Castle Rasaborg on P-Day

Monday is our day off at the Temple so Erick Erickson took us west of Helsinki along the coast about an hour away to the medieval Castle of Rasaborg.

Its main purpose was to protect Sweden's interests in southern Finland against the Hanseatic city of Tallinn (now capitol of Estonia). The castle was originally built on a small island in the north end of a sea bay. 

The ruins of the outer wall of the castle still exist. The outer wall was built to protect the foundations of the castle itself. When the use of artillery got more common, it was vital to protect the basic walls of the castle. There was also one more protection outside the castle, a wooden barrier, which surrounded the castle and it prevented any foreign ships to approach the castle harbour. There still exists some small parts of that barrier. The castle is on the mainland today, but in the 15th century it was located on a peninsula by the sea. The sea level lowered over time due to postglacial rebound, and it became increasingly difficult to approach the castle by boat and the castle lost its importance. The land mass of southern Finland has also been slowly rising, and the effect of the 2 changes is that the sea is now located some distance from the castle.

Battles were fought between Swedish and Danish forces and even pirates over control of the castle in the Middle Ages. The castle was abandoned in 1553, three years after Helsinki was founded in 1550 and Helsinki became strategically more important. 

It was another beautiful perfect summer day in Finland.  Blue skies, green forests, abundant lakes and rivers, strawberries and blueberries in abundance.  Berries are NOT cheap however.   We're hoping the prices go down after mid-summer eve next week.

Road to Rasaborg from Helsinki

Depiction of the castle in medieval times.

As it looks today

We're standing in what was once water surrounding the castle.  South tower in the background

The drawbridge into the castle

The main hall

The main hall.  Vivienne and Erick

Courtyard.  This once housed a garrison of soldiers, cooks, metal workers, various animals and brewery. Notice window in upper right hand area; very large on the inside, telescoping down to very small slot at the outside.  Archers inside could cover a large area while still being protected.

Inside the south tower

Stairway leading to south tower.  Notice stairway goes to the left, so invading soldiers coming up, who were right-handed, would be at a huge disadvantage, while defenders from above, also right-handed, would have use of the sword/spear/weapon.

Captain's quarters just below the top floor in south tower. The top of the food chain was still pretty spartan.  Our apartment is a lot nicer.

View of moat and outer defense wall from the south tower.

On the Drawbridge.  The area is now the site of one of the largest outdoor summer theatres in Finland.  This summer they're doing "The Sound of Music"

Quick Post for Elva

We met a wonderful girl from South America at church today.  She married a Finn whom she met in Nevada.  Her name is Stephanie.  She has degrees in Anthropology and Archeology.  Her talk today in church was really great.  This picture with her and Viv is to show the ear rings Viv is wearing; a gift from Elva Hofling.  She looks great in them.

Stephanie Sokonen and Viv's ear rings from Peru

After 2 Weeks

Vivienne and I have chatted about what to put on the blog.  The fact is that most everything we do and most of our time is spent in the Temple.  There's not a whole lot about it that can be put on the blog.  So when we're not on our Temple shift we have a little while to go exploring the country close around us.  There is a van that the Temple missionaries share, but since I don't drive yet, we're sort of at the mercy of the other couples.
Today, Saturday, after the temple closed at 2:00 pm we put our bikes in the back of the van with Erick Erickson and drove about 15 minutes away to the beaches west of Helsinki.  It was a beautiful day.  Very Finnish. Slightly overcast and about 65 degrees.  Great biking weather.

Missionaries who served in Finland in 1969.  From left to right:
Nolan Doxey, Sister Stromberg, Sister Hämäläinen, Erick Erickson, and me.  Fun unplanned reunion at Haaga Chapel last Sunday

Our bike ride to the beaches at West End today, near Helsinki, Saturday, June 11.  Great biking trails!  We found some rocks to sit on for out lunch.  Picture by Erick Erickson.
Vivienne hadn't been on a bike in many-a-year.  But it came back to her.  She said, "Hey, no big deal.  It's just like riding a bike." ........ You sort of had to be there.

Temple steeple.  We see it on the way from our apartment.

Favorite tree on walking path closest to our apartment.  It leads to the Temple.

Temple view from near our apartment.  Biking/walking paths criss-crossing the fields going into the forest.  There are only about 5,500 church members in all of Finland.  10 years ago during the Temple open house, they hoped for and planned for about 25,000 visitors.  At the close of the open house more that 58,000 people had gone through.

