Waking at Salaspils. After sleeping in the car park of the most eerie Salaspils Monument you’d think the day would have to get better. I wanted to wander around the monument after dark. Polly had other ideas and put the brakes on big time as I started walking her in the direction of the beating […]
The Cornish Wanderer
Cēsis and Salaspils. Contrast beyond comfort.
To Latvia. First on foot. After a quick walk around the border town of Valga/Valka (depending on which side you’re on) we headed into Latvia proper. In Valga a decent walk may see you cross the border a few times. Yesterday it was 33+ degrees and with little shade, so we hopped over the border […]
Estonia. A Walk In The Woods.
That border crossing feeling hit us harder in Estonia. Tallinn was easy. It’s the capital. It’s busy. And we had the advantage of a lovely apartment to stay in. It wasn’t until we’d driven out of the city and started looking at overnight spots that a little nervousness set in. Waterfalls in flat countries. The […]
Tallinn – boom!
Arriving in Tallinn after the calm, safe, tranquillity of Scandinavia is like the start of a fireworks display on a previously quiet night. Suddenly there’s life all around, cars coming from every direction, people, heat, trams, buses, sirens, horns, screaming motorbikes, the old fashioned bells of trolley buses. Driving ArchieVan becomes demanding for the first […]
Farewell Soumi.
We’ll miss Finland for many reasons, though we may never master pronunciation of any of its language. Double vowels abound, and to add confusion many west coast places speak Swedish as their first language, even though they’re in Finland. Helsinki. But first, a flying visit to Helsinki. We drive through the middle of Helsinki with […]
Finland. Heading south, and west
We have the luxury of time to travel slowly. But it’s not limitless. We want to be a long way south by late autumn, and so we had to resist the temptation of taking root in our well placed Oulu car park. High temperatures. It’s hot when we move off. The van shows 36 degrees […]