After sailing about 170 miles from St. Petersburg, we arrived in Helsinki, the capital of Finland. This city was founded in 1550, but relocated to its present site in 1640. It is a beautiful city with lots of parks and a skyline dominated by cathedrals, as you will see below.
from the ship, you can see the two dominant cathedrals
Helsinki Cathedral (Tuomiokirkko) in the center
Uspenski Cathedral on the rightThe next four photos would make great postcards
(I didn't take them)
City of Helsinki (and Tuomiokirkko) from the Gulf of Finland
nighttime views of Helsinki and its Cathedrals
(Tuomiokirkko, left and Uspenski, right)
a closer look at Tuomiokirkko - it's a Lutheran Church
the magnificent pipe organ inside Tuomiokirkko
this is Senate Square as seen from the steps of the Cathedral
(that's the University and its library across the square)
Here we are sitting in the middle of Senate Square
(the statue is Czar Alexander II)
around the corner is the Parliament Building
(statue is Pehr Evind Svinhufvud - Finland's 3rd president)
Uspenski Cathedral (Russian Orthodox)
other Helsinki highlights ...
Temppeliaukio Church (Church of the Rock)
carved out of a huge boulder and covered with a copper roof
Sibelius Park and the sculpture honoring
Jean Sibelius, Finland's great composer
this is the Helsinki outdoor market
it runs from the harbor entrance along Nora Esplanade
fruits, vegetables, fresh fish and
souvenirs
in the heart of market square is the Havis
Amanda fountain
and nearby is the railway station tower
(1918)
we walked back to the ship for some R&R and to enjoy the scenery in the Gulf of Finland as we bid farewell to Helsinki
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