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Netherlands & Scandinavia

June - July 2017
A 27-day adventure by Timothy Read more
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  • Timothy TolNetherlands & Scandinavia
    Day 11

    Day 11: Copenhagen - Peach of a day!

    June 15, 2017 in Denmark ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    "To travel is to live" Hans Christian Andersen

    We had a slow start to the day today and enjoyed a very yummy breakfast at our hotel. The bread is not as good as in the Netherlands but the Danishes were very good as expected.

    Our first stop was the National Museum which is the largest museum of cultural history in Denmark. We got there at 10am and there were already several school groups ready to enjoy the museum as well. We looked through three of their exhibits, the first being the Danish Prehistory which detailed the story of the first humans in this area. The first humans arrived in Denmark around 14,500 BC. We found this section to be particularly interesting as it told the story of humans in Denmark up until the Viking conquests. I am fascinated by our human journey and It was great to learn about the Danish experience. The next exhibit detailed Denmark through the Middle Ages and the Renaissance and then we looked through the stories of Denmark 1660-2000.

    After the museum we wandered back through the Christiansborg Palace and went up to the tower, Which is Copenhagens highest tower, and checked out the city from this vantage point, being able to look over a city always helps get your bearings. We were lucky as when we walked past the tower there was no queue so we got up the lift quite quickly but there was a lengthy queue yesterday when we walked past and as we left there was a lengthy queue again. Our timing was impeccable today.

    After viewing the city from its highest tower we then caught a canal cruise and viewed the city from the water. This was an enjoyable trip and the tour guide was very informative telling us about the landmarks and a bit of the city's history as we cruised around.

    It was time for lunch so we wandered up to the Stroget and found an Irish Pub. Lunch was accompanied by a couple of drinks as we sat there for quite a while enjoying the people watching and great weather.

    After our extended lunch break we wandered along the Stroget, bought some souvenirs and then found the Hans Christian Andersen Fairytale House. I wasn't that keen on visiting this but Amy was however I was pleasantly surprised and found it quite interesting, it's also where I saw the above quote. I would encourage everyone to get out and see the world and I am very thankful I have the opportunity to do so myself.

    It was then time to check out the Tivoli Garden which turned out to be the highlight of the day. It's a sensational place that has many rides, side show alleys and shows for all ages of kids, bars and restaurants for the adults and a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. We enjoyed watching the kids on the scary rides, they were having a ball. We also came across a band called 'Blondage' that was playing on a small stage, they were very good and the female singer had an amazing voice. We listened to several songs before continuing our exploration of the garden. We loved the Tivoli Garden and would rank it as a must visit for anyone coming to Copenhagen, it was lots of fun. After an ice cream it was time to head back to the hotel to put the feet up for a while and write this blog.

    The weather today was perfect, very sunny but not too hot and we have had an excellent day. To be honest my first impressions of Copenhagen yesterday was not that great (perhaps my expectations were too high) but today has more than made up for that and I am really enjoying this city.    Read more

  • Timothy TolNetherlands & Scandinavia
    Day 12

    Day 12: Copenhagen - Start of the Tour

    June 16, 2017 in Denmark ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    Another slow start today as we enjoyed a sleep in. Our check out for our hotel was at 12 noon so we set off for a walk away from the city this time to see a bit more of Copenhagen. We decided to do a big circle and end up at the Tycho Brahe Planetarium. At the planetarium we watched a film on a massive 180 degree dome. The film gave us a trip through space, the solar system, the Milky Way and the broader galaxy. It followed with a film about hump back whales which was also excellent but we had to leave before it ended so we could get back to the hotel by 12. This filled in our morning and we headed back to the hotel to collect our bags and head off to our second hotel where we will meet up with our tour.

    Our second hotel is the Quality Hotel Airport Dan. We grabbed a bus to get here which was the last thing we did on our 48 hour Copenhagen Card. Getting this card was a great thing and meant we didn't have to pay to visit any of the museums, attractions and activities we did and also didn't have to pay for any public transport. We certainly got our money's worth from the card. Our new hotel room is very comfortable and quite spacious and we have an excellent view of the coast and airplanes flying in to the airport.

