Winter wonderland

I think the pictures below speak for themselves. This winter has just been so lovely. I can't remember the last time we had such a winter wonderland, at least not in Helsinki. Helsinki is located by the sea, so usually we don't have that much snow over here. But this year it's different. I know that some people are already getting tired of the cold weather and wishes the winter to be over soon, but I just can't help wishing that it'll last for a bit longer. It's just so beautiful. November and December are usually so dark that it feels hard to be happy, but in january and february everything changes, the sun is shining a lot more. The other day, when it was almost -20° in the morning, I didn't mind the cold at all. In stead I was very pleased with the sun shining from a clear blue sky and I could feel it warming my dark blue jeans while I was waiting for the bus. And that's what I love the most about this season: the contrast between the blistering cold and the gentle, warming sun.

The following pictures are an attempt to catch on camera at least a small fracture of the winter wonderland in Finland this year. The first one is from Turku and the other ones from Virkkala where my parents live.

Lovely winter!

Warning, there's a lot of pictures again! :D

Today the weather was so nice that I couldn't recist going out for a walk. The sun was shining from an almost clear sky and it wasn't even that cold, only -4°. And the landscape was so incredibly beautiful with all the snow. Unfortunately, I didn't take my camera with me outside, but tadaa! Thanks to my new phone, I still had a camera with me! Yay! :D I have to say, I'm very pleased with the quality of the pictures taken with the camera on the phone. Not bad at all.

Well, here's what I saw:

It seems like this car hasn't been anywhere in a while...

I walked through the Central Park in Helsinki since it's close to where I live. I love it when the trees are covered in snow! It gives it a sort of a mystical look.

And since I was so close, I had to go and say hello to the horses too. Hope they had a nice Christmas and weren't too scared by the fireworks at New Years.

Here's a close up of one of them. They always seem to be hungry since they follow you around while you walk, hoping to get a treat :)

A sculpture in the forest.

I felt like going ice skating too when I saw these people. Maybe tomorrow?

Oh no, a road block! :D Which actually was much bigger than it seems here in the picture...

I really love the winter this year. It's for once a real winter! And now the best of it even lie ahead: january and especially february then the sun is shining more and more but there's still (usually) a lot of snow. I hope there'll be more beautiful days like today. I don't even mind the cold weather. Of course it felt cold when it was -20°, but in the same time it felt so amazingly refreshing! It was as if it purified my whole body, including my head. I felt like a new person. Nothing felt impossible!

But I'm sure I'll appreciate the summer too... :)