Attractions
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The historically significant Suomenlinna fortress is
not only a major military monument worthy of the UNESCO World
Heritage List, but also home to about 900 Finns who live in the
renovated barracks. The entire site is a fun, multi-faceted
attraction for Helsinki residents and visitors. The fortress, built
during Swedish rule in the 18th century, is situated on an island
at the entrance to Helsinki's harbour. The fortification became a
strategic military shipyard with one of the biggest dry docks in
the world, comparable to the fortress at Gibraltar. Apart from
admiring the architecture there is plenty to experience at
Suomenlinna, which contains seven museums, galleries, restaurants
and cafes, several parks, beaches and nature areas. Guided walking
tours are offered and there are always events taking place like
exhibitions, jazz shows and theatrical performances, particularly
during summer.
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Architecture buffs enjoy sitting in a café admiring
the buildings surrounding Helsinki's lively Senate Square, renowned
as Europe's finest examples of the neoclassical style. The square
is dominated by the city's main landmark, the Lutheran Cathedral,
designed by Carl Ludwig Engel and consecrated in 1852. The interior
is as perfect as the exterior design, and is open to the public
daily for no charge. Other buildings on the Square designed by
Engel are the Palace of the Council of State, built in 1822, and
the University buildings (1832), including the library, regarded as
Engel's finest masterpiece.
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Many travellers have compared Helsinki to the
beautiful Russian city of St Petersburg which is a close neighbour
across a short strait of water, and the exotic red-brick Orthodox
cathedral Uspenski, designed by Aleksei Gornostayev of St
Petersburg in the late 1800s, cements the Russian connection. The
cathedral sits atop a rocky outcrop on the Katajanokka peninsula
opposite the fish market, fronted by a statue of Tsar Alexander II,
as a memento of Russia's occupation of Finland until 1919. The
magnificent Byzantine edifice is topped with a characteristic
golden onion dome, and the interior is opulently decorated with
valuable icons.
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Helsinki's bustling Market Square is not only where
traders set up shop selling food and various other goods, but it is
also the central meeting point of the city, sandwiched between the
sea and a row of impressive historic buildings which include the
City Hall, the Swedish Embassy and the Presidential Palace. Trams
and waterbuses converge on the square, where visitors gather to
watch the changing of the bulkily clad guard at the Palace and
admire the Havis Amanda mermaid statue at the west end of the
Square in front of Esplanade Park.
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This awesome and unique piece of architecture, the
Temppeliaukio ('Church in the rock') was designed by brothers Timo
and Tuomo Suomalainen and carved out of solid granite as recently
as 1969. It has become one of Helsinki's most famous attractions,
its rock walls roofed over with a massive concave copper ceiling,
which gives it excellent acoustics. The church is often used as a
venue for musical events.
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The Seurasaari open-air Museum allows visitors to step
back in time and glimpse the traditional way of life in the Finnish
countryside, and all this in the heart of the capital city. The
museum, situated on a lovely green island accessed from the
mainland via a footbridge, consists of a collection of cottages,
farmsteads, parsonages, rural churches, manor houses and other old
buildings, all preserved and relocated from their original sites
around the provinces of Finland. The 86 buildings currently on the
museum site have been arranged to form a complete replica of a
country district, reflecting what life was like in various levels
of rural society between the 18th and 20th centuries.
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Visitors who enjoy getting to know the country they
are exploring will enjoy the National Museum of Finland in
Helsinki, which depicts Finnish life from prehistoric times to the
present. Housed in an impressive Romantic style building, the
museum's permanent exhibition is divided into five sections,
including the 'Treasure Trove', a display of coins, medals and
weaponry. The archaeological section features some rare Stone Age
finds. Also interesting are the folk costumes, textiles and
furniture displays that make up Finland's cultural heritage
collection. The museum also has a café and shop.
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It's Christmas every day of the year in the rather
commercialised (but quaint) 'Santa's secret hideaway' in Lapland,
northern Finland, where the redoubtable Mr Claus spends his time
preparing gifts for the world's children, and meeting and greeting
an estimated 500,000 delighted visitors a year. Co-incidentally the
valley inside the Arctic Circle where Santa's Village is set is
shaped like an ear, so, it is said, Santa can listen to all the
children of the world. At the village all sorts of activities are
on offer at Santa's office, the reindeer park and the SantaPark
theme park, and of course you can use Santa's personal post office
to mail a letter or card home with the coveted postmark. The
highlight of any visit, though, is of course meeting the great man
himself, and whispering your wishes into his friendly ear. Santa's
Village and SantaPark are located just a mile from the
international airport of Rovaniemi (capital of Lapland), and is
also easily accessible by bus or car from Helsinki.
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