A Glimpse at Helsinki, Finland

After a full day at sea, soaking up the sun and relaxing in fine style, we were ready to see Helsinki.  Again, we were not disappointed---it was beautiful!

The first thing that we noticed was how clean everything was...apparently the streets are swept and cleaned every night.  It was quite evident as we roamed the pretty streets and wandered in and out of the shops.

This beauty caught my eye on Helsinki Esplanadi.

 The cobblestone streets were beautiful and the old buildings so inviting.

 I caught a glimpse of the St. Nicholas Church long before I could actually get close to it...........

 But when I did get close------oh boy!!!!!!

We climbed the steps and went inside.......spectacular is a good word to describe the church's interior......

We were a bit distracted and eager to get back to the ship because it was our good fortune to be town for the Tall Ship Races.

It was indeed our lucky day.....look at  the view we had of the 'Parade of Sails' from our balcony on the eighth deck of the ship.  I hope you have time to check the link---it was so amazing to be looking down at that from our balcony---we had the best seat in the house for the entire show!!!!!!!

Look closely at all the crew on the railings right to the top of the ship.  They were all dressed alike and we felt like we were watching something from Cirque du Soleil.  What a spectacular performance by all the ships and their crews.

It was amazing to see so many beautiful ships.  I still get goosebumps when I look at my photos, and the video in the link above gives an awesome summary of the parade.  The organization of this event must closely parallel that which goes into the Olympics---it was breathtaking and magnificent.

Hope you enjoyed this glimpse of Helsinki.  

Next stop --St. Petersburg, Russia----for two days!!!!

Cheers

: o)

Caramel Cheesecake Square, anyone???

I came upon this recipe for Dulce de Leche Cheesecake Squares over at one of my favorite blogs, Brown Eyed Baker.  I decided to try it, and of course, took a few snaps. 

Here's how they turned out.......Step-by-Step....

They were a huge hit.  The base, soaked in that fabulous caramel was a great chewy contrast to the creamy cheese center, then topped off with that nice layer of chocolate---what a nice treat!

Cheers

:o)

A Glorious Day in Germany (Part 2)

As we drove back to Warnemunde from Lubeck, we all reflected on the fabulous day and excitedly rated the different sites we had seen like a bunch of school-kids returning from an excellent field trip.  But, we still had about an hour and a half before we had to board the ship....so we did another little bit of exploring----very quickly! 

The canals were so fascinating.  Everything here is centered around the water.

It was such a beautiful evening and there were people everywhere enjoying the weather and the sights.  We were all pretty pooped by now.  It was almost 12 hours since Andreas first picked us up that morning.  We were longing to get back on the ship for a long shower and a good rest, but at the same time, none of us wanted to give up!!

So many times we commented on the laid-back lifestyle of the Europeans---everyone was so friendly and relaxed....OR, were they ALL on holiday?????

They really think of their pets too.......these watering stations are so cute..............

As we made our way back to the cruise-ship, said our "thank-yous" once again to 

Andreas, and went on board, we were all in awe of the wonderful sights we had 

been so blessed to see in Germany.  

What a wonderful, glorious day it had been.  

Another place that I definitely would  love to come back to---for a longer visit!!  

Tomorrow we can relax and enjoy the luxuries of the ship as we have a fun day at sea, 

sailing to Helsinki, Finland!!

Cheers

:o)

A Glorious Day in Germany (Part 1)

All six of us were really looking forward to seeing a little bit of Germany, especially because a former teaching colleague of my niece, Tonya, was picking us up and giving us a bit of a private tour.  The sun was bright and we were off the ship by 8:30 am.  Tonya's friend Andreas, was picking us up at 9:00 am,and right on time, he pulled up in a rented 9-passenger van.  He was well prepared for a day of sight-seeing, equipped with bottled water, brochures and maps!  This was the first time that hubby and I had met him, but after only a few minutes, it felt as though we had known him forever...what a great guy.  I hope we get to return the favor someday.

