Saturday, 12 July 2014
Helsinki, Finland
Position @ 8:00p: 60°10′ N / 24°56′ E
Temps: HI 70F (21C) / LO 52F (11C)
2,069 miles (3,330 km) from the North Pole
The short story: 50 Let Pobedy arrived in Murmansk, Russia … the charter flight brought us to Helsinki, Finland … we checked into our hotel … and everyone scattered to enjoy an evening on the town. Some will be leaving tomorrow; some, like us, will enjoy a few days in Helsinki before proceeding with personal plans.
But this is my travel journal, so the short story won’t do ;-) You can stop here and go onto something more interesting; or you can keep reading to see how our day turned out.It’s 8:00p and we are in our hotel room in Helsinki. A little over 12 hours ago, however, we were far, far away — aboard 50 Let Pobedy, moored at the RosAtomFlot Base in Murmansk … taking one last stroll on the outer decks before joining our shipmates in the dining room for one last breakfast together.
Less timid about taking photos on deck while moored at the RosAtomFlot Base in Murmansk,
Mui asks for and gets a photo op with Admiral Kutnetsov, a heavy aircraft carrier.
Launched in 1985, the vessel is still in active service. Having gone through several
christenings, the Kuznetsov is often referred to as the “ship of a thousand names.”
look very, very closely and you’ll see the ship’s complement lined up on deck
We had just packed away our passports and the souvenir voyage DVD when Alex came on the P/A system to announce that the transfer busses were arriving. We had just enough time to go on deck for a photo before our helicopter group and three others were called to disembark. Time to bid goodbye to 50 Let Pobedy — our home for a voyage of a lifetime. What fantastic memories we made … what wonderful recollections we will have when we think of this expedition in the future. I am so glad we had the chance to experience the thrill of breaking ice aboard the world’s most powerful icebreaker before it is returned to full-time commercial operations after the 2015 passenger season.
The busses are here to take us to the Murmansk Airport for the charter flight to Helsinki.
There weren’t any delays getting onto the bus. Soon, we were going through the base gates — just like we had on 1 July, but this time in reverse. The drive through the city followed pretty much the same route, except there were no sightseeing detours along the way. I took just one shot out the window — of the flowers in bloom on the trees lining the streets … eleven days ago there was nary a flower to be seen.
In the short time we’re gone, the trees lining the streets are filled with beautiful blooms.
The luggage was lined up outside the terminal when our bus pulled up. We collected our bags and followed Timur to what looked like a makeshift checkpoint for international passengers. The gun-metal gray walls had a padlocked door, waiting for someone to unlock it. It was another 15 minutes before officials showed up to clear us through. Our passports were checked and stamped; our bags put through an x-ray machine.
Next came the FinnAir check-in counter where a very efficient airline agent gave us the exit row seats we requested — pays to be the second and third passengers to check in. Formalities completed, we headed to the international lounge for what turned out to be a 1½ hour wait for our flight to be called — every minute of that time was needed to get everyone on the charter flight processed through officialdom.
For some reason the vending machine cans of beer and gin & tonic in the international
lounge struck our funny bone. Despite the temptation, we were satisfied with a pre-
packaged brand of Russian ice cream while waiting for boarding to be called.
When boarding was called around 12:15p, we were directed to shuttles that took us out to an Airbus A-319 that was parked on the tarmac. Seeing a dour-faced policeman at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the aircraft, we prepared to hand him our passports and boarding passes for inspection. He just shook his head and motioned us to continue, so I’m not sure what his role was except to perhaps check to see if anyone looked particularly agitated — a sure sign of guilt. No one was dragged away in handcuffs, so we must have passed his test ;-)
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The last of the passengers board the charter flight.
Out seats — 3A/C — turned out to be in what would have been business class had this not been a charter flight. At least that’s what the sign on the bulkhead indicated, but the seating was still three-across, and if there was more legroom than our exit seats on the flight that brought us to Murmansk, it was negligible. The middle seat did remain empty this time, so that was a nice bit of extra space to have.
прощание Мурманск — Proshchaniye Murmansk — Farewell Murmansk!
We were wheels up by 12:55p and above the cloud deck soon after. We pulled down the window shade to block the blinding sun, set our watches back an hour to Helsinki time, and settled down to enjoy a short, uneventful flight. Meal service this time consisted of a choice between two sandwiches — reindeer and tuna salad. We got one of each to share. The reindeer one was good, but had a strong onion taste that didn’t sit well with my stomach, so I let Mui have most of that one.
Reindeer or tuna fish — take your pick!
Over Finland — ten more minutes and we will be on the ground in Helsinki.
We landed at the Helsinki Airport around 1:30p; 10 minutes later we were off the plane and heading to immigration for the usual formalities associated with international travel. The line was rather long even though we were amongst the first to deplane, so it took us a while to be welcomed back to Finland. On the flip side, our bags were on the luggage carousel when we showed up to pick them up, so no delays there.
Tervetuloa Helsinkiin — Welcome to Helsinki!
For some reason, there was a quite bit of confusion amongst our fellow-passengers after they passed through immigration. We tried to help, but some wanted their hands held by no one but the Quark team, which had traveled back to Helsinki with us. The expedition over, these guys and gals were now passengers just like the rest of us, but they took the time to help where they could. I’m still not sure what all the confusion was about as we had received clear instructions on what to do on arrival.
I suppose it would have helped had Quark’s local logistics reps been in the customs area, but they were not cleared to enter. In any event, the same two women who were in charge of logistics on the outbound leg were waiting in the arrivals area right outside customs. By then, unfortunately, those who were confused about what to do and where to go were frustrated and very unhappy, so they weren’t listening to any instructions. Seeing that no one wanted our help, we decided to get ourselves to the transfer busses, which were waiting exactly where we were told they would be. The whole situation could have used Alex’s organizational skills; alas he was in Murmansk, wrapping up the administrative details of the North Pole voyage … Quark’s last for the 2014 season.
