A Day in TURKU | FINLAND’S Oldest City

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for watching! If you'd like to support my channel please consider subscribing - it's very much appreciated! --> bit.ly/2RyPwto See more of my FINLAND videos here → bit.ly/mwt_finland | Connect on INSTAGRAM here → bit.ly/mwt_instagram

[@danziger9996]

Where is the second part of your visit to Turku?

[@carolcote8472]

I don't have the Instagram app but I'll follow everything you choose to share Thanks so much and i love watching your videos

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Unfortunately I didn’t edit or upload the other video. From memory it was mainly documenting my first afternoon and evening in the city, as well as showing my accommodation. When I was editing it all together I didn’t feel the footage was good enough to make a video out of so it all ended up on the cutting room floor.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you! More coming from Finland in 2024!!

[@Milkjiest]

you should come back to Turku! They have finished the market square renovations and its really pretty now!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

That is a very good reason to go back, I'd love to see what it looks like now. I'm sure I'll be back at some point.

[@ImForwardlook]

The land rises so much along the coast of Finland that the land area expands 7 square kilometers every year, thus the castle is no longer on an island.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Incredible! I didn't know that. Thanks for sharing, much appreciated.

[@Scramasax]

@@MattWhitingsEurope Yep. The results of the ice age. Not the chilrens movie, but the real deal. ;-)

[@kallejotoksella8743]

@@Scramasax Yep, that's what the sciencists tell us.. They say massive ice cove made a gigant bumb to the globe, which is still about to straighten and that's why land is 'rising' from the sea.

[@midloran]

Wow Finland grows yummy

[@jroutasula5250]

Greetings from Turku. Thank you, well done. "This side" (täl pual jokke) is always side where Church is an other side (tois pual jokke) is always other side.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the information, I appreciate you taking the time to watch the video. It took a while for me to get my head around the side situation but it's a fascinating story!

[@jannekoivula4532]

Terveisiä toispuolt sitte😀 meinaa kakolan pualelt

[@evazampa1237]

A long time ago I was in Turku and of course in the Old Town Museum, wonderful memories of it have remained 🤩💯❤👌👍💪

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

That's great! It's a lovely place for sure, thanks for watching my video! 😁

[@michaelstephanustranquillus]

Paavo Nurmi was perhaps one of the greatest athletes of our modern times, often referred to as the King of Runners. :) He was nearly undefeated during his career and his record of nine Olympic gold medals was only broken by Michael Phelps 80 (!) years later. By the way, don't worry if you fail to understand the logic behind "this side" and "that side" of the river - us Finns from other parts of the country also think native Turku residents are crazy!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the information, Caelum - very interesting indeed. Sounds like he was an awesome athlete who really pushed the barriers for the time. No wonder he's got his own statue! The river thing is crazy, I still think about it to this day! 😂. Thanks for watching!!

[@waynesmith3767]

Excellent video and commentary; my next trip to Finland will include Turku.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks very much, I really appreciate you saying! Incredible place to visit, hope you have a fun time when you get around to visiting!

[@TheKompromissi]

I think Turku should advertise the Littoistenjärvi wetland, Ruissalo, Uittamo, lake Kakskerta, piispanlinna and Luolavuori. Luolavuori especially is nice if you're into bouldering

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Sounds like some interesting locations to visit? What is bouldering?

[@TheKompromissi]

@@MattWhitingsEurope rock climbing smallish rocks without ropes but just crash pads, ie. nice soft things to fall on.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you, I see!

[@helenaholmberg1987]

Spectacular drone footage. Too bad about The Market Square being unfinished

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you Helena, I'm glad you like the drone footage! Maybe I'll visit again in years to come, I bet the centre will look different! Loved my day in Turku, thanks for watching.

