The last section of the trip is basically extended travel on the way back to the states. Leaving Helsinki, will spend the night on the boat. Landing in Stockholm and will spend 1/2 day there before flying to Malmo.

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Visited Seurasaari, which is an open air folk museum. It was a beautiful warm sunny day, and all the Finns were out sunbathing, and running around enjoying the weather. Went down to the harbor kauppatori and strolled among the stalls selling everything from fish to reindeer antlers (bought some of both). Note to self and others; the tram is the best way to see the city, and cheap.
There was a protest march through the city, Finns against Shell Oil, as best I could tell. The building in the background of the video is the Helsinki Cathedral. Dinner listening to reggae music, wandering the city a bit, and home.

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We arrived to a gorgeous day in Helsinki. Decided to do a boat tour of the harbor and surrounding islands. Had a nice dinner at a Napal restaurant side walk cafe,as we watched the world go by.

July 1, boarded another ship, this time bound for Helsinki from Stockholm. I hate to leave Stockholm but am looking forward to Finland. During the journey I ventured to the furthest north I have ever been, past 60 degrees north latitude. It was light well past midnight Finnish time.

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Spent most of the day at the Nordic Museum, a folk museum of Nordic history and tradition. Had a big lunch so limited dinner to some tapas at a local joint. Home early.

Spent most of the day at Skansen, an outdoor open air folk museum. the park is full of original structures that were disassembled and reconstructed at this park. Several of the guides were well versed in Swedish history and gave us excellent insight into this past. A beautiful sunny day.

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Rode our bicycles completely around the island of Djurgården today. Got lost and ended up on the mainland, so ended up riding about 10 kilometers total. Beautiful day, sunny and about 70 degrees. Nice dinner and an early night.

Went to the Museum of Modern Art, and had a fantastic lunch. The view from the museum balcony is stunning. Alternating rain and sun gave the sky a dramatic flavor. Rode a water bus, sort of like a land bus, going from stop to stop. Evening was spent in a tiny jazz club called the Glen Miller Cafe

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walked around and rode bicycles around a lot today. The National Museum of Fine Art is closed for renovation, but has several venues for displaying part of their collections. We went to see one called 100 paintings. Walked around the Royal Palace and saw the changing of the guards (all female soldiers, with machine guns). The afternoon rain produced a spectacular rainbow, which we saw across the canal front eh royal palace.