The Finnish capital, the city of Helsinki, is able to hit a tourist who came from somewhere in Russia. Absolute cleanliness on the streets, complete security, constantly overcast weather and never smiling Finns are, you see, not very similar to the realities we are used to.
Helsinki is among the five best and safest cities in the world. The city was founded in the summer of 1550 by order of the Swedish king, who resettled part of his subjects to new territories. Until the mid-18th century, Helsinki was a small, completely wooden city, where plague epidemics often flared up. Helsinki four times captured Russian troops. Organized building of Helsinki began only after its accession to the Russian Empire. The works were supervised by a famous architect, specially invited from Germany. The prototype for many buildings in Helsinki became the palaces and cathedrals of St. Petersburg. After the civil war, Helsinki became the capital of a new independent state – Finland.
Until the end of the 19th century, Helsinki was inhabited mainly by the Swedes. The Russian authorities supported the resettlement of the Finns from the countryside to the capital, as well as the popularization of the Finnish language, in order to rid these territories of Swedish influence. Helsinki stands on the rocks, so even on the rivers in the city there are real waterfalls. From the Finnish capital to St. Petersburg you can reach the train in 3.5 hours. Finnish authorities are working on the construction of a tunnel under the sea between Helsinki and the capital of Estonia. For laying the line with a length of 60-80 kilometers will have to spend about 1 billion euros. Helsinki is divided into historical and modern parts, which are connected by a single metro line.
In Helsinki, in the territory of the old tram depot there is a huge cultural center, which includes exhibition halls, concert halls, museums, shops and restaurants. Films in Helsinki cinemas are usually shown with original sound, complemented by Swedish and Finnish subtitles. The Helsinki Zoo is one of the northernmost, oldest and largest zoos in the world. On an area of 22 hectares, more than 2 thousand animals and about 1000 species of plants were collected. Every winter, an international ice sculpture competition is held at the zoo. In Helsinki, there is a Lutheran church, carved entirely into the rock and covered with a glass dome. The largest water park in Northern Europe is open in Helsinki. In addition, the Finnish capital has the largest North European amusement park with 43 attractions, slot machines and other leisure facilities for the whole family. The oldest carousel of the park was installed at the end of the 19th century.
