“I want to start off by saying that this entry was previously written on 02/19/10 when I traveled to Sweden and Finland. This is my first hand account on my travels to Sweden and Finland. It was written in a style that was a little different but from the heart. This was written nearly 3 years ago so please excuse if my writing was a little different back then :)”
Hej Hej/Hei to all! (Hello in Swedish and Finnish)
Well as I begin with this post let me just say it will probably be one of the longest blogs I will have written. Lets just start currently I am sick, tired, frustrated, delighted, confident, annoyed, amazed and many more things. This trip to Sweden and Finland was one of those trips where mistakes happened and but also one of those trips that you are glad you do in the end…(just don’t want to do it again for a very long time!) So here it goes…
Oh Last Thursday…In my mind it seems like forever ago but in reality only a week ago. Started out very cold, snowy and windy here in Grenoble and this would be a foreshadowing of the shitty day we would have to come. Me and Taylor eagerly get up and get all of our documents together. We were suppose to meet at Notre Dame-Musée at 8:45. So I walk down to the tram stop of La Tronche-Hôpital and get to it early and wait for Taylor. The outside is blowing really hard and it’s really foggy so I’m already getting worried that something is wrong with our flight. We had no information about whether our flight was on-time or delayed but we still had to be at the bus station and wait for the bus. Finally get on the bus and then we hear our first bad news…GRENOBLE AIRPORT IS SHUTDOWN. And this is all in French so it’s not like you can get information really quick back like where our flight is now. Well the bus driver then said that all the flights were being diverted to Lyon Airport and so we all believe him and stayed on. But first we drive to Grenoble Airport to figure out more information about all of our flights. So we get to Grenoble Airport and everybody is a little confused until we go to the front desk to learn that the two other flights have been diverted to Lyon and our flight was still waiting to see if it would land in Lyon. And the women behind the desk decides to tell us that it could be diverted anywhere, like to Nimes, an airport that is like 3 hours away! So we hoped that it would get diverted to Lyon and luckily it did. So we have to check in at the Grenoble Airport and then we wait for what must seemed like an eternity. Actually have one of our first pictures from the trip at this moment. It’s of Taylor losing his Ipod ear piece on the first leg of the trip. Very good start so far…
Lol no actually we were only nervous because of the freaking connection we had to make in London which was a real concern. We thought we had plenty of time but now with the airport change we were going to be delayed big time! So after waiting around at Grenoble Airport they finally got us a bus to the Lyon Airport which takes around an 1 hour to get to from Grenoble. So off we go and we are scared now because no one has told us when this flight well take off and we have figured out that we have to leave no later than 4:00 p.m. to be comfortable with the connection. We get to Lyon and we see that the flight is going to leave at….4:30. SHIT… We are still hopeful but at this point we are preparing to stay in London for a night….
So we land in London and we only have 50 minutes at this point and this is when we are still on the plane and we still have to go through customs. We look at the watch and its like 45 minutes and they finally let us off the plane and we sprint to the customs door. Fortunately the line is not very long but it’s still long enough to delay us so we go up to the lady in the front who controls the line and ask can we please cut because we have a connection to make in like 35 minutes. And everybody in line is like yeah that’s fine and so we finally get to the counter and he is like no y’all aren’t going to make it the gate is already closing. (What he really meant is the desk is closing and we couldn’t check our bags). Luckily for us though we didn’t need to check our bags and all we had to do was go back through security check and run to the gate. So by this time we probably have 25 minutes to go before it leaves and we run to the security line and it’s packed. LIKE REALLY Stansted Airport…Of all the airports in London you would think this would have not been busy but it was and so we get in line and they tell us you need to have you passport checked. So we have to get out of the line and go back to the RyanAir counter and get our passports approved. It doesn’t take that long but by this point we probably have like 20 minutes left. The line is going slow and so we are like fuck we aren’t going to make it now… we have to cut. So we wait longer and its like 10 minutes until the flight leaves and we are like we have to ask now. So we ask the lady and she responds…”Well you are going to have to ask everybody else in line before I can let you do that.” So Taylor yells across the terminal and is like we need to make this flight is it okay if we cut and then one guy was like just go who cares what she says and so we did. So getting through security and then I forget to take off my belt and it rings through the scanner. So I run back and take off my belt and go back through and it doesn’t do anything but he still wants to search me….UGHH!!!! So he searched every single spot of me twice and I’m like we have to go there is no time…
5 minutes to go and here is the picture…Shoes are off of my feet. Belt is off my waist. Two jackets are off. Passport and my other electronics are out of my bag. And we have 5 minutes to go. So I’m like fuck it I don’t have time to put this stuff back and the gate is pretty damn far. SO YES! I run through this airport with all of this shit in my hand including my shoes and my belt which is why London got a view of my underwear. All the way to the gate my pants were slipping and everybody is staring, laughing but I didn’t care I just wanted to make this flight. So we get to the gate and I just throw my stuff down out of exhaustion. We had made it and other people were waiting so I had time to get my stuff together and we ended being the last two people on this flight. ; ). Probably one of the most stressful moments I have had in my life. And one of the more embarrassing moments. But I made it. See how stressful this already was and this is the first day might I add…
Get to Stockholm and the airport is like an hour outside the city of Stockholm so we had to take the bus. Blah blah really really cold and dark and we get to Stockholm and check into the nice but kind of expensive hostel. Go to McDonald’s which is also expensive and nice and then pretty much go to bed!!
