Helsinki, Finland; August 6-9

Flag of Finland

So, one of the most important things we learned about Finland before arriving is that Angry Birds was invented there!  When Michael found this out, he quickly put a pilgrimage to the Angry Birds store in Helsinki as a must on our list of activities there!

Dining with an Angry Bird at Birgitta Cafe, Helsinki

Before we left on our trip, I met a neighbor in Rye who is an expat from Finland. When discussing children's literature in the various countries we would be going to, she recommended The Moomin series by Tove Jansson.  We downloaded the first book Moomins and the Great Flood onto Michael's ipad and read it together on the ship. A fun filled book of very imaginative adventures!  There is also a Moomin store in Helsinki - and we managed to get out of there with just a magnet.

The Moomin characters

After our shopping trip to the Angry Bird store, we strolled through an international food market downtown. Michael was less excited about this, but sometimes we do things Mommy wants to do!  At the end of the market, we found a group of musicians from Peru performing traditional Andean music.  Michael was really intrigued. One of his favorite things to do when traveling is to stop and listen to street musicians and to support them by dropping whatever change we have into their guitar case.  In this particular situation, he supported them by buying a CD to take home. A bit of a strange souvenir from Finland, but just shows how interconnected our world really is.

Listening to music from Peru

One of our favorite nights on the trip was "Meet the Finns," a field program that connected SAS participants with local people for dinner in their home.  Our host Liisa Urasto treated us to home made mushroom soup (she and her mother picked the mushrooms!) salmon with a cold fish roe sauce called  lämmin mätikastike, potatoes and salad. For dessert, she served blueberry pie (also made from fresh picked ingredients).   It is sometimes difficult for a six year old to try new foods, especially those that are so unfamiliar. Thankfully, Michael loved the salmon and made our host very happy by asking for seconds of both that and the blueberry pie!  Coincidently, Liisa was just packing up to move from Helsinki to the UK to attend business school.

With Meme and Pop in Helsinki

View of the ship in Helsinki

On our final day in Helsinki, we took a ferry to Soumenlinna Island, which was originally built under Swedish rule of the area as a maritime fortress and served in the defense of Sweden, Russia and Finland. Today, it's a UNESCO World Heritage site as a unique example of military architecture…. and a really fun place to climb on cannons and swim at the beach!

Adventures with Liam,  Michael & Shannon on Soumenlinna Island