13th – Conclusions

I had nothing planned today other than maybe wander a bit before returning to the airport in the afternoon. This resulted in me taking full advantage of the fact that breakfast was served until 1100 and checkout was at 1200. And a quick and easy online checkout meant that I didn’t have to queue up behind everyone else when I left the hotel for the last time just before deadline.

Inside the Uspenski Cathedral, just after service.

From there I walked north until I reached Linnanmäki, Helsinki’s amusement park. There were some rocks just outside and I realised that it was probably the only place where I could get a slightly elevated view of the city when not behind glass. I realized that there was no entry fee to get into the park so lacking any plans I took as stroll inside. While it did seem busy it did not look like many people were queueing up for the amusements. I got the impression that people came here to enjoy themselves, meet friends and maybe get something to eat. Had I gotten a wristband that would get me unlimited fun the amount of waiting would have been quite limited.

A slightly creepy abandoned-looking building I passed by on the way back from the amusement park.

Afterwards I realized it was inhabited - they were outside in the garden opposite from where I took the photo...

Returning back to the centre around 1600 I realised I couldn’t come up with anything else to do so I, a fair bit early, took the train back to the airport. I arrived, had a walk around and entered the lounge area. I might have had 4 hours to wait but in that time, I had free WiFi and food so time wasn’t completely wasted.

The flight home went as planned, no extra layovers in Stockholm this time, and returned home in one piece.

The weather forecasts seemed quite unreliable when I went to Helsinki. Every single one I read said 10-15 degrees, overcast and occasional rain. Instead I got 20-25 degrees (Sunday at times more), not a single cloud and no rain. I was not prepared for that and while I appreciated the very nice weather I wish I had brought a pair of shorts. But due to the weather it was really nice walking through the city, especially when on Suomenlinna and it had clearly brought people out onto the islands. Spending time out there during overcast and bad weather would have made the entire day much less enjoyable. 3 nights there might have hit the limit for how long you can justify being there but the ease of getting to the centre from the airport makes it easy to recommend going there even if it’s only during a layover.

As usual the full album can be seen here.