Well this will be my last update. I'm now sitting at my hostel in Helsinki, having checked out, rather less hungover than I intended, with 5 hours until my flight leaves. Helsinki, as I expected, is less about the touristy things to see/do, and more about the nightlife. Which suited me fine, as I already have two friends who live here - and managed to find an extremely social hostel.
Vaasa was the first of three locations in this update - I arrived there on Thursday afternoon after an extremely scenic flight from Tromso, with a train from Oulu, to meet a guy who'd agreed to let me couchsurf at his (Janne). Being Finnish, of course, he had a sauna in his house, and invited a few friends round to get drunk in the sauna with us. So sitting naked in a random guy's sauna, getting drunk with him and his (very international - Czech, French, Italian and Finnish) friends (male and female) was a pretty cool (/warm) experience! Then, since my coach wasn't until 4pm on Friday, I did what any self-respecting backpacker would do on a nice day in a random place: got some wifi then chilled on the beach for the day.
Arriving from the coach on Friday night (about 11pm), I was tired and disorientated, plunged into the drinking centre of a new city in the dark. So, predictably, got lost pretty quickly. That many drunken Finns are disconcerting at the best of times! But a very helpful local stopped as he was cycling past to help me out, which got me back on the right track and I found the hostel. Saturday, I had arranged to meet up with a girl (Johanna) who I'd met in Cairns a couple of years ago, as she studies in Helsinki. So I wandered round the city and spent a good 45 minutes looking round the lively, buzzing and interesting central market, then had a gander at the two cathedrals (Russian Orthodox and Lutheran) nearby. I then met up with Johanna and we walked over to sit by the beach because, as always, the weather was incredible. In the evening, I headed back to my hostel with some beers, cooked my tea and sat in there with a beer, waiting for people to talk to me. Which happened pretty quickly - a very sociable group, who I promptly went out to a local bar with for a few (more) drinks.
On Sunday, I pulled myself out of bed at the earliest time I could manage (around 10am) and walked off up to the National Museum (I'm not even going to attempt to give you the Finnish names for these places - it's a waste of both of our times!), which was of a similar standard to the Oslo and Copenhagen ones - an interesting way to spend a few hours, but a little disappointing. I was hoping for more on the power struggles between Sweden and Russia, which have undoubtedly shaped the country, but I think - having been independent for less than 100 years - they're keen to focus it more internally. The Helsinki Museum was a similar story - relatively little mentioned about the Swedes or the Russians, but focussed more on the location and inhabitants of the city.
I then had another quick trip to the Central Market to think about getting myself a knife, with a hand-carved reindeer antler handle, but I didn't go for it in the end. Still thinking about it for today though! Saturday evening, I then invited my other friend in Helsinki, Todd (a Welsh guy that I met in South Africa, 8 and a half years ago and haven't seen since!), round to my hostel for a few drinks. So we ended up going out with a pretty big group (around 10 of us) from the hostel again, to another local bar.
Having a ferry to Tallinn (Estonia) booked for 7.30 in the morning on Monday, I clearly wanted to get back early. Which didn't really happen. So, after about 5 hours' sleep, I jogged down to the ferry terminal, thinking that 10 past 7 would be plenty time to catch it. But, it turns out, they close the check-in at 7am, and leave as soon as everyone's on board - so I was 10 minutes late and they wouldn't let me on. Thankfully though, they transferred me to the 10.30 ferry for no extra charge, which gave me a few free hours. I walked up the west coast of the main island, to see the Sibelius Monument, not realising quite how far it was. So, getting paranoid about missing my next ferry, I turned back before I got there and was at the ferry terminal about 40 minutes too early.
Eventually in Tallinn though, after a few obligatory ferry beers, I wandered about the more modern section of town - helping a rather drunk guy climb into a first floor window which he claimed was his. Being British, I kind of didn't want to question it, but he did show me an identity card, with some kind of address on. So hopefully I wasn't accessory to burglary. Supposedly, his girlfriend had gone out and locked him out. I'm trying not to think about it too much! Off to the Old Town (I didn't even see the Estonian name, never mind telling you all), I climbed the Town Hall tower (after a pint - 0.562L - of beer in a traditional style tavern) and had a good wander round the old streets, followed by a meal of game sausages - bear, elk and boar - and some dark beer with herbs, in another medieval-style pub (Olde Hansa - touristy, but very recommended by both myself and Lonely Planet), by which time I had to hot foot it back down to the ferry terminal with 5 minutes to spare.
Catching up on some sleep, with a quick beer to replace what I'd slept off, I passed the 2-hour journey pretty quickly. Having broken my phone screen the night before (the charger fell on it - not a drunken accident!) and with my ipod refusing to charge - with someone monopolising the hostel computer like I am now - meant getting in touch with Johanna again was a bit tricky. But eventually, I managed to meet up with her again and bring her back to the hostel for another drink, before again joining people in the same bar as Saturday night. Annoyingly though, my travel money card decided to stop me from getting any more beers that day and I had no cash, so - by the time we left - I went back to the hostel rather more sober than I'd hoped for my final night.
So now, rather sad to be going home, but happy to have had such a great experience, met many lovely people and seen some pretty incredible places, I'm off to wander about Helsinki again for a few hours. Thanks for reading, and not making me explain individually to you all what I've been doing!
Tuesday, 25 August 2015
Saturday, 22 August 2015
Troms-ohhhhh, Look At That!
Well Tromso was, as expected, incredible. Just an absolutely breathtakingly beautiful area. So I'll start where I left off last time which, I think, was having just arrived.
Having flown up from Oslo, then getting the regular service bus into the centre and finding my hostel relatively easily (it's a small and easily navigable city of 75,000 population), I checked in, dumped my stuff and headed straight out to explore. I headed for one of the main attractions in Tromso - the cable car which takes you to the top of a mountain, around 400m above sea level (and therefore Tromso itself) for some amazing views of the city. Which gave me some amazing views of the city. It's also a good area for hiking, with a number of trails leading up and around the further peaks, so I spent a few hours walking before getting back to the cable car station in time for an overpriced beer in front of the sunset.
