• Miel Degang
  • Laura Debyser
  • Miel Degang
  • Laura Debyser

Scandinavia

86-päiväinen seikkaillu — Miel & Laura Lue lisää
  • Matkan aloitus
    31. heinäkuuta 2021

    Skagen

    2. elokuuta 2021, Tanska ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C

    Since we plan on becoming English teachers in Spain (that is if we pass the course), we might as well post our footprints in English to practice :). Be warned: grammar and spelling mistakes will be made!

    We started our new adventure in Skagen, the top of Denmark. We strolled around this peaceful village and enjoyed our last cheap meal 🙈. In nearby Grenen, we stood with one foot in the Skagerrak sea and with the other in the Kattegat sea (a name not unknown to those who watch Vikings).

    Side note: we also spent our first night in our van, named 'Otto'. He will be our home for the next months.
    Lue lisää

  • Kristiansand

    3. elokuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    We took the ferry from Hirtshals in Denmark to Kristiansand in the south of Norway. After a short drive, we found a cozy spot on a beach near Mandal, one of white cities of the Norwegian coast. We spent our first night in 🇳🇴 at a beautiful spot on the edge of a fjord!Lue lisää

  • Lysefjord

    5. elokuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    We spent three days around Lysefjord and made two beautiful hikes: one to Kjeragbolten (a giant boulder wedged in a mountain crevasse) and one to Preikestolen (named as the most iconic natural landmark in Norway). The high cliffs caused some fear of heights (for Laura), but the views of the fjord were breathtaking!Lue lisää

  • Hardangerfjord

    9. elokuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    We made an overnight hike to Hardangervidda national park (where we stood on the famous Trolltunga), used our SUP for the first time, visited some of the many waterfalls cascading down and took a dip in the freezing water of the fjord!Lue lisää

  • Bergen

    10. elokuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ ⛅ 19 °C

    We stayed at a hostel so we could enjoy a hot shower, access WiFi and do our laundry. For once, Miel had a bed that was long enough! We strolled around in the city center, visited the impressive Bryggen wharf and bought an extra layer of clothes (we slightly underestimated the weather in Norway 😅). After experiencing what Norway's nature has to offer the past week, we were a bit underwhelmed by this previous capital of 🇳🇴 and stayed only one day.

    FYI: on the way to Bergen, we took the longest suspension bridge in Norway and passed an underground roundabout.
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  • Næroyfjord

    13. elokuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ 🌧 15 °C

    The Næroyfjord (a narrow arm of the Sognefjord) is on the UNESCO World Heritage list and we can see why. We made an amazing hike to a viewpoint (Mount Bakkanosi) and had our first two-day SUP adventure in this beautiful fjord! While paddling, we met porpoises (small whales that look like dolphins) and some very sweet goats. We put up our tent on the edge of the fjord and enjoyed the wonderful view all by ourselves!Lue lisää

  • Jostedalsbreen

    16. elokuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ ⛅ 13 °C

    Jostedalsbreen is the largest glacier in mainland Europe. We made a glacier hike on Nigardsbreen, one of the most accessible branches of the glacier. Our first time on a glacier :)! We had to wait a day for some sunshine (we relaxed at a cool camp site), but it was worth it!Lue lisää

  • Galdhøppigen

    17. elokuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ ⛅ 8 °C

    Galdhøpiggen is the highest mountain in Scandinavia (2469m) and located in Jotunheimen National Park. It was a strenuous climb of 1,400 m, clambering over the rocks and slogging through the snow. However, the views on the way up were amazing and at the summit we were rewarded with a 360 degree panorama of Jotunheimens mountains and lakes! After the exhausting hike, we parked Otto on a secluded spot to spend the night and we spotted some wild reindeer! 🦌🦌🦌Lue lisää

  • Geirangerfjord

    22. elokuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    On our way to Geiranger, we made an overnight stop at Mt. Dalsnibba, a mountain top that 'offers stunning views across the area'. When we woke up, all we saw was a lot of fog (classic 🙄), but after waiting a few hours we could enjoy the nice views!

    Another UNESCO World Heritage fjord = a new SUP adventure! It was pretty impressive, as the surrounding mountains towered +- 1700 metres above us. While paddling, we admired spectacular waterfalls and deserted summer farms. We had lunch on our SUP in the middle of the fjord :).
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  • Atlantic Road

    23. elokuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    The route between Geiranger and Trondheim included two 'National Tourist Routes': Geiranger – Trollstigen and the Atlantic Road. In Belgium, we both hate driving but Norway's roads make it fun to drive :)! We also saw the sea for the first time since we took the ferry 🌊Lue lisää

  • Trondheim

    24. elokuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ 🌧 13 °C

    The weather in the third largest city of Norway was quite bad (it rained all day), but we still liked Trondheim! We walked around the main highlights (including the Nidaros Cathedral and the charming Solsiden Neighborhood full of restaurants and bars) and went to a restaurant for the first time (and the second time, njom njom)!Lue lisää

  • National Turistveg Helgeland

    28. elokuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ ☀️ 11 °C

    The 'Nasjonal Turistveg Helgeland' (Road 17/ Coastal Highway) runs from Steinkjer to Bodø, is 630 kilometres long and includes six ferry crossings (= a lot of waiting for the ferry 🙈). The road runs along the coast and offers AMAZING views. We made a few stops along the way: Torghatten (a granite dome known for its tunnel through its center), Sju Søstre (Miel climbed one of the seven peaks), Svartisen glacier (we enjoyed the view of the glacier from our SUP) and Saltstraumen (one of the strongest tidal currents in the world). Oh, and we crossed the Arctic Circle :)!Lue lisää

