We were up early for the drive back to Helsinki. Despite leaving plenty of time, by the time we had filled up with diesel and picked up a few essential bits of grocery shopping, as we approached the city, we were running tight on time for the ferry. The traffic in Helsinki this morning was busy, and we seemed to get stopped at every single set of traffic lights on our way to the docks.

Eventually we arrived, and managed to negotiate the maize of roads that led to the ferry. It was with great relief we plonked ourselves in the ferry queue. We couldn’t help but notice that there was a huge preponderance of men catching the ferry across to Tallinn – probably about 95% of people travelling – many heavily tattooed, smoking, and often wearing the ‘trendy’ vest top. I began to wonder what on earth we were going to find in Tallinn!

I suspect that many people commute to Helsinki for work, since the ferry crossing is only a couple of hours, and being a Friday afternoon, perhaps many were returning home for the weekend. 

We arrived in Tallinn mid afternoon. The sky was a murky grey, the air muggy, and it felt like rain was imminent. We found the apartment we had booked for the night, and collected a parking card for Oscar from the owner.

After a brief cuppa, we set off to explore Tallinn. Within minutes, the rain started, so we de-camped in a rather pleasant cafe /bar in a local park, and sheltered under umbrellas whilst I enjoyed a Hendricks, and Howard a local beer. I commented that four euros for a gin seemed a bit steep. Howard laughed – and asked when was the last time I had bought a gin in a pub, and informed me he had paid nearly twenty pounds to buy me one particular gin and tonic in Norway! 

We decided to leg it back to the apartment between rain showers, and make ourselves better prepared. So after a quick shower and clothes change, we headed out again, this time armed with cagoules. Sod’s Law, of course, meant that we didn’t need them. As we set off for the Old Town in the early evening, the sun started to break through the previously leaden skies.

The Old Town of Tallinn is utterly beautiful. This UNESCO listed site sits within huge intact city walls, on a slight hill, overlooking the Gulf of Finland. I had heard that Tallinn was a good looking place, but nothing prepared me for how stunning it was. Walking through the cobbled streets in the soft evening light, with all the day trippers gone, was like stepping back in time. We climbed up Toompea Hill, past the pastel pink Estonian Parliament, through little cobbled streets, with vistas of beautiful church spires and the impressive white-domed Aleksander Nevsky Cathedral. At every turn, the blue, white and black Estonian flag was flying, often next to the EU flag.

Estonia gained independence from Russia in 1988, following what is termed ‘The Singing revolution’. For two years previously, all over Estonia, groups were heard singing the traditional Estonian folk ballads. The independence movement grew impetus, and eventually they separated from their dominant neighbour. They had in fact been independent briefly between the two world wars, but been taken back under Soviet control at the beginning of WW2. In 2004, Estonia joined the EU and NATO, cementing it’s links with the west. Now, with a population of 1.3 million, and with an unemployment rate of only 7%, the country is thriving, with IT and tourism leading the thrust. Tallinn has become a popular tourist destination, and it’s cuisine is both modern and innovative.

Our Dutch friends from Finland had recommended a restaurant that they had been to when they had visited Tallinn just a few weeks earlier. It turned out to be an utter gem. Even at 8.30 in the evening, all the tables outside were full, but we sat just inside the door and enjoyed a glass of wine, before being offered a table outside in the warm evening air. The dinner had to to be one of the best meals we have had all trip, bar the one we enjoyed in Helsinki to celebrate Howard’s birthday.

Our first impressions of Tallinn are incredibly positive. The people are friendly, and the architecture is extraordinarily beautiful. Hopefully, Estonia will continue to impress!

Our pitch last night was close by to the lake-side sauna. As is common in many of the Finnish campsites, a morning sauna is included in the price of your night’s stay. So this morning, as we were getting up, I watched a trail of people coming in and out of the sauna. They are segregated into male and female sides. Once inside, you have the option of either throwing yourself under a cold shower after sitting a requisite amount of time in the steamy heat of the sauna, or plunging oneself into the cold lake water. From my observations, it was the women who were diving into the lake, and the men, once inside, didn’t re-appear until leaving – so presumably they were of the cold shower variety.

As one young Russian man left the sauna, I saw him eyeing up Oscar. He came over to speak to us. He said he had never seen a van like ours before, and asked if he could bring his wife over to see it. We, of course, happily agreed. A little while later, he appeared back with his wife. We showed them around (!), and discussed the pros and cons of such a camper. They really enthused about it, and said it was just what they were looking for. It turns out, they live in St. Petersburg, and they gave us their contact details, should we ever visit in future. We have come across more and more Russians, as we have travelled further east in Finland – this is clearly a popular holiday spot for them, being just across the border.