My second day, Monday, I set out to explore the museums, planning to book a couple of local tours later in the day. It, however, turned out to be a bit of a nothing day as I got sidetracked earlier than planned by booking my tours. But before that, I did see the Polaria museum (not to be confused with the Polar Museum, near my hostel), which started with a 15 minute film on the Aurora Borealis, as Tromso is one of the best places in the world to see it - unfortunately it usually starts being visible a few weeks after I was there. The museum also contained arctic marine wildlife, such as seals and various fish, and went to great lengths to highlight the dangers of climate change and the potential effects. I had then planned to see the Tromso City Museum, including a preserved sealing vessel explaining the history of sealing in the area, but it was annoyingly closed. So, on my way to find the Defence Museum, again about Norway's defence against the Nazis, I stopped at my hostel for lunch and got completely distracted by looking at potential tours to do.
So after lunch, I just headed to the tourist information centre to do some more research and book my tours through them. I decided on a tour of some of the local fjords by car and a day of sea kayaking in the same area. Thinking I'd been extremely efficient and booked my fjords tour for 7pm that evening, effectively giving myself an extra half-day, I was just rushing back to get changed when I realised it was the wrong date. So I had to cancel that (with a full refund thankfully) and booked another one for the next morning from 10am. After chilling at the hostel for a while, I got invited out for drinks and to watch one of the hostel staff's band play in a local bar. Which was dire. They were all decent, but the instruments were far too loud and the guy singing was far too quiet, so it just didn't work and didn't allow us much chance to chat. But it was a good night anyway and I managed not to spend too much on beer, at almost ten quid a pint...
My tour guide for the fjords then picked me up at 10am, followed by a family from Hong Kong, and we set off for Someroy (Summer Island). The guide (Andrei, a Romanian immigrant) was great and knew exactly where to go for the best views, and gave us plenty of opportunity to get out and take some incredible photos of the fjords. For anyone who doesn't know (I thought everyone knew exactly what the Norwegian fjords are, but apparently not), they're the high, steep sided valleys surrounding the coastal waters and stretch pretty much the entire coast of Norway. Some of the most attractive scenery in the world, by anyone's judgement. We spent most of the day, just driving round and jumping out of the car every 2 minutes to take more photos, before setting up a little campfire on the beach for some reindeer sausages. It was around 5pm when I got back and, feeling energetic, I set off for another hike.
I'd already decided that I wanted to get to the top of the Tromsdalstinden peak, which is visible from most places in the city, with quite a bit of snow on top and towering over the cable car mountain. Having set off from sea level, it took me around 3 and a half hours to walk to the foot of the mountain and ascend its 1,238m (4,062ft). The views from the top, not even mentioning those from the entire (arduous, knackering, physically exhausting!) route up, are probably the most breathtaking, magnificent views I've ever witnessed. Nothing I can think of really comes close - anywhere I've seen in the Peak District, Lake District, Pennine Way or any of my previous travelling. The one thing I can compare it to is the French Alps, around Mont Blanc, with so many snow-capped mountains in every direction. But, being summer, there was rather less snow and rather more lakes, streams, waterfalls and sheer cliff faces. Thankfully my phone battery just held out for long enough to take plenty of pictures along the top ridge, which I stayed on for around 30-40 minutes, just taking in the sights before making my way back down the tricky rock scramble at the top, then rather quicker on the less steep paths closer to the bottom. I timed it perfectly too, arriving back into (now complete fog-shrouded) civilisation just as it was getting too dark to be wandering about in unfamiliar hills, around 10.30pm.
My kayak tour was the next day and, annoyingly, the fog still hadn't cleared by the time we were meeting, around 8.30am - where it was just myself and a lovely French couple for the tour. Or by the time we'd driven out to Someroy again and got everything ready. So, for the first few hours, there was relatively little to actually see. But the sea around there is extremely calm, so it was still a nice, relaxing paddle about around the small islands there. By the time we stopped for lunch (reindeer sausages on the beach again - obviously popular among the tours around Tromso!), the fog had started to clear. So the afternoon was spent, fully familiarised with my kayak, seeing some more of the amazing fjords and the clear arctic seas. I then got back to my hostel in the evening, wanting to spend my last night drinking, but couldn't find the people I'd been out with on Monday night. So I spent some time with an Iraqi/English guy, looking for somewhere decent to eat and to have a couple of pints, but we completely failed to find anywhere and ended up cooking back at the hostel, with no alcohol. But, in the end, I was ready to pass out from exhaustion anyway from the last two days, so it suited me alright.
Which brings me to the end of one of the best places I've ever been. My flight to Finland was uneventful, and I'll leave the rest of my trip (sauna drinking in Vaasa and my 4 nights in Helsinki) for the next, and final, installment.
Having flown up from Oslo, then getting the regular service bus into the centre and finding my hostel relatively easily (it's a small and easily navigable city of 75,000 population), I checked in, dumped my stuff and headed straight out to explore. I headed for one of the main attractions in Tromso - the cable car which takes you to the top of a mountain, around 400m above sea level (and therefore Tromso itself) for some amazing views of the city. Which gave me some amazing views of the city. It's also a good area for hiking, with a number of trails leading up and around the further peaks, so I spent a few hours walking before getting back to the cable car station in time for an overpriced beer in front of the sunset.
My second day, Monday, I set out to explore the museums, planning to book a couple of local tours later in the day. It, however, turned out to be a bit of a nothing day as I got sidetracked earlier than planned by booking my tours. But before that, I did see the Polaria museum (not to be confused with the Polar Museum, near my hostel), which started with a 15 minute film on the Aurora Borealis, as Tromso is one of the best places in the world to see it - unfortunately it usually starts being visible a few weeks after I was there. The museum also contained arctic marine wildlife, such as seals and various fish, and went to great lengths to highlight the dangers of climate change and the potential effects. I had then planned to see the Tromso City Museum, including a preserved sealing vessel explaining the history of sealing in the area, but it was annoyingly closed. So, on my way to find the Defence Museum, again about Norway's defence against the Nazis, I stopped at my hostel for lunch and got completely distracted by looking at potential tours to do.
