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Published: July 28th 2010
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I've been using
TripIt.com to organize specific travel plans, and a Google Docs spreadsheet to track details and compare options, but neither one of them works well at all as a trip-sharing platform to let other people know the obvious basic questions: where am I going, for how long, and why?
Without further ado:
Seattle, Washington - depart Aug 26
IcelandAir flight FI680 from Seattle to Reykjavik, 7 hours
Reykjavík, Ísland- Aug 27
- English name: Reykjavík, Iceland
- Language: Icelandic
- Time zone: GMT (UTC +0)
- Average temperature on these dates: 55F high, 46F low
- 9-hour stopover en route from Seattle to Gdańsk
- Side trip: 4-hour Reykjavík Excursions tour to Blue Lagoon geothermal spa
Iceland Express flight AEU267 from Reykjavík to Gdańsk, 4 hours
(Operates on Fridays in summer only - this is the last flight of 2010 - wish me luck!)
Gdańsk, Polska - Aug 27 to 31
- English name: Gdańsk, Poland
- Language: Polish
- Time zone: CEST (UTC +2)
- Average temperatures: 75F high, 56F low
- Also known as: Danzig, Germany until 1945
- Staying at: Gotyk House
- Why it's interesting: German/Polish history & culture; Baltic beaches; very important WWII and Cold War sites; my Rehbein ancestors (probably) emigrated from Danzig, Prussia to USA in 1882
- Side trip: Malbork Castle
PKP train Pospieszny D7 from Gdańsk to Kaliningrad, 6 hours
Калининград, Россия - Aug 31 to Sep 4
- English name: Kaliningrad, Russia
- Language: Russian
- Time zone: EEST (UTC +3)
- Average temperature on these dates: 69F high, 50F low
- Also known as: Königsberg, Prussia until 1945
- Staying at: Hotel Paraiso
- Why it's interesting: German/Polish/Russian history; Baltic beaches; WWI and WWII sites; parts of Kaliningrad were closed to foreigners during Cold War; geographically oddly disconnected from Russia today
- Side trip: Baltiysk (Pillau) and Svetlogorsk (Rauschen)
Belavia Belarusian Airlines flight B2-1950 from Kaliningrad to Minsk, 1 hour
Мiнск, Беларусь - Sep 4 to 8
Belavia Belarusian Airlines flight B2*-413 from Minsk to Riga, 1.5 hours
Rīga, Latvija - Sep 8 to 10
- English name: Riga, Latvia
- Language: Latvian
- Time zone: EEST (UTC +3)
- Average temperature on these dates: 64F high, 48F low
- Staying at: Hotel Ekes Konvents
- Why it's interesting: Latvian/Slavic/Germanic/Russian cultural mix; Old town German Art Nouveau architecture; forcibly annexed to USSR in 1940; was among first Soviet states to declare independence, in 1991, leading to breakup of USSR; ethnic Russians remain a majority in many areas
airBaltic flight BT343 from Riga to Vilnius, 1 hour
Vilnius, Lietuva - Sep 10 to 13
- English name: Vilnius, Lithuania
- Language: Lithuanian
- Time zone: EEST (UTC +3)
- Average temperature on these dates: 64F high, 46F low
- Staying at: Bernardinų B&B House
- Why it's interesting: Lithuanian/Polish culture; forcibly annexed to USSR in 1940; was the first Soviet state to declare independence, in 1990, leading to breakup of USSR; minority Russian exclaves remain
- Side trip: Kaunas
airBaltic flight BT331 from Vilnius to Tallinn, 1.5 hours
Tallinn, Eesti - Sep 13 to 15
- English name: Tallinn, Estonia
- Language: Estonian
- Time zone: EEST (UTC +3)
- Average temperature on these dates: 60F high, 45F low
- Staying at: Valge Villa
- Why it's interesting: Russian/Scandinavian/Finnish cultural mix; forcibly annexed to USSR in 1940; was among first Soviet states to declare independence, in 1990-1, leading to breakup of USSR; minority Russian exclaves remain
Tallink Silja Line ferry Star/Superstar from Tallinn to Helsinki, 2 hours
Helsinki, Suomi - Sep 15 to 17
- English name: Helsinki, Finland
- Language: Finnish
- Time zone: EEST (UTC +3)
- Average temperature on these dates: 56F high, 47F low
- Staying at: Hotelli Finn
- Why it's interesting: Finnish/Scandinavian/Russian cultures; ultramodern architecture, economy, infrastructure; interesting Cold War political history as a wedge between west & east
IcelandAir flight FI343 from Helsinki to Reykjavik, 3.5 hours
Reykjavík, Ísland- Sep 17 to 18
- English name: Reykjavík, Iceland
- Language: Icelandic
- Time zone: GMT (UTC +0)
- Average temperature on these dates: 51F high, 42F low
- Staying at: 1912 Guest House
- Why it's interesting: volcanoes! location between Seattle and Europe! irresistible IcelandAir fares!
IcelandAir flight FI681 from Reykjavik to Seattle, 8 hours
Seattle, Washington - return Sep 18
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Mom
non-member comment
Interesting trip!
Looking forward to seeing your travel blog descriptions and pictures! Have a safe and enjoyable trip!