HOME > VACATIONS > 2003 > CRUISE > HELSINKI
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Norwegian Dream Cruise : Trip Report
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Helsinki, Finland

We knew it would be hard for Helsinki to compare to our previous stop but this was not what we expected. Helsinki was quite honestly kind of boring. As always, it's hard to tell if it was just a bad tour of the city itself.

The tour we chose was the Porvoo & Highlights excursion. We were given a quick city tour, visited the Senate Square with the Tuomiokirkko Lutheran Cathedral and Government Palace then we were taken on a historic walk through the town of Porvoo. It was historic but not interesting.

After eating lunch we continued our city tour. We visited the Olympic Stadium where the Rolling Stones were going to play the following night. We were also shown Temppeliaukio Rock Church that was built inside solid granite. Besides that we were driven around the city center and had things pointed out but I don't remember any of them.

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The Tuomiokirkko Lutheran Cathedral in the town center.
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The statue of Tsar Alexander 11 in the middle of the square.
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Looking back at the square from the front of the cathedral.
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The pulpit inside.
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More interior.
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The Olympic stadium in Helsinki.
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Statue of Paarvo Nurmi, a famous Finnish Olympian.
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The Rolling Stones vans, they were playing here the following night.
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Temppeliaukio Rock Church.
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Inside of the church.
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Another view.
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Panoramic view of the inside stitched together.
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The resort where we had lunch.
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In back you can see the Gulf of Finland.
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Looking back at the resort.
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Porvoo, Finland

Oh my, what were we thinking?? We asked the excursion desk which tour had the most history and they suggested Porvoo. Yes, Porvoo is the oldest town in Finland but it's really no big deal. There are some old wooden houses, a small square and of course a church. Besides the unicorn that was uncovered under the many layers of paint it was "yet another church". Nearby was a market square but the only stall was one guy with a couple tables selling junk.

We had some free time at the end of the very brief tour to shop the small shopping street. Unless you like items made out of Elk skins there's not much to see. We found a small children's shop and bought a dress for our daughter.

Lily and I then walked down the street to the modern part of town and found a toy store where we bought a couple things for our baby. We then found a modern department store and walked around there until it was time to meet the group.

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So, this is historic Porvoo?
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The old town square.
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Of course the church in the center of town.
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Another angle.
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No idea what this says. It was near the church and looked important.
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The other side of the church.
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The pulpit inside.
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Nice chandelier.
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Notice the unicorn and model of a ship hanging from the ceiling.
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The bell tower was a separate structure.
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Our guide pointed out these "nosy neighbor" mirrors, allowing a view both ways down the street at once.
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Steep cobblestone streets.
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Lily posing in front of a plaque.
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The few shops were on this street
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Helsinki, Finland
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