So after lunch, I just headed to the tourist information centre to do some more research and book my tours through them. I decided on a tour of some of the local fjords by car and a day of sea kayaking in the same area. Thinking I'd been extremely efficient and booked my fjords tour for 7pm that evening, effectively giving myself an extra half-day, I was just rushing back to get changed when I realised it was the wrong date. So I had to cancel that (with a full refund thankfully) and booked another one for the next morning from 10am. After chilling at the hostel for a while, I got invited out for drinks and to watch one of the hostel staff's band play in a local bar. Which was dire. They were all decent, but the instruments were far too loud and the guy singing was far too quiet, so it just didn't work and didn't allow us much chance to chat. But it was a good night anyway and I managed not to spend too much on beer, at almost ten quid a pint...
My tour guide for the fjords then picked me up at 10am, followed by a family from Hong Kong, and we set off for Someroy (Summer Island). The guide (Andrei, a Romanian immigrant) was great and knew exactly where to go for the best views, and gave us plenty of opportunity to get out and take some incredible photos of the fjords. For anyone who doesn't know (I thought everyone knew exactly what the Norwegian fjords are, but apparently not), they're the high, steep sided valleys surrounding the coastal waters and stretch pretty much the entire coast of Norway. Some of the most attractive scenery in the world, by anyone's judgement. We spent most of the day, just driving round and jumping out of the car every 2 minutes to take more photos, before setting up a little campfire on the beach for some reindeer sausages. It was around 5pm when I got back and, feeling energetic, I set off for another hike.
I'd already decided that I wanted to get to the top of the Tromsdalstinden peak, which is visible from most places in the city, with quite a bit of snow on top and towering over the cable car mountain. Having set off from sea level, it took me around 3 and a half hours to walk to the foot of the mountain and ascend its 1,238m (4,062ft). The views from the top, not even mentioning those from the entire (arduous, knackering, physically exhausting!) route up, are probably the most breathtaking, magnificent views I've ever witnessed. Nothing I can think of really comes close - anywhere I've seen in the Peak District, Lake District, Pennine Way or any of my previous travelling. The one thing I can compare it to is the French Alps, around Mont Blanc, with so many snow-capped mountains in every direction. But, being summer, there was rather less snow and rather more lakes, streams, waterfalls and sheer cliff faces. Thankfully my phone battery just held out for long enough to take plenty of pictures along the top ridge, which I stayed on for around 30-40 minutes, just taking in the sights before making my way back down the tricky rock scramble at the top, then rather quicker on the less steep paths closer to the bottom. I timed it perfectly too, arriving back into (now complete fog-shrouded) civilisation just as it was getting too dark to be wandering about in unfamiliar hills, around 10.30pm.
My kayak tour was the next day and, annoyingly, the fog still hadn't cleared by the time we were meeting, around 8.30am - where it was just myself and a lovely French couple for the tour. Or by the time we'd driven out to Someroy again and got everything ready. So, for the first few hours, there was relatively little to actually see. But the sea around there is extremely calm, so it was still a nice, relaxing paddle about around the small islands there. By the time we stopped for lunch (reindeer sausages on the beach again - obviously popular among the tours around Tromso!), the fog had started to clear. So the afternoon was spent, fully familiarised with my kayak, seeing some more of the amazing fjords and the clear arctic seas. I then got back to my hostel in the evening, wanting to spend my last night drinking, but couldn't find the people I'd been out with on Monday night. So I spent some time with an Iraqi/English guy, looking for somewhere decent to eat and to have a couple of pints, but we completely failed to find anywhere and ended up cooking back at the hostel, with no alcohol. But, in the end, I was ready to pass out from exhaustion anyway from the last two days, so it suited me alright.
Which brings me to the end of one of the best places I've ever been. My flight to Finland was uneventful, and I'll leave the rest of my trip (sauna drinking in Vaasa and my 4 nights in Helsinki) for the next, and final, installment.
Monday, 17 August 2015
Os-High
I arrived in Tromsø yesterday after a beautiful but uneventful 2-hour flight up from Oslo, and I'm suitably stunned by its magnificent scenery. But more about that in the next update, this is meant to be about Oslo. I may leave a couple of things out though, it seems like ages since I arrived there four days ago! As with the other three - Oslo is a city undergoing major construction work, almost all of it confined to the harbour area. But, probably aided somewhat by the (yet again) amazing weather, there was a nice, happy buzz around the city and - if it wasn't about 8 quid for a pint, I expect it'd be a great nightlife too. There were trendy bars, cultural sights and the harbour (even despite all the construction) is lovely.
Before Oslo though, I'll quickly mention that the festival on my last night in Stockholm was no great shakes. I got there, had an overpriced beer and stood watching Paul Hook (former lead guitarist for Joy Division apparently - before my time I think) for about 45 minutes before deciding to leave. He's not very good - although the crowd seemed to like him. My highlight was chatting to a woman from Sheffield, who I offered to pick up so she could see (she was about 5 foot) - which her and her friend found hilarious, luckily. I was just planning to go back to my hostel, but got distracted and jumped on the ferry back over to Djurgårdsstaden (/Djurgården) for some pictures. Which unfortunately didn't turn out well on my phone camera. Then, instead of ferrying back, I just jogged the ~4mi round the harbour and back that way. Because why not.
The first thing I did after the 5hr train journey to Oslo, after checking in, was sit down for a classic Norwegian reindeer stew (which cost less than 20 quid, about 170NEK, with a 15% discount for being a hostel guest - great price for Norway!) Since I didn't want to pay for a 72hr 'Oslo Pass', which - similar to what I used in both Stockholm and Copenhagen - gives you free travel and free access to most museums etc. for a certain time (48/72hr), I just went wandering once I'd had my meal. So I went straight down to the harbour and along the Havn Promenaden (Harbour Promenade - I did tell you this Scandivian stuff is easy! I now have a database of 15-20, largely Norwegian, Scandinavian words saved on my phone). The Promenaden has 14 information points along a 9km (5mi) stretch of harbour, all about the history and future Development plans of that particular area. I started about halfway along though, due to the position of my hostel, and walked the western section and back. On the way back, I also saw a great street performer - a video of whom will appear on my Facebook at some point.
