We've arrived in Finland! This time our trip was actually quite enjoyable. Here is why.
We had a little goodbye-celebration with some of our favorite Boston people. Thank you, Abe + family, for a lovely evening.
Packing (only 3!) suitcases and (many, many) boxes took us weeks, but when it was finally done, we were really ready to go.
Goodbye, house!
To Samu's delight, we took a taxi to the airport.
Flight # 1 to Iceland was very exciting for both kids.
But thankfully Sofia slept a little.
Samu carried his own suitcase from Dedham all the way to Lieksa.
Except when he was taking care of Sofia.
Airplane ride #2 was a little too exciting. The kids had fun, but the people around us might not have been so thrilled about our company.
We landed in Stockholm to visit our long missed friends Marit and Martin and their kids Kasper and Melker. It was just perfect. Stockholm is a wonderful place to live, and the way they live their life seems so meaningful and interesting to us.
Plus, they live in central Stockholm yet right next to this:
Little climbers on Eagle Mountain
The biggest news was that Marit had written a novel, and a very successful one at that. The first edition is already sold out. Luckily we managed to get the last copy from this book store.
Congratulations!
Another highlight was the trip from Stockholm to Helsinki by ferry.
"It's a magical place", said Marko, and it was indeed.
Shops, music, restaurants ...
... and a ton of entertainment for the kids.
Muumi!
The best part (for the parents) was the view. Sunset, sunrise and moonlight all seemed to happen at the same time.
After the kids' show ...
it was time for bed...
and for the parents to celebrate.
Waking up with an ocean view is pretty wonderful.
After a breakfast and yet another playground ...
we hopped on the train to Joensuu.
And soon we were in beautiful Lieksa with Mummi and Ukki. Yippieh!
