After the Savonlinna Opera

Here is an e-mail from Leena with some links to wet our appetite for our Finland Trip

"Ritva and Hans  or just Ritva will pick us up after Savonlinna Opera - the next day at 10am.( July 22nd)

Savonlinna Castle

we will take a scenic route to Retretti Art Center in Punkaharju: which is in a cave

We will also visit the forestry museum

I have never visited either of these ( as they did not exist in my childhood)   so I am quite exited.

Then we will drive to their summer house in Puumala:

We will return to Helsinki on the 23rd either via Mikkeli or Imatra ( train)

We are getting closer and closer to our travels

Porvoo

If you checked my Picasa Photostream gadget you'll realize I'm back in Fillmore.  And it's a quiet, hot Tuesday afternoon.  I'm sitting with mother.  She's reading a flower identification manual and I'm trying to read my Finland Guidebook.  But while the reading is easy, the remembering is not.  I'm in a section about excursions from Helsinki and we're on our way to Porvoo about 31 miles from Helsinki.  It's the second oldest in Finland, established in the 14th century but known as a trading post before then.  It's know for its old town, with its lovely wooden houses and cathedral, but the surrounding islands and countryside have "much to offer."  And it has several quirky museums - an Outboard Museum, a recreation of a 1950's outboard motor repair shop, and a Toy Museum with toys dating from 1800 to 1990 as well as preserved steam railway running for 7 and a half miles into the countryside. 

So how to you say Porvoo....click over to Forvo to search and listen.  I've added Forvo to my list of links over there to your right. 

Birds of Finland

Watching the birds in the morning has become a routine to accompany coffee and e-mail.  This morning I remembered Mother lamenting not having a bird book when they were on the fjord cruise in Norway so I thought I'd better prepare for Finland.

BirdLife Suomi-Finland is a website with pictures and sound.  At first glance I see a lot of familiar birds (the waxwings have some beautiful pictures) and the call pops up with the photo.  I'll have to delve deeper for birds that are not common here.  Try it and let me know what you think.