Outlandish

I've spent so much time at home in Turku this past Spring and Summer that I'm not quite sure any more which country I live in, Estonia or Finland. But now I think it's time to leave the cruise ships in peace for a while and hopefully people will visit me, so I won't need to compare the times for buses and boats because they never really match the way I would want them to. But before I walk to Linnhall and wave my goodbyes to Finland for a while I want to go back to last weekend, which turned into a proper Turku Experience.  All sorts of little happenings and businesses offering things to do pop up around the city of Turku in the summer. Especially around the Aura River at the moment you can find anything from restaurants and river boats to a couple of very Finnish phenomenon; a mini sauna and a hot tub that you heat up with wood in a little stove. This hot tub is special, though, because you can sit in there while floating in the river. We found the idea...

If you like to choose your travel destinations according to food culture and great restaurants Estonia is probably not one of the options that pops to your head straight away. But it should be. Tallinn alone is bursting with world-class fine dining restaurants and awesome, innovative hipster cafés and restaurants. The restaurant that has been ranked number one in most travel apps and websites is Rataskaevu 16 in the middle of the beautiful Old Town and I must admit, I had nothing to complain last time we were there in March. The restaurant is in a very old stone building with narrow halls and small stone-walled rooms. The atmosphere there is quite dark but still cozy. Food is amazing of course and the most interesting feature is probably the toilet (at least the ladies’ one); it has a glass floor and underneath it there is a drop to a stone well. I’m not afraid of heights but in the toilet I didn’t feel exactly comfortable and I must admit I sat on the toilet sideways so that I ...

Finnish Summer, the tragicomic phenomenon and a global laughing stock. It is something that we Finns have developed a very black sense of humour for because otherwise we couldn't cope. We "proudly" advertise this special phenomenon in the social media where it has lately gathered quite an audience all the way in China. You always know how it's going to be and still you are every year just as or even more disappointed as last year when it was colder in July than in December and when after nine months of waiting for the sunshine all you get is black clouds that spit on you constantly. And then comes Autumn with a little bit less rain, but rain nonetheless, and the deepening darkness.  BUT! This summer so far has been surprisingly gentle. May and June were very sunny and warm, I even managed to tan so much that after a dozen years I finally got my freckles back! Obviously it rained every now and then but not all day every day. In Tallinn June was even bett...