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08/06 Helsinki, Finland

Today was an easy going day. Our original plan was to have breakfast and go for a morning run just to see the various parts of the city.

The reality was, we got up late. We had a nice but late breakfast with Cathy (from the Dana Point, California area) who we got to know a lot better. We spent the rest of the morning chatting with people.

Finally, about 12:30 we set out for our run. Immediately we ran into Katie (the former bicycle messenger from Boston) who told us of a neat route she had discovered.

Great! We followed her directions and ran along the harbor, then across a bridge and around a small island, then further along the water until we came to the mainline train tracks. We ran through the park along the tracks to the train station. That's where we came across another large tree trunk that was carved. It was the 16" diameter trunk of a tree that had been topped at about ten feet tall. New branches were growing out of the top, and the trunk that was left had been carved into a figure.

I had read about a complex of shops that was located under the train station, so we jogged into the station to find the shops and check them out. Lisa stopped in several clothing shops.

(I must apologized that I have misidentified these stops as "shopping" before. I should clarify that Lisa very seldom "shops" in these stores. Most often it's just checking out the merchandise to see if there's anything particulaly unique to an area-- sometimes trying something on -- but it's not "shopping.")

We stopped in a sporting goods store to look for replacement socks for bicycling. Lisa checked out the clothes while I checked out the socks. We bought some socks and a new shirt for Lisa. (We couldn't resist the shirt. Lisa wanted to replace a running shirt she had, this shirt was a quick-drying, light and strong fabric -- and it says DAVID across the front. :) )

We stopped in a pharmacy where I shopped for a replacement shampoo (I have a habit of leaving my shampoo in the shower).

We continued our run right into town. We stopped to visit with some Yellowheads while we listened to some street music. We checked out a sidewalk cafe and bought some light lunch.

We talked to some "Helsinki Helpers" -- college students who are stationed around town to help tourists -- and found out where the cathederal was that we had visited earlier in the week. (We needed that to locate the great deli that we had visited the day we came in.) Then Lisa checked out a "Maremeko" store whilee I mixed in the center park area with all the "Sunday in the park" crowd.

Then we headed back to the hotel to just relax for the evening. When we got there we realized we had to do laundry. As luck would have it, there were self service washers and dryers in the basement. (Well, one washer and three dryers. That DID make it more difficult, but we were able to get the washing and drying done at the same time we showered, read, and had dinner.)

We finished everything just in time to watch the mobie, "Cider House Rules" on the Pay-for-View movie on TV. We were foiled on that count, though. It was an even numbered day, and "Cider House . . ." was only shown on odd numbered days. So, we watched a little regular TV and read for awhile.

Love to all, David and Lisa


08/07 Helsinki, Finland to Berlin, Germany

Since we didn't leave for Berlin until evening, we had another relaxing day.

I got things in order and napped while Lisa had her hair trimmed in town. Then we met Richard and Jane for a late lunch at the super cafe/deli/restaurant/bakery/candys-store that we had found the first day into Helsinki. After the leisurely lunch, Lisa and I walked into town and checked out bicycle shops. (We're still looking for local bike jerseys.) We also checked out a few different stores for some hair conditioner. We bought some finally in a beauty parlor. Really expensive, but worth it? We'll see. (It's not anything that special--the same stuff Lisa buys in the US, but in Finland it was about three times the price. Oh well. What can you do?)

Back to the hotel for dinner. Then get our bags and loaded on the bus for the ride to the airport.

The plane left an hour and a half late. We landed in Berlin about 10:30 local time -- got to our hotel about 1 a.m.

Love to all, David and Lisa


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