Looking back a couple of weeks to my trip to Paris - oh there was so much to see and enjoy. Artists on streets, fabulous galleries - even some metro station entrances were such cool creations of art. Beauty was everywhere for us to admire and we certainly did! 

Ever got late to your destination and thought you missed a day of sightseeing and exploring the city? Think again, as some places actually might have amazing views at nighttime. One of those places definitely is Alcalá de Henares, a historic Spanish town of 200 000 people in the outskirts of Madrid.

It is so special that the old town as a whole has been designated as an Unesco World Heritage site. And at night time you get to enjoy a more romantic tour of cobbled streets, carefully restored churches (which there are so many), majestic university buildings, even peek into nicely lit restaurants (both historic with hundreds of years of history and trendy modern ones) - all that while enjoying the well-positioned lighting accentuating towers, old decorative doors, fountains and more... 

Alcalá is known as the birthplace for the famous writer Miguel de Cervantes and Catherine of Aragon, who became the wife King Henry VIII of England (just think of the movie The other Boleyn, as Anne Boleyn was the mistress of Henry the VIII) to name a couple. If you look carefully you can also see other famous inhabitants - residing on top of the bell towers and churches. Those are the famous white storks of Alcalá (which are now protected and thus increasing in count thankfully).

An hour and a half gives you a lovely tour of the old town, but to experience the city well I'd recommend coming first at daytime so you can visit the churches, old university buildings and museums, and then adding on top the totally different night tour. And since we are in Spain some tapas-hopping from one places to another is always a great experience. But where to stay then? The natural answer would be inside the old town of course. Spanish government owns a number of old, beautifully restored hotels called Paradores around the county, and there is one in Alcalá also: the Parador of Alcalá de Henares - Convent of Santo Tomás and Hosteria del Estudiante. So next time in Madrid think of adding a day in Alcalá, and maybe another one to the mountains to tour some of the palaces there while enjoying a cooler climate and amazing views down to surrounding valleys.

[And if you are interested in seeing many of the same sights of Alcalá at daytime visit my Instagram account at: http://instagram.com/houseofanais ]

Oh la la - French people know the art of dressing chic, the streets are lined with beautiful historic buildings with matching shades - and even the gardens of Paris are uber-chic and colour-coordinated. A little stroll in Tuilliers towards Louvre reveals that everything in Paris is just so well planned and beautiful. The mind truly rests with the beauty of the surroundings...Paris toujours is how I feel today!

Most people dream about adventures, but never go on making them reality. My friend Katja from Skimbaco Lifestyle follows her motto of living life to the fullest every day in her life. Last year she and her family moved to Sweden for two years and they have embraced the Northern life with lots of gusto - having also spared some time to visit this year only Italy, France, Iceland and Finland to name a few places. And tomorrow I will get to embark on the adventure of a lifetime with her in France. I am so excited! 

I love French wines, French food, old castles, sightseeing - and of course Paris. I like to explore the "unknown" to me. But it didn't even know that one could experience it all and more all at once - on board of a river barge! We'll have our rendez-vous in Paris (and we haven't actually seen each other for over 20 years, which is when we moved out of out little Western Finnish town) and embark on this journey in Burgundy on board of all-inclusive L'Impressioniste. Oh, I've been watching the videos of GoBarging, reading all about their wine tastings, cheese selections, touring Dijon and exploring the ancient abbey. 

I admit that in my 20s that luxurious wine tasting and barging trip probably might not have qualified into my top 10 adventure list, as in my first Parisian trip I was more interested in finding the grave of Jim Hendrix in the pere Lachaise cemetery and flea markets than the perfect coffee shop or castle to visit. But those things have been ticked on my bucket list and new cool things have been added to my endless list... 

So here I am, sitting at home looking at the spring rain in English countryside, sipping my red wine accompanied by some delicious savories from Spain as I just returned from Madrid last night. I am so ready to go France and the only thing I wish for now is sunny weathe,r as most of the Europe has been suffering from cold and rainy days this year.

Oh, and I am ticking something else from my bucket list too - I am travelling this time with the Eurostar train, and will be crossing the English Channel underneath the sea. Way wicked, I think. And who knows, maybe Moulin Rouge has some spare tickets left and I get to cross a third item from by bucket list - the most famous cabaret in the world.

L'aventure française - here we come (and yes my Californian and European wine and culinary enthusiast friends, I will tell you all about it when I am back)!

{images by GoBarging}

Our kids asked today if they could have a horse. Of course, I said. Something like the ones you were riding last summer...the wooden ones! Thinking of those horses made me remember the old kiddie rhyme they used to love: ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross...oh sweet memories! 

