As usual, Tiina was our host and chairperson of the entertainment committee. One item on the programme was a visit to the town of Lohja to visit the limestone mines and the Tytyri mine museum. Elk's Street highly recommend this guided tour. The group is first taken down to the mine by minibus before walking through part of mine with a guide, who explains the history and workings of the limestone quarry. It was most emjoyable, and industrial history is always most interesting.
A hard-hatted group waiting to set off on the tour (Henry, Tiina, Thomas, Peter).
Thomas finding looking like an egg rather amusing.In addition to the mines, Lohja has a coffee shop serving rather good cakes and pastries.
The next morning, Tiina took the little boys off to the amusement part, Linnanmäki, while your correspondent, who is no fan of amusement parks and fairground rides, went off to the Bank of Finland Museum. This small museum has free entry and is quite interesting, although one should probably have some knowledge of Finnish history to be able to enjoy it to the full. Having been in Finland for over 20 years now (How did that happen?) I recalled quite a few of the financial events described; the devaluation of the Finnish markka (No, I haven't forgiven Esko Aho, Iiro Viinanen, Ulf Sundqvist and company.), the old banknotes (including a huge one I only saw when there was a bank strike and we were paid in cash) and the introduction of the Euro.
The weather was very nice, so after my dose of education, and a coffee and a bun, I took a stroll around downtown Helsinki. As the photos below show, Finland is not as bleak as one might imagine. Well, at least in summer.
The dome of Helsinki Cathedral in late summer sunshine.
The Relandersgrund lightship, now a café-restaurant.
Some pleasure boats, with the ice-breakers peaceably waiting for winter in the background.
A Helsink tram passing through Katajanokka.
The dome of Uspenski Cathedral.
The President's Palace.
The trip was soon over and it was back to Elk's Street, and school, work and, all too soon, the rainy days of autumn.
Below, the summer holidays going 'up, up, and away.'
The next morning, Tiina took the little boys off to the amusement part, Linnanmäki, while your correspondent, who is no fan of amusement parks and fairground rides, went off to the Bank of Finland Museum. This small museum has free entry and is quite interesting, although one should probably have some knowledge of Finnish history to be able to enjoy it to the full. Having been in Finland for over 20 years now (How did that happen?) I recalled quite a few of the financial events described; the devaluation of the Finnish markka (No, I haven't forgiven Esko Aho, Iiro Viinanen, Ulf Sundqvist and company.), the old banknotes (including a huge one I only saw when there was a bank strike and we were paid in cash) and the introduction of the Euro.
The weather was very nice, so after my dose of education, and a coffee and a bun, I took a stroll around downtown Helsinki. As the photos below show, Finland is not as bleak as one might imagine. Well, at least in summer.
The dome of Helsinki Cathedral in late summer sunshine.
The Relandersgrund lightship, now a café-restaurant.
Some pleasure boats, with the ice-breakers peaceably waiting for winter in the background.
A Helsink tram passing through Katajanokka.
The dome of Uspenski Cathedral.
The President's Palace.The trip was soon over and it was back to Elk's Street, and school, work and, all too soon, the rainy days of autumn.
Below, the summer holidays going 'up, up, and away.'
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