Day 9 - Semi Final Games - Jan. 4, 2016

We were up and went to breakfast just after 8:00 am, in the hotel. This chain of hotels certainly supplies good breadfasts as part of our stays.  Then it was back to the room to get ready to board the bus back to the train at 9:20. Once everyone was accounted for, we were off on the buses.

We arrived at the train station at about 10:00 and had to go through an initial security check to enter the station. Then we had to wait until just before the train arrived to get passed the ticket checkers. Here they checked our passports to make sure we were supposed to be on the train. This was a secure area, so photographs were not allowed, although some people were taking them. We saw one girl have to delete a photo she had taken, but we know she took more than just one, so she still had some.

Inside the Train heading to Helsinki

Then we were on the train, sitting in one of the cars that were for our group, and began the 3 hour trip back to Helsinki. Once again, we had to have our passports checked by the Russian border people, while on the train. When we entered Finland, the Finnish border gaurds came around and checked our passports. These guys were much friendlier, and smiled and laughed with us. They asked who we were cheering for, and of course, everyone said Finland which drew lots of laughs.

The train was a little late arriving back in Helsinki, so we had to hurry to drop off our backpacks, get our tickets, and get down to the buses for the trip to the arena. We got off the train, walked to the hotel, went up to our rooms and got to the bus, all within about 20 minutes. Pretty spectacular for a couple of old folks who have trouble walking on slippery roads.

We were a little late getting to the arena. Traffic was quite bad for some reason. We figured it out as we got closer to the arena. Lots of cars were going to the same place we were going. When we arrived, there was only about half an hour before the game started. We found our seats for these games, which were in the lower bowl of that arena. We had seats in row 6, but they were behind the time keeper and the penalty boxes. Quite a lot of glass to look through, and it was hard to see the game. Dawn watched most of the games on the big screen, and wasn't too happy.

Beginning of the game

We were surprised that the first game was Sweden and Finland. We had thought that Finland would play the late game, but I guess all those folks who were driving knew more about it than we did. We were sure that Sweden had a stronger team (and we still think that). However, they played a fast, hard checking game, and in the end, Finland prevailed, 2-1. There were some pretty upset Swedish players, and some pretty jubilant Finns by the time this game ended.

Then it was another walk around the arena, in the walkway with lots of restaurants and beer places. What a crowd. In places, it was very difficult to move. People were standing in line, and generally standing around, blocking access to anywhere to walk. We finally found a less busy area, and leaned against the wall until they opened the doors to let back into the seating area.

The second game went very similarly to the first game. We felt the US team was stronger than the Russian team. The US scored the first goal in the first period. It stayed that way until more than half way through the second period. Then the Russians scored. A short while later, they scored their second goal, and the US seemed to wilt. They continued to play hard, but the Russians put on even more pressure and basically kept them tied up. This game also ended 2-1, and now things are set for the Bronze and Gold medal games tomorrow.

They should be fun, and if today is any indication, they will be hard fought.