Spending a day exploring Porvoo, Finland

Add Porvoo to the list of places I didn't know existed 6 months ago but now I am concocting scenarios in my head where I return for an extended, multi-week stay. Not all exploratory day trips pay off to the same degree. Visiting Porvoo was one of the highlights of this trip through Helsinki.

My high-level impressions:
Charming
Quiet
Picturesque
Tidy

Overall, lovely. And that's during a random Friday in October. I can see how the experience may be different during a summer weekend when it's full of people looking to capitalize on the good weather to more fully enjoy its charms. But I counted myself lucky to visit during the fall (again, the foilage, I'm a fan) when the rain held off and I even got pockets of solid sun. Almost perfect.

My visit broke down into a few subslices:
Exploring the 'old Porvoo' area up around the Cathedral and over to Castle Hill
Seeing a bit of 'normal' Porvoo, both on foot and via scooter
Stopping for lunch at a place that I had high hopes for but disappointed
Checking out the riverfront leisure area

After the bus ride dropped me at the 'terminal' I oriented myself and headed for the Cathedral. It's just 2 blocks north, across Mannerheiminkatu, which is the main drag running roughly east-west through the heart of town. This yellow and red house is your first clue that you're on the right path.

And here is your view back down Rauhankatu toward the bus terminal.

From there you make your way up cobblestone streets into what feels like a scene from a fairytale. Sturdy, sensible-looking houses in a variety of solid colors with white trim. Just a glance of the exteriors brings to mind how cozy they must be on the inside. At least that's how I picture them. I don't want to hear any differently.

Soon you catch sight of the cathedral's steeple (if that qualifies as a steeple).

Every direction you turn here is another beautiful view. This day I had the area pretty much to myself. Briefly overlapped with a small group of Asian tourists, but otherwise --- quiet.

Past the cathedral and moving toward the Castle Hill area the streets open up a bit. Homes seemed a bit larger. I refrained from taking intrusive shots, but the area seemed to over-index for the kind of upscale European station wagons that are good for the camping / biking / active & affluent lifestyle. Fenced yards with outdoor social features. Evokes a sense of life well-lived.

Took a quick look at the hiking area over toward Castle Hill. Lovely, bucolic view to the small road out of town. Note also the biking path running paralle to it. Nice way to get your exercise.

I didn't have time or inclination to spend much time hiking in the wet conditions. So snapped my pic and kept it moving.

Before leaving the area of old Porvoo I wanted to pass by the Devil's Stairs. If you look up toward the top center of this pic you can just make out where the cobblestone gives way to a natural stone section.

And here is a look at the actual Devil's Stairs.

I forget exactly how long it is, but maybe it runs 50 meters more or less. I was glad for the handrail since the rocks were a bit slick. Given the general climate of Porvoo this must be tricky/miserable to navigate much of the year. Or fun. Your mileage may vary. If you have time and the mobility to climb through here, it's worth doing. But I would also say it's not a 'must-do'. The little area beyond the stairs involves some more of the charming homes before leading you out to a semi-main street that returns you to more modern Porvoo.

Strolling back toward Mannerheimkatu, I passed on one side the Porvoo library.

Then a green industrial(?) compound which gave off particularly gloomy vibes on this gray day. I think this is its link on google maps. Hard to say what the heck it actually is based on the reviews. Anyway, caught my eye.

As did Thai Street Food, which, in retrospect, is probably where I should have had lunch.

I did like how in 'modern' Porvoo they maintained some of the visual cues of 'old' Porvoo. Solid color apartment buildings / townhomes (I'm guessing). This wasn't necessarily 100% uniform all around the city, but in parts.

I was making my way out to Burger Company on Aleksanterinkatu when I couldn't help but notice this Fizza hut. I wonder if they think of it that way. You know? Like Pizza Hut. Anyway, Fizza has a website if you're curious to know more. In retrospect, this, too, may have been a better lunch option than Burger Company.

I made it to Burger Company and ate my meal with a nice slice-of-life view. I will do a separate 'quick review' post on Burger Company later. Spoiler: didn't love it.

Post lunch stroll a couple of blocks until I found a scooter, which I used to buzz around some of the residential areas of central/eastern Porvoo, as illustrated kinda on my google maps route below.

I dropped the scooter off near the bus 'terminal' and spent the rest of my time in Porvoo enjoying the area along the riverfront. I walked through Runenberginpuisto and am surprised I don't have any pictures from that little stroll as I found it really charming. The reviews on that google maps link are kinda strange. I wonder what Erkki has seen. On this October Friday it was chill. I took some shots along the river and went about halway across the bridge. Did not have time to explore over on that side of the river. That's what I would have done next if I had maybe one more hour.

Last zone I checked out, which is also worth more time if you're a shopper or want to leisurely enjoy lunch/coffee in one of the various cafes and restaurants, is the area just on the north side of Mannerheiminkatu, all around Runo Hotel Porvoo (which appears to be a very nice option if you're thinking of a weekend in Porvoo). Lanes of cute shops selling a variety of upscale crafts and homewares. I did a lap in about 15-20 minutes but could easily see spending 60-90 minutes here or more if Judy was with me.

Finally, after a bit of mild panic when I realized I was not 100% certain that the bus back to Helsinki departed from the same 'terminal', I did find my OmniBus back to the big city. It showed up literally one minute before scheduled departure time. So they made me sweat it. But in the end I found my upper deck, front row seat and enjoyed a sunny ride home.