My first full day started with a walk down to the Akershus Slott (Akershus Palace) within the Akershus Festning (fortress). I got my 48hr Oslo Pass and an audio guide for the largely disappointing former home of the Norwegian royal family, where they still hold occasional state ceremonies etc. It was smaller and less lavish than any of the Rosenborg, Christianborg (CPH) or Kungliga (Stockholm) palaces I've visited so far. So, once I'd seen all it had to offer, I went to the Festning visitor centre to read up more on the history of the fortress itself - a former prison from around 1300AD - and get an information sheet to walk around it with.
The fortress was mildly more interesting, but I would have preferred real ruins (like those under Christianborg and Kongliga), as opposed to the continuous building and repair that's occurred there through most of its history, making it seem less historic. Far more fascinating, however, was the Norwegian Resistance Museum, describing the major events and personal attitudes that occurred in Norway during WWII, starting from the Nazi invasion at around 4am, 9th April 1940. It included information on the royal family's escape, secret communication methods with Britain, the teachers' refusal to teach propaganda and various other incredibly interesting exhibits..
By the time I'd finished there, it was already around 4pm, so I just managed to get over to the Historisk Museum (nope, you don't get a translation on that one) with about half an hour to look around before its closing time of 5pm. Because everything closes far too early here for some reason, even during the summer months. Strangely, for such a large museum, it had very little English translations for most of its exhibits, so half an hour was just about all I needed to see the Viking-age Norwegian exhibit, and one on the transportation of gold out of Oslo - and subsequently Norway - during the Nazi invasion. I then wandered through some Norwegian language exhibits (it may seem like an easy language, but I've not quite mastered it yet...) for the last 5 minutes. After that, I again found a nice swimming pool (free entry with my Oslo Pass) for a swim and sunbathe for a couple of hours.
My next day, Saturday, I got the ferry over to Bygdøy and walked over to the Norsk Folkemuseum (again, not translating). The exhibits in the main building were quite underwhelming, but I really enjoyed walking around the different sections of the gardens, with buildings and information from different periods of Norwegian history. Then to the Vikingskiphuset (shouldn't need to translate this one either - but it's the Viking Ship Museum) which contained, funnily enough, 3 recovered Viking ships, in various states of decay, with skeletons and artifacts also recovered from the sites. Unfortunately, although interesting, it took about half an hour to look round and wouldn't have been worth the entry price if it wasn't for my Oslo Pass. Then, instead of waiting 15 minutes for the next ferry, I again just walked the long way round, and back along the section of the Havn Promenaden I'd already done.
I checked out the harbour swimming area and decided I'd rather go back to the same pool as the day before (larger and less crowded) for more swimming and sunbathing. But it was closed for some competition or other. Then, the second I got back to the harbour and changed into my swimming shorts, the sun went behind a cloud and never reappeared. So, after an hour's kind of chilly sunbathing, I made my way back to the hostel for my tea. Then, as the sun was getting low, I quickly went back out and to the Opera House (a well-designed, modern structure which you can walk up, down and almost all over) for some pictures. Then jogged (again, because why not?) the eastern half of the Havn Promenaden, stopping only to read the signs and take more pictures.
I'm considering doing two posts for Tromsø, if I have time and enough to write about by tomorrow evening, as it may be an even longer one if not. But I probably won't. Sorry.
Before Oslo though, I'll quickly mention that the festival on my last night in Stockholm was no great shakes. I got there, had an overpriced beer and stood watching Paul Hook (former lead guitarist for Joy Division apparently - before my time I think) for about 45 minutes before deciding to leave. He's not very good - although the crowd seemed to like him. My highlight was chatting to a woman from Sheffield, who I offered to pick up so she could see (she was about 5 foot) - which her and her friend found hilarious, luckily. I was just planning to go back to my hostel, but got distracted and jumped on the ferry back over to Djurgårdsstaden (/Djurgården) for some pictures. Which unfortunately didn't turn out well on my phone camera. Then, instead of ferrying back, I just jogged the ~4mi round the harbour and back that way. Because why not.
The first thing I did after the 5hr train journey to Oslo, after checking in, was sit down for a classic Norwegian reindeer stew (which cost less than 20 quid, about 170NEK, with a 15% discount for being a hostel guest - great price for Norway!) Since I didn't want to pay for a 72hr 'Oslo Pass', which - similar to what I used in both Stockholm and Copenhagen - gives you free travel and free access to most museums etc. for a certain time (48/72hr), I just went wandering once I'd had my meal. So I went straight down to the harbour and along the Havn Promenaden (Harbour Promenade - I did tell you this Scandivian stuff is easy! I now have a database of 15-20, largely Norwegian, Scandinavian words saved on my phone). The Promenaden has 14 information points along a 9km (5mi) stretch of harbour, all about the history and future Development plans of that particular area. I started about halfway along though, due to the position of my hostel, and walked the western section and back. On the way back, I also saw a great street performer - a video of whom will appear on my Facebook at some point.
My first full day started with a walk down to the Akershus Slott (Akershus Palace) within the Akershus Festning (fortress). I got my 48hr Oslo Pass and an audio guide for the largely disappointing former home of the Norwegian royal family, where they still hold occasional state ceremonies etc. It was smaller and less lavish than any of the Rosenborg, Christianborg (CPH) or Kungliga (Stockholm) palaces I've visited so far. So, once I'd seen all it had to offer, I went to the Festning visitor centre to read up more on the history of the fortress itself - a former prison from around 1300AD - and get an information sheet to walk around it with.
The fortress was mildly more interesting, but I would have preferred real ruins (like those under Christianborg and Kongliga), as opposed to the continuous building and repair that's occurred there through most of its history, making it seem less historic. Far more fascinating, however, was the Norwegian Resistance Museum, describing the major events and personal attitudes that occurred in Norway during WWII, starting from the Nazi invasion at around 4am, 9th April 1940. It included information on the royal family's escape, secret communication methods with Britain, the teachers' refusal to teach propaganda and various other incredibly interesting exhibits..
