business cards. Pretty soon, the woman said that her husband would be picking her up at the central station, and they would be happy to drop me at the hotel on their way home. I hesitated, played back the previous few minutes of conversation in my mind, and decided to take the chance. We walked a bit from the bus station toward a parking area, and soon a green Citroen rounded the corner with her husband. The car had an infant seat in the back, but no infant, and getting the luggage in was tight, but was accomplished. Sliding into the front seat, I thought I would either be on the receiving end of a great act of kindness, or would be robbed and left for dead within the hour. Happily, the husband soon turned into my hotel driveway, dropped me off, and I said my thank you's and goodbye's.

Amazing kindness, and a risk I would rarely if ever take, but it was a gift I'll remember for a long time to come.

The gods smiled on me further yesterday evening, providing a Thai restaurant around the corner that served green curry chicken (my new addiction). It was interesting to see the name of the Thai restaurant in the window in both our familiar lettering and in cyrillic. The gods smiled further, and provided free wireless internet in my room, making uploads and updates much easier for the next few days.

I've got few plans today--partly because my tour book for Finland is still in the ether of the postal services somewhere, and partly to slow down a bit for the coming five days I'll spend here. I've picked up several good free guides, though, and will get the "Helsinki Card", which will cover my travel and most museum/site fees while I'm in town. So I'll sign out for now, and venture out into the frigid north...


Sunday, September 19, 2004

So, tonight I took a wild hare and thought I'd try the red curry chicken with pineapple. Oh, my gosh! Find me a restaurant in Phoenix that serves this stuff!

Speaking of wild hares--and this will take a bit, so hang on. As I was in the midst of getting a ride to the hotel with a total stranger, she mentioned the other gentleman talking to me on the bus, and said that he was "Hungary". "Hungry?" I replied, being a bit mystified, thinking he seemed reasonably well dressed and shouldn't have to go without a meal. "He is Hungary", she repeated, and then I got it--"Hungarian!" Of course.

As I roam the city, I have spotted a number of Hungarian restaurants, all a bit pricey, and they often serve game meat, including wild boar and--wild hare.

Helsinki reminds me, oddly enough, of Melbourne--lots going on, diverse population, well tended, but no big landmarks like the Sydney Opera House, the pyramids of Giza, or Tallinn's old town. That said, the roads and tramways skirt inlets and lakes, and once on the highway, the region takes on a kind of "Legoland" tidyness. I took in the National Museum yesterday, just up the street from my hotel. Across the street is the Opera House, which I may try to tour before I leave. Whle at once unremarkable, it is a pleasant place in September.

Television is interesting for a while, but CNN needs to tell Richard Quest to turn it down a notch. Picked up a Finnish version of "Who Wants to be a Millionaire", sans Regis Filbin, and also what was maybe a German game show called "Doppleganger" (I don't want to know what that means). It was a cross between Candid Camera and a celebrity look-a-like contest. One scene had a man imitating Pavarotti in a hotel room, demanding services from the hotel staff--not a pretty sight.

I took a bus out of the city today to visit the town of Porvoo, the oldest town in Finland, I think. On a small river, it was very scenic--old wooden houses and buildings, bridges crossing the water, small boats and a few large ones docked at water's edge. A large brick and stone church at the top of the hill in town dominated the older town below. Being Sunday, much of the town was closed, which was ok--I'm not much of a souvenir shopper, and don't want to haul any extra weight around if I can help it.

Going and coming, I spied Moose Crossing signs in several places on the highway, but failed to see any. Forests of birch dominated the undeveloped areas, interspersed with the occasional pine and a few maples already showing fall color. Outcroppings of red and grey granite poke up through the surface every so often, both along the highway and here in Helsinki.

I'll get a few pictures up tonight, and plan to create a "Boats" page off of the "Planes & Trains" page, for Jonathan and Joshua.

I finished supper with some ice cream--without asking, they had topped it with what I finally identified as maple syrup! A nice end to a good day.


Tuesday, September 21, 2004

So, the clouds parted yesterday, so I decided to ride a ferry out to one of the islands featured with the Helsinki Card. Actually a series of islands, Suomenlinna is a huge fortress that was first established in the late 1700's. Ownership of the fort changed along with the political winds, with Finland having been under the jurisdiction of both Sweden and Russia in previous centuries. Today it is a recreation area, with only a small military school remaining there. Otherwise, I spotted an art school, a number of restaurants (Ravintolas), a toy museum, and a museum with a history of the island. Walking around the series of islands--most are connected by bridges--is pleasant, though one is reminded of the sometimes violent history of the place when stumbling upon cannons still facing out to sea. I ate a lunch at the Chapman Ravintola there, and I suspect it was Hungarian. Fish soup to start, with diced potatoes generously pleasant. Main dish, ham and potato casserole, with--yes--boiled potatoes on the side.

