As some of you may already know we jetting off from Heathrow on Easter Monday, taking off in a storm (that was interesting) and made our way across Denmark and Sweden to the northern Finnish capital of Helsinki, a place I have dreamed of going to for a very longtime.
We have been invited to live as locals for a week and get to know the real Helsinki and discover it's secrets. On the first day our flight was delayed meaning after we had navigated the fast train from the airport to the city centre and finding our apartment the sun was already starting to set, luckily the wonderful people at Heleates had left us a hamper of local foods including some much needed Good Life Coffee - did you know Fin's drink more coffee than anywhere else in the world!
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| Chilling on the balcony of our apartment |
We spent the first evening taking in the view from the balcony of our apartment and making plans for the rest of the week. My eldest is super excited at the thought of being in the country of The Moomins and together we are looking forward trying out the local food and having a chance to appreciate all the modern architecture dotted around the city while John is hoping to spend some time in the design centre which houses an impressive collection of fashion stores.
So what have been our first impressions so far?
1. This is a very stylish city that captures the Scandi simplicity to a tee
2. It has a fantastic transport network of Trams, trains, metro and ferries
3. There is a huge Coffee and cafe culture with loads of roasters around each corner
4. It's extremely clean
5. There is so much to see and do, with hundreds of islands off Helsinki you are spoilt for choice when it comes to day trips - we have already spent a day discovering the fortress island of Suomenlinna.
We have an action packed week ahead of ourselves including an exciting interview at a local Finish radio station and meeting up with some locals to help guide us on our way of living like a local in this amazing city. Make sure to follow our adventures on instagram
Aw man, so envious! It's such a great city, I'd love to be there and explore it now I've got a child. And you're right, it's so clean and spacious.
ReplyDeleteDo you know when I think of Helsinki I imagine that it is super stylish and very clean. I didn't know about the islands around Helsinki, how interesting. I would love to visit one day. Looking forward to your posts!
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear your flights were delayed, but I'm glad you made it eventually! I hope you enjoy your time there. It sounds like an interesting place to visit. Can't wait to read more x
ReplyDeleteIt sounds and looks like you're in for such a good time! Looking forward to following your time there! x
ReplyDeleteLove the look of your apartment. How wonderful that there is so much to do. That's great that the transport system is so good and that it's very clean there. I look forward to the rest of your posts x
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to reading more. I don't have the wanderlust gene, I think people like me balance out with people like you. However, I love to see the world through others eyes......odd, I know! xx
ReplyDeleteOhh nice, we really want to explore Scandinavia too one day. Looking forward to seeing more xx
ReplyDeleteI SO want to go to Helsinki sometime, its on my top ten places to go so I'll be watching your updates! x
ReplyDeleteWhat a fantastic family trip...hopefully you'll get to experience so much more as a local rather than a tourist so to speak- one tends to fall into tourist hot spots and misses out on real gems x
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