The great thing about digital photos is that it is so easy to take a look at them while on a computer.Today I decided to look at an album from last summer's visit in Finland - and came across this cute little buildings. It is quite so simple, yet has pretty little details and such a romantic feel. I'd love to have a hideaway like this is my garden!  

Finally, here's the second part of the memoirs from our visit to the autonomous islands of Åland of Finland (see part 1 here) - the historic bits: the Kastelholm castle, Jan Karlsgården outdoor village museum and the ruins of Bomarsund fortress. All definitely worth visiting - and do take a picnic to go as every one of these places have great spots (and even tables) for enjoying good food and great views!

Kastelholm castle dates back to middle age 

The castle has been partially restored. Apparently for cost reasons many castles had only wooden structures inside, so they were easily burned down  

Top floor of the castle 

Castle courtyard. People dressed in old costume tell stories of days gone by 

Lined walkway from the castle to the hill-top museums 

A visit to the open-air village-like setting of  Jan Karlsgården museum is a must and the location is very scenic, and conveniently right next to the Kastelholm castle 

Reminder of the midsummer - still looking nice despite the flowers being dry and wilted 

Rustic countryside views 

Good old-fashioned see-saw in well appreciated 

Who says that horses need to be alive to be fun to play with... wooden ones are lots of fun too!

Passing on the childhood skill of walking on stilts to Miss A. 

Exploring Bomarsund ruins. If this fortress were in place I recall it would be one of the largest in Europe

Walk along the Bomarsund ruins, and you'll find a little sandy beach toy our left... 

The Russian fortress of Bomarsund was strategically placed at the tip of an island (now of course there is a bridge)

The sights of capital Marienhamn 

Ship-building craftsmanship is well-maintained in these islands 

Adorable finds from a little artisan's shop

The year is coming to an end and there are still so many great memories to share. This time we are stepping back in time to July when we visited the autonomous islands of Åland. We stayed in the capital, Marienhamn, on our way back to Finland from Sweden. Åland is a great place for relaxation, biking from one island to another, bird watching, and a little bit of history too.

These islands are the perfect pit-stop for you if you like nature, sea, birds, biking, and a bit of isolation too (as there are less than thirty thousand inhabitants altogether in all these island). The only right way to get there is of course by a boat, so you get to see numerous islands and birds on your way. We loved the islands, and were lucky to have a good weather too. The added bonus on top of the cleanliness is that it feels very safe there - and one can let kids explore more freely than one normally would... 

So here is out top list of things to do and see in Åland:
1. island hopping by a bicycle 
2. visit medieval castle of Kastelholm
3. enjoy the slow country life of old days in the Jan Karlsgården village buildings 
4. visit the museum ship Pommern 
5. explore the fortress ruins of Bomarsund and visit the little sandy beach next to the ruins 
6. stop and explore the little handicraft shops and local cafes that you come across 
7. sit down with a picnic and enjoy the blue sea and clean nature
8. walk around the leafy streets of the capital Marienhamn and admire how large cruise ship manage to turn around in the little port

...and if you are looking for a great meal (not local food though) try the Texas Longhorn in Marienhamn. Nice interior and oh-so-good food!

Enjoy the beautiful scenery of beaches, biking around, exploring little shops and cafes in Åland!

Intersting artisan shop in a little country lane 

Stop for delicious treats in countryside cafes 

Cute and rustic country cafe 

When you come to the end of the island, you can either rest and enjoy the views or (in many cases) take a ferry to the next island 

Crossing from one island to another 

Pretty much every house by the shore has its own dock and a boat or two 

Not always so easy to control the kid buggy with a one-gear old-fashioned bicycle!

Typical to islands is the colour scheme of green and blue everywhere 

Cooling feet after a day of biking. There are some really soft sand beaches scattered around 

Quality beaches and depending on the weather the water can be relatively warm too 

Beautiful leafy walkway in capital Marienhamn 

Historic museum ship Pommern 

Marienhamn harbour area has both large cargo ships and old and new wooden boats of various sizes (as well as a nice museum area to visit)

The summer had so much to offer, and here is one of the places we went to on our visit to Sweden's capital Stockholm: the royal palace in Drottningholm- which is also one of Unesco's World Heritage Sites. As  Swedes are very open, the visitors can actually visit part of the palace despite it still being used as a private residence by the royals. The location of the building dating back to 1600s is really picturesque by the water, and the palace is surrounded by magnificent grounds with plenty of water elements scattered around - plus a gorgeous Chinese Pavilion at the other end of the grounds. 

