ray seva

Hey everyone! <BR> I'm planning a honeymoon next year ( March, 2000). We'll be going to Nice, France...and then hoping to go to Finland (my bride is from Nebraska, but her ancestors came from Finland.) <BR> Anybody out there ever been to Finland? I've begun researching the country...but most travel-books seem to ignore the Fins. Any information would be GREATLY appreciated (costs, must-sees,customs,advice,etc) <BR> We'll fly into Helsinki, and then go to the little vilalge where her ancestors come from. <BR> Thanks for any little bit of info! <BR> <BR>PS We've found lots of books/info about Nice, France...but any info anyone cares to share about Nice would also be GREATLY appreciated. <BR> -Merci! <BR>

Becca

Well, i was an exchange student there in 1997. I think you will love Finland very much - very clean, safe and lovely. <BR> <BR>If is is possible I would suggest you go to Lapland, the most northern part of Finland, to see the beautiful landscape, all the lakes and of course see where the *real* Santa lives. <BR> <BR>Helsinki is great, lots of little shops, some very pretty churches, nice restaurants and such. i don't have very many specifics about Helsinki because i didn't live in that area. What little village are you going to? I'd be very curious to know. <BR> <BR>

Kay

I spent a wonderful summer in the 60s in Finland while I studied Russian with a college group. (Many Russians left after the revolution and stayed in Finland, and some of them were our conversational Russian teachers). We went into Helsinki often and we "lived" about 30 km N-NE of that city in Jarvenpaa. Jarvenpaa is famous for being the home town of Jean Sibelius, the Finnish composer. It should be possible to tour his home. The travelogues I've seen recently that show Helsinki make it seem very much as I saw it, decades ago. It's a very pleasant place. Also, there is Turku to visit, on the coast, with a medieval castle/fortress. Why don't you try one of the on-line bookstores to see if they stock tour guides on Finland?

Marko

Hi Ray! I'm a Finn so this might not be what foreigners think about Finland but I've met a lot of foreign people here so let's give it a try. First: if you come in March, get yourself some warm clothes. Summer here is fantastic but in March you'll probably experience snow and cold weather (below zero centigrade). <BR>Finland is a large country with only 5 million people so most of it is empty, especially the beautiful northern part. Also the southern part would be called countryside if you asked the Germans, the British or so on. Population of greater Helsinki, the most urban part, is around 900 000. Finland has a good highway network, which -also- is most of the time empty if you compare to US. No traffic jams here! <BR>This might sound a little peripheric but the truth is that Finland is a country of technology. We have most mobile phones and email-addresses per capita in the world! Banks, supermarkets and all that are modern, quick and effective (sometimes even TOO much, if you ask me). So get your credit cards with you, they are accepted everywhere... <BR>About ourselves, people say we are silent and that's true. Small talk just isn't our thing. But don't get that wrong: most of us are very friendly and helpful. Just about everybody younger than 40 yrs old speaks English. When you get to know us, we are casual, reliable, and -yes- very silent. Except when we drink and that is quite often - you'll be surprised how many - and HOW YOUNG - people you meet being drunk in the middle of the city in the weekends. <BR>If I may say, one thing that combines the Finns and the Americans is that most of us really have no sense of style or sophisticated behaviour. I don't mean in a bad sense, that just seems to be the truth! Well, if you don't understand what I mean, come and find out yourself, you are welcome! <BR>Yeah and you asked about the costs, must-sees and so on. This place is f***ing expensive! See Helsinki, Turku, the west coast & archipelago, Lapland, visit the Russian border. Take a ferry to Stockholm, Sweden and back. Also Tallinn, Estonia is nice - only a couple of hours on the fastest ferry from Helsinki. Go downhill or cross-country skiing, see Kiasma and Temppeliaukio church in Helsinki, the Cathedral of Turku, Santa Park in Rovaniemi, old towns like Rauma in the west coast. <BR>Well that's it. Mail me if you want more info on something.

