Sandcastle, Lappeenranta, Finland

So yeah, I went to Finland earlier this month to see my family. I had such a lovely time, it was great to see my parents and sister and some relatives as well again. I just wish I could've stayed a bit longer... I miss it there now a bit. :( Anyway, I spent a day in Helsinki so I got to see my sister, and also visited Valkeakoski to see some relatives (and had a very brief visit to Tampere as my dad bought me a new camera and they didn't have it in stock in Helsinki so he got it from Tampere instead :), but I spent most of the time in Lappeenranta with my parents. It's always so good to see all the old familiar places there!

One evening me and dad bicycled to the harbour (one of my favourite areas in Lappeenranta btw, and I also discovered that I really enjoy bicycling and miss that a lot now as well) to take photos. They've had a massive sandcastle there for some years now, every year with a different theme. This time it was 'the Kalevala' (the national epic of Finland), which I thought was pretty cool. The following bit is from their website:  

Finland’s largest sandcastle in Lappeenranta is built for the tenth time. For the fourth year running it will be designed by children. This year’s theme is "Kalevala". The Kalevala is a 19th-century work of epic poetry compiled by Elias Lönnrot from Finnish and Karelian oral folklore and mythology. Since it is regarded as the national epic of Finland and is one of the most significant works of Finnish literature, you can see in this year Sandcastle a piece of Finland's mythological history. Miniature models designed by children will be displayed next to the Sandcastle. The castle has been built of some 3 million kilos of sand and there is more at the gigantic sand pit, so try your hand and craft your own piece of art!