We had to drive for about 80 minutes on the German autobahn to get to Andreas' home.  That was a little scary at first, but really quite like our own divided highways, except it is acceptable to drive much faster.  There is no speed limit, but a speed advisory of about 130 km per hour(approx 81 mph).  We were actually traveling, many times, at a much higher speed than the advised rate, and still vehicles were passing us like we were stopped.  My heart rate was probably much higher than our speed for most of the drive--haha.  First, Andreas took us to meet his wife and beautiful little girl, who was soon to turning 1 year old.  We had a lovely visit at his brand new home, and then set out for some serious sight-seeing.

He drove us in to Lubeck, which was one of the day-tours offered through the cruise-ship.  Oh wow....you talk about stepping back in time in some parts of this city.

First, we came upon this gem that literally took my breath away - Holstentor, which is actually an ancient gate marking off the western boundary of the old center of the city of Lubeck.  I know....I was in heaven!!!!  It was actually embarrassing how many photos I took---I just wish I could share them all with you here.  You'll just have have to pop over to my house, for tea or coffee, and look at my albums and scrapbook of the entire trip.

Very close by was this - the The Salzpeicher, or salt lofts, which were once used to store salt herring.

We then visited St. Peter's Church, which one could see from anywhere in the city.  The building, inside and out was truly magnificent...........

but the view from the steeple was not something I was fully prepared for, nor will I soon forget.  Have a look.......

When you see how small these buildings look from the steeple, you get an idea of just how high the tower of the church is.  The gate and the old salt lofts looked so small from up there.

We visited St. Mary's Church as well, which was so beautiful---words cannot be found to describe it.......

We saw sights so may overwhelming sights around Lubeck.  Our surroundings were almost too beautiful to be real.....

As we strolled along in these fairytale-like streets and courtyards, my imagination was in overdrive.  I had only seen places like these in movies, and could hardly believe my eyes.  I didn't want this day to end--it was just that beautiful.  I would have loved to stroll about after dark, when these beautiful houses had the lamps on, and just maybe I could catch a glimpse of the inside of these magical old homes. ( I know-- that's probably a bit weird, but I can't help it--that's how I felt)

I could just imagine the lady of this house, riding her bicycle to the bakery in the early morning and coming back with fresh breads and for breakfast.....

Did you ever dream that a simple alley-way could be so inviting??

After much wandering, we reluctantly decided to go to the square to rest our feet and feed our bodies....

I tried a traditional German version of wiener schnitzel, with pork.  The true original dish is Austrian and made exclusively with veal.  I was not disappointed......Yummy...

This amazing model of the city of Lubeck is in the center of the market area, where we ate.  It is quite a work of art and is set up in braille so that blind people can actually read it and feel the heights of the all of the different buildings....

 As we made our way back to the van, we crossed a canal and came upon this.......

These are known as love locks.  The custom of affixing a padlock to fences, gates, bridges or similar public fixtures by lovers to symbolize their everlasting love.

One last photo of the charming medieval town of Lubeck, which is also a UNESCO World Heritage site---

-is it any wonder why?

My next post will also be of our time in Germany.  I will feature some equally beautiful pictures of Warnemunde, where our cruise ship was docked..

  

***************************

Cheers

:o)

Raspberries from Pop Ward's Garden

I've been busy picking raspberries from the back garden at hubby's old homestead.  The berries 

are super ripe now, actually they are so ripe that as you pick one, sometimes another drops off.  Have a look...........

These are raspberry bushes that Pop Ward planted many years ago.  All the grand-kids have many beautiful memories of going out to the back gardens and picking berries.  It is so relaxing down there...away from everything, just listening to the hum of the bees and the chirping of the birds.......

Don't they look scrumptious....

They smell so good when they are so ripe..... 

I do random, periodic taste testing as I am picking(te-he), just to be sure they are up to standards.  My lips get pretty red...the most delicious lip gloss :o)

....my fingers are red too after I pick through them again before bagging to freeze.

We love to eat these berries fresh, but I freeze most of them.  I love making jams and raspberry vinaigrette later in the fall and winter, and we really appreciate it more then too.

Cheers

:o)