The Rock Church and Kamppi Chapel

This morning when we woke up, the sun was shining in the far distance and the sky was clear.  We thought that it was a good idea to go and see one of Helsinki’s main attractions, The Rock Church (Temppeliaukio Kirkko).  The church is visited by approximately 500 000 people every year.  As we walked to the church we came across Finland’s Parliament House.  See the photo below.  It is interesting to note the amount of sunlight in the photo.  This is the maximum amount of sunlight reaching Helsinki when the sky is not cloudy.
 

The building was built between 1925 and 1931 in the monumental classical style.  The exterior of the building has a pinkish / reddish colour to it as it is made of so-called Corinthian vola granite.  The huge size and exterior of the building (fourteen columns and stern appearance) was built in such a way as to be a monument to Finnish independence and democracy.  A large statue of PE Svinhufvud stands at the left hand side of the building.  He was the third president of Finland.

 

The Rock Church (Temppeliaukio Kirkko)

The Church was completed in 1969 and belongs to the Lutheran congregation.  It was supposed to be built during the 1930’s but World War II caused a delay in planning and construction.  The building itself was blasted out of a huge granite block located on a small hill.  The dome of the church is particularly impressive as its inside is covered completely by copper.  The picture below is from Google Maps and shows the round shape of the church resting inside the bed of granite. 

 

The following photo is of the church from the outside with its dome barely visible.

 

When we walked inside the church we were stunned and mesmerised by what we found.  A serene calmness fills the entire church.

 

This photo is of the church organ.  Its outside (pipes etc.) is made from copper to blend in with the inside of the dome of the church.

 

As mentioned before, the inside of the church’s dome is covered with copper.  An impressive 22 km of copper stripping makes circular patterns from the centre to the outside of the dome.  The dome rests on 180 elongated glass windows which let in natural light.

 

The next photo is of the church altar.  Note the dark colours of the stone at the back of the altar.  This is natural water that is allowed to seep in from outside to create the effect that one sees in the photo.

 

 The balcony of the church is also plated with copper.

 

The following two photos were taken from the balcony.

 

Here are a few more photos of the inside of the church.

 

 

Kampii Chapel of Silence

The Kampii Chapel was only recently completed and is located in central Helsinki at Narinkka Square.  This is one of the busiest places in Helsinki.  The idea behind the chapel is for people to have a place to escape to from busy city life.  The chapel is not related to any congregation or ceremonial services.  Staff of the Social Services Department of the City of Helsinki are available for individual conversation with people.  The building was constructed from wood (Spruce strips) and falls in the category of Timbre Architecture.  Timbre Architecture is a theme present throughout the Nordic countries.  The following photos are of the outside and inside of the chapel.

 

 

What a lovely and relaxing day!  We are now living in a self-catering apartment and not in a hotel anymore.  Dirkie will start getting the house in Marjaniemi ready from 02 January 2013 and we will be moving in on 05 January 2013.  We are soooo looking forward to having our own house!!  Our container is now near Morocco on its way to Antwerpe for transfer to another vessel.  We hope that all our South-African goodies will be here before the end of January!