The Hilton Helsinki Strand is in a different neighborhood from
where we stayed during our pre-expedition week in the city.
The transfer bus we were on was the first to depart the airport. By 3:00p, we were at the Hilton Helsinki Strand. The hotel overlooks Siltavuorensalmi, an inlet that connects Töölönlahti, an inland bay, to the North Harbor — closer to downtown and convenient to the sights for those with limited time in the city.
View down the inlet the hotel overlooks … this waterway connects to Helsinki’s North Harbor.
The hotel portion of the transfer logistics went like clockwork. Room keys — in envelopes bearing passenger names — were lined up on a table just inside the entrance to the hotel; porters responsible for delivering bags to the rooms were standing at the ready. We picked up our cardkeys, pointed out our bags, and were in our room no more than 15 minutes after getting off the bus.
Looking down from the fourth floor to the dining area in the lobby.
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Unlike the snack basket and beverages we received on 50 Let Pobedy,
we have to pay for these goodies if we want to partake of them.
Fifteen minutes or so to refresh ourselves, and we were back out the door again. The sun was out, the sky was blue, and it was a comfortable 70F (21C) … much too nice a day to spend indoors. With directions from the concierge, off we went to stroll through neighborhoods that were new to us to get to the Helsinki Harbor. Our goal — do some sightseeing and find a place to have an early dinner.
The inset shows where the Helsinki Strand is located in relation to the Crowne Plaza
(blue marker center top), where we stayed the week before our expedition voyage.
It wasn’t long before familiar sights started popping up — the first of which was the Helsinki Cathedral. Since we had already visited the church, we didn’t go inside. We did, however, join well-wishers who were gathered outside to see a newly married couple off on their life together.
One of the 12 apostles that stand on the roof of the Helsinki Cathedral.
This is Andrew, brother of Peter. Said to be martyred by crucifixion
in the Peloponnese, he is depicted here with a saltire cross.
All was going well for the newlyweds — until they got to the car that was going to whisk them away … the rear seat was so small that there was no way for the couple to sit back there together. When the car eventually pulled away to cheers and laughter, the bride was sitting up front with the driver; the groom was squeezed into the rear seat. To their credit, their smiles never faltered during the ordeal of figuring out who would be sitting where!
The newlyweds have a bit of trouble with the size of the antique car, but they never stop smiling.
Our meandering path dumped us out at the North Harbor. Crossing a pedestrian bridge, we explored the waterfront area below Uspenski Cathedral. Eventually we found ourselves at the end of a path from which what should we see but Finland’s fleet of icebreakers! Smaller than 50 Let Pobedy, and steam- and diesel-powered, these icebreakers work the Baltic Sea, escorting merchant ships through ice-infested waters.
Docked for the summer in Helsinki’s Katajanokka neighborhood,
these icebreakers will be getting a heavy work out once winter comes around.
Click here to read the article from which I took the chart to the right; the link also has a more legible version of this graphic representation of the major icebreakers of the world … compiled in 2013 by the US Coast Guard.
I believe this is at least the third iteration of the chart and gives a good visual sense of who has how many icebreakers, and what type. A quick look makes it clear that Russia is the only country with a fleet of nuclear-powered icebreakers, with another one under construction and three more planned.
Looking at this chart one’s first thought might be, “Why does Russia have so many icebreakers?” Even small countries like Sweden and Finland have more icebreakers than Canada and the US. Well, the last paragraph of the article — quoted in part below — puts fleet numbers and icebreaker size in context.
The fleet numbers and icebreaker size tend to align along each county’s economic necessity for icebreaker resources. For example, the economies of Finland, Russia and Sweden have greater dependence on major icebreakers to pursue economic goals in the Arctic and Baltic winters than the economies of other nations. Also, ice in these countries’ shipping lanes, rivers and ports forms earlier, lasts longer, and requires more power to break, requiring more extensive icebreaking capabilities. ...
Makes sense to me!
We’d already looked at the menus offered by the many eateries housed in a restored waterfront warehouse overlooking North Harbor. When we made our way back from our meandering walk, we already knew we’d be dining at Ravintola Sipuli. [I took the name of the establishment, which translates as Onion Restaurant, to be a reference to the domes of the Uspenski Cathedral, which crowns the hill behind the warehouse.] Since it was such a nice day, we opted to dine at the restaurant’s street-level bar — Kanava. It was only 6:30p; too early for most Europeans to be dining, so we had our pick of the tables on the sidewalk next to the narrow canal connecting the north and south harbors.
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Service was prompt, partly in response to the lack of patrons. The food was very good — I ordered the linguine with artichokes, mushrooms, and goat milk cheddar; Mui got the Niçoise salad topped with smoked salmon. No dessert — we had other plans for a sweet treat!
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We walked off our meal with a stroll around the neighborhood behind the Uspenski Cathedral before heading to Kauppatori [Market Square] for ice cream from one of the street vendors. Mui managed to hold on to his ice cream this time, but the young girl we warned to be careful of the gulls wasn’t so lucky. Lesson learned; she’ll know better next time to ‘play her ice cream close to the vest’ ;-)
We took the long way back to the hotel, enjoying an extended outing on such a beautiful evening. By the time we returned to the hotel, our feet were begging us to stop! So we paid attention to the admonishment and called time out. We have two more days in Helsinki before we begin the trek back home … more time to explore this eminently walkable city.
