Hei

Greetings from Finland. I arrived at the Port of Helsinki yesterday (Monday) morning about 5:20, and met up with Steve at the hotel around 6:30. I had to wait 20 minutes or so for a taxi to get to his hotel, but it was a bright clear morning so standing on the streecorner at the terminal in the very early hours of morning wasn't so bad. After breakfast at the hotel, we set out on a walking tour of Helsinki. But first, about the ferry ...

It's a good thing I headed for Rostock early, because getting from the train station to the harbor turned out to be a bit of a workout ... I got to where I needed to be, but wouldn't want to have done it in the dark. I checked in, and then just had to sit around and wait (3-4 hours) till boarding.

The ferry trip was great. It was quiet and smooth. There were three decks of garage for vehicles (ranging from semi trailers to family cars) and three decks of passenger cabins. My cabin was on Deck 8 ... clean and comfortable, with my own bathroom (I had a smaller shower in the hotel in Krakow). The main restaurant was reasonably priced buffet service, and selections were extensive ... lots of fish options at every meal in different raw, cooked, and pickled states. I always say I'll try anything once, but couldn't quite bring myself to do herring for breakfast. I didn't do the lunch buffet (got a salad from the quick-serve) but did go to supper .. entrees included beef, pork, chicken, lamb, rabbit, venison and more fish ... and desserts!

Getting the private cabin with a window proved a prudent and worthwhile choice ... I shudder to think what it would have been like to be assigned to a cabin with one (or two or three) of the Russian truck drivers who sat in the bar whenever it was open greatly enjoying theit vodka and beer and everything else.

Around 5:00 yesterday morning there was an announcement that we would be coming into port in about half an hour, which was the polite prompt to get up and get out. Come 5:20, we were docked.

Among the sights of Helsinki were the open-air produce market with lots of craft booths, the immense Lutheran Cathedral (Lutheranism is the State Religion of Finland) and the equally immese Orthodox Cathedral dating from when Finland was a Russian Grand Duchy under the Czar. The Cathedrals sit up on crests of different hills overlooking the city and the harbor. We met a friend of Steve's for lunch at a place with typical Finnish fare ... I had the pan-fried pike perch with a garnish of cooked/buttered horseraddish (very mild, actually) which was excellent. After another hour or two of walking ... with a stop for coffee and patry ... we swung by the market again to pick up some fruits and vegetables and headed home.

The drive to Jyväskylä (I think I spelled it right) took about three hours up nice highway through lots of wooded small hills and lakes.

Barbara and Steve have a lovely home in a quiet neighborhood. Drew just turned eight, and is all excited about my visit ... he has his own list of things Finnish that I must be introduced to. I heard Drew getting ready for school this morning so I went ahead and got up ... he wanted to start my Finnish introductions right away with some tasty, spicy fish he pulled from the fridg, but I deferred it until later... at least until after my coffee.

So now Drew is at school, Barbara is at work (she's an editor for an online journal or something of the sort) and Steve is working here at home in his office preparing the courses he'll teach at the University this term. There's no agenda for today, other than maybe a trip to the store ... I said I'd be happy to cook ... so I'm just taking it as it comes.

BTW: "Hei" is one of the colloquial Finnish greetings ... pronounced like "hey".