Do they bite?

I just had to take a picture of these cute little kids, sitting in Helsinki at the estuary of the Vantaa river, so-called “Vanhankaupunki” (the place where Helsinki was founded in 1550 by Swedish king Gustav Vaasa I), learning how to fish. There was a pretty cold wind on that day, but hey, they are…

Sailing on Cannon Sloop Diana

While Suomenlinna is known as a Unesco-World Heritage site, many people don’t know that a group of enthusiastic shipbuilders has rebuilt one of the original types of wooden warships they invented in Suomenlinna. For educational purposes, we Suomenlinna guides received an invitation to participate in a short sailing trip on the historic “tykkisluupi” and to…

Berlin 1

Long ago, I lived and worked in Berlin, shortly after the wall came down. When I decided to start a family, we left the city, as I couldn’t imagine to raise children there. In those days, playgrounds and sidewalks in Berlin were too often toilets for dogs and garbage cans for heroin needles (unless you…

Relocation update: Aix

Meanwhile, two weeks have passed and I lost track of all the things I have seen. This weekend I took a longer trip to Aix on Provence and then I stopped for a few hours in Marseille. Aix is the historic capital of the Region of Provence and mostly well-known because of Paul Cézanne, who…

Silakka Markkinat

The first Herrings-Market in Helsinki was organized in 1743. Still at the end of the 19th century the harbor looked very picturesque with large sailing boats docking at the quay  (see  featured image from the ©Helsinki Museum picture archive). Der erste Heringsmarkt in Helsinki fand 1743 statt. Noch am Beginn des 20. Jahrhunderts sah der…

Sibelius Violin Concerto

I had the great pleasure today to listen to  the Violin concerto of Jean Sibelius in the same premises where it was performed the first time! The city hall of Helsinki, then still Seurahuone Hotel, features an impressive celebration hall and has hosted many balls, concerts and events since the 19th century till today. The…