[@WhenAdventureKnox]

I bet this would be an awesome place to go back and visit again in the future to see how its changed. It's how I felt about Bucharest when I visited it - so much potential and building work going on. Fab choice of music at the castle. The whole 'this side' and 'that side' is crazy... do you think it might be a translation thing? The wooden architecture was beautiful, the sort of thing you'd expect to find in rural areas, but not in a city like Turku! Great shot of the squirrel munching away - it was a red one wasn't it? Pleased to hear you're off to Helsinki next... is this a Finland... or even Scandinavia series coming up now? * looks hopeful *

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Ah yes, Bucharest! Love that city too and know what you mean about it's development. Exactly the same as Turku, the city centre is going to look very different in a few years time! Thanks for your feedback regarding the music, I like that track too - thought it was perfect for a castle montage. By the end of the day I was even more confused about 'this side' and the 'other side' - it was a miracle I managed to find the bus station to catch my bus to Helsinki! Yes I was thinking it was a red squirrel but wasn't 100% sure, surprised by how close I could get without it being all that bothered. Unfortunately not a series this time, I was only there for four days although I could have easily stayed longer. Three more videos to go and then it's onto the next country!

[@jounik4128]

The 'this side' and 'that side' of the Aura river was correctly explained. In local Finnish dialect it's 'Täl pual jokke' ('tällä puolella jokea' in formal Finnish) and 'tois pual jokke' ('toisella puolella jokea') respectively. Great video! Nice to see a piece of Turku history well explained.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

@@jounik4128 Thanks for confirming that, Jouni. It took a while to get my head around that! Glad you enjoyed the video - loved my visit to Turku!

[@FinMeg]

Fantastic as always 👍🏼 loved the drone shots 😍

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Glad you liked it, thanks for watching.

[@johannes9999]

Wonderful video! I hope you will visit Turku again, perhaps the market square will be finished by then. 😄

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for watching, Johannes. Yes I would love to visit again someday and see what has become of that market square!

[@KATHYSLUITER]

That looks beautiful! Americans envy the rich old history of Europe. We tesr lots of our building down, it's a pity

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Sorry for my slow response, Kathy. Glad you like the rich European history, I too find it fascinating and love learning new things about it - something I tend to do all the time. Thanks for watching.

[@ImForwardlook]

Actually Kathy, there is something in Finland that is called "The Turku Disease" which refers to an almost obsession of tearing down old beautiful buildings, this happened mostly in 1960:s and 1970:s. I was born in Turku, one of my favorite destinations in the world is Detroit, a city extremely rich in history and architecture!

[@carolcote8472]

It's so beautiful here

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Agree totally, I very much enjoyed my visit. Thanks for watching!

[@minifoodies9448]

impressive eyes catching videos, I appreciated it❤️ 😃 Happy to see u friend and want to see ur videos more & more👍

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you so much 👍. I appreciate it! Looking forward to seeing more from you also! 👍

[@lambertwalks5929]

Another outstanding video. New friend here 👍🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks and welcome, always good connecting with fellow travellers.

[@diarmaiddillon1568]

Wow great video.. do you film the drone shots too? This is a great channel

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks very much!! Yes all the footage is taken by me including the drone shots. 😁

[@dhimpsie1280]

Thank you for this excellent video.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you for watching! Glad you enjoyed it!

[@vainokalevi9447]

From Finland,, I´m from Turku . Täl pual jokke(this side of river)people from other part of Fin. would say Tällä puolella jokea , Tois pual jokke(other side of river.Toisella puolella jokea. Orange "boat" is Föri.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Hi Väinö, thanks for the information - enjoyed my day in Turku!

[@mariamm9460]

Visited that castle "Turun Linna" a very long ago, these days looked different inside than the time I visited with my parents when I was a very young girl..Eura joki /river . Turku people says "toist puol jokkee" /another side of the river. .never know which side lol😂🤣thanks Matt for your great information, great video as always ❤

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you, when you visited as a child did you go to this side of the river or the other side? 🤣🤣 Glad you're enjoying my videos, great to have you on board!

[@mariamm9460]

@@MattWhitingsEurope still not sure which side..maybe this side 😃🤣but my sister living there we went to other side too🤣🤣🤣oh Matt I thank God I found you ,my days been so bright and happy to know you ..❤🤗

[@mariamm9460]

@@MattWhitingsEurope Turku people speaking their accents differently ..they say.."toist puol jokkee" tosella puolella jokea..is normal finnish ..Love to.laugh and happy laugh with you 🤣❤

[@mariamm9460]

@@MattWhitingsEurope Matt, I sent you private message on Instagram yesterday , have you seen it ..🤗

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks, interesting. I haven't seen it yet but will have a look in the morning. I don't tend to go on Instagram all that much, I try to post a few photos from each trip and then I schedule them to go live at some point in the future. I mainly use it to promote my YT account. Will check it out.

