Radisson Sas Marina Palace Hotel, Turku

... as the last game, but with Casey back in after her suspension and Unitt back on the bench. <br>The response to the Swedes first goal wasn't good from us all until we realised it had been disallowed (we heard that it was for impeding the keeper, but it looked good to all of us in the stands). Then Faye scored her great header - hurrah (and was rightly named player of the match)! Not having to chase the game was a good thing for us, and not conceding a goal ...

Matkustus tapahtuu aina itsekkäistä syistä. Niin tälläkin kertaa. Nyt lähdetään juhlimaan Memmun kolmekymppisiä Ilarin ja Memmun tyyliin. Rinkan, passin ja hammasharjan lisäksi varustelistalla :<br><br>2 x Housut<br>2 x Alushousut<br>2 x Sukat<br>2 x T-Paita<br>1 x Huppari<br>1 x Puolen metrin rauta kettinki<br><br>Eiköhän näillä pärjätä...<br><br>"A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving." ~Lao Tzu<br>

Caught the train from Helsinki to Turku which only took about two hours. They have very nice trains. Easy city to navigate. I'm going to check out the harbour and book a spot on one of the ferries heading for ALands. Unfortunately I can't go today because the ferries only depart at 0815 and 2015. So I'm staying in Turku today which is fine because I forgot that I wanted to see the castle. Now I'm just waiting for the hostel to open so I can drop my bag off. It's getting lighter every day.<br>

The room is up by 8:30. Early for backpackers. I have coffee (instant &#8211; far from ideal), strawberries and bread/cheese that I had brought from Helsinki. OK for breakfast. For the morning, I hang around with a guy from South Korea who speaks limited English. It is his first trip internationally. I give him advice. I later take off for Naantali, a laid-back beach resort about 20 minutes away. Most people who go there are going to a mini-Disney theme ...

... It is a plethora of styles and materials, as different centuries added their own touches. Then it was bombed in 1940 and repaired afterwards. It was an absolute rabbit warren of corridors & stairs, and the route through the castle went through something like 38 rooms - but that doesn't count corridors or stairs, of which there were many. I wondered if part of the security against intruders was that it was so difficult to make your way up here, through here, down here ...

... opt to stay in. The other night we saw an episode of Ballykissangel, with Finnish sub-titles, tonight Dundee! The Finnish ads are interesting too, although sometimes as much for trying to work out what they're advertising! Anyway today. We woke up in Rauma, looked around there & later went to Naantali & looked around there & then drove on to Turku - and looked around here! See, that was simple. But for more details. I'm glad we looked around the old town of ...

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... course; Each careful step along the byway..." Matka sujui melko pitkälle suunnitelmien mukaisesti (spontaaniutta unohtamatta), eikä mistään tärkeästä kohteesta/suunnitelmasta oikeastaan jouduttu luopumaan. Nepal kuului alkuperäiseen maaryppääseen, mutta logistisista syistä päätettiin jättää se ensi kertaan. Malesia ja Singapore sisältyivät reittiin ex-tempore viime metreillä. "Yes, there were times, I'm sure you knew. When I ...

... the Helsinki pass since our stay was only one day. We first went to the Parliament building to see Lasse Viren but we were rejected at the front desk. The secretary wouldn't let us pass, in fact he laughed when I asked him if we could see Lasse Viren. I understood though, I still questioned the desk clerk to see if there was any other way to conact Viren. After thumbing through paper and checking on the computer he told me that Viren didn't work ...

... arrived at the train station that I was told to go to...I could not find a taxi. Some Finnish lady, offered to help me out as I looked lost in the countryside. But as she was driving me to some taxis, a taxi came by and she stopped it for me (he didn´t speak any English- so I showed him Eeva-Liisa´s address and phone number to contact her with). Eventually, I found my way here. So there..good night to all. Carolyn