We packed up, and headed south, back in the direction of Helsinki. The road we were following came incredibly close to the Russian border at one point, literally, just yards from the road, across a railway line. In the distance, we could see a Russian watch tower sitting in the forest. We stopped at the nearest lay-by / picnic area, really just to take a look at Russia! Unexpectedly, we found ourselves by the entrance to a Sculpture Park. Intrigued, we took a look inside. What we saw was quite extraordinary. Hundreds and hundreds of sculptures, mainly of figures, scattered through a little woodland glade, leading into a garden area.

It turns out that these sculptures, crafted from concrete, five hundred and sixty in total, are all the work of one man. His name was Veijo Ronkkonen (1944 – 2010), and this was his lifetimes work, over five decades. Granted, they are not in the league of Anthony Gormley or the such like, but nonetheless, they create quite an incredible sight. Further, since many are set in woodland, they have started to become incorporated into the landscape, with moss and ferns growing on or around them. The largest concentration of figures are in a large circle, all doing various gymnastic or yoga-like poses. A little further on, there were a group of ballerinas, and then a series of painted characters from different parts of the world. Howard found one depicting a hippy wearing bright yellow bell-bottom trousers. We both laughed, and I made him pose next to it. For any of you who remember Howard in the seventies, you will know why! When I first knew him, his favourite outfit was a pair of yellow bell-bottom flares, and a bright yellow, low necked t-shirt with a teddy bear logo! Sounds awful? It was. Looking back, I wonder what on earth I was thinking of!! Although, of course, back then, it was the height of fashion.

We continued on to the town of Lappeenranta, the South Karelian capital and former frontier garrison town. The creation of the Saimaa Canal in 1856 made it an important trading centre, but these days, the canal is used mainly for cruises between here and the Baltic at Vygorg, and on to St. Petersburg. The former had previously been Finland’s second largest city, before it was lost to Russia.

As we were looking for a cafe along the waterfront, we stumbled across something called Heikkalinna. Every year, in the summer, around thirty sand artists from Finland and abroad, gather to create a giant themed ‘sandcastle’, made from about three million kilograms of sand. We stopped to have a look. This year’s theme seemed to be different countries. Finland was represented by a collage of all its famous castles. The Netherlands was depicted by a tasteful scene involving windmills and Van Gogh’s tulips. Spain was represented by depictions of Gaudi’s buildings in Barcelona. You get the gist. And guess what Great Britain was shown as? You will never guess – a Corgi wearing the Queen’s crown!! It was so funny, we laughed out loud. So that’s what the EU thinks of us!

After stopping for a very good coffee at a cafe run by a Coffee Grinder company, we continued on our way. We eventually reached our campsite at Kotka just around six. It is pleasant enough, surrounded by woodland of pine and birch, next to a sandy beach. The only problem being, is that the reeds by the shore seem to be generating a lot of pesky little flies. So as I type, Howard had surrounded me in protection. I have the coil smoking, the citronella candle burning, the smoke emitting lamp on, as well as the personal smoking waistband machine pumping out pungent insect repellent. It will be a miracle if any fly gets past these barriers. That being said, I have noticed that Howard, having left me outside typing the blog, has holed himself up inside the van, behind the mosquito netting. I suspect he is using me as a decoy! Probably retaliation for me letting on about his yellow bell-bottoms!!

Today we headed a little further north eastwards to a town called Savonlinna. My trusty Lonely planet guide bills Savonlinna as ‘Finland’s prettiest town’, which ‘shimmers on a sunny day as the water ripples around it’s centre’. On first pass, we were left underwhelmed with this town. It seemed to have the usual large out of town stores and the outskirts looked fairly standard fare. We parked up, and went off to explore.

Savonlinna is set on two islands. We walked across a pedestrian bridge to the first island, and found ourselves by a pretty harbour, with a plethora of tourist boats touting tours around the town’s waterways. There was even an old paddle steamer, again used for tourist excursions. Next to the harbour was a market square, full of stalls selling all manner of things, from clothes to fruit and vegetables. We selected a cafe in the corner of the square for our morning coffee, quite desperate by now for a pee. We ordered two coffees and used the facilities. Everyone else sat on the veranda of this cafe was eating fish – little fried fish in batter, a little bit like whitebait, except larger, called Fried Muikku. They were served without the heads, but the technique seemed to be to suck the fish flesh from the bone, and then discard the skeleton. Not for me!

Refreshed, we headed off to explore the town, First we walked up to the cathedral. As yesterday, the line of war graves outside were beautifully kept, with statue of a kneeling soldier forming the backdrop.

We then walked back over the footbridge to the castle, Olavinlinna. This 15th Century castle sits on a rocky outcrop, and is quite stunning. It has a similar look to Bodium Castle in Kent, and is rated as one of the most spectacular castles in Northern Europe. It is famous for it’s month long Opera Festival in the summer months, but we couldn’t help but notice that posters all over town were advertising it as a venue for a bare-fist boxing contest, to be held this coming weekend. Outside the castle were two statues, one of a splendid looking goat, and another of three large rocks, which turned out to be a memorial to the Winter War of 1939, fought against the Soviets.

