Fantastic Finland- Saturday 19th July

As this was the last day of our holiday in Kotka with Anna's folks, we decided to stay close to home, around Santalahti, along with taking a trip into town to visit the area around the Sappoka Water Park and the harbour.

I also decided to take some pictures of inside the cottage, just to remember it.

It was a beautiful day and here, you can see down through the trees, to the Finnish Bay.


The kitchen area of our cottage.


The living area.


The bedroom, with double bed, and single bed above.


The bathroom, with very strong shower, which was guaranteed to refresh!


Down at the beach. We had several sessions in the sauna, and Sandy loved thundering down from the cottage to plunge into the water. Once we cooled off, it was great to race back up to the cottage and jump into the sauna again!


Above and below, in the water.



Looking back at the cottage, on a hot summer's day!


Sandy, with his Russian grandparents.


In the afternoon, the temperature was around 27C and we headed down to the Sappoka Water Garden in the centre of Kotka. It's a really beautiful place- click on any of the photos to see them much larger- and I love visiting here. A real oasis in the town!



A group photo, taken by Uncle Boris.


With Auntie Olga.


By the waterfall.


At the top of the waterfall, Sandy with Dayadushka.


Can you see Baboushka down below, on the bridge?


Two totally contented children, by the water!


With the centre of Kotka in the background- what a beautiful place!


I really do love this wonderful setting.


Sandy, by the waterfall.


Looking through the trees, to the lake.


Above and below, down by the harbour, with lots of boats to admire!



Olivia loved Santalahti!


The sun sets on the last evening at Santalahti.

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Fantastic Finland- Friday 18th July

We visited the adventure park at Kouvola, Tykkimaki which is situated about 50km north of Kotka. Olga came with us and it was a lovely sunny day, with the temperature around 23C. It's a super place for children, and both Sandy and Olivia loved visiting for the second time, as we had also been there in 2006. Like then, we had a great lunch- very healthy- in one of the very good value restaurants. It's such a refreshing feeling to go to places like Tykkimaki and know it's going to be super clean, and that you can look forward to real quality food at lunch times. I'm afraid you can't always say the same at some of the UK's amusement parks that we have visited.

Olivia was particularly keen on the monorail pedal train that took you around part of Tykkimaki!


I'm sure Sandy drove the very same lorry in 2006!


The goats, sheep and Shetland ponies were a new addition.


Feeding the goats.


It took Olivia a while to get the hang of what she was supposed to do here! I had to help direct her right foot to the accelerator!


A bit ironic that we went all the way to Finland to have a ride on a Shetland pony!
However, Olivia and Sandy both had great fun riding the ponies.






The sheep were very popular with the young children.


It all was very tiring by 4pm, and Olivia had a nap in the Tykkimaki pull-around car.


Meanwhile, Olga and Sandy continued on another ride.


Yes, Tykkimaki is great!


And I enjoyed it too!


A very happy family!

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Fantastic Finland- Thursday 17th July

Olivia loved having Dayadushka bounce her up and down on his leg!


Yes, more blueberry picking!


It was great for the children to wander around, helping themselves to blueberries.


Our squirrel friend returned each day, looking for more and more snacks. I took this picture from a distance of less than a metre! Obviously, it got food from lots of the guests who stay in Santalahti.


Sandy and Olivia enjoy sitting on the decking with Baboushka, Dayadushka, Uncle Boris and Aunt Lucia.


With Olga, at dinner.


And another with Baboushka and Dayadushka.


What can you say about Santalahti? It's the second time we have stayed here, and it really is a lovely place. With the cottages just a few metres from the sea, it's so easy to have a hot sauna and then jump into the sea- which was admittedly fairly chilly. However, if you got really heated up in the sauna, it appeared to lessen the effects of the water temperature! And if we felt cold when we came out of the sea, well, we just ran back up and into the sauna again! Sandy's expresion here says it all- he loved it in Kotka, and no wonder- it's great.


Looking down to the sea through the trees.

Another of the cottage.

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Fantastic Finland- Wednesday 16th July

Olivia discovers that there are very tasty blueberries in Finland!


Our cottage at Santalahti. It was big enough for 5 people, had a bedroom with a double bed and a bunk-style bed above, and had a fairly large living room, which had a sofa bed. There was a fully equipped kitchen, with dishwasher and microwave, and a lovely wee bathroom with a brilliant shower. Leading off the bathroom was the all important sauna!


Our cottage from the back, showing the Mazda 2 car that we hired for the time we were in Finland.


Sandy (and Olivia) both loved playing on the large boulders around the cottages!


Picking bueberries around the cottages was easy, and they were very tasty too!


Olivia with Auntie Olga, who came from St Petersburg to join us.


More blueberry picking!


In the centre of Kotka, we often visited the Euromarket supermarket. Here, we are close by, heading for the Sibelius Park.


Olivia on the bus in the Sibelius Park.


In the Sibelius Park, Kotka.


Back at the cottage at Santalahti, we were often visited by a red squirrel, which loved eating the snacks we threw it.


Anna's friend from school, Natasha, who she hadn't seen since leaving school, came with her husband and family to see us.


Back inside, with Anna's mum and dad, and Uncle Boris, who all stayed in the cottage next to us.


With Olga, end of the first day.

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Coming shortly...

...full details of our wonderful holiday to Finland, with loads of photos.

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A big improvement to the weather...

After what has been a pretty cool, damp few weeks, with no real sign of sustained spring-like weather, the last few days have been totally different! We have had blue skies and temperatures reaching around 20C or slightly more on some days. The forecast is good for the next few days too, so it seems that spring has finally arrived in style!
Anna took Sandy and Olivia along to the nearby East Links Family Park yesterday, where they enjoyed a fun filled day in the sunshine.
There is lots for the children to do there, and quite a few things that parents would like too! You can feed various animals, hold baby chicks and lambs and go on a train ride around the park. If you fancy seeing the ducks, head off to the pond and take some feed along there as well. There are lots of trampolines, and a new one Anna told me about called the "Jelly Belly" which sounded great. There's also a large go-kart track, which can be enjoyed by adults and children alike! And, if you need refreshments, head off to the large cafe, where there are plenty of things to satisfy all tastes. It was really busy yesterday at the park, not surprisingly!


At the go-karts!



O and S together!



Feeding the hungry donkey.



On the train, heading for a trip around the whole park.

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