Red, White and Tulips

Last weekend, my daughter had two days off school for the Ascension holiday, so we took the opportunity to tick off three more countries on our European bingo card. My husband could not join us after a last-minute work schedule change, so it was just us girls. We saw and learned a lot, so I will break our trip into two posts – Finland and the ferry, and then Stockholm and Oslo.

Finland

We took a dinnertime flight from Amsterdam to Helsinki. By going back one time zone, we arrived after 10 p.m., but we were ready to roll first thing in the morning. A quick note about our flight. We took Finnair. This was my first experience with them and I was pleasantly surprised with their offering. If you ever take Finnair, get their signature blueberry juice. It is delicious.

We stayed at the Hotel Lilla Roberts, which was really lovely. The room rate I selected included breakfast, and the offerings were unusually robust for a European breakfast buffet. The day started out grey and chilly, but it brightened as the day continued. It was Ascension the day we were there, so many stores and restaurants were closed.

The city as a whole felt a little drab. I am unsure if this was the weather, the quietness of the streets, or something else. One thing I am certain of is that you definitely see the Russian influence here. A quick history refresher – what is now Finland was captured by Russia from Sweden in 1809, and they maintained control of the region until 1917. Much of what you see in Helsinki today was built during Russian rule.

Overnight Ferry

One of the things that most excited me about the trip was our overnight ferry adventure aboard the Silja Serenade. The ferry leaves Helsinki at 5 pm and arrives in Stockholm at 10 am the next day.

The Serenade is a car ferry that works between Stockholm and Helsinki. You can walk on, like we did, or drive on and have your car at your disposal on the other end. We saw her early in the day as we explored on land.

For those of you who have been on a cruise, this was similar, just less posh. The boat had a promenade with plenty of shops, including duty-free. It also had a casino, buffet, and several a la carte restaurants and bars. And if that wasn’t enough, they also had several shows and kids’ activities.

The views were lovely, and the food was decent. They had good, free Wi-Fi, so Leila was even able to participate in a meeting via Zoom. I took the opportunity to sit down on the promenade and enjoy a cocktail.

During the dinner buffet, you poured our own drinks, which were unlimited, including wine (red and white), beer, soft drinks, and juice, including the Swedish favorite, lingonberry.

The cabins were small. I opted for the mid-range option, the A-class cabin. It had a window to the outside and two twin-sized beds, both pulled out from the wall. It was SMALL, but perfectly fine for the two of us.

What was less than stellar were the mattresses. My teenager can sleep through anything, including uncomfortable mattresses, but I barely slept. Still, it was a fun adventure. I would recommend it.