After spending 16 hours on a cruise from Stockholm, we finally docked at the Helsinki west harbour. We had around 6 hours to spend in Helsinki before catching the cruise on the return trip. Now, exploring any European city in 6 hours is not an easy task (or so we thought). So we had planned on visiting only the best attractions here and not waste any time at all.
(The thing about Helsinki is that it is a really, really small city and whatever important places are there to see can be reached by foot. So if you're a cruise visitor or are here for short visit, don't buy any public transport passes.)
1. The market square
Set near the waterline, the square is like any regular crowded, peaceful European market. Navigating your way through the masses of people and the well aimed droppings from the evil sea gulls above, you are presented with a wide variety of shops selling sea food and souvenirs, and cafes and pastry shops. A very lively place and very popular with the tourists; just be careful if you're eating something, the seagulls are ruthless and experienced thieves!
2. The Senate square
The heart of Heksinki and its most popular tourist spot, the square is surrounded by the Government palace, the Helsinki cathedral and the main building of the Helsinki university. The square is a popular concert location and also hosts a variety of art exhibitions. The most dominating feature of the square however is the humongous cathedral.
3. The Helsinki cathedral
At the north end of Senate square, rising high above the rest of the city, the cathedral, Tuomiokirkko in Finnish, is a feat of neoclassical architecture. It’s based on the Saint Isaac's cathedral in St. Petersburg and is a must see for all Helsinki tourists. (Seriously, don't miss it. There's nothing else to see here.)
4. The Rock church
As the name suggests, the church was excavated from solid rock. One of the most visited places in the city, it is a popular concert location due to its excellent acoustics. A great place to visit to get a few moments of silence and peace in a busy city.
5. The Parliament
An impressive building to behold, it is one of the few buildings worth seeing here in Helsinki. I would recommend visiting this along with the museum of contemporary art located just opposite.
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| Courtesy: Wikipedia |
6. Stockmann’s department store
Yes, that’s how boring Helsinki gets. A department store becomes a famous tourist spot. However, it’s seven floors of goods make it worth seeing.
Helsinki was very disappointing, to say the least. When you go to an European capital, you want to be inspired; you want to drink in the long and glorious histories of the city and its people; you go there expecting a trip that would have changed you as a person. That is exactly what you get when you visit Amsterdam, Paris or Stockholm, or even little Luxembourg. Helsinki was not so. In the end, the six hours we thought to be too less, turned out to be too much for the city and we spent an hour on the ship doing nothing.
However, all this said, it is a relatively new city, a few hundred years old, with no great history or even an old town. It is a peculiar mix of Sweden and Russia, but sharing it’s complete eastern border with Russia and originally being a part of Sweden, that’s no great mystery. Also, contrary to popular belief, Finland is not one of the Scandinavian countries, but rather the Nordic countries. Helsinki is a great city, no doubt, with a very important global foot print, it's just not for the casual tourist.
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| The Helsinki skyline |
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| The Helsinki cathedral |
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| Suomenlinna fort |