    We had a few hours to kill this afternoon so I took the opportunity to read my book for a couple of hours. I'm reading 'Age of Discovery' by Goldin and Kutarna, I heard one of the authors be interviewed by Phillip Adams a few weeks back and decided to buy the book as it sounded extremely interesting. The book explores the idea that the world is on the brink of a new Renaissance and asks how do we share more widely the benefits of unprecedented progress, how do we endure the inevitable tumult generated by accelerated change and how do we thrive through our current uncertain times. I remember reading 'Confronting the Future' by Charles Birch 20 years ago and he was advocating for a new Renaissance which appeals to me as I think we need to rethink our whole political, social and environmental paradigm. Anyway, maybe a bit more on these thoughts as I get further into this book but so far it's very thought provoking and an interesting read.

    We also wandered through a couple of local supermarkets this afternoon, this is one of my favourite things to do abroad, checking out what's on their shelves. I have found out that beer is cheaper than coke here and wine is very cheap (so long as you buy it in the supermarket), we also found some Aussie wines. We enjoyed a danish with custard and icing from a local bakery which was very yummy.

    Tonight we had the start of tour dinner. We have 45 people on the tour, the majority are Aussies with a couple of poms and 3 Americans. We sat with Bec and Luke from Melbourne who were very friendly and I suspect we will get to know them much better during the tour.

    Tomorrow we will have a bus trip around Copenhagen, probably retracing some of our steps from the last couple of days but we will also be touring the castles of Zealand which we are looking forward to.    Read more

  • Timothy TolNetherlands & Scandinavia
    Day 13

    Day 13: Copenhagen - Castles of Zealand

    June 17, 2017 in Denmark ⋅ 🌙 15 °C

    Today started with a bus tour around Copenhagen. We visited Christianborg Palace, Amallenborg Palace, Gefion Fountain and the Little Mermaid before returning to the Town Hall/Tivoli Gardens for some free time in the city. Our free time was spent walking through the Stroget to the Irish Pub we went to on Thursday to enjoy a Magners and some people watching. The city was very busy today so there were lots of people about.

    In the afternoon we went on a tour of the Castles of Zealand visiting Fredericksburg Castle where we wandered through the Museum of Natural History. The museum has been housed at the castle since 1878 and was founded by the brewer JC Jacobsen as a separate department of the Carlsberg Foundation and contains portraits and historical paintings that depict Denmarks history from the 1500's to today. Our next stop was Fredensborg which is the Queens summer palace, there was an additional number of guards there today as the royal family must have been in residence. Our last stop was at Kronberg Castle which is the setting for Shakespeare's Hamlet. They were also setting up for an international iron man competition in the town which will be occurring tomorrow so there were many competitors and other people there preparing for the race tomorrow. We got a great view across the Baltic Sea to Sweden from the castle. Our return journey to Copenhagen was via the Danish Riviera where we saw many expensive houses and the beautiful the coastline. The coast and countryside of Denmark is beautiful and similar to the Netherlands we get to see every shade of green.

    Our tour guides today were extremely informative and we learnt much about Denmark. I was really taken by the fact that some of the large businesses in Denmark donate large sums of money towards art and culture. Apparently 55% of all profits from Carlsberg goes towards arts and culture and Carlsburg supports the restoration and up keep of the Fredericksburg Castle and Museum as well as the Glytotek Museum in Copenhagen. The Copenhagen Opera house was donated by the AP Miller and Chastic McKinney Noller Foundation, AP Miller was a co founder of Maersk, Maersk being the largest container ship operator in the world. The opera house cost $US500 million. I am also taken by the social security system they have here which provides free health care for all citizens. The tax rates are quite high but the community is also well supported with health care, aged care and pension system and education. I would have no qualms paying more taxes at home if I knew the money was being invested wisely for the greater good of all our citizens.

    Tonight we hung out with Bec and Luke who have become good friends. After a beer at a local cafe we wandered over to the Chinese restaurant. After sussing out their menu and buffet we thought that perhaps pizza many be a better choice for tea, which it turned out to be as they were very tasty. We grabbed some pizza from a local take away and some wine from the supermarket and enjoyed the evening at a little outdoor area at the hotel. It was a great evening and a perfect way to finish off the day.

    Tomorrow we are off to Frederikshavn which is in the north of Denmark.    Read more

  • Timothy TolNetherlands & Scandinavia
    Day 14

    Day 14: Frederikshaven - Bus Trip

    June 18, 2017 in Denmark ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    Today had been a travel day heading north from Copenhagen to Frederiskshavn. The journey has taken about 6 hours plus stops. We stopped at a town called Odense which has a population of around 190,000 and is the birthplace of Hans Christian Andersen. We wandered past his first home and also checked out the town centre where we had a very delicious smoothy. The town was very nice and easy to walk around however they are doing some major earthworks in the middle of town. Not sure what they were building. It it was quite substantial. We have noticed a lot of construction in Denmark. In Copenhagen they are building 17 new metro stations and a new metro circuit for the city. This meant the main town square was half blocked off for the construction works.

