Leppävaara is located in Espoo and is easily accessible by both bus and train from Helsinki. Adjacent to the rail and bus station is a modern, attractive shopping centre called Sello which has a wide selection of shops and cafes. As it was such a warm, sunny day we decided to take a stroll over to the Sports Park which is accessed through the rail tunnel. Our route took us past a small shopping plaza and some modern apartment blocks before taking a left turn to enter the park.
Leppävaara has a large swimming complex including two outdoor pools. One has water slides which were proving extremely popular on such a warm day whilst the other is for more serious swimmers and has ten lanes. There is also a cafe and plenty space to sit and sunbathe.
Continuing, we noticed an Angry Birds children’s playground, football pitches and a fully equipped athletics stadium which seemed to be such a good resource to have locally.
Climbing a hill, we followed a path through the forest which led us to Treetop Adventure Huippu.
We didn’t know this was here but it was fun to watch both adults and children moving from tree to tree using zip wires, balancing on nets, crossing swaying bridges and walking on tight ropes up to 60 feet high. I’ve heard of similar activity centres in the U.K. but I hadn’t seen one before.
We then retraced our steps back to Leppävaara bus station from where we took a bus the short distance to Jorvi to visit Glims Farmstead Museum. The museum is located just across the road from Espoo’s largest hospital where the bus terminates.
The Glims farmstead situated in the Karvasmäki village dates back to the 16th century. The current eleven museum buildings date back to the 19th century and are still standing in their original places forming an authentic farm yard. A tour was about to start when we arrived but as it was going to be in Finnish we decided to explore by ourselves which wasn’t a problem. There were several varieties of sheep and some native breeds of hen within the farm and children were enjoying looking at them and petting. One of the buildings was the former dairy which demonstrated how cows were milked by hand and there was a stone vat for keeping the milk cold, so very different from the high tech methods used in farming today.
In another building there was a display of old farm machinery, sleighs and carts with large wooden wheels whilst next door a demonstration of hand weaving was taking place. I really enjoyed my visit, it’s especially nice on a warm summer’s day when you can enjoy being outdoors in the beautiful countryside.
Before leaving, we enjoyed drinks in the attractive small cafe and chatted with some other visitors who were also there for the first time. It costs €4 to visit the museum but if you can arrange your visit for a Wednesday then there is no charge. Walking back to the hospital we just timed it right as a bus was ready for us to board back to Helsinki. If you would like more information on Glims Farmstead you can find it here.
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Looks like this area is fully engaged in physical fitness and outdoor living. I love the fence style of the sheep pasture. Thanks for sharing Marion. Allan
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I liked that style of fence too Allan. Finns have a short summer but they make the most of their long days and good weather. Thanks for taking an interest, Marion
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Thanks for the vicarious experience of Finland, hope to go there sometime!
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Thank you for taking the time to read my posts. I do hope that you have an opportunity to visit lovely Finland sometime soon.
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The museum looks great – so reasonably priced too. Our son would love that treeptop adventure place, he is desperate to try this out, we have a couple near us but haven’t managed to do it yet. Looks like you had some gorgeous weather Marion.
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Glims museum was really interesting Joy and It was fun to watch people making their way between trees in the Treetop (Go Ape style) place. My sons would probably enjoy it but it’s not for me, only to admire! The weather was a bit mixed this summer in Finland, not as good as usual, but we had some good days. M.
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Awesome pics! Looks so peaceful.
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Thank you Ingrid, it is very tranquil.
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Beautifully done ! Really enjoyed this post..keep traveling 🙂
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Thank you for your kind words Miss Jose
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I too enjoy your information. I live in the America but have spent the last two months in Spain. My blog is usually stories and recipes that go along with it but lately I’ve been sharing my travels as well. Happy Tuesday!
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Thank you for your much appreciated comments Leanna. I’ll enjoy taking a look at your blog too.
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That will be fun to share our blogs! Thanks!
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Looks like a really fun and interesting trip 🙂
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Thank you, it was a really lovely day out.
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I love reading about your travels Marion. Always lovely posts.
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Thanks Sue, your inspiring thoughts give me confidence to continue writing. M.
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I love your photos (and stories) from Finland! They just make my country seem so warm and idyllic 🙂
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Gosh, it’s so nice to get a seal of approval from my Finnish readers! Thank you for your continued support of my blog and your much appreciated comments.
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Loved the sleds in the last picture. I wonder at what point in history people came up with that novel idea of having a beast of burden pull them around between villages in a sled. Quite different to the sled we used to pull behind a tractor on the farms my father bought and sold as a way of making money. He’d buy a run down property, fence it, put in crops, build a herd and sell. More money in that than trying to run a farm. lol
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How interesting to read about your father’s
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farming. Looking back people did some very enterprising things to make money. I loved the old sleds too!
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The sledges here are for Sunday drive to church, mainly or for travelling lightly to do some shopping or paying taxes, few times in winter. There was only few roads so in Finland usually churches and village centers were along the waterways, in summer you rowed to church and in winter you used horse drawn sledges. When the ice didn’t carry a man, and you couldn’t go with boat, you simply didn’t go there. Funerals, babtism etc. were left for later.
The work sledges were quite different, They were shorter and the second sledge had was cross connected to first sledge rails. Thus it steered itself nicely behind the first sledge. Logs were transported on doble sledges and I remember as a small boy driving horse sledges with logs on. At every steep downhill I was afraid that the horse would stumble, because there was no means to stop the load. It was end of the 50’s and I was some 4-5 years old. I was also afraid of the wolves, but there weren’t any of those in the forrest then.
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Thank you Eriki for your vivid description of the sledges, it is so interesting to read the history of them. Thank you for taking an interest in my posts.
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We used to pull them behind a tractor on our rural property which had three hills. Wooden sledges with steel runners were safer on the hills than wheeled trailers. I used to like riding on them behind the tractor.
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Good morning Marion.
Now You presented place in which we have not visited. We love museums and this was interesting in my eyes. Thank You. Of course we know Leppävaara, but to us it a place just to pass by.
Very enjoyable reading and wonderful photos.
Happy Thuesday!
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Thank you Matti for your kind words. It’s good to receive your positive thoughts as, being Finnish, I feel it’s receives an extra seal of approval. Best Wishes, M.
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I love how it seems like a photo album to me. A perfect example of what a blog is. https://goo.gl/HK6iXX
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Thank you for your kind words. I do love to look back on my posts to remind me of where I’ve been and what I’ve done and it’s so nice that you and many others enjoy the blog too!
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If you don’t mind,can you tell me if travelling is your full time job?
How do you do that?
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Hello, travelling isn’t my full time job at all as I love my home. As I post every four days it appears that I am away all the time. Thank you for taking the time to read my posts, it’s much appreciated.
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😊
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