By the time I'd finished there, it was already around 4pm, so I just managed to get over to the Historisk Museum (nope, you don't get a translation on that one) with about half an hour to look around before its closing time of 5pm. Because everything closes far too early here for some reason, even during the summer months. Strangely, for such a large museum, it had very little English translations for most of its exhibits, so half an hour was just about all I needed to see the Viking-age Norwegian exhibit, and one on the transportation of gold out of Oslo - and subsequently Norway - during the Nazi invasion. I then wandered through some Norwegian language exhibits (it may seem like an easy language, but I've not quite mastered it yet...) for the last 5 minutes. After that, I again found a nice swimming pool (free entry with my Oslo Pass) for a swim and sunbathe for a couple of hours.
My next day, Saturday, I got the ferry over to Bygdøy and walked over to the Norsk Folkemuseum (again, not translating). The exhibits in the main building were quite underwhelming, but I really enjoyed walking around the different sections of the gardens, with buildings and information from different periods of Norwegian history. Then to the Vikingskiphuset (shouldn't need to translate this one either - but it's the Viking Ship Museum) which contained, funnily enough, 3 recovered Viking ships, in various states of decay, with skeletons and artifacts also recovered from the sites. Unfortunately, although interesting, it took about half an hour to look round and wouldn't have been worth the entry price if it wasn't for my Oslo Pass. Then, instead of waiting 15 minutes for the next ferry, I again just walked the long way round, and back along the section of the Havn Promenaden I'd already done.
I checked out the harbour swimming area and decided I'd rather go back to the same pool as the day before (larger and less crowded) for more swimming and sunbathing. But it was closed for some competition or other. Then, the second I got back to the harbour and changed into my swimming shorts, the sun went behind a cloud and never reappeared. So, after an hour's kind of chilly sunbathing, I made my way back to the hostel for my tea. Then, as the sun was getting low, I quickly went back out and to the Opera House (a well-designed, modern structure which you can walk up, down and almost all over) for some pictures. Then jogged (again, because why not?) the eastern half of the Havn Promenaden, stopping only to read the signs and take more pictures.
I'm considering doing two posts for Tromsø, if I have time and enough to write about by tomorrow evening, as it may be an even longer one if not. But I probably won't. Sorry.
Wednesday, 12 August 2015
Stock-Home
Well Stockholm's not quite finished, I'm still here for tonight. But I had some spare time, so thought I'd update now. It's a lovely city, with an amazing history and lovely people. But I think I still preferred Reykavik (although I did have a much better hostel there).
So, on my first day, after 'sleeping' next to the smelly man and arriving at my hostel with 8 hours to spare, I went out and made the most of the day. It's a pretty easy city again to navigate, and more walkable than CPH, so I set out wandering down towards the old town (Gamla Stan) from my island of Södermalm, planning to stop at the Stadsmuseet (City Museum), which sounded very interesting in my Lonely Planet guide. But it's shut for renovation for the next two years! So I headed right in to Gamla Stan and walked about the little back streets for a while, then went in search of Kingliga Slottet (Royal Palace). Which isn't hard to find, as it dominates a whole corner of the Gamla Stan island.
I was expecting something very similar to the Christianborg and Roseborg palaces in CPH, and not particularly excited, but it was far nicer inside; the highlight of it is probably the small but grand Royal Chapel. The palace though is also very nicely built/decorated and again has interesting remains of another castle underneath, the Tre Kroner Castle from around the 14th century (I think... it's a while ago anyway!) After all that, I headed back to my hostel in order to finally check in and have the obligitory nap before going out in search of food. Which I found, on my island, around "SoFo", the trendy area of this Södermalm (which I'm reasonably sure translates as "Southern Countryside" - I have picked up the odd bit of Swedish/Scandinavian). It took me a while to find a suitable place serving traditional meatballs, which was then quite expensive, but extremely tasty.'
My hostel, being very boring and more of a family hotel with dorm rooms, there's no real social life here, so I was home early to read my book and chat to an Aussie lass in my room. Then, on Tuesday, I wandered back down to Gamla Stan for a walking tour around that central island, followed by a ferry across to Djurstadsgarden (or something like that!) for a couple of museums. So, after quickly going through Skansen, the traditional town with a little zoo area for Scandinavian animals, I wandered down to the Vasamuseet. Which was great. I'm usually not so into my ships, but this place contains the actual wreck of a 16th century warship (the Vasa, named after the king Gustaf Vasa), which lasted 1500m (less than a mile) into its maiden voyage! Full of interesting bits about how the people would have lived, who the specific remains may have belonged to etc.
Unfortunately, after leaving the Vasamuseet and getting to the Nordiskämuseet (Nordic Museum) although it didn't look as inspiring as I'd hoped anyway. Then the Biologiskämuseet (yep, the natural history museum, this Scandinavian lark is actually pretty easy!), was already closed. So I went into the amusement park closeby for a high drop ride, purely for the view obviously, and one of the shortest but best rollercoasters I've ever been on. Which I won't go into detail on; I know when to spot a lost cause. After that, it was back home for another rather boring night.
Today, I managed to get out earlyish (about 9am) thanks to the lack of a hangover, and headed straight for the main shopping street, on the northern island (the name of which I can't remember!!) to replace my lost socks and sunglasses. Then to the Stadshus (City Hall, as Stads means city and 'hus' is obvious) for a 45-minute tour of the place itself, before going up the (130m?) tall tower for incredible views across the city. Dipping back across the upper island, I arrived at the Historiskämuseet (National History) on its eastern end. Which was fascinating - almost to the point of the Reykjavik one - and took far longer than I expected. I headed back over to the Biologiskämuseet on foot, as they're not far, but that was just closing as I got there. So, with a (largely pointless, but fun) ferry back across, I wandered back through Gamla Stan to look around the (originally) 13th century cathedral (Storkyrken, or great church) and see the wooden statue of St. George killing the dragon.
