August 31, 2026: Welcome to our August cocktail hour. Let’s have a nice summer cocktail like a Gin & Tonic Sgroppino, with its scoop of refreshing lime sorbet. We have finally escaped the heat and humidity of Virginia and are enjoying cooler climes in Denmark and Finland.
I have a variety of soda or seltzer water for those of you who don’t drink.
August marked the first of our three month stint of slow travel around Scandinavia. We started off the month finding out that Jandira got a new job, and we all went out to celebrate on the night before we took off for Denmark.
Homebody stuff & a walk in Vienna, VA
It was still hot and humid in the days before we left Virginia on the evening of August 3. One evening I got Allie to cuddle up with me while watching a movie in our basement which is always freezing in the air-conditioning. I went for a walk in Vienna and it was as miserably hot as July had been.
I finished 3 books in August bringing my total to 44/48. I especially enjoyed Lucy by the Sea by Elizabeth Strout. We watched a movie that fit in well with our Finnish experience: The Summer Book. It really gave us a feel for summer on a Finnish island. We started watching a couple of new series or new seasons of old series: The Killing, Furious, and Ride or Die. We finished watching The Four Seasons (S2). We continued watching AnotherSelf (Zeytin Ağacı) (S3); The Bear; Sommerdahl (S1); Thank You Next (Kimler Geldi Kimler Geçti) (S3); Grantchester (S6); Old Money (Enfes Bir Aksam) (S1); and The New Adventures of Old Christine (S5). We can’t access some of the shows we were watching in the U.S. so we’ll have to watch those when we return home.
Dining out in Virginia
Jandira had spent months applying for jobs and finally, after numerous interviews and numerous rejections, she got a new job which is not in sales and leaves her weekends free. All of her jobs have been in sales and have required her to work on weekends. Now that she has a family, she wanted to get out of sales and have weekends with the family. This new job will give her a new position, as a supply chain manager for a women’s skin care start-up company. When she got the news on Sunday, we suggested going out to eat at Seasons 52 to celebrate her success.
Arrival and a week in Copenhagen, Denmark with forays to Roskilde & Helsingør
August 4 – August 11: We flew into |*Copenhagen, Denmark*| on August 4 and stayed there for 7 nights. We wandered around the city, visiting Marmorkirken (the Marble Church) and Designmuseum Danmark before watching the changing of the guards at Amalienborg Palace. We had the famous (and not very good) Copenhagen hot dogs at Emmis Place and then visited the colorful harbor of Nyhavn and took a fun fact-filled Netto Boat Tour. We traipsed to The Little Mermaid, a national symbol inspired by the story by Hans Christian Andersen. We happened upon St. Alban’s Anglican Church and ate pastries at Glace in Strøget; there, I bought two new shirts and a scarf at Ann Ricci Boutique. We wandered through the magical and mesmerizing Tivoli as the sun went down; we were captivated by the blue light and the colorful lights that decorated the amusements. And we might have enjoyed the Swing Carousel more if we hadn’t just eaten dinner! 🙂 We rented Donkey Republic bikes and rode through Christianshavn to Reffen Street Food where we enjoyed the food, the vibe, and people-watching.
We took a day trip west to |*Roskilde*| to see Roskilde Cathedral, burial place for Denmark’s nobles, and the Viking Ship Museum, which has five original Viking ships, from 1070, excavated nearby in 1962. We took a train north to |*Louisiana Museum of Modern Art*| , beautifully situated on a bluff overlooking Niva Bay. With its extensive sculpture garden and its exhibits by Lucian Freud, Sophie Calle, and Alberto Giacometti, along with photos from the home of star Elizabeth Taylor (“700 Nimes Road”), the excursion was captivating. We took the train further north to |*Helsingør*|, home to Hamlet’s Kronborg Castle and the setting for the TV show, Sommerdahl. On our final day, we met a Danish friend of Mike’s friend Louis, Jorn, who kindly drove us around all day to his favorite spots around his hometown of |*Koge*|: Gjorslev Gods; Stevns Klint; lunch at Hjortholms Bistro No. 1; the limestone quarry where most of Copenhagen gets its building materials, Faxe Kalkbrud; and the castle Vallø, where widows and lonely old noble women live. Jorn and his wife Kirsten also invited us to their cozy home for cake and coffee.
