Travel

Helsinki, Finland, Top 5

We are visiting the beautiful capital of Finland, Helsinki, with a look at my favorite top-five visitor attractions Of course, there are many more things to see and do here, but just for fun, let's take a shot at five of them. Be sure to see our other Helsinki movie https://youtu.be/4PFbsPxq2h0 Esplanade Park and shopping district, Market Square with its food and crafts on the waterfront, number three, Senate Square with its historic buildings and cathedral, four, you'll want to do some shopping and people-watching in the vibrant downtown center. The streets here are mostly for locals. It can get pretty busy, but has a relaxed pace and authentic atmosphere. Finland is located between Scandinavia and Russia. And you'll see a lot of blond hair in this city, which is the second-most northerly capital in the world, after Ridgeview in Iceland, And rounding out our top-five activities -- It's fun to take a boat ride out to the nearby islands, including an old fortress called Suomenlinna where we'll get off the boat and take a walk around. Helsinki's downtown is rather compact, making it quite easy to walk to each of our main sites in just a few minutes. we'll start out with the Esplanade, then the food market and Senate Square, saving the shopping and boat ride for later. The Esplanade is one of those great city parks. In English, it's pronounced Esplanade. In Finnish, Esplanadi. But the locals just say espa, and it runs from the market and waterfront all the way to the busy commercial streets of town. There's beautiful greenery all around you, especially in the summertime, and you can bring your own food into the park if you like, have a picnic on the lawn. And there's some very comfortable benches here. The park was designed in 1818 by Carl Engel, and it took a few decades to develop with extensive landfill and landscaping. You could even take a horse carriage ride, if you like, or just pet the horses. This park is very much the heart of town, and it's not just for tourists. This is one of the favorite spots for locals to come and relax and enjoy the environment. There are many fine restaurants around the outside of the park, and an excellent choice inside, the famous Kapelli cafe. Kapelli has a dining terrace that faces a stage and outdoor performance area popular with musicians, and today, a gymnastics family, who also put on a performance with their trained cats. Can you believe that? Is it possible for cats to perform an orchestrated routine. Just watch. Well, yes. The cats can jump through a hoop, climb a pole, fly through the air, jump into a basket with her young daughters supporting the action. It's very common to run into the street musicians playing rock or classical, all kinds of music. But to see a family performing with trained cats is most unusual. This video was photographed during several different tours, all of them in the month of July. July is a great time to be here because the weather is very mild. It doesn't get hot or cold, and the town is not crowded because locals tend to leave to go on vacation. The streets on each side of Esplanade host a main concentration of stores selling Finnish-made goods such as wooden toys for the kids and Marimekko fabrics, especially along the North Esplanade. These shops are all noted for their world-famous Finish design, a sleek, modern functionalist look. The Marimekko shop is part of the stylish Kamp Galleria. This upscale shopping mall, right in the middle of Helsinki, brings top international brands and high quality Finnish fashion designs, providing a luxurious shopping experience in this unique center. The Finns are proud to be a major creative force in the development of the Scandinavian design movement, whose roots stretch back to the Art Nouveau period of the early 1900s and have continued evolving into our postmodern world. There are several stylish restaurants on this block, including Brasserie Kemp, whose food philosophy is a combination of French cuisine and Finnish food culture. My friends enjoyed a deluxe seafood platter The restaurant is open for breakfast right through late dinner, located right along the Esplanade, with seating indoors and outside. Another popular and more casual restaurant here is the Cafe Strindberg. Great spot for a pot of tea. Maybe some pastries or a light meal, perhaps sitting at an outdoor table watching the passing parade of people. At the top of the Esplanade there is an interesting restaurant complex, the territory, and includes the Theater Gril, Theater Ba, a Clock Bar, club and a deli. Walking back through the lower end of the Esplanade, which will bring us down to the food market at the South Harbor Market Square, Walking past a beautiful fountain with a statue of a naked lady, the statue of Havis Amanda in the market is one of the most beloved pieces of art in Helsinki, representing a mermaid rising from the water to symbolize the rebirth of Helsinki. http://tourvideos.com/