    Apparently there are over 30 million pigs in Denmark and there is an abattoir that is fully automated which slaughters 20,000 pigs per week. We also drove past the Vestas Plant, Vestas is the first manufacturer of wind turbines starting in 1979 and the very first one is located next to their plant. Denmark manufactures 1/3 of the worlds wind turbines and 40% of Denmark's energy comes from the wind turbines that are located all across the country.

    Denmark is also a world leader in insulin production and produces 1/2 the worlds insulin.

    These are just some of the interesting facts we learnt during the trip.

    We have found the countryside to be very beautiful, it is undulating but there are no mountains, the highest elevation is only 150 metres above sea level.

    Along the drive we crossed the Great Belt Bridge which is the Third largest suspension bridge in the world. It's total length is 6.8 kilometres with the longest span being 1.6 kilometres. It's a very impressive bridge. It's expensive to travel over, the toll is 240DKK or about $50.

    When we arrived at Frederickshavn we'd had enough of the bus and wanted to have a beer so we adjourned to the Old Irish Pub next door. Bec, Luke and Adrian joined us for a couple of pints. The beers were the cheapest so far on the holiday so we took advantage of that prior to heading to dinner. Dinner was part of the tour and it was tasty but not really substantial but I guess we've eaten too much over the last couple of weeks so a smaller meal was probably ok.

    We have an early start tomorrow, bags out at 6.15am as we need to get to the ferry to Oslo so we've pulled stumps on the day.    Read more

  • Timothy TolNetherlands & Scandinavia
    Day 15

    Day 15: Oslo - Ferry Ride

    June 19, 2017 in Norway ⋅ 🌙 13 °C

    Today was an early start from Frederikshavn as we had to catch a ferry to Norway. We drove for about 50 minutes to Hirtshals and boarded the ferry at about 8.30am. The ferry left at about 9am and arrived at Langesund in Norway at 1.30pm. The ferry ride was very relaxing and we had some great seats at the front of the ferry so we had a great view of where we were heading. It was quite exciting watching Norway getting closer in the last third of the trip. While aboard we enjoyed a beer, cocktails and bubbles, a delicious sandwich and the Great company of our fellow travellers.

    Upon arrival we had about a 2 hour bus trip to Oslo. The thing that we noticed immediately once we were in Norway was the different countryside compared to Denmark. It is much more mountainous and forested and very picturesque. It's a beautiful country and we are looking forward to seeing more of it over the next few days. We learned some facts about Norway along the way including that Norway is one of the biggest exporters of oil in the world following the discovery of oil in the North Sea in 1969, despite this Norwegians actually pay some of the highest prices for petrol in the world. What I also found interesting is the Norway government have also implemented a range of tax concessions and waiving all tolls for electric and hybrid cars resulting in about 5% of all cars being hybrid or electric, about a 1/3 of all new cars bought being hybrid or electric and Norway aims that by 2025 all vehicles will be electric. I find these types of policies and aims to be inspiring.

    The discovery of oil has made Norway a very affluent country that has no debt and has created a sovereign fund that invests overseas to ensure the country continues to reap the benefits of the income from its oil reserves well beyond there exhaustion. Wouldn't it be great if our government had done, or would do, something similar with all the mining royalties that we are missing out on and nor investing for the greater good of our country. Norway also has a very comprehensive welfare system for its citizens.

    The affluence of Norway also means it is one of the most expensive places to live so we are expecting to pay quite a lot for food and drink.

    One of the first things I noticed about Oslo is the amount of construction going on in the city, I counted at least 20 cranes in the sky within a kilometres or so radius of the city centre from the vantage point of the roof of the opera house, which incidentally cost some $700 million to build. Norway is also undertaking the construction of new tunnels across the country to improve its road and transport network. Another great thing they have done in Oslo is to build tunnels for its highways within the city taking them out of the cityscape.

    After sussing out the roof of the opera house with Amy, Luke and Bec it was time to go back to the hotel to shower up and get ready for tea, the weather was also starting to get gloomy so it was best to get indoors. Apparently it rains in Oslo 2 out of every 3 days so it would be very lucky to be here and not have at least some rain.