We fell in love with Denmark’s biking culture, its cleanliness and tidiness, the fashionable young people, and the cute little children always properly dressed for the weather.
A week in Aarhus, Denmark
August 11 – August 18: We made our way by FlixBus from Copenhagen to |*Aarhus*|, which by the end of August, was our favorite town so far. We found a great farmer’s market (Wednesday & Saturday) where we could people-watch and buy fish, veggies, bread and cheese. We took an endless walk to the Infinite Bridge (Den Uendelige Bro) and then watched a pretty lame partial eclipse. We visited Den Gamle By (“The Old Town”), an open-air town museum that focused on town culture rather than village culture. We also strolled through the Latin Quarter, ate a dinner at The Spice of India and a lunch at Nori Bar. We dropped into Aarhus Cathedral and the small street, Møllestien, with its colorful cottages and hollyhocks. We rode Donkey Republic bicycles around the harbor area and were blinded by the Isbjerget (Iceberg buildings) and then we went to the modern Markedshallen Nicolinehus for a Vietnamese lunch. We enjoyed lounging at the Harbor Bath (Havnebadet) on a warm summer day and even dipped into the jolting harbor water. Mike found a local swimming pool where he swam three times during the week. We visited the interesting ARoS Kunstmuseum with its collection of Danish and international art and strolled around the rooftop “Your Rainbow Panorama.” We visited the Moesgaard, a museum that traces the history of human evolution and showcases the remains of Grauballe Man, the world’s best preserved bog body, as well as a Viking boat, weapon caches, and rune stones. We rented bicycles another time and rode around the botanical garden and the Latin Quarter and stopped for a beer and fries at Aarhus Street Food. What a fantastic city!
A week in Helsinki, Finland
August 18 – August 25: We took the FlixBus from Aarhus to Copenhagen followed by a FinnAir flight from Copenhagen to Helsinki, where we settled into our Helsinki apartment and then had Korean food at Ding Ding Restaurant. We explored the South Harbor and the Old Market Hall, truly a great destination for food of every kind, with plenty of restaurants and food vendors. We sampled Story’s salmon soup and Story’s meatballs with gravy. We bought lingonberries, cloudberries and wild blueberries at the Market Square then climbed uphill to Helsinki Cathedral, which dominates the city center but is plain and rather boring inside. We enjoyed the sauna in our apartment three times. We took the ferry to Suomenlinna Sea Fortress and were caught in the rain unprepared; luckily cheap plastic ponchos saved us. We enjoyed this wild windswept place at the edge of the world. We strolled in the rain along Esplanadi, dipped into the marimekko store; I did a little shopping at a shop called miela. Mike went swimming in a huge exercise facility in Helsinki three times. We visited the Helsinki Central Railway Station, the curvaceous wooden Oodi Library, the Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma, and the outdoor part of Amos Rex. We sat for a bit in silence in the Kamppi Chapel and then witnessed a wedding party leaving Helsinki Cathedral, chirping off in a gold Volkswagen Beetle. We visited the beautiful University Library Kaisa and, on another day, the Ateneum. We lingered over a two hour Finnish meal at Cella Ravintola. Finally, we walked through a cute historical working neighborhood called Puu-Vallila and then visited another market hall called Hietalahdentori, where we ate a Filipino lunch. We prided ourselves on figuring out and using extensively Helsinki’s amazing public transportation system including trams, buses, trains, and ferries.
We took a day trip to |*Porvoo*|, an adorable little town with an Old Town area, the Porvoo Cathedral, hearty Finnish food at Hanna Maria, and cool photogenic red barns along the river.
Five nights in Tampere, Finland
August 25 – August 30: We made our way by VR train from Helsinki to Tampere, less than a 2-hour journey. In Tampere, we stayed in a “Holiday House” in Pispala, a neighborhood full of wooden houses and narrow alleys. We visited Tampere Market Hall where we ate Finnish food at Kahvila Aniitta, then strolled through the Central Square where we saw the impressive Tampere City Hall, Tampere Theatre, and the Tampere Old Church. In the Finlayson area we learned about Tampere’s history as an industrial town and its substantial influence on the labor rights movement. The rapids that connect the two lakes, the Tammerkoski, greatly contributed to the growth and industry of the town, making it known as the “Manchester of the North.” We learned about a successful merchant, Kalle Kaihari, who promoted projects in Tampere and believed in giving back to the community, a rare thing for people of wealth these days. We returned to Tampere Market Hall to stock up on food for our stay.