Thinking the boat left on the half-hour, I arrived at the dock at 2:02 PM in time to see the ferry about 30 feet out in the water on it's way back to Helsinki. "Missed the boat", I muttered to myself. With an hour now to wait, I wandered over to one more small island, where the military school was established. The treat was seeing men putting down a cobblestone road there: tamping the rocks down into the soil with a hammer, another worker with a long four by four doing more tamping to get it all reasonably level, then a very course sand poured in around it all. Hard work.

Back at the dock in the ferry shelter, a gentleman (well, not really, as you will see) sat next to me, with a large new looking blue bag. Pretty soon, he pulled a wine bottle out of the bag and took a good drink. Then, a tobacco bag, and he rolled his own cigarette. Looking at me, he asked me to watch the bag for him while he went for a smoke. By the time he came back, I had struck up a conversation with two ladies from New Jersey who had just arrived on a tour. The gentleman, now drinking from a beer bottle, intruded on our conversation, asking where we were from, then saying "America--yes!", making a fist and smiling. Then he wanted to shake our hands. I waved him off, as did the ladies. He got the message and wandered off.

I ran into the ladies of couple of more times, at both the Russian Orthodox church and at the huge Lutheran church on the main square in Helsinki. The Lutheran church was as stark as the Russian church was ornate. The only thing close to an icon in the former was a statue of Martin Luther. I was a little amused at the lady with the pink streak in her hair at the Russian church, carrying a Marilyn Monroe handbag. Both churches sat on high places, seeming to be in competition with each other. The Russian was certainly more ornate in and out, but the Lutheran church wins the contest for it's visibility from most of Helsinki and from out at sea.

I had spied Mama Rosa's Ravintola on a square behind the hotel, and noticed the menu said something about "smoked reindeer". I couldn't resist. So, prior to my pizza last night, I had the pasta & smoked reindeer appetizer. The waiter had a knowing smile, seeming to say that this was not going to be another chewy kangaroo pie (see Australia). Oh my--Santa, I have sinned! Switches and coal for me this Christmas! It was so good! Kind of a cross between bacon bits and chipped beef, with a calamari-shaped pasta, gentle creamy tomato sauce and a big slice of mushroom on top.
I would order it again!


Made a run out to the airport this morning to pick up my LOT Polish Airlines ticket for my flight from Vilnius to Krakow. Rained all day. Made my way back to the Helsinki Auto Museum, way off the beaten path near one of the industrial dock areas. It was really a highlight of my time here. Over 3000 miniature/model cars, and maybe three or four dozen of the real thing, all crammed in tightly together. Saw an old Mercedes 220S like we used to have (1961 model), a Trabant, some sort of three wheeler, a Vespa three wheel mini-mini van, a neat little rear-engine Renault, a couple of Morris's, and my favorite, a 1952 Citroen--look for it on my Finland Photo's page! Best of all, the gentleman in charge today was having a very slow day with the rain, so he locked the door, walked around with me, and told me stories about many of the cars (I got this Kaiser Frazer up to 80 racing a bus, but was afraid of the tires. A young couple in Britain moving to Moscow sold us this Morris Minor--they've promised to stop in some day to tell it "hi"). The museum is owned by a foundation, and hopes to get a larger space closer to downtown someday. They have a few cars, notably Rolls Royces--I saw them in a photo album--that get rented out for weddings, but are too large to get into the current building. All the cars run and are occasionally driven, as demonstrated by the photos--here they are in the filming of a period movie, here driving war veterans to a reception at the Continental Hotel (where I'm staying!). If you're ever in Helsinki, this is a museum worth finding.

Hit a few other museums, one of which was closed for no good reason. I stopped by the Tram Museum just before returning to the hotel--a fun stop! And, next to it, was the building they house and work on all the running trams.

Tried another Thai place tonight, and while good, I was disappointed. Not as much taste, and what taste existed was overpowered by the hot spice. The secret, I think, must be in how generous they are with their coconut milk--I'm sure a fairly rare commodity here in Finland!

Tomorrow, the ferry back to Tallin, coffee with Steven at the port, a bus to Riga and the train to Jurmala. I expect updates will be more difficult to get posted in the coming week.