Stage 8: Estonia · Finland · Norway - UK

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Estonia

So after 7000 odd kilometers I am now close to finishing my overland journey from Vietnam to Norway. After Russia I now cross from Asia into Europe proper with my first EU country Estonia. Firstly I would like to say that I am a little unprepared for the massive shock heading from some of the most undeveloped tourist countries straight into the EU. I am so used to struggle and poverty that moving into the EU is a dash to the mind and almost causes a sensory overload.

Anyway to the story... After a overnight bus trip from Russia I reach the EU border checkpoint into Estonia. The border guards take 3 looks into my passport and then call over numerous superiors to discuss whether I should be allowed into the EU. However after a few questions about some of the Muslim countries I have been through they let me loose into Estonia.

So I was expecting a country resembling Bulgaria or possibly Romania however this was just not the case. Upon arrival in the capital Tallinn and passing through the cities old gates I am surrounded by old aged gringo tourists. I am completely surrounded by 50-100 odd of these tourists taking pictures and chowing down lattes and Mc Donalds. What a bizarre place... I check into my hostel which more resembles a 4 star bed and breakfast, sit on my bed and try to figure out how the world that I have known for the past 6 months is completely over. For an instant I miss the struggle, the language problems, the crap lodgings and of course the complete lack of package tourists.

So to cut to the chase I spend the next two days preparing for my journey through Scandinavia. I buy a tent and all my camping gear, go to the gym and look through the Tallinn old town which is nice but completely fake and over touristed. Finally I board my fast boat to Finland, load up on cheap grog and in two hours am in Helsinki.

Finland

I would love to say that Helsinki is different to Tallinn in Estonia however that is just not the case. Again I am in the throes of thousands of Gringo tourists exploring the city. The city does turn out to be very beautiful and I experience my first Finnish sauna in Finland. A word about Saunas and the absolute obsession that the Finns have with the experience:

* A finnish sauna is approx 100-140 degrees
* It can either be electric or fire powered
* Finns hold the Sauna up as almost a religious experience
* Finns believe it is a cure for all common ailments
* Giving birth in a Sauna is regarded as the ultimate start to life
* You sauna naked and do approx 10mins in and 10mins under cold water

So I have my first sauna in Finland with about 6 Germans. As Germans love their beer they start drinking the sauna. I would like to say now that drinking in the sauna is definitely not recommended. After 2 beers I can honestly say that I am completely drunk! I spend my days in Helsinki drinking, having sauna sessions and staying away from gringo tourists.

My first stop is the delightful lake side town of Kupio. I am absolutely shocked at the prices in Finland, $100USD to go 4 hours in a bus is not cool. I am now happy I bought my tent and cooking gear to cut costs because with these sort of prices I will be bankrupt in a week. I pitch my tent right by the lake and enjoy bbq meat using the campground provided fire pits.

My second day at Kupio brings the start of the worlds largest smoke sauna. A smoke sauna is unique in that it is powered by a fire that must be started hours before use. It is better than a electric sauna in that you can stay longer and at a much higher temperature not to mention a much more authentic experience. So with the coals stoked me and one of my German friends get into a sauna just striking the 130 degree mark with 60 other people. After only 10minutes we are running for the open air... The experience is not complete without jumping into the lake just outside the sauna to cool off. Jumping into the 16 degree lake after a mega hot sauna is a huge jolt to the senses but god its fun! We repeat this process no fewer than 5 times and with the addition of a few well timed beers it is a process that can only be described as heavenly.

Many people critisise the Finnish people but I have to say it is the little things in life that are great. The finnish believe in friends, camping, sauna, bbq and beer... A life filled with happiness should be this simple and I think we could all learn something from the Finn way of living.

I now cross into the artic circle to the town where Santa and the heavy metal band Lordi are from. Again I set up camp opposite a beautiful lake and head to the Santa Claus village. The Santa Claus village is hilarious with elves and the actual post office that all the letters you wrote to Santa go to (and they reply). I also meet Santa and sit on his lap. I would like to say it was average but it was a whole lot of fun and I would be lying if I said I wasn't waiting for my turn excited and jumping up and down on the spot.

After the excitement of Santas village I head into Lapland and cross into Norway.

Norway

Oh Norway you are ridiculously beautiful. I think I will run out of superlatives to describe the incredible beauty of this place and probably to describe the high prices as well. So after only 5 minutes in Norway I am already filling up my memory card with beautiful pictures. The scenery really reminds me of home and fills me with a pang of wishing I was back there.

Anyway my first destination is the most northerly point in Europe, Nordcapp. It is a beautiful spot high above 100m cliffs overlooking the artic sea. I stay to watch the midnight coming in and the sun still shining. In Norway they have a centuries old rule that you can camp anywhere on public and also private land (as long as you are not within sight of a private building). So with this rule in mind I pitch my tent next to the carpark of Nordcapp right on the stones, a great way to start!

The next day I proceed to the closest settlement to Nordkapp, Honningsvaag to catch my coastal boat south. I manage to hitch-hike with some really cool Norwegians and they take me into town. They then point me in the direction of the ski field and I pitch my tent up there with a 180 degree view of the ocean. I then head to the bar my friends work at and proceed to down Norwegian beers for happy hour ($10 USD happy hour prices!). Here I make friends with some absolutely hilarious locals and a random English lass we sample one too many shots. It is then off to their place to down cognac from the bottle and catch my taxi completely drunk to my boat.

