Imatra - small town charm near the border
While most of the tourists visit only Helsinki and maybe Tampere or Turku, there are certainly other towns and areas worth visiting. For example, Imatra might not be among the most popular tourist destinations in Finland, but because of its location near to the border it is a favorite destination for Russian tourists.
In the 1970s, when I was a child, I used to visit Imatra at least a couple of times every year. At that time, my grandparents lived in Imatra where they were relocated after they had to leave the family house on the Carelian Isthmus because of the WWII. I remember my grandfather used to take my to a high place near Imatra. There he gave me binoculars to look at the town Enso where they lived for a couple of years during the war. Before the war, they had lived further east. Thus the memory of war was always present in my grandparents' home. Now that more than six decades have passed since the war, its memory is not anymore as omnipresent as it was in my childhood. Now we are more likely to remember the glory of 19th century, when Imatra became a popular tourist destination. | Valtionhotelli (The state hotel) is the oldest hotel in Imatra. It was established in 1903 by the river Vuoksi that connects the Lake Saimaa with Baltic Sea. For decades, the river has provided us with electricity and a route from the inner Finland to the global markets.
When the hotel was opened, Finland was still a duchy in the great Russian empire. Thus Imatra's history as a tourist destination is very much part of cultural history of upper classes of St. Petersburg. Already in the 19th century, the small town was the most popular tourist destination in the country. Now Imatra is little more than a charming small town, where you can get a glimpse of its past glory. Even so, it is a good place to enjoy a few warm summer days before continuing to the lake district. |