Oct 1, 2012 - Helsinki

@@@@@@@ BACKGROUND In 1550, the Swedish King Gustav Vasa decided to develop a port town in order to complete with the Hanseatic port of Tallinn in what is now Estonia. He forced all the traders from neighbouring ports to Helsingfors (known to English speakers as Helsinki). The venture was not as successful as he had hoped it would be, and for the next 200 years the town on the rocky, windswept peninsula remained a backwater outpost. When the Russians threatened from the east, the city was burned to the ground in 1713 to prevent it from...

Aug 22, 2012 - Unable to Post Remainer of Trip :(

Combined with bad Internet connections and not being able to upload any pictures, I won't be able to continue this journal. What I plan to do is keep a journal the old fashioned way and then post it along with photos when we get home the end of the month !

May 12, 2012 - Helsinki, Finland- Day 4

The PharmSCAN 'side-trip' to Tallin, Estonia today was cancelled due to high winds and rough seas. The hydrofoil (boat) wasn't able to 'sail'. Instead, we enjoyed some of the sights of Helsinki, including the zoo. It was a fun day. Look for a report and pictures later. ~SAN Today was our last day here in Finland, and we had planned an excursion to Tallinn, Estonia via a hydrofoil for the day to explore the city and experience one of the oldest pharmacies in Europe. Unfortunately, nature decided not to cooperate, and due to strong winds and...

May 11, 2012 - Helsinki - Day 3

Today was our second day of formal activities in Helsinki, and we continued to learn more about the Finnish pharmacy system. We met Reijo 'George' Kärkkäinen, who is the former CEO of the Association of Finnish pharmacies, and Professor Alan Lyles, a Fulbright scholar who was able to cover his history of traveling around the globe and undertaking many academic projects and cooperatives throughout the world of pharmacy.  We ate again at a small Finnish buffet which served a homemade Finnish ale, which was particularly interesting and...

May 10, 2012 - Helsinki - Day 2

Today was the second day of the inaugural PharmSCAN trip. Yesterday, May 9th, the Orlando 5, the Gainesville 3, the St. Pete 3, and Dr. Normann all arrived in Helsinki, Finland, officially combining to form the PharmSCAN 12. We kicked off our trip by checking into the hotel and heading to an authentic Russian restaurant, Saslik, just in time for Ryan’s birthday. Russian influence is prevalent in Finland given the expansive border between the two countries. From the delectable bear meat to the Iron Sword of beef and lamb, every bit of food...

Apr 18, 2012 - Helsinki

Arrived Helsinki in the morning. Collected rental car at Vantaa airport and drove to city centre. It took a while for Siew Leong to get used to the left-hand drive and manual car. City is about 17 km away. City roads are not easy to drive - most roads are one way and the right-most lane is usually dedicated to buses and taxis, and there are also trams that we need to avoid. Parking is limited. However, it was a conscious decision on our part to drive, to limit walking for Luke. We walked around the city square and stepped into one of the...

Aug 12, 2011 - Departing Lapland with a heavy heart.

This afternoon I leave this beautiful country and fly south for a super quick stopover in Helsinki. Markus reminded me of my own son, Daniel.Thank you again to Pasi & Anne for their hospitality :) I think I've left my heart behind in Lapland. Spent the evening catching up with my cousin Anssi and his wife, Arja. They live in Helsinki and can see the sea from their balcony...we saw quite a few ships leave port...and of course the full moon reflected beautifully on the sea, made me think of home and how the moon reflects on the ocean.

Aug 6, 2011 - Retail therapy

Well I spent the day in Helsinki, love the city! It's so cosmopolitan. The cafes have the patrons sitting with their backs to the cafe so they can have their coffee etc while watching the world go by. The summer entertainment continues and the place was bustling with foreigners as well as locals. That is one thing I HAVE noticed is that Finland has certainly become more multicultural since I visited last, 12 years ago. Thoroughly enjoyed my retail therapy :) I then found a lovely Spanish restaurant...yeah I know I'm in Finland but had...

Aug 5, 2011 - Road trip!

Ok today was road trip day... I awoke this morning early to the sound of rain on the roof, I pulled up the blinds and my beautiful paradise had turned dismal and grey. It seemed even nature was sad of our imminent departure. The weather had been spectacular the whole time I was at Mummonmökki next to Kalliojärvi. YIKES! got a text from my trainer the other day. He must've known somehow that I'd been slacking off?!? So I rowed around the island twice at full pace yesterday as I had done the day before...feeling guilty as I've been eating...

Aug 1, 2011 - Helsinki, Last day of our European Vacation

August 1, Monday, Helsinki, Last day of our European Vacation It's hard to believe that our 6 week trip is almost over, but we're ready to come home. Today was a cooler day, apparently much more typical for Helsinki and St Petersburg.  We took the 15 minute ferry ride to the fortress, Suomenlina in Finnish, but originally named Sveaborg, or "Sweden's Fortress."  It was build by the Swedish in the mid-18th century when they ruled Finland, to counter the rising threat from Russia.  It was Sweden's pride and joy, the 2nd largest fortress in...

Jul 31, 2011 - Helsinki

July 31, Sunday, Helsinki A nice and slightly cooler day.  We went to church this morning at the Lutheran Cathedral, though, as expected, the service was in Finnish.  The liturgy was fairly easy to follow, and we were able to pronounce (somewhat) the Finnish and sing the hymns.  Much of the liturgy is sung and follows the form of the Catholic mass with which we are familiar.  There was the Kyrie, Credo, Gloria, Sanctus, Agnus Dei, etc.  The organ music was terrific. Unfortunately, there were probably not more than 100 in attendance in a...

Jul 30, 2011 - Helsinki

Saturday, July 30, Helsinki We slept well and slept in till about 8 am.  It felt good to get so much sleep.  We had a very large European breakfast and embarked on a walking tour outlined in Rick Steves' guide.   Helsinki is a fairly new city, established very early in the 19th century, soon after Russia took over this country.  They hired a German architect, Carl Engel, to build this city in the style of St Petersburg.  The area of the market square and Senate Square do look much like areas of St Petersburg.  There is much fine...