As we walked back to Oscar, we passed by the town’s beach, thronging with people, many of who were swimming in the water. We stopped for an ice-cream, and then headed back to the van. We were parked opposite a timber clad building, which originally I had thought was a tattoo parlour. It turns out that the ‘Taito Shop’ is actually a rather tasteful craft shop! 

Tour of the town completed, we headed on to our campsite for the night. With time to spare, we opted to head half an hour further east, to a place called Punkaharju, remarkably close to the border with Russia. On first sight, the campsite looked awful, with a large waterpark near it’s gate. However, once down the drive, it turned out to be a place of utter serenity, situated by a lake, with pitches set amongst the pine trees.

All was going swimmingly well, until Howard challenged me to a game of table tennis. Sadly, the heat was too much for me, and the killer instinct in Howard kicked in. Despite a close fought match, Howard won 3:2. Foolish, I hear you say. Indeed! Not one of his finest moments, annihilating his wife at ping pong! The air has been frosty all evening! Howard, grovelingly cooked supper, and is being as nice as pie to me. The words of one of my friends is ringing in my ears, ‘Revenge is a dish best served cold’. So beware, Howard – I will get you back for this! No-one beats me at table tennis and gets away with it!!

As we sat outside eating our supper, the light on the lake was sublime. The trees on the opposite bank reflecting a bright orange glow from the setting sun. This part of Finland is truly beautiful – I am glad we have taken the time to explore this wilderness. Even the trees seem more interesting here – but perhaps that’s just my imagination!

Last night, despite our peculiar list to port, we slept like logs. We must have been so busy from our frenetic weekend, that we slept in until 10am. Although that sounds bad, it was only in fact 8am UK time, so understandable under the circumstances. The rest of the campsite though must have thought us sloths – since they had clearly all been up for hours. Washing had been done, and was hanging up to dry, some camper vans had already left, and nearly everyone had finished breakfast and was washing it up. We slunk off to the wash-blocks as discretely as we could. However, when we returned, I realised that the real give-away was Oscar’s night face still stuck on the front windscreen. Still – it made people laugh!

Despite the uneven pitches, we decided to stay here another night. This spot in the woods, by Lake Saimaa is just gorgeous – so peaceful and relaxing. I can see now why the Finns spend their summer breaks going back to nature. Relaxing, swimming, boating and fishing by lakes seems to be what they like to do, and it certainly has a lot going for it.

After breakfast, which we tried to pretend was an early lunch, for the benefit of our other campers, we took a lovely long walk into the nearest town of Puumala. The route took us on a path through the woods, which looked glorious in the late morning sunshine. Puumala is a fine looking town, sitting on Lake Saimaa. It is not large, but spread out somewhat, since the Finns (unlike Germans in Big Whites), seem to value their own personal space. Attractive wooden houses sit nestled on the edge of the woods, and Howard was mightily impressed with the tidiness of some of their wood piles! Last Christmas, really for a bit of a joke, I bought him a book called ‘Norwegian Wood’, which was specifically about stacking wood. Needless to say, he loved it, and has aspired to be a neater ‘wood-stacker’ ever since. Apparently, a tidy wood-pile is the sign of an ordered mind! As we walked into town, we passed the pretty church. In it’s cemetery, were a line of immaculately kept war graves, each with a red begonia planted besides it. A gardener was carefully manicuring between the plots. A war memorial statue depicted a mother with a child in her arms, presumably a common sight after the huge losses the Finns suffered in World War II. We found a charming cafe by the waterfront, and enjoyed our morning coffee at 1.30 in the afternoon! Afterwards, we took a wander round, and took a ride in the lift up the 31 metre tower that allows pedestrian access to the bridge that crosses over the lake at this point. The view at the top was splendid, if a little windy, and we showed amazing self-restraint not to take ourselves into the cafe at the top, having only just left the other cafe.

Down at the harbourside again, we couldn’t resist having a go on the waterside ‘gym’, keen to keep fit for next year’s rowing! We  then read sone of the information boards telling us about the area. During the Ice Age, the ice shelf would’ve been up to the level of the bridge. As the ice slowly melted over a thousand years, this formed what is now the amazing network lakes that forms the Finnish Lake District. Later, between the 16th and 18th centuries, this area became a disputed border between Sweden and Russia, with several land battles. Today, although part of Finland, it remains incredibly close to the Russian border in parts. In the small market in the town square, a clothes stall was selling nothing but combat trousers and jackets – the sort of thing Yeltsin might wear. Combat shorts and khaki vest tops also seem to be the ‘de rigeur’ with several of the Finnish men on the campsite. Howard won’t be getting any!

