Suomelinna Island and a spot of flying

Wednesday 

4 September 

Day 66

30 to go

We woke to a foggy morning but knew it was going to be a wonderful day. We got ourselves ready for our day out with Tomppa. He arrived at 9am and we set out on foot across the town and towards the harbour. We passed the Helsinki Cathedral, which is currently under maintenance, so has some scaffolding. 

At the harbour, we boarded the ferry for Suomelinna, an island 20 minutes away. The fog was so thick it was hard to see much beyond the harbour. The ferry ride was lovely, the waters were flat and it was great just taking it in from the back of the boat. 

We arrived at Suomelinna at 10am, ready to explore. There are 4 islands, two are no go as they are a prison and a naval training base. The rest you are free to roam, which we did. There is a large church, which also acts as a  lighthouse. Around the outside, there was a thick chain and bollards made of old guns. Keepsakes from previous wars. Opposite was a school, that holds the remains of a Finnish serial killer. Hmmm…

We made our way slowly around the island, following different paths passed wooden buildings. We walked over a bridge onto the fourth island. We checked out a submarine that is on display. It was used in WWII. We all thought it would be too difficult to spend time in. 

We continued our meander, seeing people folding up boxes and realised it was a film shoot. We checked out the fortifications, which had some openings out to the water. Unfortunately, I was too short to see through. We then crossed the King’s gate and found a place to sit and eat a snack. We watched a large ferry sail towards us and then pass through a narrow gap between two rocky islands. Precision navigation was definitely required.

After our snack, we followed a path along the edge of the water. The film crew were back at it, with an actor dressed in forensic gear and a white sheet being placed on a body. It looked like a crime scene.

The view around us was starting to be revealed, as the fog was starting to lift. We watched sailing boats taking advantage of wonderful weather. It was turning out to be a fabulous day. There were some choosing to take a dip. 

We had almost made a full loop, stopping to see the dry dock and a tomb of an important military officer, the only other person buried in Suomelinna. We passed into a fortification, in which we could walk inside. We then continued into the tourist end of town. We were going to stop at the local brewery, but it was so busy, we chose to give it a miss. 

In the end, we opted to catch the ferry back to mainland Helsinki. It was great on the ferry again, this time it was much clearer and we could see more. Our ferry for Sunday, was docked in town, so we had a close encounter with it. There were plenty of people using the swimming pool at the harbour. 

Once off the boat, we returned briefly to our apartment and then we jumped on a number 6 tram to head towards Fooni, the ifly centre. First we stopped at the old Butchers, an area of old warehouses that had been turned into a number of restaurants. As it was only 1.30pm, not many of the places were open, but we were able to find one serving lunch. Happy with our feed of meat, potato and salad, we then wandered down to Fooni to find out about booking in for my session. 5 O’clock was the earliest, we had a couple of hours to kill. 

Fooni was attached to a large shopping centre, so we went in search of a pharmacy to find cough medicine. Tomppa took us to a brewery near by and we killed another hour, before returning to Fooni at 4pm. I was called in to get my suit and helmet and then I was given a briefing about how the flight would work. It all seemed pretty straightforward. 

We returned to the tube and then I was up for my first flying minute. I didn’t find it too difficult, but was anxious I was going to end up at the top of the cylinder. My co-flyer had her minute and then I was back in for another go. Paul said the helmet wasn’t big enough to contain my smile. Out for another break. I returned for my final 2 minutes, this time there was a little bit for me to practise and then the instructor took hold and we were zooming up and down the tube with great speed. He had said it would feel like a roller coaster ride and it did. As usual, I had my eyes shut for the majority of it. It was a lot of fun, I just wish it had been a lot longer. 

I watched the other participant have her turn and then the instructor did some crazy flying demos of his own. I wanted to learn how to do that!

With it all done, I got myself changed and joined the boys, who were having a drink and watching me fly around like a plastic bag caught in a willy willy. We then hiked back to the tram and returned to the city centre. We stopped at a nearby pub for a drink and final chat, organising tomorrow’s adventure and then we left Tomppa and returned to our room for the evening. Dinner, sauna, photos and bed.