European Adventure

A quick flight had me in Denmark before long, and a long bus in from the airport had me at my hostel on the outskirts of town. But I was beginning to get used to all this walking an soon the distances seemed to matter less and less. Denmark remined me of home, it had similar shops, a similar atmosphere and of course 'Our' Princess Mary (I've got a postcard to prove it!).

I checked out the Musuem and it had some wonderful collections but I was beginnning to feel a bit of musuem fatigue, so I threw caution to the wind (and a lot a Kroner too!) and spent a wonderful day at Tivoli, one of the oldest gardens in Europe, with rides, restaurants and a pretty little lake to top it off. I spent hours rushing between the rides and exhausting myself in the process. I filled up on junkfood (waffles, hot chocolate and fairyfloss!) and yet still didn't feel sick ! More rides were needed! I highly recommend the ride that is like a tower of terror as you get the best views of Copenhagen from the top before you plummet back down to earth!

I cruised around the harbour heading out to Chrisitania but only getting to see it from the comfort of a boat full of load obnoxious tourists. I wandered around the picturesque Nyhavn and strolled along the longest pedestrian shopping street in the world which seemed to contain more tourist shops than anywhere else in the world.

But that was the end of my three short days and I had to catch a flight to Zurich (via a five hour stopover in Berlin - who on earth knows why?) and thus had to leave the rest of Denmark for another time

Well, its not as nice as Sweden but it sure beats Norway - its Finland. If I had not just left Stockholm, I'm sure Helsinki would have seemed like a perfect little Scandanavian city. But it does have its charms - the people are extremely friendly and seem to have a real love for life even in the middle of a cold dark winter. I didn't know much about Helsinki, or Finland for that matter, before I arrived, but the towns musuems had me up to speed quickly.

I headed off to Soumelina Fortress, taking the ferry across some very choppy water, but the colourful little buildings there made it worth it, and a brilliant video in the musuem on the Island was fascinating. I explored the rest of Heslinki with the help of a bus-tour. I was probably the only one under 50 on the bus, but that just made me feel lucky to be experiencing the world at a young age. Sibellious Park was beautiful even with the strange metal tribute. But my only problem came when I went out to find a traditional Finnish sauna, every one I went to seemed to be filled with creepy older gentlemen who had the look that if I went in I might not come out or would come out as their new young bride! So I never did get to experience the traditional Suana.

The night life in Helsinki is better that its neighbours and after a few too many shots at a local hotspot, a friend and I had to hightail it across town at 3:30am in order to make the curfew of our hostel at 4, arriving with only 2 minutes to spare! I happened to book a room based on the fact that it was located at the old olympic stadium, rather than location as it was a little bit out the way, especially when under the influence of strong Finnish liqour!

But that was all that I had time for in Finland, I still had to get to Denmark before meeting family in Switzerland for Christmas

Well after the disappointment of Norway, I wasn't expecting much from Sweden, but boy was I wrong. I fell in love immediately with the people, the city and everything in it. I booked a bed not in a hotel, but in a little boat moored on the river. The shared room was tiny but it had the best views of the city and how often can you say you slept on a boat? I was staying on the Gamla Stan side of town and could have spent hours wandering through the cobbled streets. The palace was a palace but it was the little markets and churches that captured my heart.

I visited some great musuems including the facinating Historik Musuem, but it was a church along the way that encapsulated Sweden for me. It was a few hundred years old and beautiful but unlike other cities there was no line, and in fact I think I was the only tourist in the place. Up near the main alter sat a class full of small children, all beautifully Nordic with blonde hair and blues and singing hymns in Swedish - you could not have asked for a more perfect scene.

I also experienced Stockholm's nightlife or what little their seemed with a visit to the world famous Ice Bar. Dressed in lovely silver capes that reminded me of the inside of a cooler, a group of us entered into a room that was below freezing and drank vodka cocktails from glasses made from ice. It is an experience that everyone must try at leat once (unless you leave somewhere cold where you're probable used to it!)

Stockholm is also a wonderful city to shop in even if the prices are a little high, with the department stores a highlight, just wondering around browsing the sweedish homewares felt like an enjoyable experience. But the fun couldn't last as I was heading off to Finland wondering if Sweden's next door neighbour could match it.

I have spent the last three days in the uncharming capital of Norway - Oslo. I was at first excited to be in the northern most place I had been in my life with images of fjords and mountains in mind, but clearly Oslo hadn't got my memo! It was cold but not unpleasant and the city is relatively easy to get around as long as you dont get off a bus after dark and expect people to be able to help you with a few directions!

I visit the main sites such as Byogday, the Viking Musueam and the Folksmuseum but none had the charm that captivated me in London and across Ireland. The Folksmusuem did have a quaint Christmas market that day which at least made trek out of town feel not entirely wasted. But all i seemed to encounter in Oslo we uptight Norwegians who seemed to have neither the time of day or common courtesy towards me. A trip down Karl Johans Gate lifted my moods but the prices everywhere brought them back down again. It was with a sigh of relief that I headed off to Sweden, knowing that now I could cross Norway (or at least its soulless capital) off my list.

Spent the last few days in Glasgow with a quick day trip to Edinburgh thrown in. Stayed at the Euro Hostel in Glasgow which was pretty good thank god. Checked out a few things in Glasgow but there wasnt too much to do - i saw the German Christmas market, the Cathedral, the Musuem of Modern Art, Edinburgh Castle/Musuem/Gallery/Market and quite a bit of shopping. Not much to tell - not much of a night life and nothing too interesting to see unfortunately but tomorrow I'm off to Norway for a slight change in scenery.