Lake Saimaa itself has attracted inhabitants since the Stone-Age. It is the fourth largest lake in Europe, and is home to rare endemic species such as the Saimaa ringed seal and landlocked salmon. The water flows so fast in this area, that it never freezes in winter, and is used to transport logs from further upstream.

We meandered our way back to the campsite, where inspired by tidy wood-piles, Howard decreed that we were tidying the van. Unfortunately, a lovely Dutch couple came over to chat with us, just at the point where we had emptied the entire contents of the boot onto the groundsheet. I don’t think that they could quite believe that all this stuff actually fitted in our van. I daren’t tell them, that we had only just relived ourselves of two holdalls worth of rubbish, by taking it back to Scotland at the weekend. 

I can report though, that Oscar is now looking rather splendid. For how long, is another matter. I am so proud of him, that I’m tempted to ask the Dutch couple over for a gin, just to admire my spotless van and soft furnishings! I never thought I’d get ‘houseproud’ over a van!

Instead, with no signs of the Dutch couple, we stood and watched the sun setting over the lake – just beautiful. It also might have been quite serene, had it not been for Howard and his zappy bat. Instead, the sound of incinerating flies rung out around the campsite! Oh how he loves his new toy!!

On a very last minute whim, last Friday we parked Oscar up in Helsinki Airport’s long stay car park, and took a flight back to Edinburgh for the weekend. We had been keen to see the boys, and to check all was well at home. We hadn’t been home since January, and had wondered if it might seem strange. However, no sooner had we driven up the drive, and it was as if we’d never been away. Our lodgers have been taking good care of the house in our absence, and if it wasn’t for the four foot high pile of post in the lobby, it was just as we had left it.

We had been keen to check up on a few administrative things, that we needed to be at home for, but primarily our visit was to touch base with friends and family. As only our neighbours can, within hours of arriving home, we were out meeting everyone for a great Friday night get together. We had such fun, and I think my gift of Finnish gin went down well. In Helsinki, they were serving it with frozen cranberries and rosemary. At short notice, with no cranberries, we improvised with frozen Tayberries from the Carse of Gowrie – even better!

The following morning, we were treated to breakfast with another group of friends, and then managed to catch up briefly with the crowd from the rowing club (although sadly no time for a row), before meeting up with my brother and his wife. On Saturday evening we were invited to supper with other friends, and I fear we had such a good time that we managed to lose the front door key and lock ourselves out. We were fortunately saved (at midnight) by other neighbours who hold our keys. They’ll be pleased we’ve headed back to Continental Europe now!!

On Sunday, we travelled back down to Edinburgh to meet up with our two younger boys and their partners. Edinburgh was buzzing from the Festival, and we had a thoroughly fun day with them all, taking in a ‘live lounge’ music event, a slightly dodgy show in the basement of a pub involving ‘The Grumpy Magicians’, and then rounded it off with a lovely meal with them all.

By last night, we were totally exhausted from all our socialising. We caught he flight back to Helsinki this morning, feeling rather like bad parents for leaving ‘the lad’ alone so long, parked in the long stay car park. To our relief, he was sat waiting for us on our return.

In what has become our normal style, it wasn’t until we sat back in Oscar, that Howard asked where should we go now?!! Keen to avoid the heat of Helsinki, we decided to head north eastwards to the Finnish Lake District, which almost borders Russia.

The first campsite that we had earmarked turned out to be closed – I suspect shut down, since everywhere is open at this time of year. So we quickly consulted our Camping App and selected another just twenty minutes away.

Due to the two hour time difference, we didn’t arrive until 7.30 in the evening. We made do with some bread and cheese for tea, and spent the rest of the evening clearing out the fridge, and puzzling over an issue with the VW control panel. Fortunately, I found a solution for the flashing light on the VW California forum, and after re-setting the computer, managed to fix it. I think Howard was both surprised and impressed in equal measure, that I had managed to sort it out. At least it has saved us yet another trip to the VW garage.

Although it was great to see all our friends and family, it is lovely to be back in Oscar. He strangely feels like home to us now, and we missed him. Our trip home also came at natural break in our journey, since shortly we will be crossing the Baltic to Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, and then on to explore Eastern Europe. For the next day or two though, we will stay in Finland, avoiding the extreme heat in central Europe. Tomorrow we will explore the Lake District here. Howard has just read that there is more shoreline in Finland Lake District per unit area than anywhere else in the world, with 14,000 islands. Tonight, we are camped adjacent to the largest lake in Finland.

Unfortunately, arriving late at the campsite meant that all the level pitches were taken – so spare a thought for us tonight, lying at a rather wonky angle to port. I may be very squashed by the morning!

