You are never far from water in Helsinki, as it’s located on a peninsula reaching into the Baltic Sea. During its 450-year history, the city’s fortunes have swung to reflect the Swedish-Russian struggle to control sea routes. The influence of these two neighbours and rivals is heavily imprinted on the Finnish capital, both physically, in the starkly romantic architecture, and psychologically, in a national character that combines both Slavic melancholy and Scandinavian liberalism.
[Helsinki guide]