Day 14: Last full day here!

Leaving here, after 14 wonderful days!

As in previous days we were lazy and late up for breakfast this morning by my standards, and by the time we were ready to do much, the dreaded rain was here! This was despite a forecast that wasn't mentioning any rain at all, and it was some rain with the heavens opening for around half an hour. Anna and I had actually been up the road picking blueberries before that, and we got a good haul - there appear to be many more than in previous years.

 Plentiful blueberries all around!

Another downpour!

Anyway, once the rain stopped, we had a re-think. Olivia and Sandy wanted to jump from the diving boards in the nearby lake, so we drove along there (only about 5 minutes away) and after some diving, we had coffees and cakes in the cafe at the other side of the main road there.

Olivia leaping in like a bullet.

Back here, I decided to light the sauna for the last time, and it was great at that point to see the sun appearing and the temperature rising quickly once again. So, we had yet another lovely late afternoon and evening here at the house. I barbequed some chicken on the wood-fired barbeque by the lake and we swam and enjoyed the light here which is always so special when it's sunny.

 Anna heads for another swim!

 Last night by the sauna!

Lovely sunlight once again!

This evening, as well as watching how Edinburgh were doing in their speedway match at Scunthorpe with Keith, Anna and I spent some time tidying things generally around the house and the garden. Cleaning the sauna and the hot-tub, as well as the BBQ takes time but it means we won't have so much to do in the morning before we leave.

 Looking along the lakeside.

 Brothers!

Looking from the roadside to this fantastic place!

So, it's the end of another two weeks here! We thank Timo and Lissu again for renting the house to us - it's truly a magical place to stay, even if the weather has been less good this year than most previous times. I note that the forecast for next week looks great though!! Perhaps we could make our visit next year one week later than normal? ;-)

And finally, Keith has gone to bed extremely happy, as Edinburgh snatched a last-race win in their match at Scunthorpe!

Kiitos - see you Rasin Villa in 2017!!

Day 13: Rainstorms, then glorious sunshine!

Keith, Anna and Olivia enjoy the hot-tub.

As we went to bed last night, it had already been raining heavily for a few hours and I woke up a couple of times in the night and simply lay and listened to what seemed like utterly torrential rain. I got up for a look finally at around 6am and what I saw confirmed that it had indeed been awful rain all throughout the night. I could hardly even see the lake at that point, for lashings of rain that were coming down relentlessly. A quick check of the forecast suggested it would stop by 11am and be sunny by 1pm, so I finally fell asleep again around 7am, having spent some time catching up with news from Turkey and establishing that several friends and teachers who I know through eTwinning were ok.

Waking up late, after 10am, it was still lashing down. Anna and I had breakfast then drove along to Vaajakoski to the supermarket where we ran in and out quickly and bought what we needed. Back home around 11am, it was indeed beginning to lessen, and before long, the clouds were suddenly melting away and the sun came out, transforming the morning into a truly fabulous afternoon of hot temperatures and glorious sunshine!

I just love this view from the sauna!

The wood-burning stove's chimney, heating the hot-tub.

So, we did all we always do in such situations - relaxed in the sun, swam, repeatedly used the sauna right through the afternoon and evening, ate outside in the lovely conditions, as well as used the hot-tub for the first time this holiday. It takes a while to fill it up, directly with a hose pumping water up from the lake, and the wee wood-burning stove then sets up a circular motion of pumping in hot water and drawing out the cooler water until the whole hot-tub is wonderfully hot. We all enjoyed it for several hours too! Just before dinner, Sandy and Olivia walked the kilometre up to the zoo at the main road to retrieve a Pokemon stop (like millions of others across the world each day right now!) and as soon as they returned, they were back in the lake, the sauna and the hot-tub right through until the sun dipped behind the trees just before 10.30pm.

Heaven!

Together in the hot-tub 

Keith looks happy!

Gorgeous sunshine and heat!

On the doorstep in the evening sun.

Another session in the tub!

Meanwhile, Keith relaxes!

Looking skywards!

Time for music!

This little beauty in the sauna was well worked today!

Time for another swim!

And for me, time for a beer!

Late evening sun on the tree tops.

This cottage is away on the other side of the lake - maybe a km away.

Family of swans out on a late evening journey!

So, lots of photos today from what has been simply a brilliant day!

Day 12: Clouds and rain

After the lovely weather yesterday afternoon and evening, it's been a cloudy and latterly wet day today.

We were up late, having had a late bedtime last night. Indeed, Olivia was in the lake right up to 11.30pm last night! After breakfast, Anna and I went for a walk up the road here and picked some blueberries. Though cloudy, it was warm and we quickly found a good crop. We'd hoped to sunbathe in the morning, as we knew the forecast was for rain later, but blueberry picking was the best we could manage!

After lunch we headed into town for some shopping and found it was very busy with a street market on in the centre. Keith spent some money, finished writing his postcards and Sandy and Olivia did plenty looking but no buying!

Back home for dinner, by now the rain was heavy here. We've had a short swim and sauna session this evening, but will have an earlier night tonight, with fingers crossed that the better weather they are promising for tomorrow and Sunday actually materialises!

Day 11: Palvajärvi Perfection

Gorgeous reflections on the lake late afternoon today!