Today was even hotter than yesterday. Howard and I are really struggling in this extreme heat. We had an early start getting Oscar to the VW garage. On arrival, initially we thought all was well – they proudly produced a new awning bracket that they had ordered for us. However, on closer inspection, it turned out that they had ordered the wrong part, and the bracket was the wrong shape. The engineer took a look at the van with Howard, and offered to try to replace the broken rivets. He made a reasonably good job of the repair although clearly it does not look as good as if the whole bracket had been replaced. It does seem secure though, and the garage offered to waive the charge in view of their mix up. In the end, rather than having to take the van back in, we decided to accept the repair, and get it sorted out properly once we are back in the UK. For now, at least, we should be able to use the awning, and get some shade.

Garage done, we headed back into the city. By now, it was incredibly warm. We sought out a coffee in the shade, then went off to explore the part of the city near the harbour and ferry terminal that we hadn’t seen yesterday. We took a look at the two cathedrals, the red Uspenskin Orthodox Cathedral, and the stunningly beautiful white Lutheran Helsinki Cathedral. Stood outside the cathedral, Howard, as ever, took on the role of David Bailey, taking people’s group photographs. I have to laugh! The Lutheran Cathedral also had the advantage of a very cool cafe in the crypt, which we took advantage of, since by now, we were expiring from the heat.

After cooling off in the crypt, we headed to the harbour, which was bustling with pleasure craft, and a lively market at the waterside.

Foolishly, we booked ourselves into an hour and a half boat cruise around the archipelago and canals of Helsinki. Within minutes of sitting on the deck, we were literally roasting, with no shade at all. We had hoped that the sea breeze would cool us down, but instead, it felt like we were in a hot tumble drier. It was absolutely baking. We lathered yet more sun cream on, but it still felt like we were being roasted. The scenery was beautiful, but frankly, we were so hot that we couldn’t really take it in. One interesting fact we gleaned on the tour was that Finland is the only nation in Europe with a land border with the USSR, not to be a member of NATO. They prefer to take a diplomatic stance with their powerful neighbour, also clearly aware that Russia is a major trading partner. We also passed by many of the islands in the archipelago, most of which were full of holiday cottages. My hairdresser yesterday told me that most Finns own a summer house, and many quite ‘ordinary’ families own a small archipelago island. I guess with so many thousands to go around, it makes sense.

It was a great relief when we arrived back at the dock. We headed back to Oscar, and decided to call it a day for sightseeing. As the air conditioning kicked in, we both heaved a sigh of relief. We really aren’t doing well in this extreme heat. It had been well in excess of thirty degrees today, which is a real struggle in a camper van. Fortunately, tonight we are in a hotel again, so we are currently wallowing in the relative cool.

Despite our struggles with the heat, we have really enjoyed Helsinki. It is very much a city on the water, in fact, there seems to be more water than city. The archipelago of islands create a natural harbour, which the Finns succeed in keeping navigable even in the depths of winter by means of a brigade of ice-breaking vessels. Even the ferries, which run a regular service between Sweden, Estonia and St. Petersburg, are class A1 ice-breakers, meaning that they can operate all year round, even when the Baltic freezes.

This weekend, we are meeting up with family and friends, so there will be a pause in the blog until early next week. We hope by then, it will have cooled down a little, and we can continue our journey around the Baltics.

Last night was undoubtedly the hottest night we have spend in the van. The heat was unremitting. Despite having the USB fan going, and all the vents open in the pop-up, it was still unbearably hot. I slept fitfully, and when I awoke at about 4am, I looked through the pop-up window to see the most glorious sunrise over the water. The sky was a vivid shade of pink, and the reflections on the lake were just beautiful. Now, I sorely regret not getting up to take a photograph, but at the time, I couldn’t muster the energy to drag myself out of bed.

I woke early, wished Howard a Happy Birthday, and took myself off to the shower. Already the heat was starting to build. The main shower block for women seemed to be a communal affair, but I found a door through to what I thought was a private shower area. Wrong. After I had started showering, a Finnish lady appeared, de-robed, and took herself through an adjoining door. Then, as I was dressing, she appeared again, and flung herself under a bracingly cold shower, before returning once more to her little room. It turned out, of course, that she was in the sauna.

Saunas are a really big deal in Finland. It is like the national pastime. In many of the towns there are communal saunas. The commonest type involve sitting in a wood-fired hut by a lake, then running out and flinging oneself into the ice cold water, before returning to the sauna, and flagellating oneself with birch branches, thought to stimulate the circulation. Fortunately there were no birch branches involved in this mornings ritual, but certainly by the second ice cold shower, I felt that this poor lady was going above and beyond!!

When I returned to Oscar, Howard had taken himself off for his morning run. When he returned, he showered, and half an hour later, he was still dripping with sweat. It was so hot! 

