Camping, fishing, skiing, hiking, visit Museums, medieval Church and play Golf in Vammala (Sastamala), Finland.

Vammala or the most recent name, Sastamala is a small Finnish town around 50 kilometers (31 miles) from Tampere or 3 hr drive/train from Helsinki. It is far from the crowded city, calm and serene. Mainly pensioners live in this city. Surrounded by lakes, rivers and forests. The density of population is only 15 people/square kilometer. There is no university in the town, so most youngsters move out and come back after they retire. Most parts of the town is covered by forests, lakes and rivers. There is an intercity train stop, bus stop and an airport (presently used only for private planes). There are also one hospital, several small factories and few companies. You can also see the presence of several American and Asian car company show rooms and repair centers. The main reason is, the town is big and there is not enough public transportations. As far as I understand, people also not feel like walking or biking to travel around the city. Hence car companies have a good market here. Not just cheap cars, Mercedes Benzs, BMW and Audies can also be seen driving around the city. So, there is money in the city, at least with some people. Interestingly, Nokia mobiles headquarters is just 20 kilometers from the vammala town. The city of vammala was burned down during the civil war in 1918. Hence most the old houses are destroyed, except an old church.

There are regional trains from Tampere to Poori and you can get down at the Vammala train station. It costs around 8€ (in 2011) and it will take 45 minutes from Tampere. The nearest airport is Tampere. There are also buses from Tampere to Vammala, but it is more expensive and takes longer. If you are coming via Helsinki, you have to first take a train to Tampere and then change there.

· Book Museum: Very recently a book Museum has ben opened in vammala. It is the only book Museum in Finland. Also, once in a year in summer, there is a book festival where antique book collectors from all over Finland come to Vammala. There is also a local book store, was established in 1891, well known in Finland.

· 500 year old Church: There is a very old, around 500 year old church in the town. During civil war in 1918 most of the town was burned down except this church.

Check the article here

· Skiing and Snowboarding: There is downhill skiing and snowboarding facility in a ski resort in vammala

· Forest: Most of the vammala is covered in Forest . There are deers, moose, black adder, white rabbits (wild) and brown rabbits, fox, badger. You can also pluck blue berries, cloudberry and mushrooms.

Guide to trekking in Finnish forest

· Fishing: There are lots of fish in the rivers and lakes around vammala. I guess you can rent a boat at the ski resort and go for fishing. You can get more information about fishing in the region here

· Buy hand made designs in porcelain: In Finnish it is called Posliinitupa. There is a lady staying at Karjalankatu (katu means street) in Vammala who makes hand made designs in Porcelain.

· Golf ground: If you like to play golf, there is also faciltiy for that. It is called 'Lakeside Golf'. It has two 18 hole golf courses located in a charming countryside landscape. You can get more information about the golf here

. Herra Hakkaraisen talo (house) : This is childrens' cartoon house very famous in and around Finland. There are lots of opportunities for children to play and do adventures. Entry is free for children but adults have to pay around 5 euro as entry fees. You can get more informations here http://www.herrahakkaraisentalo.net/inenglish.html

. Sastamala Gregoriana (Music Festival): It is a festival celebrating the Finnish and international medieval art and culture. You can get more information about this here.

Here are the list of hostels in vammala. Get their website from the internet and call them before you go there.

There are few big companies and more than 50 smaller companies in Vammala. Some of the big companies in Vammala:

· Teknikum

· Vesinieminen

· Niementehtaat

· Patria

· Thermisol

Finland is a very expensive country. So take enough money with you. Youngsters speak English but older generations only speak Finnish and Swedish or Russian. Buy a travelling guide and a Finnish dictionary. You will find it useful.

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