Naantali Na Na Na

As I mentioned before, I did a bit of exploring in Naantali and Turku with the Zingg family this week. As expected, we went to Moominworld. Well, what do I have to say about Moominworld?

..........

I like the pasta.

Yup. That's about it. As an American when I was told "It's Disneyland for the Finns!" I imagined Disneyland, only instead of churros and rainbow lollipops there would be korvepussti and weird, Finnish licorice. And instead of Mickey Mouse I would see the strange, white hippos. Which, by the way, are the Moomins. Just to give you an idea...



That is a Moomin. Looks like a hippo, no? Anyway, I was pretty wrong on all accounts. Moominworld was nothing like Disneyland. For example, when reaching the end of the very dangerous, narrow sidewalk in which thousands of people are walking, there is a woman who simply says, "This is the end of Moominworld." No shops or castle. No signs or indicators. Just the end. To be fair, I think I couldn't appreciate the "quaintness" as I didn't grow up with the Moomins like all Finns have. If I knew the stories, it would have been a different experience entirely... Maybe.

But, I am pleased to say that I absolutely loved the old town of Naantali. I also saw a bit of Turku, but that did absolutely nothing for me, so let's just focus on Naantali. There's not much to say except that it is a beautiful, charming, and very pleasant place.















While exploring on my own a bit I came across a neat lookout on the hill with gorgeous views of the harbor. It was a bit windy up there, but I managed to get decent shots of the surrounding and myself. Oh, I'd also like to mention that it's about 10:30 PM in these shots and the sun was still shining away.










I returned to the peculiar Antonius Cafe (pictured above) that evening and enjoyed a donut and drink while reading The Elephant Keeper, a book I highly recommend. The strange cafe had crotchety service and decor that reminded me of stuffy, old cat ladies, but I loved it all the same.



Naantali, I will visit you again someday! Moominworld, I can't make any promises.