We breakfasted in the thinnest strip of shade by the van, still unable to use the awning. Our Finnish neighbour watched with interest. I gave Howard his birthday card, and present. I say present, but really it was just a token. Howard had insisted that we didn’t have any room in the van for anymore stuff. So his present was a pair of ‘Scandinavian Explorer’ moose underpants. For weeks we have been driving through ‘moose warning’ road signs, probably for nearly two thousand kilometres, yet have failed to see an actual moose. So I thought I would give him the next best thing.

Howard appeared thrilled with his present, so much so, that after posing for a photograph, proceeded to try them on over his other underpants. The Finnish neighbours, by now, thought he was bonkers!

We packed up, and headed back into town, on the off chance that the hairdresser had returned. We were in luck. She was open, with a sign outside saying ‘Drop In’. In truth, any hairdresser that you can just walk into, is probably a bit dodgy, but by now, I was getting desperate. So Howard went off to get a coffee, leaving me in the hands of the hairdresser. She seemed really nice, spoke fluent English, as well as Swedish and Finnish, and we were getting on like a house on fire. I explained that I needed a trim, and also wanted my roots done. No problem, she said. 

All was going seemingly well until the hair washing bit. She placed me in a chair, elevated the legs, and then turned on a switch. It turned out to be a sort of massage chair. A balloon thing started vibrating and inflating in the arch of my back. Then, very abruptly (I’m guessing it was a rather cheap massage chair), it made a strange clanking sound, and deflated. The result was that it jerked me backwards into the base of the chair, so suddenly, that I let out a little shriek. Then the whole procedure started over again. I was starting to get a fit of the giggles, when my hairdresser said to me, ‘I have just put some silver shampoo on your hair. Do you know what that is?’ I answered ‘No’. So she went on to explain. ‘Silver shampoo is used to combat the yellow colour that hair goes in the sun’. So far, so good – my hair had definitely being going very straw coloured in the sun. But then she continued, ‘ It can make your hair look purple, until you wash it a few times’. Internally, I let out a primordial scream! Aagghhh! Purple hair!!!

Thankfully, my hair isn’t purple – still a very blonde colour, from months of living outdoors. Howard seemed to think that it didn’t look too bad, and at least it’s not flopping over my eyes, like before.

So haircut done, we headed on to Helsinki. Tonight we are staying in a hotel, since we need to get to the garage early in the morning. The hotel garage has a height limit of 1.90 metres. Oscar is about 1.85 metres. Howard slowly inched his way down into the underground car park. From outside, I shouted to him, ‘Remember the garage door shuts automatically after 90 seconds’. Too late. As I spoke, the door slammed shut, just as Howard reached the bottom of the slope! Fortunately, we were saved by a lady inside the garage, who saw our dilemma, and managed to open the door from the inside. That was a close call!

Helsinki is hot. The lady on reception suggested we head for the waterfront, in the hope of finding a breeze. So we sat by the water, had a drink, and watched what seemed to be the rest of the population of Helsinki enjoying a day on the beach. So many people were in the water swimming, it was easy to forget that we were in a capital city, not a holiday resort.

We had a walk along the waterfront, then returned to our hotel. For supper, I had booked a lovely restaurant, by far the nicest place we have eaten all trip, and certainly the first time I have worn a dress in seven months. It was funny to think that this time last year, we had been climbing Schiehallion in the teaming rain with all the boys and their partners, on Howard’s 60th. Little did we know, that a year later, we would spending his birthday in Helsinki.

It has been a lovely day, if a little hot, and certainly a birthday to remember. I do suspect though, that the Finns on our campsite from last night are still puzzled about the mad Englishman sporting bright orange moose underpants!

Today has been an absolute swelter! By the time we awoke, the heat was already oppressive and muggy. Had it been cooler, we may have explored the city of Turku further, but frankly, it was too hot to walk around cities. We did give it a fly past in the van, which I know is rather short-shifting Turku, which has the reputation of being a lively university city, known for it’s experimental art and vibrant festivals, but in the heat, that was the most enthusiasm we could muster. On first glances, it lacks the stunning kerb appeal of some of the Scandinavian cities we have visited so far. There appeared to be lots of concrete, and a mixture of modern buildings. However, there was a pleasant river running through the centre, with riverside walks, and some attempt to soften it’s edges with pretty floral displays. We immediately had the sense that we were no longer in Scandinavian – as indeed, we are not! The Finns take offence at being called Scandinavian, which refers to Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland. Finland is a Nordic country, and in many respects has more in common with Russia, than it’s other neighbours. In historical terms, Russia and Sweden have vied for control of Finland. In World War II, it began by being invaded by Russia,    and fighting a bitter ‘Winter War’ with them, asking the Germans for assistance. Forced to concede defeat, they then renaged on the peace treaty they signed with the Russians, and changed their allegiance to the Allied Forces. A war was then waged in Lapland, to oust the Nazis, who had occupied this strategic region. Throughout the war, Finland sought to remain independent, at tremendous cost to themselves, and when the Germans did eventually withdraw, they adopted a ‘scorched earth’ policy. Today, Finland is a member of the EU, joining in 1995, and it adopted the euro in 2002 – the only country in this region to have done so.

