Finnish Fisu

If you are drunk on a cruise ship between Finland and Sweden then things can become deceptive. The boat rocks backwards and forwards to the swells of the sea, so I blamed my lack of coordination on this rather than the bottle of vodka infused with three packets of Fishermans Friends mints that we were all drinking.

Three packets of mints diluted into one bottle of Vodka creates a Finnish drink called Fisu, it may sound nasty but it is actually very nice. We could also excuse our drinking as having a traditional Finnish cultural experience, which is always good.





(Me and the Fisu)






(On the boat, leaving Helsinki)

The ship was huge, clean and cheap, it is amazing but it would have been cheaper to make the overnight ferry ride between both countries every night than to stay in any hostels or hotels that either capital city offered. Below is what we should have done to save about 45 quid.

• Day in Helsinki - overnight cruise ship - day in Stockholm - overnight cruise ship - day in Helsinki (repeat as required)

Who would think that the cheapest way to explore a country is by leaving and returning to its borders everyday!

I woke up early on the boat despite my slight headache and went up to the top deck to watch the ship arrive in Stockholm. It was very cold and windy but watching the city start to get larger on the horizon was worth it. When we left the boat no one checked our passports, which seems to be standard practice when crossing borders in Europe. We walked twenty minutes to the local train station and then navigated our way by train and bus to our hotel.

(My first view of Sweden)

(Small streets of Stockholm)

Our time in Sweden was spent visiting the Royal Palace, gazing at the impressive display of crown jewels and wondering if they are as relaxed about securing their crowns as they are with border crossings. We ate lunch in an underground prison, explored the endless winding side streets of the old city area and walked miles and miles in an attempt to see everything Stockholm had to offer. Next stop. Denmark!

bx