    Dinner was at Voksenaasen a hotel at Holmenkollen which is the highest part of Oslo. We dined with Marcia and Sally Anne, they are both retired and from Sydney and we enjoyed their company. The view from the hotel was also spectacular and we were lucky that the skies cleared after our meal so we could have a great view of Oslo. I was also impressed by the library at the hotel and found several books I will look up when I get home.

    On the way to dinner we also had a look at the Holmenkollen Ski Jump, this was very impressive and it would be great to see it in action during winter but today it was mainly being used by people exercising running up and down the many steps.

    Anyway, today was a great day, very relaxing on the ferry, exciting to be in Norway and topped off with a great meal. We are looking forward to what tomorrow will bring.

    God natt.    Read more

  • Timothy TolNetherlands & Scandinavia
    Day 16

    Day 16: Vradel - Peach of a day, No.2

    June 20, 2017 in Norway ⋅ ☀️ 15 °C

    Today's weather has been perfect, an absolute peach of a day. We had a bus tour around Oslo this morning and visited the Vigeland Sculpture Park. The parklands there were stunning and the sculptures quite interesting. The park is the result of the artistic obsession and a lifetime of work by Gustav Vigeland. We worked for 20 years on the sculptures and donated them to the city of Oslo.

    The highlights of the park include the fountain which consist of 60 individual bronze reliefs representing the circle of life. There is also the monolith, which is the focal point of the park consisting of 121 intertwined human figures. It took him 14 years to complete. It's an amazing piece of art and the park was very popular with tour groups and school groups enjoying it today.

    We were dropped off at the Town Hall and decided to leave the tour group and join Adrian to visit the Viking Ship Museum. We are really interested in learning more about the Vikings and so far we haven't seen a lot other than a small section of the National Museum at Copenhagen. To get to the museum we needed to catch a ferry across the fjord and then walk up a hill for about 700-800 metres. The ferry ride was excellent as we got a look at the city from the water and the perfect weather made the trip a great experience.

    The time of the Vikings was from the beginning of 700 to 1050. They were outstanding ship builders and skilled navigators, their ships were fast and well suited for long sea journeys. Many Norsemen settled in the lands they had invaded and the Vikings were the first Europeans in North America. The Viking Ship Museum houses 4 Viking ship burials from the Oslo Fjord area, found at Oseberg, Gokstad, Tune and Borre and were excavated between 1852 and 1904. Three of the graves contained ships that have survived to this day, the Oseberg ship was built in 820, the Gokstad ship shortly before 900 and the Tune ship in 920. From the ship at the Borre grave only iron nails remain today. The three ships had been at sea for several years before they were pulled ashore and used as burial ships. The museum also had a movie which was a pictorial depiction of their history and was played over three walls and the ceiling, it was excellent and was a great experience to end our visit to the museum.

    We took the ferry back to the city and still had an hour until we had to meet up with the tour bus so we walked up to the Akershus Fortress and looked around it before grabbing a bite to eat for lunch and purchasing the obligatory fridge magnet as our momento for visiting this interesting and picturesque city. We have really enjoyed our short stay in Oslo and would be happy to return to explore more of it in the future.

    This afternoon we have had a 4 hour bus trip to the Telemark Area. The scenery has been excellent and just kept getting better and better the further into the mountains we got. Apparently the scenery gets even more breathtaking tomorrow so we are looking forward to that. We found many shades of green in the Netherlands and Denmark but Norway is just another level entirely, what a beautiful place.

    We are staying at the Quality Straand Hotel in Vradel which is very nice, it's a ski resort during the winter and in a spectacular setting between the mountains and overlooking a fjord. Tonight's meal was a buffet with many delectable offerings meaning we all ate too much. We dined with Bec and Luke, Adrian, Shamick (from the USA) and Bob and Doris (from Canada). It was an delicious meal made all the better by the company we shared it with. After dinner Bec, Luke, Adrian, Amy and myself enjoyed a few drinks in the bar with Shamick joining us later. It was one of the best nights we've had so far on the tour and it's been great to get to know all these people who are now very much great friends.

    We have an early start in the morning and we have a long travel day by bus and ferry to Bergen where we will be for the next two nights. Its time to call stumps on another terrific day.    Read more

  • Timothy TolNetherlands & Scandinavia
    Day 17

    Day 17: Bergen - How's the Scenery!