Then, for my last museum of the city, I went to the medieval museum (with a long and unpronounceable name) - another of these underground archaeology sites. Which was again very interesting, and gave more great insight into the people and workings of Sweden through the years. And I'm right now about to go back out again to check out the culture festival (Kulturfestival, surprisingly enough!), as I think they have live bands on. Which could be a fun end to my Stockholm stay. Or I might entirely forget to even mention it in my next post...
So, on my first day, after 'sleeping' next to the smelly man and arriving at my hostel with 8 hours to spare, I went out and made the most of the day. It's a pretty easy city again to navigate, and more walkable than CPH, so I set out wandering down towards the old town (Gamla Stan) from my island of Södermalm, planning to stop at the Stadsmuseet (City Museum), which sounded very interesting in my Lonely Planet guide. But it's shut for renovation for the next two years! So I headed right in to Gamla Stan and walked about the little back streets for a while, then went in search of Kingliga Slottet (Royal Palace). Which isn't hard to find, as it dominates a whole corner of the Gamla Stan island.
I was expecting something very similar to the Christianborg and Roseborg palaces in CPH, and not particularly excited, but it was far nicer inside; the highlight of it is probably the small but grand Royal Chapel. The palace though is also very nicely built/decorated and again has interesting remains of another castle underneath, the Tre Kroner Castle from around the 14th century (I think... it's a while ago anyway!) After all that, I headed back to my hostel in order to finally check in and have the obligitory nap before going out in search of food. Which I found, on my island, around "SoFo", the trendy area of this Södermalm (which I'm reasonably sure translates as "Southern Countryside" - I have picked up the odd bit of Swedish/Scandinavian). It took me a while to find a suitable place serving traditional meatballs, which was then quite expensive, but extremely tasty.'
My hostel, being very boring and more of a family hotel with dorm rooms, there's no real social life here, so I was home early to read my book and chat to an Aussie lass in my room. Then, on Tuesday, I wandered back down to Gamla Stan for a walking tour around that central island, followed by a ferry across to Djurstadsgarden (or something like that!) for a couple of museums. So, after quickly going through Skansen, the traditional town with a little zoo area for Scandinavian animals, I wandered down to the Vasamuseet. Which was great. I'm usually not so into my ships, but this place contains the actual wreck of a 16th century warship (the Vasa, named after the king Gustaf Vasa), which lasted 1500m (less than a mile) into its maiden voyage! Full of interesting bits about how the people would have lived, who the specific remains may have belonged to etc.
Unfortunately, after leaving the Vasamuseet and getting to the Nordiskämuseet (Nordic Museum) although it didn't look as inspiring as I'd hoped anyway. Then the Biologiskämuseet (yep, the natural history museum, this Scandinavian lark is actually pretty easy!), was already closed. So I went into the amusement park closeby for a high drop ride, purely for the view obviously, and one of the shortest but best rollercoasters I've ever been on. Which I won't go into detail on; I know when to spot a lost cause. After that, it was back home for another rather boring night.
Today, I managed to get out earlyish (about 9am) thanks to the lack of a hangover, and headed straight for the main shopping street, on the northern island (the name of which I can't remember!!) to replace my lost socks and sunglasses. Then to the Stadshus (City Hall, as Stads means city and 'hus' is obvious) for a 45-minute tour of the place itself, before going up the (130m?) tall tower for incredible views across the city. Dipping back across the upper island, I arrived at the Historiskämuseet (National History) on its eastern end. Which was fascinating - almost to the point of the Reykjavik one - and took far longer than I expected. I headed back over to the Biologiskämuseet on foot, as they're not far, but that was just closing as I got there. So, with a (largely pointless, but fun) ferry back across, I wandered back through Gamla Stan to look around the (originally) 13th century cathedral (Storkyrken, or great church) and see the wooden statue of St. George killing the dragon.
Then, for my last museum of the city, I went to the medieval museum (with a long and unpronounceable name) - another of these underground archaeology sites. Which was again very interesting, and gave more great insight into the people and workings of Sweden through the years. And I'm right now about to go back out again to check out the culture festival (Kulturfestival, surprisingly enough!), as I think they have live bands on. Which could be a fun end to my Stockholm stay. Or I might entirely forget to even mention it in my next post...
Sunday, 9 August 2015
I Coped-in-Hagen
I think these attempted place name puns are just going to get worse. And the blogs aren't getting shorter. Sorry. But I've been in Copenhagen since my last post, and just arrived in Stockholm with 8 hours this time until I can check in. Although at least I got more sleep on my overnight train last night than the flight from Reykjavik. Despite sitting next to quite a smelly guy who I'm pretty confident was homeless and didn't have a good sense of 'my seat, your seat'.
So, after writing my last post on Thursday, I went straight to Arrivens cemetery near my hostel to visit Hans Christian Andersen's grave and have a good nap (it's widely used for recreation, I wasn't just napping in a random graveyard!), which I then carried on later having walked to the botanic gardens - which are beautiful. From there, I got a ticket for the Rosenborg Slot (palace), lived in by the royal family for a couple of centuries in medieval times and well maintained. It was a little underwhelming, although probably more impressive if I was into old art! A nice building all the same though, and the crown jewels were very nice, in the treasury beneath the palace.
By the time I'd wandered back to the hostel with relative ease (although I did find it a much more difficult city to navigate), it was time to check in and really catch up on my sleep. A few hours later, I got up and went back into the city to see the sites before getting the bus back (I'm quite proud of getting so many buses there, as I rarely do it in strange cities, although a bike is more traditional in Copenhagen!) Then I had 'a few drinks' and got to know some of the people in my hostel.
The next day, Friday, I had arranged to meet a friend (Camilla, who I met on Kangaroo Island in Australia, but who studies in CPH) at Tivoli, which is the world's second oldest theme park, right in the centre of the city. But the morning, feeling a little rough, was spent in the Nationalmuseet - and, again, no prizes for the translation! It wasn't quite as impressive as the Icelandic national museum, but it included a lot of pre-history of humans in the area, up to the modern day and was a good way to pass the morning.
