2 More Days in Helsinki; Hitchhiking to Tampere

Day 54: Wednesday, 13 July 2011

After the previous night's debaucherous fun, it was natural that I slept in. Topi was up earlier to clean up a little, and I said bye as he left for work. I stayed in again for a bit, checking up on emails and deciding whether to go to Tampere this day. I decided to try for a rideshare online, and otherwise I'd wait for my new travelmate to arrive from Russia tomorrow and I'd hitchhike with her.

So I left in the afternoon, walked through the city again, seeing a few parks, jazz music on the esplanade, and the Russian Orthodox church.

I strolled back through the market square and enjoyed some more live jazz music before heading for Koff park, where Topi works, and I helped him and his coworker Christian put away their stuff. We then walked to the nearby park that was formerly a gravesite during the black plague, and met Aaro and few more friends, Niko and (something). Another friend came by and Topi and I walked with him away for a couple blocks before splitting off and searching for cheap food. Topi bought me a €5 salad at a cafe on the top floor of the Kamppi shopping center. I bought some Duff beer at the supermarket - amazing!

Helsinki Continues!

Day 52-53: Monday-Tuesday, 11-12 July 2011

Finland is simply fascinating. Thanks to Topi, I'm meeting a lot of people, each pretty outgoing and with a very cool life perspective. It's likely that I'm not getting a complete picture of the Finnish people. They say that the collective mood of people here changes dramatically with the seasons; in the winter, everyone is grumpy and generally despondent. And the summertime non-stop daylight can make it very hard to stay sane as well.

I think that everyone here is really smart to know Finnish and English so well, since they're two completely unrelated languages.

I woke up on Monday in the separate guest house at Topi's grandmother's country house. I joined them for breakfast, and since there was no shower, Topi and I went for a morning swim. We soon packed up his grandma's stuff and loaded up the car, locked up the house, and Topi drove us back to Helsinki. His grandma was talking most of the way, and I daydreamed in the backseat as the countryside whizzed by.

A Packed First Day in Finland

Day 51: Sunday, 10 July 2011

My first day in Finland was one of my longest days, full of so many different encounters and interesting people, and was a very good day overall. (Having non-stop daylight makes it easy to keep going well into the night - but more on that later.) I am yet again amazed at how much I've been able to see, thanks to couchsurfing! It's truly amazing.

The day started early, in Tallinn. I woke up at 6:30am, got my stuff quickly together and was out the door with Charly by 6:40. He rushed to work, and I ambled with my two full bags to the ferry terminal. I got my ticket and joined the big crowd of people pushing onto the boat. The ferry was a big ship, like a cruise ship, with at least 8 levels for cars and cabins. The ride was 2 and a half hours; I charged my laptop, contacted my host in Helsinki, and read a bit of On the Road. Nearly into Helsinki, a young man approached me and sat down at my table. His name was Alex, Bolivian but living in Helsinki. He was part of a Christian missionary group traveling around Eastern Europe to "spread the good news of Jesus Christ." I deflected his proselytizing by telling him about my amazing journey so far. He gave me some tips on what to do in Helsinki and a small religious pamphlet that they were passing out on their trip.

The ferry docked and I walked around for a few minutes to get my bearings. I then called my host, Topias, and asked him for directions. I took the tram to his place, accompanied by an incredibly drunk old man who was sloppily trying to grab the poor woman sitting across from him. It was sad to watch but also extremely entertaining - welcome to Finland in the summertime!

Topias had his friend Tuomas over, both recovering from a big night out, and the three of us quickly went out for some brunch. We went to a bar called Pacifico, which was somewhat Latin/Mexican-themed but felt like a local underground rock music venue. The people there gave off some good vibes, nonjudgmental and friendly. The brunch cost €10, but was all-you-can-eat, and, most importantly, they had Cholula hot sauce! Oh how I missed you! I had the most amazingly spicy meal since that curry in Manchester…

We explored a nearby park and the Linnanmäki amusement park, which was small but had some interesting coasters.

Then we rushed back because Topi had just gotten word from a friend that they were going to an island that afternoon, and the ferry was leaving in less than an hour! So we rushed ahead to the bus station, saying bye to Toumas along the way. We just missed a bus, and it looked like we wouldn't make it, when we Topi's friend said they could drive us to the ferry terminal. So we got off the bus, and after a minute, Janne and Otto swept in to pick us up. The car was running out of gas, so it was a fun ride to the ferry pier. We made it on board, and I met Ellena and Manu.

More Estonia

Days 48-50: Thursday, 7 July 2011 to Saturday, 9 July 2011



Thursday

My second day in Tallinn was spent shopping, lazing around, and then exploring on foot. I slept in a bit, so Erko had gone to work and Davide had gone to the festival. It was midday and I wanted to get some food. Since I had not found anywhere to eat, I walked to the shopping centre just across the train tracks. It was a big suburban-style mall with lots of modern conveniences. Inside was also the big supermarket, where I bought some groceries (cereal, milk, pasta, and sandwich supplies), shampoo, and a new pair of sunglasses since I left my other pair in Nottingham.

