Part 1 of Kurt’s summer surprise trip for Darina: Helsinki (Finland) – Bergen (Norway)
For more details, check out our blog entry:
It’s surprise time and I have no idea where we’re going. This trip is a surprise for Karina. What she doesn’t know is that we’re heading to the happiest country in the world, Finland. Maybe along the way, we’ll even discover the key to Finnish happiness. Welcome to Helsinki. The only thing sinking here is water out of clouds. My plan was to ride our bikes from Helsinki in Finland to Berlin in Norway. So, we have bicycle lanes left and right of every road. They’re all set for good weather. It’s You really don’t have to deal with traffic out here. I think it’s up here. We have to go on the train. I hate when Court does his own thing. For some reason, the commute route on Garmin didn’t always correspond with the original. Could be overload with bike lanes on either side of the road, plus flyovers and underpasses every couple of meters. 46. Yeah. So, we’ve been looking for a place to camp. And here it’s a public area according to two fishermen. And I don’t see any reason why we didn’t put up a tent. Look at that. It’s got our name on it. court and you know we climbed that hill just to go down to an umbass. Look what I found on the side of the road. So we know now when we’re cooking could be some scavenging. What you found? C strawberries. Oh, that’s delicious. M plenty. Wow. Forest bathing, also known as I don’t have my glasses on. I hate this one. This is Theina forest bathing. You know, she’s meant to be aware of herself and her surroundings and all. She’s not even aware of her breathing because she’s asleep. a chase. Hello Court’s getting excited about the Riviera ahead. I’m sure the arena is up for a mass. So court Riviera, let me test. It’s cold. I’ve just been rattled some fork lightning and thunder at the same time. Oh, that was very close. But I mean, where am I meant to go? This ice. Where were you during that fourth lightning? Well, the second one was pretty much above me. Well, I had it was above me, too. Craps. First one was like a K away. It rattled. I felt it rattled me. We’re just crossing onto our second island on the Archipelago Trail and we’ve decided to go for a campground tonight. This one down here in here. Yeah. Oh, lovely. Okay, lovely. I was watching this. This is very unusual. This this belt. No oil precisely. You know, Court thought I was going to go swimming. Bravery Award, Court. Bravery Award. You’re gonna have to wait another hour for the sauna. Help me now. Oh, very nice busy cooking. Better view. Very nice creation. We have about 6ks from ferryport to ferryport crossing an island. And they call this cycling. This ferry brought us to the land islands, an autonomous Swedish speaking part of Finland. In this archipelago, there are almost as many bridges as islands. And what’s missing is made up with fairies. Perfect spot for a moose. Well, let’s go down to the beach and have a look. Arena has 2 minutes to catch this ferry. Looks almost like an Inca wall. It was built by the Russians. Finland has been the happiest country in the world for 8 years now. Imagine that. We did encounter lots of reasons why the Fins might be so content with life. Although the route we took felt more like a roll in the park and it would probably be perfect for a family trip. Vand keeps it chill. Oh, maybe that’s their secret.