    June 21, 2017 in Norway ⋅ ⛅ 12 °C

    Today was a long day of travelling through the spectacular scenery of Norway. We left Vradel at 7.30am bound for Bergen. Our first stop along the way was at the Vemork Museum. The museum is located within an old hydro electric power plant. The 60MW Vemork power station was the worlds largest power plant when it opened in 1911. It was constructed to power a factory producing artificial fertiliser and was also the site of the Norwegian heavy water sabotage by Norwegian saboteurs during WWII. During the German occupation of Norway the heavy water production plant at the site was sabotaged to prevent the Germans from producing nuclear weapons. We have learnt many stories regarding WWII during this trip especially involving resistance movements in Netherlands, Denmark and now Norway.

    Some of us took the opportunity to walk up the steep hill to the plant from where the coach dropped us off instead of taking the minibus. It was a great walk and blew the cobwebs out from sitting on the bus this morning.

    Our next stop was at Haukeliseter fjellatue for lunch. After travelling through mainly forested mountains this place was surrounded by bare mountains and and ice. It is approximately 1000 metres above sea level and quite cold, especially for those of us in shorts.

    We then proceeded to the western side of Norway which is even more rugged than the eastern side where we came from. The scenery just kept getting better and better with lakes, fjords, winding valleys, rugged gorges and towering snow capped mountains. We also saw our first ever glacier but I can't remember what it is called and I didn't take a photo but it was breathtaking to look at, even from a long distance.

    We arrived at Utne to get the ferry across the Hardangerfjord to Kvanndel. When we arrived there were already several trucks and cars waiting for the ferry so we had to wait an hour in Utne for the next ferry. This was a blessing in disguise as it gave us an opportunity to explore this little town and get out of the bus and stretch the legs.

    Our next stop to break the final leg of our journey today was at the Steindalsfossen Waterfall which was another opportunity to capture some great pictures as well as stretch the legs as we were able to walk up the hill and behind the waterfall.

    We arrived at Bergen at around 7.40pm and first impressions is this is another beautiful city. Apparently the baton as the most beautiful Scandinavian city is between Bergen and Stockholm. We finish our tour in Stockholm so we will make our own judgement then.

    We dined with Adrian, Bec and Luke and Maria and Paul (from Perth) at the restaurant next to the hotel. It was another enjoyable evening with great company and delicious food, we may head back there tomorrow night. After tea we wandered around the city, it was still daylight at 10.30pm with many people still out and about enjoying themselves. I think we will have fun in this city.

    Today was a very long day of travelling but we saw some amazing scenery along the way and also managed to walk over 11,500 steps and climb the equivalent of 42 floors. We will sleep well tonight.    Read more

  • Timothy TolNetherlands & Scandinavia
    Day 18

    Day 18: Bergen - A Beautiful City

    June 22, 2017 in Norway ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    Today started with a look around this beautiful city and learn't more about its history and the culture of Norway. After travelling around the city we visited Bryggen which is a series of Hanseatic commercial buildings along the eastern side of the Vagen harbour in Bergen. The buildings facing the harbour all lean to the right due to a massive explosion on the harbour during WWII. We also visited the Hanseatic Museum which tells how the German merchants in Bergen lived from around 1360 to 1760's. The museum is one of the best preserved timber buildings at Bryggen.

    After the morning tour we wandered around the city visiting Lille Lungegardsvann, a lake in the centre of the city, the fish market and also wandered in some shops and bought the obligatory fridge magnet.

    In the afternoon we joined the tour to the museum and house which was the home of Norways most famous composer, Edvard Grieg. I'm no aficionado of classical music but he composed some music that we have all heard, likely on TV ads, such as Morning Moon, Piano Concerto in A Minor and In The Hall of the Mountain King. Apparently he was the Michael Jackson of his time from the 1860's to 1900's. I think I would have liked Grieg if I was alive in these times, especially given he apparently was critical of authorities, criticised the established church, religious pietism and all forms of dogmatism but he did marry his first cousin and that's just wrong/odd in any era. To be honest, I wasn't really into the visit to the museum and house, we had learnt about Grieg (and listened to some of his music) during the bus trip yesterday and that was enough for me. All we really wanted to do to this afternoon was take the funicular up to Mount Floyen to check out the city from this vantage point. Especially as the skies looked threatening today and we wanted to get up the mountain before the rain arrived. Anyway, we got up to the mountain just as the mist started to roll in so whilst we got a good look at the city the surrounding mountains were obscured by the misty rain. Anyway, it was a bit disappointing and in hindsight we would be better off doing our own thing today or taken Bec and Luke's lead and not doing the afternoon tour. But we are all geniuses in hindsight and we had a good day overall.

