Suomenlinna

An early release from work on Thursday kicked off great holiday weekend!  The fun began with a trip to the beloved market with Johanna to buy fresh cherries, strawberries, and peas for a picnic at Suomenlinna, the fortress island just off the coast of Helsinki.  

After eating a traditional (and extremely greasy) Finnish meat pie in the market (which I'm not likely to eat again), we took a short ferry ride to the Suomenlinna.  The fortress island is actually a chain of six small islands with the purpose of defending Sweden from Russia back in the day when Finland was still part of Sweden. 

Lighthouse church

Then, we toured the islands, walking along the cobble stone paths, viewing the (formerly ornate Orthodox but now renovated and quite modest looking) lighthouse church, and running into numerous geese in search of the perfect picnic spot.  Once settled upon a big rock on the island's cliff side, we indulged in all of our market produce plus a gigantic cinnamon bun, rhubarb juice, and a nice bottle of vino.

Though the picnic was part of the day's plan all along, the temperature in Helsinki finally reached 70 degrees on Thursday, which was really cause to celebrate! So, we sat, ate, drank, and people & boat watched for a few hours while enjoying the warmth of the sun until heading back to the city on the ferry...