I made some sandwiches for lunch and then walked out into the city. After spending some time wasting online, I walked through the upper part of the old town, seeing plenty of fantastic views from the ramparts of the old city walls. There's the iconic Russian Orthodox church, and plenty of fantastic postcard images of the very well-preserved old town. Two girls were walking around dressed up like Russian nesting dolls. I encountered a loud group of maybe 50 American girls on some sort of school or sorority trip. Then I walked around the eastern periphery of the old town, passing through some nice parks before returning to the shopping mall. There I searched for some cheap food, walking up all 5 floors before settling on a pre-made sandwich bought in the supermarket downstairs.

I walked all the way back to the apartment and shared some dinner with the housemates. Herring and potatoes. That's Estonian food. Everyone was just eating outside.

Friday, 8 July 2011

I made breakfast: eggs and bacon. It was a nice and sunny day, so I went to the beach. Erko also decided to go, so I joined him, Marta, and Ibsen. They had an extra bike for me to use at the house!

So we all biked through the city to the prison complex near the port where we settled in by the water. There was a sandy beach perched above the actual rocky shoreline, and the water was murky and cool, but fresh. Waves came only when one of the big ferry or cruise ships pulled in to the nearby port.

We shared a couple ciders and the girls played around in the sand before we headed off. Erko had to leave early because he had to get to his friend's place in the countryside.

The girls and I checked out a nearby pub/café that was a London city bus originally. Then we saw a bit more of the TunedCity festival, which was going on at the Kulturiikatel nearby. It's an abandoned factory that they're trying to make into something artsy. A man was playing recordings of ambient noise and answering questions about it.

Estonia! I'm Here!

Day 47: Wednesday, 6 July 2011

It's hard to believe that I'm here in Tallinn, Estonia. It's not (yet) one of the best known city for tourists, especially from America. But it's conveniently located as a starting point to travel around northern Europe. And the flight here was cheap.

So to Tallinn I flew, and couchsurfed in a neighborhood just southwest of the city center/old town. I stayed in a community house - a type of co-op for the neighborhood, with people continuously coming in and out. In the attic there are many mattresses, on which I am sleeping. My "official" (if you will) couchsurfing host, Erko, is one of the most enthusiastic people I've met, which contrasts sharply with the general aloofness (or so I've been told) of the Estonian people in public.

I arrived in Tallinn on Wednesday, taking a RyanAir flight from East Midlands Airport (England). The flight was not as bad as I thought it would be, and it was pretty quick to get through the airport, except for the public bus everyone took into the city, which was packed full of people. I walked for about 2 km from the bus stop, through a shopping mall and a city park, across the city center, to the house where I was staying. It was exhausting, especially carrying my two fully packed bags, so I stopped every couple minutes to catch my breath. I also learned how to say "Vabaduse Väljak."

I arrived at the house with an enthusiastic "JASON! Come in!", and before I knew it, I had a cider in my hand, was introduced to 5 people with nearly impossible-to-remember names, and learned all the procedures of the house.

Nottingham and Good-Bye to England (for Now)

Day 46: Tuesday, 5 July 2011

I had a train booked from York to Nottingham. Jacek walked me to the train station, and I boarded the train, first to Sheffield, where I changed onto a second train to Nottingham. I listened to my ipod the whole way.

Nottingham is a bigger city, so it had more of an urban feel, which felt comfortable to me. My host, Luisa, came to the train station to meet me. We dropped my bags off at her place, and after a small bite to eat, set off to explore the city. It was really fun - apparently she found my antics of climbing on the Robin Hood statue quite hilarious.

We then peeked inside the oldest pub in England (apparently). And walked along the Robin Hood trail for a bit.

There was an old church that had been turned into an upscale lounge/bar, the Pitcher & Piano. We stumbled into a museum that had criminals and Robin Hood. Random explorations are fun!

The 4th of July in York

Day 45: Monday, 4 July 2011

It's the 4th of July and I'm on a train from Manchester to York. I had originally planned to travel to York yesterday, but having not found a couch to surf I decided to stay in Manchester one more night. (Frankly, I have come to dislike packing all my things up and out every time I change cities.) But I enjoyed my time in Manchester - it was a much-needed break from my non stop stream of daily activities. Everyone was really nice and polite too, very British, which I liked (although I'm still working on developing my understanding of British sarcasm and humour). I did get a chance to watch a few comedy/panel shows last night, sort of like a wittier version of those VH1 gossip shows.

Anyway, I rushedly said bye to each of the housemates either at night or in the morning, and I rushed to Piccadilly station to catch my train - but I missed it by just a minute. I kept calm and carried on to the next train, which left in 15 minutes, so no big deal. Did I mention how much I like trains? They're such a great way to travel, smooth and convenient. I remember being obsessed with trains when I was little; I wanted to be a train conductor.