The best way to enjoy the beauty of Stockholm on the way to the palace is by taking one of the frequently travelling boats there - that gives you about an hour each way to enjoy pretty houses and the nature along the way. Upon arrival to Drottningholm we first toured the actual palace, and then had a lovely lunch (a bit pricey perhaps) in the restaurant on the grounds. Then we were off to enjoy walking around the pretty gardens and visiting the Chinese Pavilion for a few hours. 

Drottningholm Palace is located by the water, which gives it even more appeal 

So pretty and French in style

Ready to explore the castle and the expansive grounds 

Not everything is open for public, but one can wander around the buildings and admire the surroundings 

A guard doing his rounds, so funny when he peeks down in such a stiff manner!

Enter the royal gardens...

The views are even prettied on the back side where there are several fountains and landscaped gardens 

Enter the next garden...

This actually is a building, not a tent!

The beautiful Chinese Pavilion, which has Chinese decor on display inside

The Chinese Pavilion has two little side pavilions, one of which is dressed as a dining room for a little royal meal 

Pretty royal planters 

Garden exhibits 

A walk by a lake 

The restaurant on-site serves delicious Swedish food 

Waiting for the boat to arrive 

Enjoying to the max!

The water is clear despite all the boats - this beach we spotted on our way back to the city 

The city outline is a mix of old industrial buildings (turned into homes), cute little cottages and modern houses 

Spotted - pretty historic mansion 

One of my favourite places to visit in the Costa del Azahar region in Spain is the little historic town of Peniscola (yep, I know how English-speaking people are going to pronounce this name,a bit unusual, isn't it...). This year we took about oldest, Miss A. for a visit with us. And did we have a good time!

We targeted late afternoon-early evening so that the weather would be a bit cooler, and more importantly, we would see the fabulous sunset too (having seen few times the famous sunsets in Hawaii I'd rate this a bit better). This city has now spread outside the original historic boundaries of the fortress and castle on the hill, built more than 700 years ago by the knights - but the historic part is definitely the best part of the town. it is full of  charm with super narrow, little stone-covered - and quite steep streets, scattered with tons of little tasty (and still very well-priced) restaurants and shops. Fun, fun and fun. 

Once the sun starts setting down the beach is the place to be to enjoy the views, as well as some sand sculptures that artists have been working on all day long. Shops stay open late at night and there is that holiday buzz going on with music, clubs and street after street filled with outdoor restaurants offering tapas, seafood, and of course sangria. A lot of history and so much fun is all we can say - until the next visit...

I'ma sucker for romantic scenes with palm trees and sea

Old fortress is all around the old cisty 

Old guard towers... 

Lovely little, narrow streets with pretty patterns made out of small stones

Battery ready

Enter the castle 

Pretty little details 

Not for the faint-hearted. the protective walls are pretty low or non-existent

Private gardens of the castle - now also an eagle sanctuary 

Views of the city on one side... 

...and then the other side together with the bell tower

This was a national holiday and there were music performances 

Sunset

Parking is not easy here, not to talk about people who live in the old city - some streets aren't even wide enough for the cars 

Market stalls and more market stalls!

And of course flowers... 

...and then palm trees. The beach had several sand artwork creations to look at

Freeling a bit parisian with these lights and pink clouds

The best way to travel between Finland and Sweden, as well as Finland and Estonia is with a ferry/cruise ship. This is because the nature is amazing and there are literally thousands of islands and birds on the way to look at and admire.

So that is exactly what we did also when we went from Helsinki to Stockholm. There are two major cruise lines: Viking Line and Silja Line and we chose Viking (it's a bit cheaper and also had more availability as I was booking rater late). To get the most out of the trip I recommend an overnight journey, so you get to start fresh in the morning in Stockholm and get to enjoy the sunset and sunrise and enjoy the boat's entertainment.  

These boats are really cheap (if you don't want a cabin at best a ticket can be less than 10 Euros ($10) but even a more luxurious cabin on upper deck and with a window (best when you got kids) will set you back around 250 EUR (around $300). Some of the cabins are under the water line and therefore have no windows, are noisy and very small (bunk beds that fold away) whereas on upper deck you'll have nice views, fridge with some free soft drinks and bubbly and a TV (most of the channels are local though).

The boats used to be known for their excellent buffets meals, but I would just recommend a buffet breakfast (and buying tickets in advance as they are cheaper that way) and having a dinner at one of the restaurants. That is what we did - kids had a kiddie buffet with desserts and we did a fab starter and dessert buffet and a separate main course. So delicious!  