Nancy

Hi Ray - <BR> <BR>My husband and I spent our honeymoon last September in Norway and Finland. (His mother is from Finland, and he still has a lot of family there.) <BR>I can't begin to tell you how great ourg trip was! We got lucky with the weather - everyone told us it was the warmest, sunniest weather for that time of year in the century - about 70-75 degrees. <BR> <BR>The people were friendly. It was easy to travel around by bus, train - especially in Norway. In Finland, we were well taken care of by family who took us everywhere. But it looked like the public transportation was easy to navigate. <BR> <BR>We went to a neat town called Porvoo, also Turku and did a lot of walking in Helsinki and visited the outdoor market on the waterfront. We also went to the ballet one night - beautiful building. The architecture in Helsinki is really interesting, and it's just a beautiful city where you can sit and enjoy coffee and cakes on the waterfront - weather permitting! <BR> <BR>I'm not sure what my favorite part of Finland was. It's a toss between the sauna and the cakes. My husband's family seemed to know where every cafe was, and proceeded to take us to each one to enjoy Finnish baked goods. Luckily, we did a lot of walking! <BR> <BR>I'm sure that your wife's family has a "summer/winter" cottage, and that you'll go there. We spent about 4 days at the island cottage and did nothing but truly relax - rowed around the island, swam, enjoyed a smoke sauna, ate, watched the stars, ate, read books, ate...You get the picture. <BR> <BR>Finns really know how to live and enjoy life. I'm not sure where this idea that Finns are a shy/subdued people comes from. Everyone we met was super-friendly and extremely talkative. Maybe because we praised the sauna so much. ( My husband and I have vowed that when we buy our first house, we have to make sure it can accommodate a sauna.) <BR> <BR>I think you'll enjoy your visit and having family there will probably help you figure out what to see and do. We found a book on Finland which is part of the Insight Guides. I think it's a good guide book. Like you said, there aren't many for Finland. <BR> <BR>Sorry this is so long, but I just wanted to get across the idea that Finland is a wonderful place to visit. We're looking forward to our next trip there. <BR> <BR>Good luck with the honeymoon planning. Feel free to e-mail me if you have other questions. <BR> <BR>Nancy <BR> <BR>

Bob

Everyone has covered Finland quite well, so I'll cover Nice. You have a very pleasant time of year to be there. I studied in Nice one summer, and got to know the place well, but it was hot. I have also been lucky to be there in the low season in March and April, and liked it much better. Though the Mediterranean isn't exactly warm enough for swimming, Nice is much less touristy,there are far fewer people, and much less noise (especially mopeds). In Nice you have museums (Chagall and Money and others),a pleasant old town and a very good choice of restaurants, a lovely long walk along the Promenade des Anglais by the sea, a good pedestrian zone and of course, shopping. It is also close to other interesting places. It is easy to take the train to Monaco,or if driving you have the choice of three wonderful corniches. The hilltop village of Eze is delightful, and there is even a perfume factory to tour if you wish. St. Paul de Vence is not far - a walled town dating back several centuries. There are many other towns of interest too, but that's plenty - besides, you will be on a honeymoon!

Bob

Money? I was thinking Monet, and not only typed it wrong, but WAS wrong - I meant that there is a Matisse Museum.

MaryMary

By all means, visit Finland! I was there in April/May this year and I loved it. I mostly stayed in Helsinki. There are so many beautiful lakes and even in Helsinki you will find lots of little parks full of trees along the waterfront in the suburbs. The housing is very small but nice and cosy and even the smallest apt will most likely have a sauna. Do not leave without taking a sauna! My husband knows how to do it right, we even used the vihta branches on each other to help circulation while in the sauna. Kinda kinky too. ;-}~~~ From time to time, we would get out of the sauna and refresh ourselves with Lappin Kulta beer. I can tell you I felt grand after my sauna. <BR>Also if you are lucky enough to be there during Vappu (eve of May 1st) be sure to be in Helsinki that night. Everyone is out on the streets having the best time. The joyful crowd is infectious and you can't help but have fun. This is your best chance to see a drunken Finn. On this night you will see young grads and older people wearing white caps with a black bill. These are graduation caps. Everyone keeps them and wears them once a year on this date. The next morning, May 1st, everyone gathers for a picnic in the park and you will see some socialist demonstrations. You don't have to know what the speeches are, just raise your beer and say Solidarity! every once in a while. <BR>Finns are friendly and very gentle people. I sure there are a few sour grumpy types, like in any country, but they are most easy to ignore. <BR>

upsy daisy

<BR>up for Robyn!