We parted ways with the family on Saturday morning following our time in Riihimäki and took an early train to Turku. With only eight days in Finland, we needed to experience more of this beautiful country before our final three nights in Helsinki.
Turku is a city on the southwest coast of Finland and straddles the Aura River. Dating from the 13th century, and known for Turku Castle, a medieval fortress with a history museum perched at the river mouth. Turku is the oldest city in Finland and is known for being the gateway to the west, the Archipelagos and Stockholm. Our selling point was the restaurants that line the cobbled riverside streets; you are spoilt for choice.
We booked a business-class train trip to Turku using the trusty VR app. The trip was only about two hours, the coach was beautiful, and you even got free coffee, so we settled in and soaked up the passing luscious green countryside views as we arrived at our new destination.
The train quality was first-class. The seats were spacious, and the high-quality fittings were clean. European trains, especially those from Finland, are in a world of their own.
We were ready to relax and explore after checking in to a lovely hotel in the square, the Scandic Hamburger Börs. Our day was spent savouring the views and local rooftops and relishing the fact that the sun was shining and it was 20 degrees in Finland.
We were fortunate to stay in the square, which has two stunning rooftop bars on our doorstep. Walo Rooftop Bar was the perfect setting to soak up the new atmosphere. We followed this with a nibble and vino by the market square at Wine Bar Axel W, making sure we made the most of the beaming sunshine and enjoyed the locals' buzz for the weekend.
Late afternoon, we strolled the tree-lined river boulevard and enjoyed delicious cocktails at Liberty or Death, a cocktail bar mirroring the likes of Melbourne gems (it saddens us to see this bar has now closed 12 months on).
The energy surrounding us was infectious, and enjoying watching the local life spend Saturday afternoons having picnics in the sun with friends by the water's side. It did feel like a rarity to enjoy an array of high-quality bespoke cocktails with the sun rays filtering through on the terrace overlooking the river instead of a dark-lit bar.
Turku was winning us over; it was the place you wish you could extend your stay. Sunday morning, we took the opportunity to explore by foot and capture the essence of Turku as we retraced our steps by the river and beyond. We were surprised as we strolled for only ten minutes, and we felt we had left the city with nature and a walking platform we stumbled upon, returning us to the city's heart.
We always stop for coffee as we begin our lazy strolls around a city, and we were delighted when we came across a quaint foodie's pop-up festival in the park to provide the locals and alike everything they need as Spring was settling in with a stunning backdrop of the church.
As you wander the cities of Finland, colourful tulips surround you, scattered around each village or city. The tulips provide a bright burst of energy for all to enjoy and are always a vision of delight. We love that the garden beds are untouched and growing healthy, which is the respect they deserve.
In the early afternoon, we were in our own private booth on the train to Helsinki, ordering lunch online, which was to be delivered ten minutes later to our seats. Again, we were super impressed with the train travel. Europe, you know how to make life easy; we realised how much we have missed the ease of train travel.
