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The history of the granite cathedral dates back to the late 13th century. It was rebuilt or repaired several times. During WWII it was even hit by a bomb, but luckily not damaged. Inside the church a nice wooden tall ship can be seen.
I found it quite interesting that the belfry isn't attached to the church building. Both my local VT guide and the young people at the church door weren't able to tell me a reason for this.
Mika Hakkinen (Formula 1) and Jari Kurri (ice hockey) got married to their girlfriends in Porvoo Cathedral. Leave a Comment
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The Cathedral dates back to years 1200-1300 and the Old King's Road from Stockholm to St Petersburg goes by it. It is located on a hill and can be seen from far. Very impressive and a kind of a landmark of Porvoo.
Ex-Formula 1 driver Mika HÄKKINEN was married to Ms Erja HONKANEN (now divorsed) in this church, as well as ex-NHL hockey player Jari KURRI. This is a very popular church to get married in. Few years back there were a couple which came all the way from Japan, just to get married in the very same church that Mika HÄKKINEN was married in.
The shingle roof of the Cathedral of Porvoo burned at night on 28th of May 2006. The fire was lid by someone, so it was no accident. Yet it is not sure if the Cathedral will be open during the summer. They will begin rebuilding the Cathedral as soon as possible but the rebuilding work will last at least the coming two years, they say.
The Cathedral has been rebuild and it is now open to public again. Leave a Comment Address: KirkkokatuDirections: In the old town. You can't miss it as it can be seen from every place.
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The Old Town Hall of Porvoo was inaugurated in 1764. The Rococo building is dominated by a small clock tower and it was used by the city authorities until the late 19th century. Later it became the Historical Museum where the history and culture of the Porvoo district are presented. Leave a Comment Directions: The Old Town Hall is located at the Old Town Hall Square (Vanha Raatihuoneentori) in the heart of Porvoo's Old Town.Website: http://www.porvoonmuseo.fi/
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The Old Bridge offers magnificient views of Porvoo's Old Quarter and the riverbank. It is a perfect location for taking photos of the yellow and red wooden houses at the Porvoo river in the foreground and the Old Town Hall in the background. Leave a Comment Directions: The Old Bridge spans the river Porvoo near the street Jokikatu at the northern end of the Old Town.
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The first sight we saw coming into Porvoo was a bridge crossing the calm and beautiful Porvoo river. Tied up at the water's edge was a neat cadre of little boats. The river exemplified what I came to associate with all that I saw in Finland which was a peaceful and most idyllic style of life. There was no hustle or bustle, just simple beauty. Boating, fishing, sight-seeing, and canoeing are some of the favorite summertime activities here. Some of the larger sightseeing boats tour Porvoo harborfront but also venture as far as the Finnish archipelago islands and stop for picnics, offer lunch on board or go for late night cruises! Had we been able to stay in Porvoo longer, the late evening "Bonfire" cruises would have been particularly enticing to me!
If you plan on taking a bonfire cruise, expect to pay in the range of 30 Euros for adults and 10 Euros for children which includes coffee and a snack. Daytime cruises are priced lower. Boats generally will have cover for that unexpected shower and top deck viewing!
Look for the M/S J.L. Runeberg, the Royal Line's M/S King or M/S Borga, Sandra or Fredrika.
www.jlruneberg.fi
www.royalline.fi
www.saaristolinja.com Leave a Comment Directions: Several companies offer cruises from the Porvoo harborfront near Agatan and Lukiokatu Streets
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The imposing salmon-colored building up the hill on Valikatu Street was once the Old Town Hall (1764) but is now the home of the Porvoo Museum. Actually, the Porvoo Museum is composed of two museums and two buildings: the Historical Museum and the Edelfelt-Vallgren Art Museum. The mission of the Historical Museum is to showcase the history and culture of Porvoo and the region through its collection of furniture, textiles, local artists' work, glass, toys and the like which is shown throughout the first floor. The second floor is dedicated to the what life was like in Porvoo during Medieval times.
