Six Days In Sunny Helsinki

[Aventador]

 

but after 1 min...chuan liao

the bear maybe can run for 5mins at that speed

 

haha 37.5km/h is 100 metre in 9,6 sec

 

i think the bear eat you in 2 sec, no need 1 min

[BanCoe]

U must be good friend of Usain Bolt..... His peak is 44km/hr for a few seconds 

U must be Singapore #1 runner  Your name is  

U can tahan 1 minute ... power lah!! 

 

 

 

i may be able to run 37.5km/hr

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

but after 1 min...chuan liao

the bear maybe can run for 5mins at that speed

 

Edited July 4, 2017 by BanCoe

[Angcheek]

i may be able to run 37.5km/hr

 

 

 

but after 1 min...chuan liao

the bear maybe can run for 5mins at that speed

 

I think they have the Olampig signature in that picture ...... you Olampig running ? 

[Kusje]

U must be good friend of Usain Bolt..... His peak is 44km/hr for a few seconds 

U must be Singapore #1 runner  Your name is  

U can tahan 1 minute ... power lah!! 

 

Wah. He can run 400m in 38.4 seconds.

 

New world record holder! Previous record older was only 43 seconds....

[Uncle2]

i may be able to run 37.5km/hr

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

but after 1 min...chuan liao

the bear maybe can run for 5mins at that speed

Bo "Bear" zhao. So Beautiful Natural scenery you see the real one.

[Sunny]

haha 37.5km/h is 100 metre in 9,6 sec

 

i think the bear eat you in 2 sec, no need 1 min

 

 

oops..didnt calculate...

 

only see the signs 

U must be good friend of Usain Bolt..... His peak is 44km/hr for a few seconds 

U must be Singapore #1 runner  Your name is  

U can tahan 1 minute ... power lah!! 

 

 

if life n death situation, maybe human can achieve the extreme

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

p.s.  signage give wrong info....tmd 

[BanCoe]

oops..didnt calculate...

 

only see the signs

 

 

 

if life n death situation, maybe human can achieve the extreme

........ Ahh ...... I give you this 1 ...... lah .... surely can

[Sunny]

 

oops..didnt calculate...

 

only see the signs

 

 

 

if life n death situation, maybe human can achieve the extreme

........ Ahh ...... I give you this 1 ...... lah .... surely can

 

[therock]

Had a few queries, so I might as well post them here..

 

A few notes on visiting Scandinavian countries in general:

 

Food

It is one of the most costly places to visit, so expect 50 Euro meals, even Macs costs that much for two pax.

There are no kettles or microwaves in hotel rooms. You can ask, some will pass you a kettle, but that's it.

Cheapest food, tends to be non Scandi - eg Kebabs

Norway is the most costly

 

Transport

Again be prepared to pay if you take a taxi, thankfully the distance from the airport to the city isn't so bad in Helsinki, but for Norway / Sweden, be prepared to PAP - pay and pay..

 

Things to buy

Usual trinkets, souvenirs etc, but nothing special

Denmark makes Lego, and some nice speakers, but that's it

You could PI a Volvo ;)

 

Flights

Finnair is cheapest, by far. Don't expect SIA, but that costs a lot more

Fly via London or even Paris, cheaper and less crowded than Frankfurt - which is a major stop for SIA flights from USA, so the plane looks more tired and used. 

You are also less likely to get empty seats

 

If you go in summer, it's ok as part of a whole Scandi tour, but otherwise, it's winter that's more interesting, with the Northern Lights and such.

But bear in mind, even in summer its about 20c, in winter, it's more like -20C or lower, so come dressed for the weather.

 

The lights are amazing and winter is the time to see them:

https://www.hellotravel.com/finland/northern-lights-finland

 

 

 

If possible, do a fjords cruise tour plus short visits to the various parts of the three nations. Finland alone is not that exciting..

 

[AFWE69]

Now no show and tell is complete without pics of their cars right?

After all it's a car forum ;)

 

The other thing you notice is that they use Mercedes for their cabs! Typically an E Class but sometimes a C class or B class. Some are station wagons, and many cars here use diesel. Even the new S90 is used as a cab here. I think the drivers love their cars and FC is secondary to a good drive.

 

Furthermore, the roads are largely made of cobblestone in the city centre, so a solid suspension is a must. You see mostly continental cars, with a significant proportion of Audi and even more Mercs. But there are noticeably less BMWs. Makes you think about their reliability... and of course, lots of Volvos.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BMW is nice to drive but not as comfortable, it's targeting at different segment.

 

Love those food markets pictures in Helsinki, we were at the same place 3 years ago.

[Aaronlkl]

Bro u self drive or take BMW at Helsinki?

 

 

 

Hei Hei!

 

Greetings from the land of the never-ending sun!

 

Just sharing some tips, info and photos of my current trip :)

 

 

 

Some basic info first:

 

 

 

Helsinki

 

 

Helsinki; Swedish: Helsingfors, is the capital and largest city of Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. Helsinki has a population of 605,523, an urban population of 1,159,211 and a metropolitan population of 1,361,506.

