26, 27 October 2023

So, it’s all done and dusted.

We arrived home in Newcastle around 1:00 pm Friday after one long flight from Manchester to Dubai and an even longer one from Dubai to Sydney.

I can’t say a lot of sleep was had by either of us, but we did eat a lot of airplane food and we did watch a lot of bad movies.

Our slow train to Newcastle, delayed for half an hour at Epping, due to “communication issues across the whole network”, with no wifi coverage and nowhere to charge our phones was a strong indicator that we were home. But, it didn’t really matter! We had nowhere left to go.

We have had a most wonderful two months.

We’ve travelled in Norway with Emily, in Sweden and Denmark with Linnea and Gustav and in England with John and Jude. We’ve stayed in Mellendorf, Germany with Sophie , Hans Heinrich and Sebastian and visited Hayley and Banjo in Antwerp, Belgium. A big thank you to each of you. You all made our trip extra special!! We will be forever grateful for all you have done for us and the experiences you gave and shared with us.

We’ve travelled on planes, trains, and automobiles as well as on buses, big boats, little boats, canal barges, bicycles and did a fair bit of walking as well .

We gained one parking fine, wedged a canal barge across a canal junction, almost missed the boat at Trondheim and had a slight mishap with a bike lock near Mellendorf. Oh and I replaced a pair of hiking boots in Stockholm.

We’ve been in a lot of churches…..

…..and seen a lot of stain glass.

We’ve been to the top of a lot of mountains, …

….. spotted a lot of waterfalls…….

…. And spent a fair bit of time underground.

We’ve travelled on narrow roads …

…. And even narrower canals.

We’ve eaten a lot of food. (Mostly potatoes in its many varied forms!!) The only disaster being those horrible dried fish crisps in Tromsø, which have scarred me for life.

We have drunk one or two beverages whilst watching the sun set in beautiful locations.

We saw lots of birds and animals and managed to photograph most of them. Although, you will just have to trust me regarding the moose in the woods in Sweden.

We crossed the Arctic Circle!! Twice!! Something I never thought I would experience . Of course, we had to participate in the crossing rituals and Grahame was such a good sport to volunteer for an extra dose of cod liver oil!

We were incredibly lucky to see the Northern Lights (even if we were in our pjs, and we almost froze in the process!)

We putt-putted across the Pontcysyllte aqueduct, the culmination of a plan hatched four years ago (and almost didn’t happen thanks to a broken lock at Middlewich)….

….. and descended the Anderton Lift from the Trent and Mersey canal down to the River Weaver in a tourist boat.

We have stayed in lovely hotels with great views, in cabins on boats, and canal barges. we’ve stayed with friends in their homes and slept in tiny huts with no bathrooms.

We’ve seen some famous and beautiful artwork ( and some pretty ordinary stuff as well!)

And we got to finally celebrate Linnea and Gustav’s wedding. The catalyst for this whole Scandinavian adventure.

What have we learnt over the last two months?

ESims are fantastic and much much cheaper than my $5 a day Vodafone global roaming. I used “TripSim” while Grahame used “ESIM-ON”. We had great coverage all over Europe. Sadly the same can’t be said for England , whose WIFi coverage is, I think, worse than ours. The ESim was a data only set up and was a godsend. We used it constantly to book accommodation, download travel Apps, find directions, purchase online entrance tickets, check emails and “Facetime” family and friends.

Cash is not required. (Except in Germany). We used our “World Wide Wallet” debit card for everything, from paying for accommodation and food, to entry into public toilets. Even street buskers , beggars and local church donation boxes accepted a quick tap on their “PayWave” or “Tap and Go” credit card readers!!!

Apps are required for most travel situations. And every city/ town has its own version. I now have 16 new apps on my phone, most related to public transport. I have a whole new appreciation for my one Opal card here in NSW.

International Drivers Licence are not required either. When hiring cars our NSW drivers license was all that was asked for. Pretty pleased we didn’t pay for the IDL this time around. We did check before hand though as a friend who travelled in Japan did require one when hiring a vehicle there. So check!!!

English is definitely the international language, which is fortunate for us English speakers. I was constantly amazed by the ability of most Europeans to swap between their native tongue and English as required. My 445 day Duolingo German streak and the time spent studying beforehand was a worthwhile experience. Although I still have a looong way to go, having the basics of the German language proved helpful throughout Scandinavia, even if it was just to read a sign post or a menu.

Swedish Smörgåstårta cake is a thing, and it comes with prawns!!!

You can buy hedgehog food in Germany.

Cyclists in Amsterdam are crazy.

Dried fish crisps are not very nice at all.

Good wet weather gear makes a rainy day a fun day ( for some)!

Post Script:

28 October 2023

Saturday morning: Coffee!!!

So…. THATS IT!! I hope you enjoyed the ride as much as we did. Time to start “not-planning” our next trip!!!