Arrival

We arrived in Finland in the evening of Saturday, May 21.  Erick and Joyce Erickson met us at the airport and drove us to our new apartment, which they had stocked with basic foods and amenities.  We settled in and unpacked, and then at 9:00 Bruce had sauna on the top (17th) floor of the apartment building (there are 4 saunas there).  It was a wonderful way to unwind from a day of flying and navigating through airports.  Followed by makkara and Pommac (a Finnish mixed fruit beverage).
Sunday we went to church in Haaga, where there is a beautiful chapel which was here back in 1968 when Bruce first arrived in Finland.  Happy memories.
Monday we went shopping for some additional basic necessities and tried to deal with the jet lag.  It's harder as you get older we´ve discovered.
Tuesday we started in the Temple with an interview and setting apart by President Syvänen.  He is a kind, gentle man, which surprised us somewhat considering he is retired military office from Sweden and given the stereotypical Finnish male persona.  His wife, Kirsti Syvänen remembers Bruce from his young missionary days.  She was a member of the MIA (called NVK in Finland) at that time.
Is has been a fast 2 weeks.  We have managed to survive with the Finnish language.  It has come back faster than Bruce thought it would, although there are still plenty of instances when he´s not sure what was said.  It sort of depends on the dialect and subject matter.  We've had lots of Russian members in the Temple so far.  The Russian language is a whole different matter.  Thank goodness there have been other temple workers around who speak Russian.  But even among the Russians there is often at least one who speaks enough English to communicate necessary information back and forth.  So we have our work cut out for us with learning enough Russian.  We take some comfort in Mosiah 4:27.
Following are a few pictures of the first 2 weeks.

In front of the Helsinki Temple today, June 5.  Holiness to the Lord. The House of the Lord.  Motifs inside the temple are filled with designs unique to Finnish history.

Home away from home.  Small but clean.  Patio door at far left and next to that door to bedroom.

View from our balcony

Bathroom.  Sort of a "all-in-one" approach.  But it DOES have a heated tile floor!

Outside the Haaga Chapel.  Wonderful memories for me from 1968.

Haaga chapel

Eating at restaurant downtown, named Bank Bistro.  About a 20 train ride from the suburb of Espoo where we live and where Temple is located.  Some of our fellow senior couples, including Erick.

One of several harbors around Helsinki.  This one is at the end of the street Neitstypolku, where the mission office was when I was a young missionary.

Harbor at the end of the street Neitsytpolku.  Islands dot the landscape everywhere.

Looking down Neitsytpolku (translation: Virgins Path) towards harbor.  Church is on the left.  Notice brass placard on wall at entrance.  First 2 floors are the Church and LDS Youth Center.

Lake Oitta.  Erick Erickson and I biked out here last week on the day Temple is closed.  About 14 miles round trip.  They have a nice public sauna, large swimming area, huge playground, sand lot volleyball and lots of lawn for picnics.

Lake Oitta. In the winter they chop a big hole in the ice near the sauna so the Finns can jump in the lake. Refreshing!

In town of Hyvinkää, where we went to watch Pesäpalo, Finnish baseball.  Which by the way, is NOTHING like American baseball.  Bruce went with Erick Erickson, Pres. Grönlund (above), first counselor in Temple Presidency, and President Syvänen, Temple President.

Pesäpalo.  I won't attempt to explain the game here.  Just Google it or watch on YouTube.  Strange.  But fast, which is better than American baseball, I have to say.

Pesäpalo.  They communicate using a colored fan.  These were professional teams.  They have a world championship every year and teams from other countries also compete.

Half time.  Makkara, or Finnish sausage.  Oh Yeah.

View from Guest House at the Temple.

Temple Steeple.  There's really no way to describe how beautiful the area is around the Temple.  There are biking and walking paths everywhere, and a large sports park nearby, including a HUGE skate park and both indoor and outdoor swimming pools.  And an ice rink. A couple of soccer (oops, I mean football) fields, a large track and field venue with stadium seating.

Right now we are enjoying about 19 hours of daylight, which will continue to lengthen until the 22nd of June.  Midsummer Eve is a big celebration.  Juhannus.  The biggest holiday in Finland.  They really do love summer.  Probably because it´s so short.  And winter is long and dark.