Journeys and destinations...

After visiting the charming medieval town of Tallinn ( read more here ) in Estonia, we were ready to visit Helsinki, the modern capital of Finland 😎. With a short ferry ride of 2 hours from Tallinn we crossed the Gulf of Finland and reached Helsinki. Sibelius Monument in Sibelius Park Internet is full of information about the many things to do and see in Helsinki. In this post I am listing the places which are an absolute must-see  in my opinion. Senate square Helsinki Cathedral in Senate square This plaza is surrounded by impressive neoclassical buildings. For me the highlight was the cathedral with its distinct green dome. Unique street identifiers Building in the old city center If you take a walk in the old city center, you will see some streets have boards with a picture of an animal below the street name.  In medieval times when farmers came to the city they couldn't read so photos of animals were used to identify the streets uniquely.  How

Tallinn is one of those places that was never on our bucket list but it got there because of its geographical location. After visiting Norway (and loving it) I was looking for destinations in northern Europe which were less expensive and 'discovered' Estonia ! Honestly, I had no information about the country but the more I read about it, the more intriguing it became and ultimately was selected 😉 The fact that Helsinki ( read more about it here ) is just a short ferry ride away from Tallinn also worked in its favor. The city gates dating back to 13th century. What astonished me was that with a population of only 1.3 million it is a developed country with o ne of the world's most digitally-advanced societies. For the uninitiated, Estonia's capital and largest city is  Tallinn .  Currency is Euro.  It became independent  from the Soviet Union in 1991. So, what did we do in Tallinn? Take a walking tour Walking tours are my most favorite way of exploring

Düsseldorf has seven main Christmas markets and many small ones dispersed throughout the city. When I was new in Germany, I didn't know most of the dishes (except french fries 😁). I often overlooked the vegetarian varieties simply because the meat was highlighted more in the pictures or in the samples kept in front of the stall. Over the years, I understood what to look for and tried various dishes in the Christmas markets and thought it could be useful for someone new to Germany to know about them in advance. The aim of this is post is to familiarize the reader with the names. More information about the Christmas markets can be found on the city's official website:  https://www.duesseldorf-tourismus.de/en/our-top-events/duesseldorf-christmas-market/ . Many dishes have  eggs  in some form, either in the dough or in the sauce. It is debatable if eggs are vegetarian😀. I have considered them in this list as most of the vegetarians I know eat them  😇.  I ha

Skogafoss waterfall Iceland is one of the most beautiful places on Earth. Due to the reach of the internet and the traveling bug caught by most of us it is on everyone's bucket list now. However before landing in  Reykjavík it is useful to be aware of a few things. The smell!!! The tap water in Iceland smells (A LOT) due to sulfur. From what I had read only the hot water is supposed to smell and not the cold water but in our rented accommodation even the cold water in the kitchen had a distinct smell. Nothing can really prepare you for the odor.  The water is heated  naturally  b y geothermal springs, pumped from the ground and  supplied directly to each home.  The locals swear by the health aspect of the pure water and highly recommend drinking it however I found it really difficult to get comfortable with the smell .  Icelandic air  smells as well although it is very pure and clean. The smell is stronger if you are near a geothermal plant or a natural spring like this