Porvoo is the second oldest town in Finland and has a special place in the Finnish history. After all it was the place where the Finnish Parliament had it's first diet. You could say that the nation called Finland was formed there. The town itself is sort of divided in two. There is the current city center with modern houses and everyday shopping places and then there is the old Porvoo. Place that looks right at the way it looked 200 years ago. Only the tourists must have lacked from the scenery.
As it was first time to old Porvoo for both me and my JD friend, we had the normal tourist walk abound. It is a plesent stroll along the old streets with eye candy as much as you can take in. I'm sure that the tourists from Italy, Russia, Spain, USA and other places got the same impression as we did. Lovely stuff.
We took several photos but atleast I haven't yet even looked at the images. There are bound to be few good ones, so I'll update this entry in a later time. Can't really say what was the real high point of my trip as I enjoyed so much every minute of it.
I hope I'm not doing wrong to Porvoo or Tammisaari (Ekenäs) by comparing both of them. Ekenäs has always had a special athmosphere in my mind and the same athmosphere was around in old Porvoo. Only that it was much stronger. It didn't feel like a busy buzzling town, even when there were tourists and few market stalls. But it didn't feel like a sleepy town, like Hanko felt when we visited it. Hanko was waiting for something and you could feel how it was storing up energy, ready to burst in life during the holiday season. Old Porvoo on the other hand felt very much alive. It wasn't a cosmopolitan town, or a busy bazaar. It felt like an mature beign with a sense pride. Like you feel when your very confident, there is no show bosting or loud voices. Everything just feels at ease.
Loved the restaurant where we had lunch. I'm not a huge fan of escargots, but Timbaali has specialiced in them, so of course we had to try them. As it was only the second time that I've had them, can't say a definite oppinnion about the taste. Altought that in my oppinnion they tasted a bit like earth. A good soil full of growth, but maybe not the best taste you are looking for in an aperticer. Roquefort was lovely.
I had the "Fried arctic char with crayfish risotto made from barley" and fell in love. Having ordered the fish for the second time in a row, my expectations were pretty high but obviously not high enough. The food was best that I've had in many many years. Definitely a place where I would take my girlfriend, only if there were one.
After shopping in the Tiny Chocolate Factory and some more walking, it was time to head for the car once again. After some random driving (we were not lost), H had her very first ferry experiance and from the look she had on her face, it was pure joy. I've obviously been on a ferry before but still enjoyed the ride. Arrival at Söderby was nice as the archipelago was showing of and gave us the best it can offer. Small breeze and sunshine with out any clouds.
The return was fast and safe. Loved every minute of it, even when the shower only gave out freezing cold water in the morning.
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