I board the Hurtigurten in a drunken stupor. The hurtigurten has been the lifeline for coastal communities for the past 100 years. It makes scheduled runs up and down the coast of Norway ferrying passengers and goods to the small towns. After a long sleep I clamber up to the upper decks to enjoy the outstanding coastal views. For the next couple of days I live on the deck of the ship then get off at the small communities for small walks before having to get back onboard. Is a great experience to live onboard and to visit these small communities that are unconnected by roads to the mainland.

After a few days onboard I disembark at the Lofoten Islands. The islands are renowned for amazing scenery and light for photography. The town of Svolvær is my first stop. Here I pitch my tent on top of a WWII artillery battery amongst some outstanding coastal scenery. I spend the days hiking from spectacular viewpoint to another. Then onto the next town of Moskenes where I pitch my tent under the massive fish drying racks that they have in the town. And then finally to the beautiful fishing village of A. It is impossible to describe how beautiful these places are especially if you are camping right in amongst it. It is little wonder to see why many of the greatest artists in Norway come to this place for inspiration.

From here it is a quick ferry back to the mainland and the town of Bodo. Then a long train ride down to Andalsnes and through to the world heritage listed fjord of Geirangerfjord. The Geirangerfjord is considered to be among the most scenically outstanding fjord areas on the planet. It is so immensely deep it is hard to capture and show the scale in photos. I spend the days again hiking and camping in some beautiful areas before I take the boat to my next stop of Alesund. Alesund turns out to be yet another picture postcard town set in a stunning harbor. I arrive late so run up to the top of the biggest mountain next to the city and pitch my tent on yet another old WWII bunker. I am really in love with this camp anywhere rule in Norway, the places you can find are quite special. My final stop in mid Norway is the island of Runde to see the Puffin birds. Unfortunately I have arrived a week too late and only get a short glimpse of one puffin bird flying to its house. Doesn't matter I will see them again one day in Iceland.

One of my last stops is the world heritage listed town of Bergen. Bergen is a beautiful town located on the East coast of Norway surrounded by mountains and ocean. Here I meet one of my old friends whom I met in Mexico a very long time ago Hannae. It is great to just relax, hang out and especially to do my laundry! I spend the days walking the old town and at night sampling the local cuisine, fish balls yum!

After an extremely relaxing few days I head off to the capital Oslo by way of train. Here I meet up with Hannaes brother Tord and the partying and good times begin! We spend the nights going crazy at the local 60s bars drinking and dancing and the days sipping coffee and trying to get over our hangovers. Is yet another great time and I am very lucky to have such good friends to relax with. I think at this point in my trip (especially after Kazakhstan) that I am getting tired but the time relaxing with friends has invigorated me. So with that in mind I board my plane to the UK a little unhappy.

Here brings the end of my real journey from Vietnam to Norway. It has been a truly awakening experience... From the:

* New Years at Halong bay
* Laos river tubing
* Angkor Wat in Cambodia
* Thailand Ko Chang beaches
* Burma Dictatorship
* People of Bangladesh
* Dirtiness of India
* Mountains of Nepal
* Everything about Pakistan
* Chinese Brainwashed
* Horses of Krygzstan
* Roads to Tajikistan
* Mosques of Uzbeqistan
* Blackhole of Kazakhstan
* Vodka of Russia
* Saunas of Finland
* Beauty of Norway

I have seen a lot and I would be lying if I said I wasn't emotional about finishing this part of my life. It has truly been a great adventure and one I wont forget.

The UK

The UK is as I remember it completely. I cannot honestly say that it is my favorite place in the world but I will say this... It is great to see a English newspaper! In the UK I spend a few days at the university of Durham and then hanging with my old Deloitte workmate Chami. From here it is off to Ireland.

Ireland

In Ireland I board my first group tour of my travels, the paddywagon 10 day trip through Ireland. The trip takes you right around the country both North and Republic of Ireland to see all the major attractions from the giants causeway to Belfast to the Guinness brewery. It was yet another great experience and definitely what I needed. After such an exhausting trip it was nice just to get on a bus and be shown things. Not having to worry about food, accomodation and transport, it was a real treat.

I am not going to say too much about Paddywagon because it revolves around only a few things, booze, goodtimes and above all else good friends. I made some amazing friends from Steve the Spoon to Rachel the povo girl to lady gaga to Mary and my favorite to Mr ruralsexual. It was truly a great time and I think that the best way to describe my adventure here is to look through my photos. They really do sum up my awesome adventure through Ireland.

Lastly I head back to England, hang out with one of my old Waitakere schoolmates Richard. Richard is in the military there now and has had a few terms in Afghanistan. So of course since hes home for a bit we hit the town in London for a bit of some Sambuca madness and I end up having to drag this 6ft5 brute back home as per old times. Anyway great to see him.

My trip to England is complete when I realise that I misread my plane ticket and my flight is at 6am not midday. It is then a massive undertaking to make my way across London to Heathrow in the middle of the night after one too many beers. My final days in Europe are spent on the beach in Barcelona drinking Mohitos celebrating my 29th birthday. Ahhh a relaxing way to end a great journey.

From Spain I board a flight to Venezuela and get straight up to my ears in a mess, immediately.

Thanks for reading my blog and take a look at the photos:
Finland Photos
Norway Photos
Ireland Photos

Thanks
Shaun

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