Tivoli, having successfully met up with Camilla, was great. Around 300 Danish Krone (30 quid) for access to the park and all the rides. It was a little busy, but most of the queues passed quickly enough, and the rides were pretty good. The band later in the park, from 10pm, were also really great - D.A.D. (famous in Denmark from about the 80s). Unfortunately, we were towards the back of a huge crowd (think main stage at Leeds/Reading huge) and could only see the screens, not really the stage itself, but it was still a good atmosphere and an enjoyable band. Getting back to the hostel around midnight, after chatting to a lovely Danish med student lass on the bus, I just went straight to bed (almost) sober.
Saturday started with a very boring and unevenful trip to the local laundry - where I discovered I've managed to lose 3 and a half pairs of socks along the way somehwere! Then another bus into the centre and a walk down to the canal and the Nyhavn (New Habour) to see the Little Mermaid statue. I've heard from a few people that she's small and unimpressive - which is true, but at least I went with low expectations and was pleasantly surprised, except for the masses of tourists crowded around her. Her 'genetically modified' counterpart, a short way further on was rather less attractive, but probably more interesting. While the other, rather more attractive and larger-breasted "Big Mermaid" statue at a nearby cafe maybe just lacked the style and dignity of the original!
I'd then planned to go to the Frihedmuseet about the Danish resistance to Nazi rule, which is described in my Lonely Planet guide, but apparently it burned down a couple of years ago! So, with that disappointment, I made my way to the Amalienborg Slot - home to the royal family since 1794 and quite uninspiring, then up to the (virtually next door) Frederikskirken church, which was closed for a wedding (which must cost a fair whack!) So I couldn't get up the dome, which was again rather disappointing! Then it was over to Christianborg Slot - another of the royal family's former homes - to see the again disappointing royal stables. Which would have been rather better if there were any horses there, but they were all out to graze for the summer.
The relics of Absalon's Fortress (the first of around 6 castles/palaces to be built on that exact site from 1167), underneath the current Palace, was much more interesting. So, taking my time around there just gave me half an hour to look around the reception rooms, still used by the parliament and royal family - but half an hour was enough for another impressive, grand old building! Finally for the day's siteseeing, I went up the palace tower with an out-of-battery phone and having left my ipod at base, unfortunately meaning no pictures of the incredible views.
After a heavier-than-expected night on Saturday, I checked out and dumped my bags in a locker at the central station, to avoid having to come back for them later. I then went up the Rundetårn (Round Tower), built as a 17th century astronomy tower, for some more amazing views of the city. Then met up with Isabel (a German girl from my hostel) and wandered over to Christiana, a commune established by squatters in the early 70s, in which marijuana is "legal" (i.e. the cops don't go in). Having been warned about the strength of their products, I thankfully only had about a third of my cookie and we chilled in the sun for a while before wandering along the canal to an indoor market. More sunbathing, and a taxi-boat back to the city side, we walked over to the Vesterbro area for a look around. I then walked with Isabel back to her new hostel and back to the station (which is all more walking than it sounds!), with a couple of hours to read my book before the train.
P.S.: I neglected to mention the phallological museum in Reykjavik - the world's one and only penis museum. Which was quite entertaining, but probably not worth the 10 quid or so to get in.
So, after writing my last post on Thursday, I went straight to Arrivens cemetery near my hostel to visit Hans Christian Andersen's grave and have a good nap (it's widely used for recreation, I wasn't just napping in a random graveyard!), which I then carried on later having walked to the botanic gardens - which are beautiful. From there, I got a ticket for the Rosenborg Slot (palace), lived in by the royal family for a couple of centuries in medieval times and well maintained. It was a little underwhelming, although probably more impressive if I was into old art! A nice building all the same though, and the crown jewels were very nice, in the treasury beneath the palace.
By the time I'd wandered back to the hostel with relative ease (although I did find it a much more difficult city to navigate), it was time to check in and really catch up on my sleep. A few hours later, I got up and went back into the city to see the sites before getting the bus back (I'm quite proud of getting so many buses there, as I rarely do it in strange cities, although a bike is more traditional in Copenhagen!) Then I had 'a few drinks' and got to know some of the people in my hostel.
The next day, Friday, I had arranged to meet a friend (Camilla, who I met on Kangaroo Island in Australia, but who studies in CPH) at Tivoli, which is the world's second oldest theme park, right in the centre of the city. But the morning, feeling a little rough, was spent in the Nationalmuseet - and, again, no prizes for the translation! It wasn't quite as impressive as the Icelandic national museum, but it included a lot of pre-history of humans in the area, up to the modern day and was a good way to pass the morning.
Tivoli, having successfully met up with Camilla, was great. Around 300 Danish Krone (30 quid) for access to the park and all the rides. It was a little busy, but most of the queues passed quickly enough, and the rides were pretty good. The band later in the park, from 10pm, were also really great - D.A.D. (famous in Denmark from about the 80s). Unfortunately, we were towards the back of a huge crowd (think main stage at Leeds/Reading huge) and could only see the screens, not really the stage itself, but it was still a good atmosphere and an enjoyable band. Getting back to the hostel around midnight, after chatting to a lovely Danish med student lass on the bus, I just went straight to bed (almost) sober.
Saturday started with a very boring and unevenful trip to the local laundry - where I discovered I've managed to lose 3 and a half pairs of socks along the way somehwere! Then another bus into the centre and a walk down to the canal and the Nyhavn (New Habour) to see the Little Mermaid statue. I've heard from a few people that she's small and unimpressive - which is true, but at least I went with low expectations and was pleasantly surprised, except for the masses of tourists crowded around her. Her 'genetically modified' counterpart, a short way further on was rather less attractive, but probably more interesting. While the other, rather more attractive and larger-breasted "Big Mermaid" statue at a nearby cafe maybe just lacked the style and dignity of the original!
I'd then planned to go to the Frihedmuseet about the Danish resistance to Nazi rule, which is described in my Lonely Planet guide, but apparently it burned down a couple of years ago! So, with that disappointment, I made my way to the Amalienborg Slot - home to the royal family since 1794 and quite uninspiring, then up to the (virtually next door) Frederikskirken church, which was closed for a wedding (which must cost a fair whack!) So I couldn't get up the dome, which was again rather disappointing! Then it was over to Christianborg Slot - another of the royal family's former homes - to see the again disappointing royal stables. Which would have been rather better if there were any horses there, but they were all out to graze for the summer.