These boats really are made for travelling families, as all the old conference spaces have been transformed into kids play areas, thus having a total of 7-10 play zones in every boat. Since we were there during the Olympic games they had lots of competitions for the kids where everyone wins lots of prices. Be prepared for hours of play time!

My verdict? Definitely worth going. Viking Line is fine, although some of the boats are a bit worn out (but I hear that they are in the process of renewing their fleet). These are not luxury cruisers, but definitely a notch up from the quick ferries travelling to Estonia. This is a fun and enjoyable trip and not too long in terms of duration, so recommended for all! 

Great cabin at the front of the boat. Ready to take off from the center of Helsinki 

The cabin was spacious enough for a family 

The harbour has great views and one gets to witness the amazing skills of boat captains when they turn around their large cruise ships 

So yummy starter buffet with Mediterranean and Nordic fish delicatessen...

...not to talk about the gourmet dessert buffet!

If you are not booking an upper-level cabin do bring your own toiletries, otherwise you'll get these cute and fun products with calming messages

One of the play areas. This was on a boat called Gabriella, we also took Mariella and Isabella since we went from Stockholm to Aland (islands between Finland and Sweden) and from there back to Finland, but this time to the old city of Turku 

At times there are several boats following each other en route, almost like highway congestion!

Spotted a house so absolutely cute - a girl's dream for real as it is made out of sea shells. I mean literally sea shells everywhere, including for sale in the cute little shops housed in the building. I liked it as I am a confessed sea shell spotter!

We spotted this fab-looking house en route to the beach in Spain (in Rillo de Gallo, a village of less than 100 people...) - clearly inspired by the famous Gaudi buildings in Barcelona. So cool I say, and I hope they finish the house one day.

The designer of this house certainly had a lot of imagination, loved curvy shapes and hidden meanings - one can spot a hand, a face and all sorts of images when walking around this house... Love this creativity!

This is beautiful Spain where old meets new - amongst the old stone buildings one finds tons of wind turbines at a pretty setup with sunflower fields. A road like this is a pleasure to drive on!

They say grass is greener on the other side of the fence. Going across the sea from Finland to Sweden it certainly seems that houses were more detailed and prettier and colours were brighter in Sweden. Either way,these house look fantastic everywhere!

Moving on to Åland  - that curious autonomous group of islands between Finland and Sweden, known for its beautiful landscapes made for biking and history of large shipping fleets.

I got zillions of pictures on my laptop and so little time right now, but in short I can reveal an adventure with bicycles, old viking castles, beaches, jellyfish, sunshine and sea - and good food too - in short a place both kids and parents loved!

All those cross flags of Nordic countries - the flag of Åland is the most colourful one

Fun Kastelholm castle and over 600 years of history 

Little wooden buildings 

Island hopping on bicycles and lots of deep blue sea everywhere 

I think only in Sweden you can rent your own floating sauna and go down the sea canals of the capital, Stockholm. Last year I spotted the hi-tech and cool-looking little cultural saunas scattered around the city of Turku in Finland (on and off the river), but this sauna party certainly beats it!

Creative thinking and must be lots of fun on a warm sunny day... 

Angry Birds are everywhere - drinks, candy, toys, clothes - and now there is the Angry Birds land too. Oh, how many times we had to fly with the big birds to the classic tune of the Angry Birds - that certainly was a curious Friday!

The Finland time is up and it's time to wind the clock back one hour and say hello Sweden and their Stockholm. We have been moving around so fast that I haven't been able to keep up with the blog all the time, but I promise there are plenty of posts coming up.

Apprently the Swedish weather hasn't been that great this summer, so we are happy it didn't rain, but the wind blowing from the sea was a bit chilly. Anyway, this city is a haven of pretty old buildings, cool stores, vintage decor and delicious cafes. Feels great to be here and this seems ilke a very child-friendly place! So fresh from the rocking cruise ship we toured the old city (Gamla Stan) and more...

The Finland time is up and it's time to wind the clock back one hour and say hello Sweden and their Stockholm. We have been moving around so fast that I haven't been able to keep up with the blog all the time, but I promise there are plenty of posts coming up.

Apprently the Swedish weather hasn't been that great this summer, so we are happy it didn't rain, but the wind blowing from the sea was a bit chilly. Anyway, this city is a haven of pretty old buildings, cool stores, vintage decor and delicious cafes. Feels great to be here and this seems ilke a very child-friendly place! So fresh from the rocking cruise ship we toured the old city (Gamla Stan) and more...

