To Helsinki

We had an early start with luggage out by 6:30 and a plane due to leave Ivalo Airport at 9:20. The airport was tiny with zero planes when we arrived and few people to check in. Then the first of the delay messages came on and said the new departure time was 10:10. That meant that our schedule for Helsinki was going to be affected. O well.

These large photos were at the entry to our gate. The languages are English, Sami and Finnish. The messages are so benign that it would be difficult to imagine them in our airports. But they are lovely.
Their COVID testing goes on every day at the airport from 9 to 4. Almost nobody wears a mask except for travelers. On this trip we have wound up by having 10 people out of 24 with COVID. Pretty amazing!
A nineteenth century church related to the Russian Orthodox Church was the first large cathedral in Helsinki.
The open market is in operation every day near the port. The white tents sell handcrafts and the orange one sell food mostly fruits and vegetables. The large ferries mean that a lot of people pass by.
Our local guide says that every year the ferries get larger and larger. That makes sense since the ferries are often the fastest way to get to the towns and the cars which are very convenient once you get to a port take days to go overland because of the mountains.
Dinner tonight is Thai. Not able to do justice to the immense portions but the food is good. And the restaurant is right next to out hotel.

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dailywoodring

On the planet in California

One thought on “To Helsinki”

  1. Just got back to your blog. I cant believe that almost 1/2 of your group have Covid. Yipes! Stay well. It looks like an enjoyable trip.

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