It has always amazed me, since our very first visit back in 2012 to this lovely lake, how many changes in the view and the lake itself can occur within the space of a day, or even within the space of a few minutes! This morning, I had been watching the weather forecast particularly closely as we were expecting our friends Pauli and his wife Hannele from Helsinki for lunch. The forecast wasn't brilliant at all, suggesting there would be light rain from 12 noon onwards and little sun all day.

Keith relaxing in the sun this morning.

So, I wasn't too hopeful as Anna and I got up at our earliest this last 10 days to head out to the shops for some things. It was cloudy at that point, and looked like it could have gone either way. By the time we were back though, and everyone had had breakfast at about 10am, things were improving. The sun appeared and we spent some time sunbathing in the garden, as well as readying ourselves for our visitors. Keith listened happily to his iPod as he relaxed and I got the BBQ and the sauna ready while Anna prepared various salads. By the time our guests arrived, I was nervous that things would deteriorate and indeed a shower or two threatened to spoil things, but the sun was never far away and it kept returning again.

With Pauli.

Hannele, Anna, me, Pauli and Keith in the sun.

It was really great to catch up with Pauli and Hannele! We showed them the house and the various bits, which they loved. We first met Pauli by chance in Helsinki in 2011 and we've kept in touch via Facebook and through our various visits here over the years, but this was the first time he and Hannele had come up here to see us. We thank them warmly for their company and their most generous gifts and hope to see them again soon! Going back to the weather, just as they left after 4pm there was what could only be described as a sudden "tropical like" storm, the likes of which I have only seen in Florida, with unbelievably heavy rain for about 5 minutes. But after that, things immediately cleared, it became hot and there were the most unbelievable reflections on the lake. These usually only last a few minutes, but this evening, they lasted and lasted.

Great reflections in the warm water!

The boat and Anna's swimming costume are remarkably similar in colour!

Strange dive from Sandy!

Olivia gets some height!

Sandy tries to better what Olivia did!

Just look at that lake!

No wonder I look happy - this is heavenly!

We swam and enjoyed the sauna for several hours in gorgeous conditions, only coming in for a late dinner after 8pm, before heading back out to enjoy the late evening sunshine again. When it's like this it really is simply unbelievably beautiful here! Now, at nearly 10pm, we're enjoying the next in the series of James Bond films on TV here, "Thunderball"!

Day 10: Peurunka, pizza and a pleasant discovery!

Ever since we first came to Palvajärvi in 2012, we've always visited Peurunka spa close to Laukaa, about 20 minutes to the north of here. As today turned out again to be rather showery (and when those showers came they were both very heavy as well as thundery) we decided to spend the afternoon indoors enjoying the various pools, jacuzzis and saunas at Peurunka.

Driving along to Peurunka!

Crossing one of many lakes on the way...

Another small lake, with water lilies.

When we came out, we had decided we'd visit a good looking pizza restaurant that has sprung up in the centre of Jyväskylä and so we took a slightly different route back to the town. On the way, we passed an outlet for Arctic Spas by the side of the road and just by chance I spotted they had a barrel sauna on display. Last week, we tried one of these when we were at the savusauna (smoke sauna) and were quite impressed by it. As one of our neighbours works for Arctic Spas close to Dunbar, we decided to have a wee look in. The place was actually closed, but the owner kindly opened up again and showed us inside the barrel sauna, made by a company here in Finland, as well as giving me a leaflet, and we were both extremely impressed by the quality of this wee sauna.

Impressive looking from the outside.

Inside, the stove,and seating for at least 4-6 people.

So, we headed on to have our pizza, quite happy that we had seen this place and with some thoughts about what we might do later when we get home to Scotland.

Great pizzas at Bella Roma!

Back home, it was time to heat the sauna here for some last swims and heating up sessions before coming inside to watch our second James Bond film in two nights being shown here on Finnish TV! Tonight it;s one of the best of all - Goldfinger, with Sean Connery! Keith is definitely enjoying it!

Day 9: A visit to our hosts

It's 10pm, and I'm writing this back in the house finally, after what seems like a sauna extravaganza today!

After the great weather of the last few days, it's been very slightly cooler today and showery, but with some nice periods of sunshine as well. After shopping this morning, Anna and Olivia headed up to the zoo after lunch while Sandy, Keith and I heated the sauna and swam in the lake. We also had an invite to visit our hosts, Timo and Lissu, which was set for 5pm. There, we were treated to fantastic ice cream, strawberries and cakes while Olivia and Wenla leaped on the trampoline, showing off their skills to each other. Wenla is also in a trampoline club here in Finland, and she too practises several times a week, as well as taking part in competitions around the country. So, the two have much in common! Before leaving to return home, we confirmed we'll return next year once again - why would we think of going anywhere else when this place feels so like a second home to us all?

I zoomed in on Keith swimming while standing by the front door. 

 And that's Keith diving from the platform.

Relaxing with a glass of wine as we wait for dinner.

Back here, it was straight back to the sauna while chicken cooked in the oven for dinner, and after that, we headed back down to the lakeside for even more sauna sessions and swims in the lake! Keith has only just come in now at 10.10pm and Sandy and Olivia are still in the lake, so it's been a long and great day of swimming!

 This is zoomed in on Sandy and Olivia... then look below

 Zoomed out, can you see where they actually were?

Not sure how far Keith swam today, but I'm sure he'll sleep well tonight!