 

 

Some links to guides:

 

http://www.fodors.com/world/europe/finland/helsinki

 

https://www.lonelyplanet.com/finland/helsinki

 

http://www.visithelsinki.fi/en/come/tourist-information

 

 

The country of Finland is sandwiched between two larger powers, Sweden to the West and Russian to the right, and both nations have strong influences on this country. In fact the official second language here is Swedish, with signs showing both Finnish and Swedish. English is an optional third language, but many younger people are picking up this for commercial reasons.

 

A basic summary of what’s good here:

If you are here in winter, it’s a fabulous place to see the Northern Lights.

The scenery is ok, but it’s best to combine it with other Scandinavian countries, as it is not the most exciting place to visit.

Food is nice and it is not as expensive as Norway or Sweden (be prepared to spend $50 for two at Macs).

If you like mountains, lakes and outdoors, it’s a nice place.

It’s also a stepping stone to visit St Petersburg, Estonia and other Scandinavian places.

 

Getting here involves a direct flight with Finnair, or you have to transit, eg from Frankfurt if you take SIA. Not the chpeatest place to visit, but it’s still cheaper than Norway by a large margin. Budget S$30-40 a meal if you do not want to eat Macs all the time. Or bring some cup noodles J

 

Some basic travel tips:

 

You can get a data only card for E7.9 or use roam planning from home.

Food tends to be expensive but not as bad as the Scandinavian countries.

The trams and buses are excellent and the people are very friendly. Most will speak some English .

The city is not too big and a cab ride from the airport takes about 20 minutes and 40 Euros. Their public transportation system is superb, with trams, trains, and the metro. Add cabs and free bicycles in your hotel, it’s fantastic. The terrain is flat and easy to move around. One thing you will notice is how clean their trains are, with no rubbish, or graffiti. In fact you hardly notice any litter, unlike Singapore where despite the proliferation of rubbish bins every ten metres, you still see litter all over. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Many hotels offer free bicycles for you to ride around:

 

 

 

For such a small city, you have many travel options, and there are these toilets in the metro, where you press the flush system and it will not only flush but spray water out to wash your hands. But it requires some coordination otherwise you might do the wrong thing and end up washing your hands in the water used to flush the toilets!

 

 

 

The trains also go out in to the region, and you buy a pass which covers the city or the regional pass, rather than a strictly by distance kind of system. Furthermore, you can get the Helsinki Card for unlimited travel and visits to the museums and other attractions. (https://www.helsinkicard.com/)

 

 

 

 

The days are long here, and the skies never really get dark; this is what it looks like at 11pm:

 

 

Of course when you visit a new place, you look out for the local food and it's not all fermented herring here..

 

 

This white perch is really awesome!

 

The restaurant is floating on a lake:

http://www.ravintolameripaviljonki.fi/

 

 

It also does nice desserts:

 

 

 

 

And more food:

 

 

For good oysters and seafood at the Kamppi Centre (which also has funky toilets):

Fisken: http://www.fisken.fi/

 

 

 

 

This makes your regular fish and chip shop weep… and it wasn’t too expensive - < S$20

 

 

Plus great coffee too.

 

 

[therock]

Bro u self drive or take BMW at Helsinki?

I took trains and buses mainly, and walked around the city centre - it's not that big.

But that merely scratches the surface..

The country is vast and there are many beautiful things to explore outside of the capital :)

[Aaronlkl]

I took trains and buses mainly, and walked around the city centre - it's not that big.

But that merely scratches the surface..

The country is vast and there are many beautiful things to explore outside of the capital :)

 

The pics u posted looked good. Initially wanted to book air-tic to to Helsinki but my wife wanted to visit Norway. 

[therock]

The pics u posted looked good. Initially wanted to book air-tic to to Helsinki but my wife wanted to visit Norway. 

Bro

Do both!

PM me for my Helsinki ops plan and it's easy to go to Norway too.

FYI - Norway is the most expensive by far of the three nations... 50 euros for two pax at Macs... no kidding

[Aaronlkl]

Bro

Do both!

PM me for my Helsinki ops plan and it's easy to go to Norway too.

FYI - Norway is the most expensive by far of the three nations... 50 euros for two pax at Macs... no kidding

 

I've already book my air-tic to Norway next June. I heard day light is short, I mean really short at Scandinavia. How long is the daylight at Helsinki?

[therock]

I've already book my air-tic to Norway next June. I heard day light is short, I mean really short at Scandinavia. How long is the daylight at Helsinki?

I went when the sun was shining for almost 24 hours..

In June it will also be pretty long - it may still be bright at 8pm..

[Aaronlkl]

I went when the sun was shining for almost 24 hours..

In June it will also be pretty long - it may still be bright at 8pm..

 

 Daylight for almost 24hrs! Wow this make me excited.. I was in Czech, Germany and Austria 2 months ago. The sunrise 5am and sets 10am. I didn't have a chance to see the moon.

 

24hrs daylight mean I can follow SG time when i'm there. Good, no jet lag.

[therock]

Usually when we go west it's ok - it's coming home that we get jet lag..

Close the blinds before you sleep, it's very bright in the morning!