Day 4: Fifty Shades of Grey

We've been coming to Finland for nearly 10 years now each July, and I suppose many Finns might say we've been lucky to have such wonderful weather over the vast majority of our visits. We've hardly ever seen much rain, apart from the odd thunder storm set off by the high temperatures. I'd prefer to look it another way and say that today, we were unlucky, as it was raining from the early hours, and all morning, as well as most of the afternoon too! Well, I knew it would, having been checking the forecast carefully, so after an early lunch, we set off for Jyvaskyla to have a good look around the shops there.

With Anna in central Jyvaskyla.

The three brothers! Keith, Anna's dad and me, after we all bought similar shirts from H&M. 

It never ceases to amaze me how enthusiastically Anna's mum and sister spend hours looking at things to buy, but I guess it's just a matter of the sexes! Anyway, they seemed happy with their purchases - I think prices here compare very favourably to those in Russia right now - so all was well that ended well.

Keith with Sandy, pre-swim this evening.

Anna enjoying the water

About to head back to the sauna.

Back at the cottage, the rain had finally stopped in late afternoon, and so when I asked Keith if he wanted to have a swim, he replied immediately,"Of course! Sauna too!" So, it was an evening session in the water after dinner, along with a few trips into the sauna. With the water temperature being warmer than the air temperature today, the water didn't feel cold at all, and we all had fun. Anna's dad spent some time binding together birch leaves to create the necessary tool for us to beat each other in the sauna, which was hugely enjoyed by Keith in particular! He couldn't stop laughing when he was beaten.

Oh yes, we loved being beaten!

As well as the sauna and swimming, Anna chose this evening to show off some of her yoga moves... see the pictures!

Yoga in action!

And, as we were coming in for supper, it was great to see the sun returning over the lake. There are so many moods here, depending on the weather. From deep grey, to lighter shades, it's all there, in the space of a few minutes. I couldn't help but try to capture the light in some of the photos shown. It's so beautiful here!

Beautiful, no matter what the weather!