The relics of Absalon's Fortress (the first of around 6 castles/palaces to be built on that exact site from 1167), underneath the current Palace, was much more interesting. So, taking my time around there just gave me half an hour to look around the reception rooms, still used by the parliament and royal family - but half an hour was enough for another impressive, grand old building! Finally for the day's siteseeing, I went up the palace tower with an out-of-battery phone and having left my ipod at base, unfortunately meaning no pictures of the incredible views.
After a heavier-than-expected night on Saturday, I checked out and dumped my bags in a locker at the central station, to avoid having to come back for them later. I then went up the Rundetårn (Round Tower), built as a 17th century astronomy tower, for some more amazing views of the city. Then met up with Isabel (a German girl from my hostel) and wandered over to Christiana, a commune established by squatters in the early 70s, in which marijuana is "legal" (i.e. the cops don't go in). Having been warned about the strength of their products, I thankfully only had about a third of my cookie and we chilled in the sun for a while before wandering along the canal to an indoor market. More sunbathing, and a taxi-boat back to the city side, we walked over to the Vesterbro area for a look around. I then walked with Isabel back to her new hostel and back to the station (which is all more walking than it sounds!), with a couple of hours to read my book before the train.
P.S.: I neglected to mention the phallological museum in Reykjavik - the world's one and only penis museum. Which was quite entertaining, but probably not worth the 10 quid or so to get in.
Thursday, 6 August 2015
Not Too Wrecked-javik
Well, instead of starting a new blog, I thought I might as well just carry on the last one. So all the hordes of dedicated readers can feel free to remind themselves what I did in Cambodia and Australia.
I'm now in Copenhagen, but I've just stepped into the hostel and have a few hours (6) to kill before I can check in and sleep. So I thought, while I have computer access, I'd blog about Reykjavik (due to popular demand of people to 'keep them updated'...) So I spent 3 and a half days there and could spend another week without doing everything I wanted to. For a city of around 200,000, which you can cross on foot in under an hour and still stop for coffee, there's just so much to do, even without leaving the city area. I think the only word I learnt of Icelandic was "Islanka" (nope, you don't get a prize for guessing the translation - Icelandic) - they all speak such amazing English. And, true to their Scandinavian roots, they're all so friendly and great looking!
My first day, Sunday, after wandering around a bit and exploring the high street to again waste time, I again checked into my hostel and went promptly to sleep. After getting up, I then headed back out to explore the local church with a long, complicated name (there's no point even copying and pasting, you'll not be able to pronounce it)! It's a huge, amazing, 20th century concrete structure, which looks incredible and absolutely dominates the Reykjavik skyline. The clock/bell tower is also really high and gives brilliant 360º views of the city. I couldn't go into to the church itself, as there was a concert going on, but did manage to get in on Monday for another choir concert. Everything is pretty expensive over there (and there's an unfortunate number of Yanks...), but it really is a beautiful country; the city itself isn't that attractive though. Then, back to the hostel for my tea and compulsory hostel drinking/socialising (on free alcohol left by someone), surprisingly the only night I really got drunk - which isn't bad going in a hostel with a bar.
For Monday, I'd booked a day at the Blue Lagoon - the local geothermal pool, which is incredible, but quite self-explanatory - a large pool complex with naturally heated saltwater a little outside the city which is great for a hangover. So, after a few uneventful hours relaxing there, I went back to the city hoping to get time to fit in a museum visit before they all closed (according to my Lonely Planet guide) at 5pm. I didn't have time, but it was amazing (for Iceland) weather - sunny and over 20º - so I just wandered round the park and sunbathed for a while before going back to the hostel for a pretty boring evening, as we'd drunk all the free alcohol, so no one was really doing much.
I had thought about going caving on Tuesday, then whale-watching on Wednesday with a museum or two in the afternoons, but I decided caving was above my reasonable budget (around 90 quid or 18,000 Icelandic Krona). It worked quite well though to go whale-watching on Tuesday morning, then up to a swimming pool, which again has geothermal seawater, and other heated jacuzzi pools, with an olympic-size pool. The whale-watching was brilliant - it cost less than a tenner, to be out for a few hours and get to see a pair of humpback whales up close, diving and resurfacing, for half of that with a very informative and entertaining guide. Then, with a couple more hours at the pool, back to the hostel for just a couple of quiet drinks at the hostel bar as it costs a fiver a pint out there.
Wednesday was then just filled with museums. First to the Reykjavik 871 +/-2 museum - a really well-done museum underground at the excavation site of one of the oldest buildings ever found in Reykjavik. The reason for the weird name was that there was a large volcanic eruption in 871AD (+/- 2 years) and evidence that the first Icelandic settlers (Norse men and Celtic women) had already started building before that - although it could have been months or decades before. Then to the National Museum - one of the best I've ever visited. Cheap tickets for a museum which takes several hours to see all of, with a very good audio guide, which takes you through the entire history of Iceland, from that first settlement in Reykjavik, to the modern day and all the influences which shaped their country. After that, I went down to the Old Habour to the Maritime Museum (via lunch at Bergsson Matthus cafe, which deserves an honourable mention) which, although it had one decent exhibit about Icelandic women at sea through the ages, wasn't really my thing. From there, I went on to the Harpa building - a very modern (post economic crash) glass building overlooking the harbour with some good views inside and out, of the snow-capped peaks on the other side of the bay. Knackered, but with another 4 hours to kill until my airport transfer - and having checked out of my hostel - I went back to the pool again (as the last museum I wanted to visit was closing as I got there).
After an uneventful swim and journey, on an overnight flight with very little sleep, I arrived in Copenhagen and managed to immediately pick up a 24h Metro ticket at the airport from someone leaving, which lasts until tonight and means I'll only need a 72h ticket (200 Danish Krona, about 20 quid) to fill my time here. So I'll try to keep this updated every couple of days to avoid such long posts, but it kind of depends on which hostels have computers and whether I have time.
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