We noticed a huge difference in the language moving to Finland. Many of the words sounded Russian, and the names changed from Hans and Lars, to Svetlana and Katya. We also noticed a difference in some of the churches – passing through one town with a very distinctive domed church.

Initially the countryside looked entirely different too. Driving out of Turku inland, it became much more agricultural than we have seen for months, with fields of wheat and barley, some just starting to be harvested. Then, as we approached the coast once more, the familiar pine forests and moose road signs re-appeared. The ground also changed, with many more rocky outcrops with thinner topsoil.

We arrived at our campsite in the early afternoon, and managed to bag a stunning pitch by the lakeside. The added advantage of this spot, is that there is a slight breeze coming off the water, which gave considerable relief from the sun. We toyed with hiring a rowing boat, but you needed to take it for 24 hours, and it wasn’t cheap. Most people here use the boats for fishing, which is an incredibly popular pastime.

So instead, we took a walk into town. In truth, I had a bit of a mission – I was looking for a hairdressers to get my hair cut. The town of Raseborg is just a short distance from the campsite, and what a gem it turned out to be. We were immediately walking through pretty streets of coloured clapboard houses, and gorgeous little parks, with footpaths leading to the main pedestrianised part of the town. We sought out the three hairdressers that the campsite had recommended, but they were all closed. I’m guessing that in the hot weather, they had all decided to close up early. One had left a note on the door, but when we asked a local what it said, they apologised and said they didn’t understand it, it was in Swedish. Apparently 65% of people ion this area speak Swedish, we are told. So we gave up on the hair cut – and I am left looking like an Afghan Hound with bleached blonde hair – not a good look. Instead, we sought out a cafe, where Howard had a black coffee, and I cooled off with an ice-cream. So I’m now resembling a podgy Afghan Hound!

Back at the campsite, the inevitable has happened – a huge Big White has sidled up to us. Fortunately we had parked with our door away from them, since the whole beer gut / bare chested look is not doing it for me!

Howard has just done a trawl with the zappy bat, and it’s pinging like mad! So it’s on with the insect repellent, and out with the citronella candle and deterrent lamp thing. This could be a long night!!

Tomorrow is Howard’s birthday, and we are heading to Helsinki. I struggled to find him a birthday card in the shops, so I’m not quite sure what the card actually says on it – but I think he’ll be none the wiser. At least, that is, until he uses his Google translate on it!

Today was an early start. We drove the short distance to the ferry port, and then embarked on the Viking ferry destined for Turku, in Finland. We glided out of Stockholm Harbour, just as the sun had risen, casting a silver light on the water. It was a very swish boat indeed, and huge. It felt more like a cruise liner, but having seen it in port yesterday moored up next to a really monstrous cruise ship, in comparison, it was a tiddler. Despite that, we seemed to walk miles trying to negotiate our way around. Since the crossing was nearly twelve hours, we opted to take a cabin for the day. What a good idea that was! No sooner had we set sail, when Howard and I decided to take a little early morning nap, to make up for our early start. Two hours later, we both woke up! I fear we are becoming rather lazy on this trip! Or maybe Howard was so tired after all his ABBA dancing yesterday!

Up on deck, the sunshine was pounding down. We could only bear to sit out long enough to quaff a drink, when we had to slink indoors to the cool. The joyous thing about this ferry was the air-conditioning. Under normal circumstances, you may have called it cool. But today, in the extreme heat, it was our salvation. I took to lingering in one particular spot by the door, where it was coolest under the fan – sheer bliss!!

We stopped mid way on our voyage at the Aland Islands, a popular holiday destination for Swedes and Finns, we understand. In total there are 6,700 islands in this archipelago at the southern end of the Gulf of Bothnia in the Baltic Sea. Shamefully, I hadn’t even heard of them before today. They are actually an autonomous region of Finland, but speak Swedish. Aland has it’s own parliament, it’s own stamps, and flies it’s own blue, gold and red flag. It is apparently the sunniest place in Northern Europe. The ferry stopped at Mariehamn, the capital of the largest of the islands called Fasta Aland, and literally hundreds of holidaymakers disembarked. Then, for what seemed like hours, we continued to wind our way through this archipelago of mainly uninhabited stoney outcrops, smattered with pine trees. It was as if they were stepping stones, leading us all the way to Finland. The ship’s captain certainly had a task on his hands with the navigation, passing through narrow passages between the islands. I can now understand why, when we had visited the High Coast in Sweden last week, and had read about the glacial uplift, why it would be possible for the land masses of Sweden and Finland to join at some stage in the future. It suddenly made much more sense.