The Edlfelt-Vallgren Museum concentrates soley on the work of two local artists who gained international recognition: Albert Edelfelt (1855-1905), and Ville Vallgren (1855-1940). Edelfelt was a painter and it was through the bequest of his two sisters upon which the museum's collection was ensured. The work of Vallgren, the sculptor, was donated during his lifetime by the sculptor himself.
The work of other noted local artists is also on display. The museum is also responsible for the J.L. Runeberg home & contents.
One ticket gains you admission to both museum exhibits which is made even easier to visit by the facts that the 2 museums keep the same schedule: May - August, Monday - Saturday hours are 10 am to 4pm; Sundays 11 -4. September - April open only Wednesday through Sunday 12 -4.
The price for admission covering both museums is 5 Euros for adults; 1 Euro for children 7 - 17 yrs old; groups of 15 or more is 4 Euros. *** The museum will be closed for renovations from September, 2005 to ??????*** Leave a Comment Directions: The history museum is at Vanha Raatihuoneetkatu while the art museumis at Valikatu 11.Website: %crwww.porvoonmuseo.fi
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Rising above the tree line is the unmistakable peak of Tuomiokirkko (as shown in the accompanying picture) which is known simply as the Cathedral. Dedicated to St. Mary, the stone cathedral is a combination of the original 13th century building and the many reconstructive periods it witnessed. The current appearance, with its steeply pitched roof and reddish-brown decoration is a result of renovations of the 18th century. (This type of exterior decoration seems to be particularly distinctive to Finland from what I've seen and makes the church more identifiable as being Finland in my observations.) The oldest part of the cathedral still standing today is the belfrey which is said to be from Medieval times.
For such a simple exterior, the interior is quite grand. The ornate pulpit is said to be from the mid-18th century, and wall paintings from the 15th century. Ceilings are vaulted, a detailed ship model is suspended above, and a large pipe organ fills the rear balcony. Quite a lovely church and worth the time to see it!!
Services are scheduled on Sundays and holidays at 10am spoken in Finnish and at noon spoken in Swedish. Admission to the cathedral is free and is generally open from May to September, Mondays - Fridays from 10am - to 6pm. Hours on Saturdays and Sundays are limited. Leave a Comment Address: Kirkkotori 1, PorvooDirections: Cross the bridge at Jokikatu and up the hill. The Cathedral is at the concourse of many streets including Valikatu. The Cathedral's steeply pitched roof can be seen from quite a distance.
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Porvoo has a new, tiny Little Chocolate factory and shop in the old town. It is really tiny shop, next to the Cathedral and the Hotel Onni. I was there the opening day (well, there is a surprise to everyone! ;-) ) but the shop was so crowded and so I did not buy anything.
But if you are around the Cathedral area, pop in to the Chocolate Factory as they make all the chocolates themselves there.
Truffles, brownies, chocolate glazed cakes. Leave a Comment
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I read that Porvoo is considered the second oldest town in Finland, being chartered in 1346.
And as you walk through the narrow streets beside the red houses/wooden storages by the riverbank, you can't resist taking prictures! The place is very picturesque and its amazing that this place has retained it's medieval feel despite the cars that pass by on the street beside it.
The red-coloured wooden storage buildings on the riverside are a proposed UNESCO world heritage site. Leave a Comment
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Just near where our tour buses were parked, and near a little riverside park, was this World War II era howitzer, carefully preserved and exhibited as a memorial. The enscription on the plaque, probably in both Finnish and Swedish, unfortunately gave us no information on the gun except the dates of 1941-1944. It must have been used in the defense of Porvoo I would assume but I could not find any other information about it. It obviously means alot to the town based on how nicely the memorial is built and the landscape and flowers around it are kept. Leave a Comment Directions: Near the bridge and park or Nasinmaki (Nasebacken) side of the river.
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on September 13, 2005
on February 15, 2009
on May 22, 2006
on February 11, 2009