A grey summer day did not stop us from touring the World Design Capital 2012, Helsinki. But it would definitely have been easier if it were warmer and sunnier (we so wanted to tour the island and visit Suomenlinna Castle ruins, but you don't want to be stuck out there if heavy rain and thunderstorms strike...).

Cute little design shops emerging everywhere, some touristy ones too (Finland has never been too big for touristy thingies but it's good to give the choice of reindeer skins and little mementos). Cafes inside and outside serving great coffee(yes this is the coffee drinking capital of the world also) and fresh buns (do try korvapuusti, a sort of cinnamon roll - especially at Cafe Esplanadi they are just enormous). 

The city centre is relatively small, so one can easily walk around and there is a lot to see to. Here's the mini-tour we did. 

The majestic Orthodox Cathedral 

Some students get to study in fab-looking buildings 

The old part of the city is the prettiest, houses with high ceilings and pretty details

Peeking through the trees...

... is the grand white Lutheran cathedral on the square

Kids like: famous ice breakers (see Youtube videos...) taking a summer break 

The Parliament, a bit of bore but he extension next door is of nice modern design 

Impressive display of old wooden vessels next to cruise-ship port 

No wonder lot of movies used Helsinki when they filmed scenes of Russia, this sort of looks like it with Russian architecture and all 

There are several options for travelling along the waterways, and cute little docks here and there 

One of the islands to discover

Cafe Ursula by the sea, one of our favourites, but note that it's a bit on the pricey side 

Buns and cakes at Cafe Ursula 

We watched this flock of 50+ geese cross the road a few times - every time using the crosswalk. Pretty funny!

Every summer one can bungee jump from this high crane next to Kaivopuisto area - kids loved looking at them jumpers (and non-jumpers who got the jitters and had to be brought down...)

Flowers and sea everywhere... 

All sort of cute vessels in the sea 

There are several restaurants in little islands in front of the city centre 

The city centre has also traditional little wooden houses - red of course 

Some of the cruise ship terminals are right in the city center - here's Viking Line, which we took to Sweden 

Isn't this romantic? I love these leafy, old cobblestone streets lined by detailed, pretty wooden buildings...

This one is from the city of Hämeenlinna in Finland (name literally means the Castle of Häme, a region not far from the capital, Helsinki) and this street leads to the old castle. Oh pretty summertime!

A little cottage by the sea or a lake, that's what Finnish summer is made of. It can be a lovely, albeit a bit primal experience depending if the cottage running water and electricity or not (but be assured, getting wireless Internet and mobile phone coverage is pretty much guaranteed...).

This year hot weather (officially defined as being over the 77F/25c limit) has barely been seen. We were somehwat lucky - there was the biggest thunderstorm and torrential rain I've experienced in the country, but the weather before the storm was pretty amazing - and just perfect for a glass of bubbly (but where were the chocolate-dipped strawberries??).

The mom's heaven was the brunch at a lakeside bakery, afternoon bubbly, BBQ and new interior magazines while cooling the feet in the lake. The kids heaven was hours of water play, picking blueberries, making bark boats and fishing.  

Key ingredients include something on the dry side...

Sending off bark and moss boats 

A little fishing session 

Midnight dreaming 

The Tele tower is Tallinn (Estonia) is a pretty impressive one. Being moderately in height and average in look from the outside, I was pleasantly surprised to see the funky and modern interior - decorate with some design classics such as the Aarnio ball chair.

The entrance was fee was under ten Euros, but the queuing time owuld have been over an hour - luckily we had the Tallinn card (so wroth the money) and were able to pass the queue and enter for free. Great views, lots of fun and informative interactive things to do and good food to enjoy. Definitely recommended as a destination and thumbs up from the kids perspective too! Also worth mentioning is the cafe on top, delicious and very well priced for everything... 

One cannot miss this high landmark 

Love the decor details!

Interactive fun...

Windows for looking down - pretty scary on my opinion

Funky lights... 

...and lots of Ball chair everhywhere... 

I have never been on holiday in Finland without grabbing the paint brush - and the tradition continues. Last year I painted this little wood storage building, and this year, among other things the old yellow windmill got a new life in a lighter, creamier shade. It is really supposed to be a two-toned  one, so if I manage to locate some leftover white paint, I'll do it properly. 

We also relocated the home-made birdhouse from an old, wonky tree that was cut down and look forward to seeing little chicks there next year again. So this is how I relax on holiday, not forgetting the gardening and fighting againts super-fast weeds, but more project updates in the future. I hope you all have as much fun as we do on our holidays. (and for those who wonder, this house is located a street away of the city's main street, so it's not really deep in the middle of nowhere, that's just Finland for you...)