"Vyborg (Viipuri in Finnish, Viborg in Swedish)" Vyborg by annase

I made my first ever trip to Finland's mighty neighbor, Russia, in September. One of my friend's nan used to live in Vyborg before the WWII, when the city used to be part of Finland. I had never been to Russia, so I agreed to join my friend and try to trace her nan's old neighbourhood. The trip was definitely very intersting. We planned it for months and finally applied for visas in August. We were planning to drive near the border and take a train across it one morning and return in the evening. This way we would be able to spend about 6 hours in Vyborg and then head back home for the night.

The city houses quite a few old buildings built in the Finnish and Swedish era before the Soviet rule. Unfortunately, many of the buildings have been left without maintenance, so they are now in a pretty bad shape and some are literally crumbling down.

The cars in the city are pretty old or they just use lead fuelled gasoline, because the air in the city centre along the main roads is pretty heavy. Lots of the cars date back to the 80s (and probably even beyond). I remember that old Ladas were flocked over the border from Finland in the beginning of the 90s. They ALL seem to have ended up here, since the city is full of Ladas. They are absolutely everywhere... ;-) Oh, those great tardemarks of the failed Soviet Union..

The market hall

The Vyborg castle is worth visiting. There isn't actually that much to see in Vyborg but the castle is definitely one of them. The market hall (fresh fruit, meat, sweets, handicraft etc.) is fun too - just out of curiosity if you don't want to buy anything. It's all quirkily displayed. Especially the fruit. =)