With Motorcycle to NORDKAPP-Norway
Day-8 : 11 July 2016  Monday
from Tallinn (Estonia)>>>to Helsinki on the ferry

This morning, at 10:00 o'clock I have to take the ferry from Tallinn to Helsinki. I had bought the ticket yesterday on the internet. The ferry departs at 10:00 and I have to be at the port 1/2 hour ahead. I woke up early in the morning and have got my breakfast in the Hotel. After the breakfast I walked in the Old Town and took some pictures. I walked through some of the streets. Yesterday it was Sunday and the streets were crowded. Today is much more better. On the Pikk Street close to the centre there is a fine coffee shop. I sat there and drank a coffee. Later on I walked back to the hotel and I packed my stuff and  checked out from the hotel. The weather was sunny. There was some rain during the night but it is dry in the morning. It was 09:12 when I stopped my bike at the ferry port in the queue. There were some bicyclists and motor bikers at the top. We talked a little bit. 

There was a German family and they were planning  a day trip with their own bicycles in Helsinki.

Waiting for the ferry from Tallinn to Helsinki

Our ferry leaving Tallinn Port

The voyage on the ferry takes 2 hours. The weather was very nice and the Baltic sea was very calm. I enjoyed my trip on the sunny deck. I met also an Estonian lady with the name Ülli. She was very nice and friendly. We talked a lot during the voyage. She was on the road to her daughter who has been living in Finland. Ülli was a well educated lady and was giving lectures about body language and consultancy to the companies in Estonia. www.bodylanguageacademy.ee is the address of her company.

I arrived at my Hotel Cumulus Helsinki around 13:25. It was a big city hotel on the Kaisaniemenkatu. The main problem in Helsinki is parking !!! Even for bikes it is not allowed to park outside on the street or in the pavement. I talked with the receptionist and they said that I have to park my bike for 24 hours in the underground parking place. It costs 34.-Euro.

After leaving all my luggage in the lobby I took my bike and looked for parking. 

Almost all underground of Helsinki ( I may exegerate) is a huge cave for cars. There are thousands of park places in the earth. I parked my bike and came back to the hotel. It took something around 1/2 an hour to park my bike and to come back to the hotel.

Around 15:30 I left the hotel in order to walk in Helsinki and to see some heighlights.

First I walked through the big square of the Main Station.

Helsinki Main Station

On the way to the Sibelius Park I stopped in a Sushi restaurant and ate a lot of sushi and similar stuff. It is fixed price restaurant and I paid 15.-Euro plus the beverage. Someone may eat as much as he can for 15.-Euro. After the Sushi restaurant I walked in the direction of the Rock Church ,Temppeliaukion kirkko, Lutheran church in Helsinki, Finland .      

    

Rock Church

"The Temppeliaukion kirkko is a famous church in the heart of Helsinki, it was built out of solid rock in 1969. Natural light enters this cave-church through the skylight in the dome. There is an organ at the church, but there are no bells - the chimes are imitated by loud-speakers. "

After visiting the Rock Church I walked to the Sibelius Park which is only 30 minutes walk from the church. It is a big park at the sea side. Right in front of the Sibelius monument it started to rain. It was not heavy though.

Sibelius Monument

Then I walked down to the sea side and I went the path all along the coast. I walked through a playground and watched te children playing football. Then I took the street Arkadiankatu.Throgh the Mannerheimvaegen I walked down to the Esplanadi.There are a lot of shops and luxury brand shops. In a change office I changed some Euro into 450.-Norwegian Krone. Then I walked to the Halli Square.