man versus kit kat

Jan

Long Service Leave 2023: Northern Lights Cruise

13/10/23 – 23/10/23

Now to the feature event, our cruise up the coast of Norway! This was the main part of our trip… to see parts of Norwary neither of us had been, but also to *cross fingers* see the Northern Lights.

I won’t go into all the details of the trip. Needless to say it was magic. The ferry trip was great and we were super well looked after. We stopped at heaps of gorgeous small Norwegian towns, and did a bunch of other excursions right to the tip of the European mainland and right to the Russian border.

And spoiler… we saw the Northern LIghts 🙂

After a week and half we ended up back in Bergen, almost at the end of our epic Long Service Leave trip.

Jan

Long Service Leave 2023: Oslo to Bergen

By: muttler

bergen

oslo

08/09/23 – 12/09/23

We got to Oslo by train from Stockholm with really only enough time for one afternoon expedition. I decided to hightail it to the Munch museum. I had actually been to Oslo almost 20 years ago. While I like Oslo, I don’t love it as much as Stockholm. But I remembered loving the Munch museum. It had moved into a new location, so any excuse to see Munch paintings, right?

After a nights sleep it was then a couple of days of travelling to go to Bergen. The train ride was magic… old trains, waterfalls, fjord villages. One mishap with my phone along the way (dropped and shattered screen!) and we were in Bergen. Again, 20 years after I had first visited. I love Bergen… quaint, full of charm and gorgeous. With a night and day of exploring, it was then checking into our home for the next couple of weeks, the MS Richard With, our Hurtigruten ferry!

Jan

Long Service Leave 2023: Stockholm

By: muttler

stockholm

28/09/23 – 07/10/23

We arrived in Stockholm and this is where things get interesting. After meeting up with more family, we had to deal with some medical dramas that threw our plans into some disarray. While it was quite serious, the amazing Swedish medical system meant that what could have been incredibly challenging was at least made easier to manage thanks to how great their system is as well as the medical staff and facilities.

It meant that the time in Stockhom was a mix if hospital visits, family catch ups, and some getting out. I found great comfort in becoming a Hammerby FC supporter, for both the womens and mens teams, getting to see them play a few times. And even got to a gig! I could live in Stockholm I reckon.

Oh, and I even watched my beloved Collingwood with the AFL Premiership on my laptop in the hotel lobby at 6am 😛

Once we had some things sorted (as much as we could do anyway), Kate and I hightailed it to Oslo to start the most epic part of our trip.

Jan

Long Service Leave 2023: Tallin

By: muttler

tallin

25/09/23 – 27/09/23

A quick ferry from Helsinki and we were in Tallin. It was my second visit, after having done a short trip with my mate James back in 2014. The old town is delightful, and the food is gloriously heavy and the beer gloriously dark. It was a few days of just wandering the old town and the wall, some museums, and even some Tenet movie locations. All before another ferry, this time overnight to Stockholm.

Jan

Long Service Leave 2023: Helsinki

By: muttler

helsinki

22/09/23 – 24/09/23

Next up was a quick trip to Helsinki! It is not a huge city so we didn’t need too long, plus it was mostly out gateway into Scandi. It was such a delight to go back after having worked there for a bit a decade ago. It all was familair and I remembered getting around and my favourite haunts well.

We hung out, ate by the water, went to the fortress island, and then it was on a ferry to Tallin.