  • Lofoten

    2. syyskuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ 🌧 9 °C

    In Bødo, we took the ferry to Lofoten. This archipelo is known for its dramatic mountains, white-sand beaches and small fishing villages. As the weather was quite bad (rain, rain, rain), we booked a hostel for two nights and enjoyed a hot shower 🤗 (after two weeks this can become rather necessary 🙈). We hiked to the secluded Kvalvika Beach, admired the beaches from mount Mannen and explored cozy Henningsvaer! We are definitely coming back to explore the islands further when the sun is less angry with us!Lue lisää

  • Vesterålen

    3. syyskuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ 🌧 7 °C

    Vesterålen is the group of islands above Lofoten. The mountains have a more rounded shape compared to the ones in Lofoten. Because of the weather, we only stayed one day but it was - again - very beautiful! We drove the Andøya Tourist Route, stopped at a viewpoint with an epic toilet, came across a baby moose and made an attempt to spot whales from the coast (and failed...).Lue lisää

  • Senja

    4. syyskuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ ☁️ 8 °C

    Another 24h-stop, this time in Senja! After a very nauseating ferry ride, we arrived at Norway's second largest island. The landscape here is as impressive as in Lofoten, but there are less people. We hiked to Hesten to admire Segla - the most famous mountain on this island - during a rare moment without rain :).Lue lisää

  • Trømso

    8. syyskuuta 2021, Norja ⋅ 🌧 7 °C

    After yet another ferry ride we could start exploring the neighborhood of the 'Arctic capital'. We hiked to the aptly named Blåisvatnet (Blue Lake), crossed another mountain top of our list and in the city itself we enjoyed some good food. We also tried chasing the Northern Lights a few times - without success 😞. We left our last stop in Norway via the famous Hurtigruten. On to Sweden!Lue lisää

  • Kungsleden

    12. syyskuuta 2021, Ruotsi ⋅ ☁️ 9 °C

    We hiked a (small) part of Kungsleden, Sweden’s most famous hiking trail through Lapland. Our plan was to hike from Abisko to Nikkaluokta, a six-day trip. However, after the first night, we changed our plan as it was freezing cold at night (including ice on the tent 🥶). During our three days on the trail, we saw beautiful landscapes, met a lot of reindeer and made a cosy campfire!Lue lisää

  • Jokkmokk

    14. syyskuuta 2021, Ruotsi ⋅ ⛅ 8 °C

    Jokkmokk is a meeting place for Sámi people (indigenous people of the North) from all over Sápmi (which encompasses large northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia). In the Ajtte Museum we learned more about Sámi culture.

    In nearby Arvidsjaur we visited the church town of Lappstaden. A bit of history: in the early 17th century the first churches were built in Lapland. The church was to bring Christianity to the Sámi . A 'church attendance law' stipulated a minimum level of attendance, but this was difficult for the nomadic Sámi to fulfil. Since the road to church was long, overnight Sámi huts were built all over Lapland.
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  • Vildmarksvågen

    16. syyskuuta 2021, Ruotsi ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C

    The 'Vildmarksvägen' is one of Sweden’s highest roads and connects Lapland with Jämtland. We admired the Hällingsåfallet (Swedens 'Grand Canyon'), visited another church town, saw some beautiful waterfalls and drove on the high (never good news for our nights in Otto 🥶) plateau of Stekenjokk. Apart from that, we experienced Sweden's typical landscape; lakes (there are 100.000 of them) and pine forest as far as the eye can see.Lue lisää

  • Falun

    18. syyskuuta 2021, Ruotsi ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    We visited the UNESCO World Heritage mine in Falun. The mine is a thousand years old and was the world’s major producer of copper in the 17th century. Even the Palace of Versailles was roofed with Falun copper :). It was really cool to descend into the underground tunnels, even though it was with an ugly orange raincoat and helmet.Lue lisää

  • Uppsala

    19. syyskuuta 2021, Ruotsi ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    We stopped in Uppsala on our way to Stockholm. A cool university city with lots of cosy restaurants and the biggest cathedral of 🇸🇪. It was also here that a miracle unfolded; Miel visited a museum (the Linnaean Garden, a botanic garden with the former home of the famous botanist Carl Linnaeus) while Laura decided to visit a café. We also visited an old Viking site.Lue lisää

  • Stockholm

    22. syyskuuta 2021, Ruotsi ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    We switched Otto for a comfy hotel room to explore this popular capital. After two months of living in our car, this was a welcome change. We didn't have to search for a bush to go to the toilet, were able to dress standing up, doubled our amount of showers in just 4 days and didn't freeze to death during the night.

    Our daily activities also looked quite different. From strolling around the old city centre and window shopping to enjoying a vegan lunch buffet or typical Swedish 'fika' to visiting some great museums.

    We also wandered around in stockholms tunnelbana, a network of underground metro stations covered with street art and couldn't stay away from the biggest IKEA of the world and it's delicious plantboller 🤤
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  • Gdansk

    3. lokakuuta 2021, Puola ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    Gdansk turned out to be more interesting than we thought, so we stayed for 10 days! 😇. We visited two great museums (one about WWII and one about Solidarnosc, since they both started here), strolled around the beautiful old city centre, biked to nearby Sopot with its white beaches and enjoyed some delicious food. Apart from that we also studied English grammar a few hours a day (and yes we also binged Squid Game).Lue lisää

  • Torún

    5. lokakuuta 2021, Puola ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    This beautiful medieval city once functioned as the capital of Poland, of Prussia and even of the German Empire. It was spared destruction during the Second World War and is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It's also the birthplace of Copernicus! We enjoyed the local delicasy pierniki (some kind of gingerbread), strolled around the old centre with its many churches and studied some English grammar 🤓Lue lisää