    After being up the mountain it was time to enjoy a quiet beverage at the Irish Pub, Bec and Luke joined us as they fortunately wandered past just after we grabbed a drink. The funniest moment occurred when my chair decided to collapse under me which gave the others a good laugh. I thought the chair felt dodgy and when I leaned back down I went.

    We went back to the hotel to drop off some things (this has been the best hotel so far with regard to location, comfort and the breakfast is awesome), on the way back out we ran into Adrian. There also happened to be some terrorist training drill happening outside the hotel at the same time with police running around with guns drawn on a truck that they intercepted, it was all a bit surreal until it clicked that it was a drill.

    We had tea at the same restaurant as last night with Adrian, Bec and Luke, this time I had the wings and ribs, delicious! After tea Amy bought a Viking drinking horn as a souvenir of our trip, it will look good on our wine cabinet.

    We love Bergen and had a good day overall.    Read more

  • Timothy TolNetherlands & Scandinavia
    Day 19

    Day 19: Fegernes - Time for an Aquavit!

    June 23, 2017 in Norway ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    After another awesome breakfast we headed off through Norway again. The weather had become quite wet so thankfully we were in the bus this morning. Our first stop was at Voss where we enjoyed a cup of coffee and tea and one of the best vanilla slices we've ever had. It was raining at Voss so we didn't much else but hang out in the cafe.

    We then ventured to the Sognefjord to catch a ferry from Gudvangen to Laerdal. Whilst the scenery was breathtaking the weather was not good so we needed ponchos to protect us from the rain. I enjoyed the ferry ride but some on the tour didn't, I guess the tour guide need to be god so he can control the weather as well. You have to make the best of it and at least we didn't get sunburnt!

    After the ferry ride we continued our bus trip into the eastern side of Norway passing by the highest mountain range in Scandinavia.

    We arrived in Fagernes at around 6pm and went for walk around town prior to dinner. Dinner was buffet and the food was ok but they did run out at times due to the number of people in the restaurant. It was disappointing seeing people on our tour blaming another tour of Asians for this when we were eating just as much if not more than them. It was the kitchen that wasn't keeping up and as it turned out the people who were late and patient probably got the best of the food.

    After tea Amy and I, Bec and Luke and Adrian decided to adjourn to the bar and try Aquavit, the local drink. We ended up trying three types as well as a few jacks and Jameson's and had a bit of a night out in the bar. We had a lot of fun and have souvenired some shot glasses to remember the night. The drinks were expensive so it's the least we could do! Ha!

    A great fun night was had and we are enjoying our holiday very much however the tour is quickly coming to an end. Only three more sleeps left.    Read more

  • Timothy TolNetherlands & Scandinavia
    Day 20

    Day 20: Karlstad - Made it to Sweden!

    June 24, 2017 in Sweden ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    Today was a travelling day, our first stop was at the Lillehammer Ski Jump which was used for the 1994 Olympics. Unfortunately we were held up at the shop so we could only take the chair lift up and back and not spend much time up the top. The views were great all the same and the highlight was seeing three ski jumpers training, these guys are amazing and we got a video of one of the jumps they did. I could have stayed and watched them for ages.

    The countryside has changed completely again, no longer are we in the mountains and the terrain is undulating with large forests and farm areas again. The weather today has also been perfect which has added to the great experience. We stopped for lunch at the Norwegian and Swedish border, our last taste of Norway.

    Today Andre our guide told us his life story, his time in the Soviet army and in particular what he had to do to seek political asylum from the old USSR. His tenacity, work ethic and courage was inspiring. He has worked hard since getting out of the USSR and made a great life for himself and his family. I could only think during his story of how many Andres are sitting in Manus Island right now or the other inhumane refugee prisons we have created. Just people wanting a new chance in life yet we decide to treat them deplorably, it's a disgrace.

    We are now in Sweden for the last leg of our Scandinavian tour. Tonight we are in Karlstad. It's another beautiful city that is easy to walk around. We walked for well over an hour this evening checking out the city. We are loving these cities that are so pedestrian and bicycle friendly. I wish our cities back home were similar, I believe it would create so any opportunities and improvements to our lifestyle and perspective on the world.

    Apparently all Scandinavians are celebrating the mid summer holiday this weekend which means many people have left the cities for the countryside so we pretty much had the place to ourselves tonight. Tea was enjoyed at a local Italian restaurant and I can say is Swedish Calzone's rival those that I have enjoyed back home.

    It's an early night tonight catching up on the sleep we didn't get last night.    Read more

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