Okay next day. This would be Friday. Woke up from our Hostel and we only had the room for one night so we had to carry all of our stuff. The lady at the front desk of our hostel was nice and showed us everything we really should do in Stockholm. So the first thing we did was go to the Royal Palace and the Old City of Stockholm, called Gamla Stan in Swedish.
Very cute part of Stockholm but of course it’s all touristy and everything is a little more expensive. Then we walked all the way to the Viking Line and trust me when it felt like forever thanks to how cold it was outside. Everything is so dirty on the streets too because of the snow that lingers around so everything kind of turns into a brown mush. So yeah get there and book our tickets to Helsinki, Finland and we finally had dates to when we were going. And the rest of the day we just walked around Stockholm until we decided it was getting to cold to be out. So we tried to find a place that was playing the Olympics and we eventually found a bar. Okay by this time my stomach was really hurting probably because I ate this huge pizza at lunch and my body was not prepared for that. So had to run the bathroom and figure out the freaking codes they love to use on public restrooms (so only people of the restaurant can get in) and had to throw up. By this time that was the only food I had eaten really since I had been in Stockholm and now it was night-time and I was also getting sick… Thanks to Taylor! Yeah it was awful but I felt better and then got to watch some of the Olympics. I still need to watch the opening ceremonies!! Oh and this day ended with a loud dude in our hostel waking us up at 2 in the morning because he was talking to his dad back at home about his flight into the city (apparently he saw the northern lights from the plane thanks to the stewardess Maria) and about his clubbing experience with his new Swedish Friends. The reason I know all of this information is because we could hear him from the next room and we heard everything he freaking said! lol
Saturday or what I call the day that never ended… Still feeling so-so but not that bad. So we got up and decided to go to the original IKEA. Now this place was actually pretty far outside of the city and once again we had to pay that $2.50 metro ticket to get there. So when we arrive at the metro stop we thought it would be simple to find. Nope def not. And they didn’t have signs or anything directing you to where it might be. So we had to ask like 3 people and each time we said the name wrong. Americans say it I—key—a and the Swedish say E—key—a. (Very cute but very hard language btw). So me and Taylor go through this shopping district and through the highways and finally we are just like we need to get above to see what is around here. We finally saw IKEA from this garage and to get there we had to walk under all of these pathways under the highways. Kind of weird entrance for their home IKEA but once you get there its all worth it. The store is massive and trumps any IKEA we have back at home with 4 levels of shopping and a massive food court that we most certainly ate at…
Yeah so we toured around there for a while and then went back to the center to see more of Stockholm. We went to the Globen and then waited around for a long time just to not be cold at the Nordic Ice Hotel to get into the Absolut Icebar Stockholm. Finally it opens to drop-in and we get in line and see some Americans that we had met early at our Hostel. So they asked the usual question like “why are you here?” and it was nice to speak to Americans! Absolut Icebar Stockholm was so awesome! You get a little parka thing and gloves and a free drink. The sad part was that it was warmer inside the Icebar than it was outside lol. But here are some of the pics…
