I couldn’t resist going to have a look at the Lufthansa Airbus A380 visiting Helsinki-Vantaa. An impressive sight, never seen one start before. Took a few pics of other planes at the same time.

The A380 before takeoff. Didn’t catch it getting airborne on film

Crowd waiting for the A380 to take off

I guess this can be a MD80. Not part of the Finnair fleet anyway.

I like the lights in the windows in this one

The afternoon flight for Lisbon

A340 is one of Finnair’s biggest planes

A Finnair B757 getting airborne

Located about 20 kilometers north of Helsinki, surrounded by thirty years growth of trees and bushes, is a motor stadium that saw its glory days in the end of the sixties and beginning of seventies. It hosted many Formula two races, with legends like Graham Hill, Jack Brabham and Jochen Rindt.

The stadium was abandoned in 1978, and no new development has taken place in the area. The track profile can still clearly be seen in satellite pictures: Google Maps satellite view of Keimola.

Visiting the place gives a cheap World without experience. No amount of asphalt and concrete is enough to keep nature from reconquering the area.

The control tower in Keimola has lost its surfacing

The advertisment for Texaco motor oil is still faintly visible

The entrance is blocked, but some visitors climb a home-made ladder behind the tower

On the other side of the tower, the Texaco ad is more visible

The main straight slowly taken over by nature

Not a racetrack era wreck, a burned out car fits the surroundings

When cycling around in Helsinki, this tram, that seems to be stripped for spare parts, caught my attention.

The nice thing about the Internet is the ease to find additional information about nearly anything. This tram was built in 1956 and has the previous few years been used for charter rides. It was pulled from service in October last year. Now looking at the empty seats and the signs from twenty years ago telling about the FIM 110 penalty fare for riding without a ticket (the fare for that this day is 80 euros, equaling nearly FIM 500) makes you think how time flies by.

There are still a few of these fifties trams in museum and charter traffic, hope this gives some good spares for them. It has done a long service, probably I rode it as a kid too.

There is a picture of the tram in happier days at http://www.raitio.org/ratikat/helsinki/hkimuseo/muskuvat/hkl332_505.jpg

I took the pics with my Nokia E75 mobile phone. I think the quality is ok for being mobile pics.

So this year we got a Real winter here in Finland. The temperatures have been between -10 and -20 c for most of the last month. That has given nice white landscapes, but on the other hand a bit limited the outdoor activities.

Last weekend we however got ourselves on the train to Imatra, that is situated a few kilometers from the border to Russia and enjoyed a weekend at the classical Valtionhotelli and it’s new neigbouring spa. Below a few pictures from winter in Helsinki and Imatra.

Ellie and my Father on a winter walk around Kaivopuisto, Helsinki

The sun setting outside of Kaivopuisto, Helsinki

Icy sea mist around Harmaja outside of Helsinki

Ice on the windows of Café Ursula, Helsinki

Ellie posing by river Vuoksi, Imatra

Winter wonderland in Imatra

The dam by the legendary Imatra rapids

Our Hotel, the beautiful Imatran Valtionhotelli

Finland’s biggest hydroelectric plant

Ellie by one of the old viewing shelters at Imatra rapids

Me having dinner at the restaurant in Valtionhotelli

View from our balcony at Valtionhotelli

Relaxing in the lounge at Valtionhotelli

The castlelike Valtionhotelli built in 1903

Wearing a cap does good for the hairstyle.

A wonderful warm summer night with sunshine and one of my favourite bands performing.

Very difficult conditions to get any good pictures, especially since I didn’t dare to take the big camera. Enjoyed it a lot, Mike Patton rules.

Ellie and me

The best I could do in the light conditions…

…of course the screen was better to capture Patton

A satisfied audience

It really is worth seeing these guys

In 2001 I started to keep track of my cycling kilometers in Excel, and today marked the first lap around the globe (the equatorial circumference is 40075 km).

It took 1464 days with cycling, averaging 27.4 km a day, to finish the first lap. The yearly average is around 5000, which is all I can do with work and social life taking it’s share and the Finnish winter months keeping me off the bike a few months every year.

If every kilometer on the bike burns 20 calories, it has been about 150 kg of chocolate burned away.

Hope next lap is faster.

This weekend was a good example of how much fun it is possible to have in only 2.5 days time.

On Friday we had a great Indian dinner at Asna’s place, on Saturday the Zoological Museum with my father and Jarkko’s birthday dinner at Raku Ya. Sunday crowned it all with smoke sauna and ice swimming in Kuusijärvi with CS friends. Here’s some photographic evidence.

Indian dinner with Asna

Ellie and my father at the Zoological Museum

Jarkko and Ellie at Raku Ya

Drinks with Jonna, Jarkko & friends at Groteski

Ellie starting the swimming season

Martin starting the swimming season

Ellie and Martin

Kuusijärvi was icy and cold

Asna and Ellie

CS people cooling off at the smoke sauna porch

Ellie and me at the barbeque

We did other things than partying during this visit to Oslo too. A nice winter walk from Frognerseteren via Ullevålseter to Sognsvann was one of the highlights. Pics, pics and more pics.

The Holmenkollen ski jump is missing! Someone stole it!

View from Frognerseteren

Frognerseteren itself

Ellie eating snow

Walking from Frognerseteren to Ullevålseter

Moose and human. Which way?

Pony and human, which way?

Sunset close to Sognsvann

Me and Myriam!

Ricard testing my camera’s smile detector

Aker Brygge

Boat by Aker Brygge

Bamse Brakar coming in at Aker Brygge

Lucy and Ellie

So, for the second year in a row it was time for a CouchSurfing new year at Aarvoll in Oslo. The party was, if possible, even better than the previous year, much thanks to the fantastic arrangements. Here’s the best captures from my camera.

Ellie joining the party at Aarvoll

Wendy!

Brie, Chloe and Orescent

Latino power with Livonet, Ellie and Lucy!

Midnight champagne with Oyvind

Ellie at midnight

Martin seeing love all around

Ricard, Lucy, me and Ellie

Ellie working as bartender

Vibeke and me working in the bar

Me and Brie. This is how I look if I let the hair grow?

Me working nightshift at the bar

Ellie doing the Martini man commercial

Ever-shinging Marianne and me

Out to eat at Sahara with Lucy and Ricard

Love glasses again! Narsi in the background

Before Christmas we went for a walk in Nuuksio with Mikie, Ria and the dogs. It is one of the best times to see the national park with quite a few people out walking and the wonders of the arriving winter.

Mikie, Ria and Me in Nuuksio

Ellie crossing some water

First ice on the lakes

Me and Mikie through the night photo program

Winter beauty

Ice building up

Luthor and Lexi

Christmas sunset in Herttoniemi