Part 2: Mum & Dad; Koli - Kajaani

Unfortunately, we didn't have much luck with the weather. Thursday was supposed to rain all day, so we decided to go to the national park on Wednesday. It didn't rain there, but it was quite foggy. That had its own charm and gave it a bit of a mystical atmosphere; I kept saying that it would have been a great setting for a fairy tale movie 👻

It was only a bit of a shame for the normally best viewpoint of the park ('Ukko-Koli'), where you could have enjoyed a similar view in good weather.

For us, it looked more like this, we could just barely see the beginning of the water. However, we couldn't imagine how far the view would normally go.

At the end of our hiking route, I even ran up to the viewpoint again, hoping to see a bit further. But there we couldn't even see the beginning of the lake - so we were lucky after all.

But even so, I really enjoyed the time in the park. Especially the many different paths, terrains, and surroundings (uphill, downhill, stone and wooden stairs, meadows, forest paths, rocks, mud, mountains, ...) were unique and I had fun hiking. The route was only about half as long as the one in Ruka, but it was enough (especially for Mom and Dad, who are not really hiking enthusiasts, hehe 😋. And I'm not that much either.)

Here are some impressions:

From the national park, we drove to our Airbnb, which was not far away but located in the middle of Finnish nature. The owner's wife and daughter greeted us very kindly and had already lit the fireplace and some candles - so cozy! 😊

Finally, we went back to Kajaani, where we visited the castle ruins, among other things - Mom had fun.

We also went for coffee a few times and discovered that you can play the crazy labyrinth there, which we did twice 😅 (Dad had a lot of fun, as you can see.)

Friday morning we went to the swimming pool to relax and in the afternoon we went to a nearby viewpoint, which had an amazing view.

And on Thursday evening, as we were on the way to my apartment, the sun was just setting and we spontaneously decided to drive up the mountain behind my campus. It was definitely the right decision, the sunset was breathtaking!

I think the pictures show, maybe a bit sentimentally, how beautiful our week together was. Mom and Dad with me in Kajaani, what incredible memories! 🇫🇮

It means so much to me that you spent part of this unforgettable time here in Finland with me. Thank you! ♡ I miss you so much.