So after the Absolut Icebar we had no place to really go to because we didn’t book a hostel night thinking that we could stay up. Probably one of the worst ideas ever concocted. Although we did save 100 US dollars for a night so there you go. And to make matters worse this was the morning of February 14th, freaking Valentines Day :(. So its cold and we decided that we will stay at the Hostel we were at last night but not pay…Lol thats right we knew the codes to get in and so we just wanted to stay somewhere that was warm and that we could just chill for a while. It worked for a while until we decided to go up on this top floor and try to sleep. Well we got caught by the security and so me and Taylor grabbed all of our stuff really quick and ran down the stairs. But the security guard brought up the front desk guy and so we had to lie our way out and just said that we were waiting for someone who never showed!! It worked and we walked out but by this point it was 3 in the morning on Valentines Day and I have had no sleep and its freaking like 10 degrees outside. So we had to walk to McDonald’s that we knew was open until 6 in the morning and had to sit with a bunch of drunk Swedish people who had partied all night while we are tired as hell and just want to sleep! No salvation would not come that night and so we left McDonald’s and walked to the Bus Station at like 5 in the morning. By this point we were just emotional, mentally and physically drained. Only thing that was good to have was the internet for a while but after that it was just waiting, waiting and more waiting until we could board out ship to Helsinki at 3 p.m. So all of the next day we just waited around the mall or a cafe really anywhere that was warm. And finally we get to go on the ship and rest!! I slept that whole next night for like 15 hours. And pretty much at this point I was really really sick so that sleep was much needed. (Cruise ships here were really nice though we had our own shower!) When we walked to the ship though I did manage to find some Dr. Pepper and that was uplifting.
Helsinki/Helsingfors (as them Swedes call it) FINLAND! It has been a dream of mine to go to Finland because of my Finnish heritage and I was finally here! So the ship arrives at like 10 in the morning and we can already tell Finland is going to be even colder than Sweden. The Harbor and some of the Baltic Sea was iced over as you can see in this picture…
The temperature when we arrived was around -10 C which is around 15 degrees. Yeah…its the kind of cold that just stings you and makes you want to find any warm place quickly! So we walked off and luckily the hostel (which is probably the nicest hostel I have ever stayed at) is like a couple of streets down. Dropped our stuff off and then walked towards the center of Helsinki. Passed by a Russian church called Uspenski Church! Very pretty but the main attraction of Helsinki and is the Helsinki Cathedral. So here is me and Taylor in-front of the Cathedral…
Next we went to the Central Grand Station. Pretty cool although I think Stockholm’s’ is actually better! Then we went to the Olympics Stadium by tram and of course we miss our stop. Apparently in Helsinki they don’t really believe in posting the names of the stops so you kind of just have to know where to get off. So we got a nice tour of a Helsinki neighborhood and then went back to the Olympics Stadium. Olympics held in 1952 and lets just say they make stadiums a lot bigger these days!
Ate at an American place and it was expensive but it was the real first time where I finished a whole meal since I had been on this trip. The sickness really made me feel not hungry and probably wasn’t a smart idea to not eat. Then went back to the center of the city and just toured around the center part of Helsinki. We then tried to find a Sauna we could use but none of the places where open on Monday so we had to wait until the next day!! Finished the day by going to this really posh internet cafe that was once again expensive as hell. By this point we were so sick of spending money that we really didn’t have!
Next day… COLD no surprise here. Everything in my body was so tight and I really felt like jelly. I just wanted to rest but you have to keep moving. I was so tired of the cold just wanted to relax for one second! This day we ate at a Thai restaurant that was actually really good, went to the Old Market that sells traditional Finnish Food like Reindeer, shopped for some souvenirs and then went the island of Suomenlinna! This island is a World Heritage Site and is a really cute island but probably prettier in the summer! It was still cool to see just white everywhere including the frozen waters it borders. We crossed the harbor that was just basically ice and got the island in like 20 minutes. Here are some pictures of us on the Island!
Really liked the island and def will come back in the summer time. Next we went to the winter garden of Helsinki that displays exotic plants that are normally meant for warm places.
