Sunday was Turku Day, which meant that the town was a lot livelier than usual. There was a special market going on, and most of the museums were at a reduced entry cost. So we decided to go and have a look at the Castle. Finally the clouds had shifted and there was glorious sunshine, which was a good start to the day.
We got a bit lost trying to find the bus stop we needed. Every bus goes from the Kauppatori, and we knew we needed number 1, but you could spend ages wondering around that square trying to find the bus you want. So we asked in the tourist office. :)
We made it to the castle, and its has some beautiful grounds to look round before you go into the courtyard. After this you can enter the castle for a modest fee, given how huge it is. We walked around for what seemed like forever, and then ended up back at the start only to find there was also a museum in the other direction from the entrance. We made a quick dash around this before giving up and going in search of coffee.
The castle has been beautifully restored to its original size, which I found interesting but also a little strange. It was nice to wonder around a full castle, as we have ‘Hertford Castle’ at home, which is basically a wall. But it was also hard to tell how much of the castle was original, as all the staircases had been restored, and possibly the walls too? I had heard that a lot of the windows on the ground and first floor had been added in, but without a proper guide it was impossible to know the real history of this castle. A lot of the written information was only in Finnish and Swedish.
After the castle, we had a wait for the bus, so wondered up the river towards the Forum Maritime. I don’t really know what this is about except that there is a big boat you can go and look at. And it was free for Turku Day! So we had a quick tour while waiting for the bus. I cant remember what the name of the boat is in Finnish, but the translation was The Finnish Swan. It was a very pretty boat, or more of a ship I guess.
And then sadly, it was back to the town for a quick look round the market before heading back to mine for the girls to get their luggage and head to the train station. It was a perfect weekend though, and a great chance to catch up with my friends. Hopefully we’ll meet again soon.
We got a bit lost trying to find the bus stop we needed. Every bus goes from the Kauppatori, and we knew we needed number 1, but you could spend ages wondering around that square trying to find the bus you want. So we asked in the tourist office. :)
We made it to the castle, and its has some beautiful grounds to look round before you go into the courtyard. After this you can enter the castle for a modest fee, given how huge it is. We walked around for what seemed like forever, and then ended up back at the start only to find there was also a museum in the other direction from the entrance. We made a quick dash around this before giving up and going in search of coffee.
The castle has been beautifully restored to its original size, which I found interesting but also a little strange. It was nice to wonder around a full castle, as we have ‘Hertford Castle’ at home, which is basically a wall. But it was also hard to tell how much of the castle was original, as all the staircases had been restored, and possibly the walls too? I had heard that a lot of the windows on the ground and first floor had been added in, but without a proper guide it was impossible to know the real history of this castle. A lot of the written information was only in Finnish and Swedish.
After the castle, we had a wait for the bus, so wondered up the river towards the Forum Maritime. I don’t really know what this is about except that there is a big boat you can go and look at. And it was free for Turku Day! So we had a quick tour while waiting for the bus. I cant remember what the name of the boat is in Finnish, but the translation was The Finnish Swan. It was a very pretty boat, or more of a ship I guess.
And then sadly, it was back to the town for a quick look round the market before heading back to mine for the girls to get their luggage and head to the train station. It was a perfect weekend though, and a great chance to catch up with my friends. Hopefully we’ll meet again soon.
No comments:
Post a Comment