By now, it had become overcast but there was no threat of rain. The bus took us through more of Helsinki. I took particular interest in the street cars and light rail system. Though it is not an ideal way to photograph – through the windows of a moving bus – I decided to grab some snapshots of street life anyway. Better to have some pictures to remember the trip by than to have none at all. How does that saying go? It’s better to have 50% of something than have 100% of nothing.
Maria explained that most of the street and traffic signs in and around Helsinki are in two languages: Finnish and Swedish. Finland was actually founded by a Swedish king and was part of Sweden until it was transferred to Russia in 1809. It didn’t gain full independence until 1917. Finland is still home to a number of Swedish-speaking residents. Thus, the bi-lingual signs.
About this time in this part of Helsinki, the clouds began to break up. Just in time for our last stop, Helsinki Senate Square (Senaatintori). Dominating the square is the stately and beautiful Helsinki Cathedral (Helsingin tuomiokirkko, Suurkirkko). Behind the cathedral you will find the main building of the University of Helsinki, Government Palace, and Sederholm House. Here we were given a few minutes of free time here before the bus was due to depart. But before we took off on our own, Maria told us a little of the history of Senate Square.
Before reaching the stairs, there is a prominent statue of Alexander II. This would be Emperor Alexander II of Russia. You’d have to dive into European history to get a full understanding of how the statue of a Russian tsar ended up in such an important place in the city – and country for that matter. I gave you a hint earlier when I told you that Finland was part of Russia for a little over a century. But to tie all this up, Alexander II was at one time Grand Duke of Finland.
My wife and I opted not to walk around Senate Square, but instead headed out down towards the gulf with no idea where we were going from there. Our unknown path brought us to Market Square (Kauppatori) along the waterfront. We made our first pass along the perimeter of the marketplace. Off in the near distance, we saw a red brick building and decided to have a closer look.
That red brick building is Uspenski Cathedral (Uspenskin Katedraali). It is an Eastern Orthodox church, the largest in Western Europe. It is dedicated to the Dormition of the Theotokos (Virgin Mary). The church stands on a hill on the Katajanokka Peninsula and is noted for its red brick walls, and green and gold onion domes. The 13 domes represent Christ and the twelve disciples. It also stands as one of the most recognizable symbols of Finland’s period under Russian influence. A brief look around the exterior would have to do; it was nearing time to return to the bus.
From the church, we made our way back down to the waterfront and watched the sea-borne vehicles. There were ferries to Estonia, Latvia, Sweden, and I think there were some to St. Petersburg, Russia. A small pleasure boat was heading over toward the marina where dozens of other boats were moored.
We returned to Market Square. A farmer’s market was going on. The stands were full of fresh produce. Beautiful, plump strawberries. Deep red cherries. Purple-blue blueberries. Apples, raspberries, oranges, nectarines, peas. The fruits and vegetables were so colorful to the point they looked they were part of a painting. Had there not been a restriction on bringing back unpackaged food, we would have bought some to eat later.
Wish Come True
Sometimes wishes come true in the strangest of ways. What did one of the vendors at the farmer’s market have for sale? Smoked reindeer meatballs! Of course, I had to try them. Turned out they were among the best foods I have ever tasted! And the garlic sauce they added on the side made them taste even better.
As we headed back up one of the streets toward the waiting bus, we encountered a group of young adults in costume. They smiled while my wife took their photo. Right after they passed, my wife saw a street vendor selling sandwiches. They looked good so she bought one. Later she told me that that was one of the best veggie sandwiches she’s ever tasted.
When we arrived at the bus, Maria commented on my choice of fare. She then let the rest of the tour group know what I had selected. I then wondered why no one else from our group had gone down to the marketplace (at least no one that we saw), or even tried some of the local fare. Oh, well. Their loss.
Our time in Helsinki came to an end. But Finland had one more surprise for us: It is summer and because of our northern latitude, the sun stayed up until well past 9:00 pm. We were treated to a very nice sunset. We watched as the yellow sun slipped through dark orange clouds as it slowly sank into the Gulf of Finland.
Kiitos, Finland. I found a connection to you, a country I thought I had nothing in common with prior to coming here.
Postscript
I know from hearing the language spoken and from Finnish people themselves, Finnish is not an easy language to learn or speak.
Here is a clip from Southern California-based vocalist Charmaine Clamor singing “Dahil Sa’yo”, a well-known Filipino song, which Ms. Clamor translated into Finnish herself.
Dahil Sa’yo
Uspenski Cathedral photo credit: My wife
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