3 Days of Adventure in Helsinki: A Travel Diary (part II), Helsinki, Finland
3 Days of Adventure in Helsinki: A Travel Diary (part II) is the second part of my travel blog post about my three day trip to Helsinki. The main reason for this trip was to finally meet up with my best Finnish friend. If you missed the first part of this adventure, click here.
After my delicious cinnamon bun at Café Esplanad I ventured inside the next door souvenir shop. To my delight, I discovered a whole lower floor dedicated to Christmas decorations and ornaments. Since I’ve already bought a Finnish Christmas ornament at a shop across Temppeliaukio Church (Rock Church) I just browsed happily. I had plans to meet up with my friend and her family after her work so it was time to head down to the Market square (Kauppatori) to catch a tram. But before that I had to grab something to eat. I decided to try something Finnish from one of the many food stalls. Since I’m not a big seafood fan despite living in a seaside city I decided to have a reindeer hot dog. It was very delicious but please don’t tell Santa that!
I got on the tram following my friend’s directions. Despite those detailed instructions I managed to get off on the wrong stop and I had to walk a bit longer than expected but I didn’t mind it. I met my friend at a park in her neighbourhood. Then, she took me to her home to meet her family. I was happy to finally meet in person her adorable twins. Later, her boys had to go to a birthday party and we headed back to the city center. We walked alongside a canal and we saw a swan with its cygnets. It was such a wholesome sight. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).
After my delicious cinnamon bun at Café Esplanad I ventured inside the next door souvenir shop. To my delight, I discovered a whole lower floor dedicated to Christmas decorations and ornaments. Since I’ve already bought a Finnish Christmas ornament at a shop across Temppeliaukio Church (Rock Church) I just browsed happily. I had plans to meet up with my friend and her family after her work so it was time to head down to the Market square (Kauppatori) to catch a tram. But before that I had to grab something to eat. I decided to try something Finnish from one of the many food stalls. Since I’m not a big seafood fan despite living in a seaside city I decided to have a reindeer hot dog. It was very delicious but please don’t tell Santa that!
I got on the tram following my friend’s directions. Despite those detailed instructions I managed to get off on the wrong stop and I had to walk a bit longer than expected but I didn’t mind it. I met my friend at a park in her neighbourhood. Then, she took me to her home to meet her family. I was happy to finally meet in person her adorable twins. Later, her boys had to go to a birthday party and we headed back to the city center. We walked alongside a canal and we saw a swan with its cygnets. It was such a wholesome sight. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).
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Sights Featured in This Article
Guide Name: 3 Days of Adventure in Helsinki: A Travel Diary (part II)
Guide Location: Finland » Helsinki
Guide Type: Self-guided Walking Tour (Insider Tips)
Author: Tanja Domijan Blasich
Read it on Author's Website: https://theredphoneboxtravels.com/2025/03/06/3-days-of-adventure-in-helsinki-a-travel-diary-part-ii/
Sight(s) Featured in This Guide:
Guide Location: Finland » Helsinki
Guide Type: Self-guided Walking Tour (Insider Tips)
Author: Tanja Domijan Blasich
Read it on Author's Website: https://theredphoneboxtravels.com/2025/03/06/3-days-of-adventure-in-helsinki-a-travel-diary-part-ii/
Sight(s) Featured in This Guide:
- Café Esplanad
- Kauppatori
- Oodi library
- Finnish parliament
- Finlandia hall
- Töölönlahti Bay
- Art Cafe Taideterassi
- Ruttopuisto
- Suomenlinna fortress
- Sibelius monument
- Sibelius park
- Regatta cafe
- Hotel Torni
- Original Sokos Hotel Vaakuna
Insider Tips for Helsinki, Finland
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Helsinki is a relatively small city by global standards, with a population of just over 1.3 million with excellent facilities – making it very manageable for visitors.
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The homeland of Santa Claus, Finland is also a major producer of quality chocolate and other sweet delights particularly enjoyable during long winter. Big on coffee, the Finns love their pastries to pair with it and sure know how to make them well!
3 Days of Adventure in Helsinki: A Travel Diary
3 Days of Adventure in Helsinki: A Travel Diary is a blog post about my 3 day trip to Helsinki. The main reason for this trip was to finally meet up with my best Finnish friend. We have met through our blogs and became real best friends through e-mails and messages about our life, family and jobs. Read on if you want to find out what I did and saw during my three day stay in Helsinki.
Useful Travel Guides for Planning Your Trip
16 Distinctively Finnish Things to Buy in Helsinki
Shopping in Helsinki for an extraordinary range of tasteful and distinctive products is made simple and easy with the creation of a design district in the heart of the city which has many department stores, shopping centers, and boutique shops bunched together. The Finnish capital is a good city for...
Finnish Sweets and Pastries
The country of thousands of lakes and the magical homeland of Santa Claus, Finland is also a major producer of quality chocolate and many other sweet delights without which surviving long winter nights in this Nordic part of Europe would have been far too boring. Big on coffee, the Finns love their...