Before I got back to Finland I decided that I wanted to spend the day in Helsinki. Luckily one of my teammates lives close to the city and was in town the day before we had to go back to central Finland for practice. She was able to pick me up from the airport which was hugely appreciated. We had decided to eat a little lunch before heading out. After what seemed like a roundabout bus ride into the center, we were there. I was very excited to get my sight seeing on since I had heard so much about the city from my Dad. My good friend Ulf told me about a church that was built into a hill and had a circular ceiling adorned with copper wire. The church was called Temppeliaukio Kirkko (the last word means church I believe). Unfortunately my friend and I ended up walking a mile or so in the wrong direction. The good news was I got to see more of the city. Once we arrived at the church, what I saw I had not expected. It was literally built into the side of a hill. Luckily it was still open when we arrived so we walked inside to the sound of beautiful classical music. The room opens up to a high ceiling and rock faced walls. Looking up I saw the copper wire coiled into one huge circular plate, covering the ceiling. The candle lighting area jutted out of the rock face, making itself known and appealing to the eye and my camera lens. I shot off a few pictures and then we headed out. My friend told me there was another church that was pretty famous in Helsinki that we should maybe check out before we made our journey to the new Harry Potter movie (oh yeah!). Unfortunately for us, the church was undergoing a little bit of construction, so we didn't stay long. Before we walked inside however, we noticed a large illuminated cross on the steps in front of this enormous church. When we were leaving we heard music and saw people gathering where the cross was, so we opted to check out what all the commotion was about. There was a pretty sizable courtyard called Helsinki Senate Square packed with people and zen like music was consuming the square. All faces and bodies were pointed directly at the cross and the church. I thought, cult following maybe? Coming to worship God in a new way? What we didn't know was during that time of year many of the historic buildings and residential areas were to be lit up and showcased for certain hours of the night for about a week. We got lucky and saw one of the shows, which wouldn't have happened if we hadn't gotten lost :)
We traveled back to my friends parents house, ate dinner, and then drove to the movie theatre close by for the new Harry Potter movie. It was fantastic! The movies have gotten a lot darker since the very first one. I can't wait to see the last one so I can put the Harry Potter saga (like the vampire saga) to rest for a bit....or re-watch all the movies and have a Harry Potter movie marathon one rainy weekend, either way I am excited to see the last one this summer. The next morning we took an express train which was very nice, comfortable, and a very scenic ride to Jyvasckula where our other teammate picked us up and drove us all to practice that night. I had a fun trip in Helsinki and would love to spend more time there in the future, maybe after this season.
Before I got back to Finland I decided that I wanted to spend the day in Helsinki. Luckily one of my teammates lives close to the city and was in town the day before we had to go back to central Finland for practice. She was able to pick me up from the airport which was hugely appreciated. We had decided to eat a little lunch before heading out. After what seemed like a roundabout bus ride into the center, we were there. I was very excited to get my sight seeing on since I had heard so much about the city from my Dad. My good friend Ulf told me about a church that was built into a hill and had a circular ceiling adorned with copper wire. The church was called Temppeliaukio Kirkko (the last word means church I believe). Unfortunately my friend and I ended up walking a mile or so in the wrong direction. The good news was I got to see more of the city. Once we arrived at the church, what I saw I had not expected. It was literally built into the side of a hill. Luckily it was still open when we arrived so we walked inside to the sound of beautiful classical music. The room opens up to a high ceiling and rock faced walls. Looking up I saw the copper wire coiled into one huge circular plate, covering the ceiling. The candle lighting area jutted out of the rock face, making itself known and appealing to the eye and my camera lens. I shot off a few pictures and then we headed out. My friend told me there was another church that was pretty famous in Helsinki that we should maybe check out before we made our journey to the new Harry Potter movie (oh yeah!). Unfortunately for us, the church was undergoing a little bit of construction, so we didn't stay long. Before we walked inside however, we noticed a large illuminated cross on the steps in front of this enormous church. When we were leaving we heard music and saw people gathering where the cross was, so we opted to check out what all the commotion was about. There was a pretty sizable courtyard called Helsinki Senate Square packed with people and zen like music was consuming the square. All faces and bodies were pointed directly at the cross and the church. I thought, cult following maybe? Coming to worship God in a new way? What we didn't know was during that time of year many of the historic buildings and residential areas were to be lit up and showcased for certain hours of the night for about a week. We got lucky and saw one of the shows, which wouldn't have happened if we hadn't gotten lost :)
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