After another brief spell on the sundeck, Howard and I went in search of food. We were a little confused to find that the restaurant had already closed, and so had to make do in the rather aptly named ‘casual food bar’. It turns out that the boat, being Finnish, was running on Finnish time – which is an hour ahead of Swedish time. The penny only really dropped when I looked out of our cabin window, and saw that the ferry was actually docking. We suddenly went into panic mode, gathered up all our stuff, and ran down to the car deck. What numpties!!

We are now in Turku, which was the former capital of Finland. It seems pleasant enough, on first pass. We took a brief walk up to Turku Castle, to stretch our legs, and are now sat in a bar, sampling the local brew. Howard is trying Finnish beer, whilst I am sampling the local batch gin, served with Fever Tree, frozen cranberries and rosemary – certainly different.

It remains unbearably hot and airless here in Finland. It seems that the whole of the Baltic region is still very much in the grip of this unusually hot weather.

Over the next few days, we will make our way to Helsinki. Oscar has an important appointment at the VW garage to get his awning fixed, which will at least enable us to create some shade once more.

Apologies for the dull photos – mainly ‘ferry related’!!

Last night in our hotel was uncomfortably hot, despite having the windows wide open. The problem with having the windows open, was that it is ‘Gay Pride’ weekend in Stockholm, and the venue for their meeting is just outside our window. Even when the partying quietened down, it was still stiflingly hot. Eventually, there were some loud thunder claps, which actually shook our room, followed by torrential rain. The humidity subsided, but probably only for half an hour, before the rain stopped, and the heat started to rise again. What should have been a restful night in a real bed, turned out to be anything but. I was so hot at one point, I contemplated leaving he room, and going to sleep in Oscar!

After breakfast, we set off to the old town Gamla Stan to meet up with some friends from the UK, the daughter, husband and three year old son of some of our good friends back home. They have been holidaying in Stockholm, and were leaving today. It was absolutely lovely to catch up with them, and see some friendly faces again. We sought out a cafe, and enjoyed a pleasant hour chatting over a coffee, with chocolate ice cream for the lad. I must say, he did a much better job of eating it, than the two little boys yesterday! Apart from family, these are the first friends we have met up with on our trip, and it was really lovely to see some familiar faces again. What was even more special, is that they are expecting their second child early in 2019. Having been to their wedding in St. Andrews, on an equally hot day, when the guests enjoyed ice-creams in St. Salvator’s quad – it was a joy to see them so happy with a family of their own. I have known Sarah since we moved up to Scotland twenty years ago, and it is joyous to see how well life has turned out for her.

After we said our goodbyes, I did feel a pang of missing my own boys, especially Thomas, who is about to start on an adventure of his own in Australia. We peeled off, and Howard and I decided to make the most of our hop on / hop off boat ticket, and take to the water. Frankly, we were so hot, that sitting on the boat gave us wonderful respite from the heat. We sat in the back of the boat, and stuck our heads in the wind – glorious! In fact, it was so cool on the boat, that we went round one and a half times, before eventually disembarking!

We alighted on one of the islands, and took ourselves off for a late lunch. Refreshed, we then weighed up our options. We had the choice of the museum about Nobel Prize winners, the Nordiska Museum about life in the Nordic Countries or the Viking Museum. In the end, we went for the only real choice in Sweden – the Abba Museum!!

It turned out to be brilliant1 Obviously the normal stuff about how they got together, and their early years and their breakthrough in the Eurovision Song Contest, winning with ‘Waterloo’. But then came the good bits –  Karaoke with Abba (recorded, of course), and the very best – dancing with Abba. Howard, I have to report, couldn’t resist. He went into the cubicle, scanned in his ticket, and started dancing with Bjorn, Benny, Agnetha and Anni-Frid. i must say, he really went for it! So much so, that he gained an audience from other museum-goers. At the end of his performance, there was a loud round of applause! Soo embarrassing!!!

When I eventually dragged Howard away, we caught the last boat back to near our hotel. We stopped off briefly at the Photography Museum, but I didn’t really have the stamina to give it justice due to the heat.

Back at our hotel, we threw ourselves into cool showers and drank copious amounts of water to re-hydrate. Eventually, we mustered the energy to go out for supper, but even now, at ten o’ clock, the temperatures are still oppressive.

Stockholm is a really attractive city, as are so many of the cities based on water. The old town is stunning, and culturally it is rich in museums. One could probably spend a week here exploring, but for me, a weekend has been fine. It is clearly a place that embraces diversity, as witnessed by their hosting of the Gay Pride event this weekend – all the tour boats and most of the hotels and restaurants have been flying the Gay Pride rainbow flag, and certainly our hotel is welcoming the event with pink balloons in the Sky Bar. It is a lovely city, and I would love to spend more time here – just not when it is so hot and oppressive. We’ll maybe return in the depths of winter to complete our tour. For now, though, we are done. Tomorrow we head for Finland on the early morning ferry.