Porvoo is a city and a municipality
situated on the southern coast of Finland approximately 50 kilometres
(30 mi) east of Helsinki. Porvoo is one of the six medieval towns
in Finland, first mentioned as a city in texts from 14th century. Porvoo is the
seat of the Swedish speaking Diocese of Borgå of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church of Finland. The card sent to me by my dear friend Ella shows a pretty picture of the Old
Porvoo riverside, featuring wooden storage buildings
The town received
its name from a Swedish earth fortress near the river Porvoonjoki which
flows through the town. The name Porvoo is the Fennicised version of the
Swedish name (Borgå) and its parts of borg meaning "castle" and å
"river".