I have told you before that I was raised in Imatra, a city in southeastern Finland. The main tourist attraction there is The Imatra Rapids / Imatrankoski on the river Vuoksi. Imatrankoski is also one of the National landscapes of Finland. My elder son Harri made a pilgrimage with his daughter Helmi to his childhood surroundings, remembering the summers with grandparents. He sent me the above photo & two videos. In addition I searched for free photos online.
"At the end of the 19th century, Imatrankoski was a fashionable tourist destination, attracting tourists from abroad. As tourist flows increased, the mighty roaring nature rapids were accompanied by many services, such as a cable car. On Epiphany in 1893, a celebration was held at the hotel (this hotel burned later) on the edge of the rapids, where front-line artists painted fascinated by the natural performance. The highlight of the evening was the lighting of large spotlights, “The Miracle of Alladin’s Magic Lamp,” in the words of one witness. The rapids steamed red and green in alternating electric light as the audience screamed in delight.”
Painter Akseli Gallen-Kallela’s interpretation of Imatrankoski in the winter, 1893.
His poster is well-known, even I have it as a framed postcard.
My childhood home was only one kilometer away from the rapids and my school trip went
over the bridge. I remember that the trees were covered with beautiful white frost in the winter.
One summer I worked as a tourist guide in the Imatra Hydroelectric Power Plant
that began operating in 1929.
Catherine the Great visited the site. The present hotel Valtionhotelli was opened in 1903.
Before there were two wooden hotels that burned down in the late 19th century.
The original name of the hotel is Grand Hôtel Cascade. The first hotel entrepreneur came
from St. Petersburg, and the clients were Germans and Russians who came to fish
and admire the spectacular rapids.
Wishing you all a sunny weekend!
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Wow, what a great landscape and the electric power plant! I like this old industrial architecture. It must have been an exciting event to bathe the landscape in red and green light So normal for us in the digital age...
VastaaPoistaHave a nice weekend
Thanks for sharing this beautiful and also interesting place of your country. Must be breathtaking to watch the water coming down in real life and tto vacation there. Especially when there will be the chance to see the lighting in the evening.
VastaaPoistaWishing you a hopefully sunny weekend too and sending greetings and hugs over to your place
Nova
Beautiful place to grow up! Thanks for finding the painting and the poster and sharing the photos!
VastaaPoista-Soma
We visited there a few years ago. Lovely place!
VastaaPoistaIt is a beautiful place.
VastaaPoistaSounds like a lovely place to visit and to see and hear the rushing water of the rapid. The building of the hotel looks more like a castle.
VastaaPoistaLiebe Riitta,
VastaaPoistader Fluss sieht schon gefährlich aus, so reißend wie das Wasser hindurchschießt. Aber auch sehr interessant. Das Hotel ist wunderschön, zumindest von Außen, ein einladendes Gebäude. Ich mag ohnehin Häuser, die schon älter sind, so war ich jetzt in einem Hotel, dass bereits seit 1793 besteht. Auch wenn man vom Alter des Gebäudes nicht viel sieht, bin ich doch schon allein von der Jahreszahl beeindruckt.
Ich wünsche Dir ein schönes Wochenende.
Viele liebe Grüße
Wolfgang
Guten Morgen Riita,
VastaaPoistadas Wasserwerk stelle ich mir schon sehr interessant vor, ist ja ein toller Bau und ja doch auc eine tolle Landschaft mit diesen Stromschnellen und auch die Lichtreflexe stelle ich mir so schön vor.
Liebe Grüße Eva und habe ein schönes Wochenenende
Hallo liebe Riitta!
VastaaPoistaOh, da wird mir Angs und Bange, wenn ich solches wildes Wasser sehe. Gibt es auch Kanuten (Kanufahrer) die diese Stromschnellen befahren?
Das Hotel sieht sehr schön aus, fast wie ein Märchenschloss!
Danke für deine schönen Bilder!
Ein schönes Wochenende
und liebe Grüße
Anne
Fotografias muito interessantes.
VastaaPoistaUm abraço e bom fim-de-semana.
Andarilhar
Dedais de Francisco e Idalisa
O prazer dos livros
Hei, liebste Riitta,
VastaaPoistait is mostly a good idea to revisit the places of childhood. How nice that your son made this trip with his daughter. Imatrankoski looks breathtaking, whether on photos, paintings or videos! What a shame I didn't know about it when I was in Finland. The Grand Hôtel Cascade is a grand and wonderful building - like a castle. Still, it's a bit sad that the wooden hotels burned down ...
Danke für deine lieben Zeilen bei mit im Blog,
herzlichst, Traude
(Happy weekend!!!)
https://rostrose.blogspot.com/2021/07/das-beste-vom-juni-2021.html
...this reminds me of an area in the Adirondack Mountains. Thanks for sharing all of this beauty.
VastaaPoistaLove your personal story, Riitta. That your son brought his daughter to his childhood surroundings is so good and thoughtful! Love the impression of the painter. It expresses the wildness of the water and snow of the rapids in an excellent way! Have a great weekend, Jeshie2
VastaaPoistaDear Riitta,
VastaaPoistaSo beautiful. You were able to bring back many memories of your childhood. Your way to school was very impressive. The rapids also are impressive.
Have a nice evening and hugs
Eda
What a beautiful place. I very much enjoyed reading about the history of the rapids, and of your connection to the area.
VastaaPoistaWhat a wonderful place. And what a glorious painting.
VastaaPoistaIt must have been great to grow up there.
Great scenery! Have a good weekend.
VastaaPoistaMuy interesante, me encantó leer sobre los rapids. Besos.
VastaaPoistaHow lovely that your son brought his daughter back to his childhood places! The water looks wonderful.
VastaaPoista