It was cool to see the plants but really another attraction that was inside so that was fine with me. The building had been around since like the beginning of the 1900’s and was actually pretty cute. But after this we had to venture back into the cold and we decided to go to the Yrjönkatu Swimming Hall. It was only 3 euros and we got to do a Traditional Finnish Sauna as well as the Modern Finnish Sauna. This place would be weird probably for most Americans because you only go on days when your sex is allowed. Like guys had to go Tuesdays and you are pretty much naked the whole time!! Lol yeah and so that was interesting you even swim naked after the Sauna because Finns believe in improving your stress tolerance by doing a really hot sauna and then dipping into cold water! Really intense but I’m glad I did it.
Next day was Wednesday and it was really just a chill day. Ate at this really cool place called Santa Fe and had some grilled chicken. Swedish and Finnish are obsessed with the whole cowboy thing because we saw a lot of places that are Tex-Mex! Not really complaining just pointing out that Texas is probably the coolest state and even Europeans know it ;)! But did some souvenir shopping yet again and then headed back to the ship terminal to at least stay warm. We suggested that they should make the website People of Finnish Cruises because at the terminal there were a lot of crazies, including Mr and Mrs Alcoholic. Seriously they were drunk in the morning at the terminal. Whatever I was happy to be back on the ship where it was warm and we left Finland! Great country would def come back in the summer time!!!
So now its February 18th and we arrive back in Stockholm. We are actually supposed to leave this day but not until late that night so we go do the Skyview of Stockholm. It was fun but London Eye still take the whole view of the city thing! Anyways here are some pictures from that.
After that we went back to the Nordic Ice Hotel to wait around but then decided to go find some souvenirs and so we left for Gamla Stan again or Old City. Find some interesting stuff like there little fairy tale characters and weird shit like this.
Went back to the Nordic Ice Hotel and waited around to buy some shirts from the Absolut Ice Bar. And here was me being creative with my camera lol.
Pretty much after this we ate some lunch at another Tex-Mex place and then went to the airport which is like an hour away by bus. Really it took us like 2 hours though because we had some traffic and an accident on the highway. Oh and I got 2 bloody noses on the bus ride and then one more at the freaking airport. (Then one more at Stansted airport) It was really bad because got some of the blood on my scarf and on my clothes. At this point I was really just done at being at an airport and I just wanted to leave back to France. So we fly to London but….
We have to overnight that shit and that was not fun at all. Had to sleep on the cold floor while some guy decides to bring out his guitar and sing for 2 hours. I swear these are the things that you just have to laugh about while traveling. You have to take it all in because I couldn’t make this shit up if I tried. Everybody was sleeping at the airport it seems though but I really didn’t get any type of real good sleep so luckily there was a restaurant that was open. Me and Taylor played M.A.S.H while sipping on our teas and coffee. It was a long night and I was feeling it by the time the sun had come up. Bought a book there though that I really like now. Its called Freakonomics! Pretty much boarded the plane thinking it was going to be quiet and quick but of course we have 3 French bitches who have to be loud. The stewardess though wasn’t messing around. She was like if y’all don’t be quiet we are going to kick you off the plane and I was like yeah girl you lay it down!! I was at the point that if anybody wanted to mess with me they were going to get a bitch back. Finally got back yesterday at around 1 in the afternoon and it felt so much warmer here but it was raining! At least it was a soft rain. But so we needed to get the bus back and of course I lost my ticket. Like why the fuck not…so had to buy a new one. UGH! But made it to France and bought myself a baguette and some cheese and ate the shit out of that. I was happy to be warm and back to a country where I understand the language at least. It was an excellent trip overall just next place def warmer.
I also want to point out also that Swedish people are the ones that dress up more and are generally cuter than the Finnish. Especially them Swedish boys!! Lol not saying Finns are ugly just saying Finns are the more stocky type! Both great countries and both of the countries people are really nice. I forgot to add that while on the cruise from Helsinki to Stockholm we met this older Finnish women which we called Mima lol. She was so cute and really funny. Reminded me of my own Finnish grandma! Oh and this old couple on the ship were at first the only two who got up and danced in the night club they had and they were so cute so I decided to video that….
Tack and Kiitos for reading all of that!!
02/09/10
images by: shawnvoyage