York is a well-preserved medieval city, founded by the Romans and with a lot of Viking history as well. It's great to walk around the city center. There's The Shambles, a narrow street with buildings that have remained the same since the middle ages apparently.

Lakes to the City

Day 43: Saturday, 2 July 2011

England has some interesting and fast-paced cities, but I feel that England is really best experienced in the countryside. The peculiarities of British culture (politeness, formality, simple home-style cooking) just seem to make more sense in a small town atmosphere. And Ambleside is such a great example of this. There's a university, so there are plenty of young people, but there are so many more outdoor things to do. Many people were hiking up and down the many hills and mountains nearby, and as I passed them, they would all smile and greet me. The economic downturn has benefited domestic tourism here, as UK residents choose to spend their holidays in England's most scenic area instead of going abroad.

Nick had gone to work early, and after another late morning, I went for a hike to the top of nearby Loughrigg. It was nice, sunny and warm, and the views were great as well. I returned to the apartment, and Claire, Vicky, and I went to the park, where we played some card games (Egyptian ratscrew), and tried to juggle/play with Claire's diablo. Nick arrived and joined us, opting to play catch/baseball with Claire's juggling balls, and then their friend Matt came too. We all walked to The Apple Pie and I got to try some Bath bake, which is kind of like a fruit-filled bread, which wasn't as good as usual apparently. I also got a couple bottles of local ale from the wine shop where Claire works, and then Nick drove me to the train station in Windermere.

The Lake District: Climbing to the Top of England

Day 40: Wednesday, 29 June 2011

England's Lake District is well-known for having the most scenic areas in the country. And in my 3 days there, I must whole-heartedly agree! There whole area is full of rolling hills and mountains, sheep grazing, slate-exterior cottages, and quaint towns that provide a perfect postcard of English countryside!

I spent one night in Manchester, and then I took a morning train to Windermere, a town right on the lake of the same name. My friend Nick picked me up (in his car - yes!) with his girlfriend Vicky and his flatmate Claire. We grabbed some lunch at a carvery, a kind of restaurant where you get roast meat served to you as you want, with veggies and yorkshire pudding.

We dropped my stuff off at the apartment, and then drove to Keswick (pronounced "kezzik"), where we got some food from Booths to prepare for our hike the next day - we were hiking up Scafell Pike, the highest mountain in England!

Liverpool

Day 39: Tuesday, 28 June 2011 - Liverpool Day!
I decided to visit Liverpool on a day trip, since it's only a 45-minute train ride from Manchester. I started the day with a walk to Old Trafford, the stadium home to Manchester United. There was construction going on, so I couldn't see too much, but I guess it'd be better if I were a more devoted football fan.

After a bit of rain the night before, it was warm and sunny yet again in Manchester. I took the tram to the Piccadilly station, used the automatic machine to pick up my train tickets, and got on the next train to Liverpool (I had to show my ticket to enter the platform area, odd…). I put some Beatles songs on my ipod as I drifted along into the city, and as I emerged from Liverpool's Lime Street station, I was greeted by a chilly sea breeze that instantly made me regret wearing shorts.

I picked up a city map from the train info stand and walked first to the Walker Art Gallery. Gotta love the UK's museums with free admission! There was a good selection of art ranging from classical sculptures to Victorian to modern.

I was too antsy to stay around looking at art for so long, so then I headed out through St. John's Garden and into the old streets in the city's center. I passed some locals, and their accent - "scouse" - was really hard to decipher. (I had been warned that the accents here can be particularly strong.)

I soon found Mathew Street, home to the Cavern Club, the place famous for being the birthplace of the Beatles.

Welcome to Manchester

Day 37: Sunday, 26 June 2011
The flight from Reykjavik to Manchester was only about 2.5 hours. I sat in front of an obnoxiously loud child, about 6 years old, who kept whining about everything. The didn't deter me from falling asleep for most of the flight. I groggily passed into the airport and through immigration, where I got held up for a quite a while, because the immigration officers had no idea what kind of visa I had. They had to look it up online, because it was a new category that had just been introduced (so apparently I knew more than they did).

It felt hot in Manchester, especially compared to Iceland. It was apparently 27°C, which is like 81F. I took the train from the airport to the main train station, Manchester Piccadilly. It only cost £3, which is much cheaper than the analogous train in London. I then took a tram to Kieran's place, which was also quick and easy. I arrived at the house, but Kieran wasn't there and his housemate Johnny didn't have the key to unlock the door. No worries, I sat on the front ledge and laptopped away.

Kieran arrived with Amy and another guest, Tsachi from Israel, whom I at first called Ducky. We went for a long walk into the city center, which was pleasant. It felt good to be back in a city, surrounded by people.