[@jukkasillanpaa8459]

Oh, what a nice video! 👍 Your video must have been recorded round year 2019 🤔 The market square is totally different nowadays. The Hotel in the background has been rebuilt. A lot is going on. You should probably visit out city in a couple of years, and year 2029 will be the 800th anniversary of Turku.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for your comment, Jukka, I enjoyed reading it! Yes you are right about the date, filmed at the beginning of September 2019 if memory serves me right. Revisiting in 2029 is a great idea, I'm sure the city centre will look totally different and there'll be plenty of celebrating going on! Plus it will be 10 years since my previous visit - all I've got to do is try and remember! Thanks again!

[@ellik1165]

I hope you enjoyed my hometown!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Loved it Elli! Your hometown is a really cool place! Thanks for watching.

[@LEIFanevret]

My beautiful home town! 🙋🇫🇮💖

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Cool place for sure!

[@LEIFanevret]

We finns! Are a whole different sort! We have so much heart and soul! For our country! And home town! Wherever we are in the world we breathe finnish air look out what happens in our divine place! In the world and defend our homestead 100%! Soul full people in deed! Amen! 🥰🙋💖🙏 Ps when we land on finnish soil! We finally can be at peace! Steadfast! And even native americans! Loved our people! Theyre like us! Forrest people! Honoring all living with a sound mind! All natures creatures! Only take what we need from the Forrest! And be honest and grateful for that! And honesty! Is one of our many fortes! Kind regards/ your finnish friend.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

That's great and really heartening to read, I really enjoyed my travels in Finland and it seems there is so much more to see. I'll definitely be back!

[@1stgrade343]

Thats cool.. i am planning to come Turku this July. 😊

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

@1stgrade343 Have a great time, I wonder how much it has changed!

[@tombjorkfors]

Very interestimg and well-made video of my favourite city on this planet. Thank you! I am, nevertheless, a little amused by the pronounciation: Turk-Ooh! and a few more place names. 😂

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you! Those pronunciations are tough! 🥵

[@ImForwardlook]

The large red brick building behind the "Föri" is the old Aura Brewery, now converted to condominiums.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the information, loved the look of those red brick buildings. Also loved the old smokestack, felt like an industrial area down that way. Thanks for the link with information - I really enjoyed my visit and it's good to still be learning about Turku.

[@WITYTRAVELS]

That's great that the government is investing in the city. Head of the table! No way we could explain which side of the river we are on! Shame about those wood houses; they are so beautiful. What do you call horseshoes played with rope? Excited for Finland!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Yes it's going to be a different city in a few years time! Lots of potential that's for sure. I think the game I was playing was called Quoits but I'm not 100% sure. Gotta get the chair at the top of the table when the opportunity presents itself! Haha

[@WITYTRAVELS]

@@MattWhitingsEurope 😃

[@holoholopainen1627]

You Have Done a GREAT Job - so Thank You - Kiitos in Finnish ! The OLD Capital pretty Much during - All The Time - We were Part of Kingdom of Sweden !

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks very much Holo, glad you like the video. I found Turku really interesting and it was great to just stroll around and enjoy the sights! Wonderful history too! Thanks for watching.

[@holoholopainen1627]

@@MattWhitingsEurope Thanks ! Did You know - that The Best selling Crime Books are about TURKU as a Hire - a Private EYE - VARES is working on wheelings and daily dealings ! Made also to 7 Movies ! The author name is REIJO MÄKI - with some 20 BOOKS ! I am NOT sure if Those Are also translated ? All Those places are fimiliar as mentioned on All VARES BOOKS !

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

No I didn’t know that - very interesting indeed. You are a wealth of knowledge Sir! I always like to hear about these bits that otherwise I probably would never stumble upon. Thank you for taking the time to comment.

[@lettumakkara]

Hope you enjoyed my hometown man

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I sure did, it was nice to walk around and see the sights! Cool place.

[@mattihp]

Nice video. Will be doing a tour in Finland by train this summer. Helsinki-Turku-Tampere-Vaasa-Turku. Just visited Turku, but it will be very different in the Summer. Hadn't visited in 20 years. Last time was to take a train to Oulu for my Military service inspection. What gear do you use?