We ate fried doughnuts and took an elevator to the top of Pyynikki Observation Tower to see views of Tampere, ate lunch at 4 Vuodenaikaa (Four Seasons) in Tampere Market Hall, and then visited the Moomin Museum where we learned about Tove Jansson’s famous Moomins and their long saga. Lastly, we visited Tampere Cathedral with its gorgeous interior artworks.
We rented a Volkswagen T-Roc from Sixt for two days and took two road trips into the Lakeland area: First, we drove to the north to see |*Ruovesi and its church, Helventinjärvi National Park, and Virrat and its church*|. On the second day, we drove south to |*Hämeenlinna*| to see Iittala Village, home to a glass factory and artisan shops, and then to Häme Castle, one of three large medieval castles in Finland. At both places we enjoyed colorful and exuberant art exhibits: naive art and carnivalesque art, respectively. To top off our second road trip, after returning our rental car to Sixt, we enjoyed delectable tapas at Inez Tapas Bar in town.
Arrival in Vaasa, Finland
August 30 – 31 (we stay until September 4): We took a 2 hr 15 minute VR train from Tampere to Vaasa on Sunday the 30th. When we arrived we went out to eat a Thai buffet that was cold and mediocre. We found out Monday morning, of the three museums we wanted to visit, two were closed until Wednesday and one seemed closed for the season or permanently. We headed to the downtown area and Mike found a men’s store in a mall where he bought two pairs of pants and one flannel shirt.
We walked to the Vaasa Market Hall which seemed on the edge of becoming defunct, bought some Arctic char and some pike perch, and then bought a few more groceries from City Center. Then we stopped for lunch at Pharmacy House Café and Bakery and came home to relax. It was rather rainy and cloudy, so we were happy to have a day to do nothing but read, use the sauna, make dinner in, and watch the movie The Summer Book, based on a book by artist and author Tove Jansson.
Family Happenings
While traveling, we love getting photos of the family. It seems Adam is recovering nicely from his health scare. He is now back to walking fully on his left leg, chopping wood, lifting little Mikey, and swimming three times a week at Ojo de Agua. Cristy was once again queen of her class. The family sold all the pigs they wanted to sell and Adam is still busy working on various projects on his farm.
Alex and family went to Virginia Beach for a weekend and on the way, they stopped in Richmond to visit Aunt Sarah. Sarah had begged me to bring a cheap butter dish back from Costa Rica, which I did. Sarah got Allie a kitchen set that included a butter dish, and the two of them posed with their butter dishes. Allie had a great time visiting with her auntie and she loved Virginia Beach. The family also went out to Great Falls for an afternoon. She also started back at day care and she is loving playing with the other kids. She has always been fascinated by heavy construction equipment so she was thrilled when she got to “touch the trucks” at day care. She has a habit of playing for long periods while holding a banana or some kind of food in one hand; we thought it was hilarious to see her holding an ice cream while climbing on the trucks! 🙂 Just like her grandmother (she calls me “Birdie”), she loves to sort things by color. We got a call from the family one day while we were walking around in Tampere. Alex said Allie wanted to talk to Birdie! I love that and miss that little munchkin.
My Summer BINGO card
This month, I completed a few more things on my Summer BINGO card. We didn’t get many of the things I hoped to get done while home in Virginia, as Mike was in Managua, Nicaragua for almost half the month, and I was too worried and upset about Adam to feel like doing much of anything.
- Finalize sale of Mitsubishi with Suzanne in Costa Rica (Received final payment and she closed on August 3 when she arrived in Costa Rica) ✓
- Copenhagen & Aarhus, Denmark ✓
- Amusement park – Tivoli ✓
- Finland: Helsinki ✓, Tampere ✓, Vaasa (arrival) ✓
- Bikerides in Copenhagen & Aarhus 111 ✓
- Day outings (too many to count) ✓
- Farmers markets ✓
- Enjoy weather at an outdoor restaurant (Porvoo) ✓
- Read 3 books: The Song Reader by Lisa Tucker, The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters, Lucy by the Sea (Amgash #4) by Elizabeth Strout ✓
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