Monday 21 March 2011

Porvoo, part 1

Welcome to take a tour with me in the second oldest town in Finland, Porvoo. I had a mini holiday with darling Mr. K. there to celebrate my birthday. Like most places in Finland, Porvoo is at its nicest in the Summer. In winter some of the alleys in the old town looked like this:


It is not possible to keep the snow away from the smallest alleys  so they are closed for the winter. The little streets are not much wider:


There were interesting yards with the gates open:



I wanted to se the toy museum, but it was unfortunately closed. I have seen it about 20 years ago, when the children were little:


Details from the same yard.



The houses are built of wood, as usual in Finland. The town has burned down many times, but the houses have been built again on the same foundations. The buildings standing there now are built after the last big fire in 1760.
The icy streets were so slippery that I didn't want to walk across the bridge to get a nice picture of the storehouses by the river.

We stayed at the Hotel Onni (=Happiness). There are only 5 rooms and a suite. The service was friendly and we loved the room. Welcome in:



We had a bowl of fruit and chocolate crisps waiting.


We had chosen the Peasant room. Each room was decorated in a different style.


We had fluffy bathrobes and slippers too, Melanie!


The bed was better than average. This kind of beds used to be pushed together for the day to make a sofa. I think they used straw mattresses at the time, so they could be folded away.


The breakfast was chosen from a list for each of us at arrival, and served at the time we chose.



The hotel is just across the street from the Cathedral, so it is a popular accommodation for newlyweds.
 I will take you to the church in my next post. As you see, it had started to snow on Saturday when I looked out of our window.


There is a little cafe in our hotel.


They sell decorations and little gifts there too. The Easter is coming!


In the morning the crocuses placed under the decorated tree were all covered in snow. I hope they will survive the cold temperatures. In the gardens the crocuses will not show their heads before May.


You must be exhausted and cold by now, so let's go back in and have a cup of something hot. Pick your cake here, please, and enjoy!

10 comments:

  1. What a beautiful place to visit ans it sounds like you already had some fond memories and are making more. The hotel is lovely and so enjoyed you taking us on your vacation. Hugs,Marie

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  2. I really enjoyed the tour, even if it was cold outside. Charming buildings. Your room looks cozy. Our crocuses just started blooming here.

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  3. it looks beautiful Ulla and I hope you had a magical birthday. x

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  4. Thank you sooooo much for taking us on this Porvoo trip with you!

    Everything looks lovely. I see the two coffee presses on your breakfast table - - - hubby LOVES to make our coffee using one of those. I wonder, did you have to go down to the little cafe for your breakfast, or did they bring it to your room?

    Looks like just my kind of a great time.

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  5. What a charming place to celebrate your birthday, Ulla! The hotel room looks so cozy and comfy and romantic, and the food absolutely delicious! I can just imagine how pretty the town looks when all the snow is melted and the flowers are blooming. I'm so glad you enjoyed your birthday!
    Cheers!

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  6. Kudos to Mr. K for taking you to such a romantic place and Happy Birthday to you. Great looking rabbits on the radiator./ Mr. Squash

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  7. What a wonderful birthday present!!
    Looks like you had the best of time together with your husband ;-)

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  8. thankyou so much for sharing your birthday holiday with us, i enjoyed it so much. I hope you have a wonderful year.

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  9. What a very cute hotel you stayed in! And even in the winter, the place looks great!

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  10. What a lovely place to stay so full of history and be pampered.

    The room looked so restful. I'm glad you had a great time and felt special.

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