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks, sounds like you have a good trip prepared! Some interesting places on your list! I bet they look completely different in the summer!! For this video I used a Canon G7X M2 and my drone was a Mavic Air (the original).

[@mattihp]

Ideally we'd visit my favourite city; Oulu too. But the train ride from Vaasa would be too long. What sound equipment did you use?

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Yeah that's a crazy long train ride! An adventure for sure! I just use the sound from the camera mic although I have considered getting a lavalier mic for some scenes.

[@mattihp]

With that kind of sound quality straight from the camera it isn't really a necessity for your videos!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

@@mattihp Thank you. Much appreciated.

[@BANAANIKAKKU-qv8un]

I WOULD LOVE TO LIVE IN TURKU

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Excellent choice of city I'd say!

[@mustafakamal4407]

I'm interested in Finland

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

It's a wonderful country, have you been?

[@mustafakamal4407]

@@MattWhitingsEurope i want to travel but i have no idea about Finland I'm From Pakistan

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Loads of info on Google my friend, read up on it and then look at getting a visa (if required). You'll love it I'm sure!

[@mustafakamal4407]

@@MattWhitingsEurope ok Thankyou so much but sir can you help me

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

@@mustafakamal4407 Hi Mustafa, I'm happy to answer any questions regarding my trip but I'm certainly no expert. I'd also not be a very good person to ask about travelling from Pakistan as I don't know what the visa requirements are etc.

[@Yuu_Touko]

I am so happy to live in this city.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Cool place for sure, hope you enjoyed the video!

[@Yuu_Touko]

@@MattWhitingsEurope I did, thank you!

[@Xerdoz]

A shoesmith, also known as a cobbler.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you!

[@BANAANIKAKKU-qv8un]

NICE

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thank you!

[@hysnain]

Is there any connection between Turkey and Turku.

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

No connection that I'm aware of. The name derives from the word tǔrgǔ which is an old east Slavic word meaning "marketplace".

[@mattihp]

8:10 tällä and tolla aren't as confusing as this and other side

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

It doesn't take much to confuse me! 😂

[@larrywave]

I dont know if you look new comments in these old videos

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Yes of course! 😁

[@larrywave]

@@MattWhitingsEurope nice to know 😁next time you are in Turku you should visit Turku Cathedral and Maarian kirkko close to latter are ruins of bishops palace and ruins of a hill fort

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Thanks for the recommendations, I'll certainly keep them in mind. I hear the city centre renovations have finished?

[@larrywave]

@@MattWhitingsEurope It is indeed and looks very good now i dare say its better now than before

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

I’m sure I’ll be back at some point, I’d love to see what it looks like now.

[@beewhy001]

45 minutes walk? Are there no bikes? No way i am walking 45 minutes :D

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Ha you can walk along side the river which is quite a pleasant area. If you really don't want to walk then I'd suggest an electric scooter perhaps? There's plenty around where you download an app and then it changes you for however long you're actually riding the thing - lots of fun and it's unreal how quickly you can get about. Just don't end up in the river!!

[@helene4397]

Sorry for this late reply, but 45 minutes of walk is nothing on a good weather. And in here we have a saying: there is no such thing as bad weather, there is wrong choice of clothes.

[@larrywave]

There are city bikes. 45 min seems grazy to me but maps indeed says it would take that long(call me sceptical)

[@Fab4Forever]

👌✌🤟

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

👍😀🇫🇮

[@bazodee2]

I like the 1st version of the castle the best. As it grew bigger it loses its appeal. I just might build a copy of it hmm...

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Yes I know what you mean! The early castle was a real treasure but I also like the finished version. Interesting seeing how it changed over the years. Thanks for watching!

[@karitahannikainen4734]

Finland/ Turku- horrible!!

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Really? I loved it! Each to their own I guess 😐

[@heidil4008]

Apparently that fire destroyed 75% of the city. en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Fire_of_Turku

[@MattWhitingsEurope]

Apologies for the slow reply, Heidi. I've been out on some more adventures with little access to the internet. Amazing article, thanks for the link - amazing isn't it! How different the rest of the centre would look had that fire not of happened.

[@Pyhantaakka]

@@MattWhitingsEurope Pretty much all these wooden cities burned down periodically. And those that didnt were rebuilt in concrete after the war.