Arctic Trek: My Arctic Road Trip

[Rilot]

If you're going to do Poland, I'd skip Warsaw and do Krakow instead. Warsaw is a horrible place due to having been complete destroyed and then re-built in the communist neo-brutalist style. The only nice bit is old town, which they re-built as it was prior to 1939.
Krakow is much nicer and has some gorgeous architechture. You're also very close to Auschwitz which is something you will never forget if you go there.

 

[Yaayuh!]

If you're going to do Poland, I'd skip Warsaw and do Krakow instead. Warsaw is a horrible place due to having been complete destroyed and then re-built in the communist neo-brutalist style. The only nice bit is old town, which they re-built as it was prior to 1939.
Krakow is much nicer and has some gorgeous architechture. You're also very close to Auschwitz which is something you will never forget if you go there.

+1 for Krakow.

 

[dlockers]

That's insane. Rally drivers are something else man

100%. Anyone who backs the size of their nuts needs just watch a video or two of rally lol.

 

[Lopéz]

If you're going to do Poland, I'd skip Warsaw and do Krakow instead. Warsaw is a horrible place due to having been complete destroyed and then re-built in the communist neo-brutalist style. The only nice bit is old town, which they re-built as it was prior to 1939.
Krakow is much nicer and has some gorgeous architechture. You're also very close to Auschwitz which is something you will never forget if you go there.

I quite like the socialist realism architecture used on Mokotowska, Marszalkowska, Piekna, Krucza etc - but I realise I'm in the minority there.
A lot of the buildings constructed immediately after the war have been neglected for a long time (likely post - Soviet animosity) but over the last few years a lot of the large residential blocks have been renovated.

Reminds me in places of Karl-Marx-Allee in Berlin which was built under similar ideals.

Unfortunately the MDM rebuilding project ran out of steam (and more probably, money) and a great deal of Warsaw was reconstructed as featureless grey slabs.

 

[randomshenans]

To be fair, adding Krakow over Warsaw only adds about 150ish KM on the clock, so it's not too much out the way. If that would be a better place to visit in Poland, I'd definitely be up for that.

What's in Krakow then?

 

[Rilot]

To be fair, adding Krakow over Warsaw only adds about 150ish KM on the clock, so it's not too much out the way. If that would be a better place to visit in Poland, I'd definitely be up for that.

What's in Krakow then?

A very old and grand cathedral that was Pope John-Paul 2ns ministry. SOme fantastic old, traditional, Polish architechture. Auschwitz. Salt mines. Some utterly fantastic Polish street food vendors (you have to try the fried potatoes with mushroon sauce).

 

[dlockers]

To be fair, adding Krakow over Warsaw only adds about 150ish KM on the clock, so it's not too much out the way. If that would be a better place to visit in Poland, I'd definitely be up for that.

What's in Krakow then?

To contradict the guidance above though --- Krakow is a worth a proper visit in its own right. If you are just flying through, Warsaw will be "fine"?

 

[413x]

So I've been putting together things to do in each place. While it's a tight schedule I believe I can fit these things in no problem, since the first 3 days are where over 50% of the driving is happening.

Anyway, as mentioned at the top, the idea for things to do along the way have to include:

• meeting a local (I'll put it out there on t'interwebs, which has already lined up some people in places)
• doing an activity
• drinking local drink
• eating local food

With that, I started to get some rough ideas:

1. Copenhagen - this might be a simple stop and go due to 1000km driving to get there. We'll start early so we can have a dinner there mind.

2. Stockholm, Sweden​

   • Activity: Participate in a snow rally or ice driving experience near Stockholm. (someone lining this up)
   • Eat: Köttbullar? (I know we have swede based people here!)
   • Drink: Snaps, apparently local?

3. Arctic Circle (entry from Sweden)​

   • Activity: Dog sledding
   • Eat: Reindeer stew or smoked Arctic char.
   • Drink: Hot lingonberry juice.

4. Helsinki, Finland​

   • Activity: Finnish sauna followed by an ice dip in the Baltic Sea.
   • Eat: Mustikkapiirakka (blueberry pie) with vanilla sauce.
   • Drink: Koskenkorva

5. Tallinn, Estonia​

   • Activity: Open on this one, not found anything that I think is a must yet...
   • Eat: Apparently their pork sausage?
   • Drink: Vana Tallinn, a sweet herbal liqueur apparently

6. Riga, Latvia​

   • Activity: bobsledding on the Olympic track in Sigulda, just outside Riga.
   • Eat: Latvian grey peas with bacon.
   • Drink: Riga Black Balsam.

7. Kaunas, Lithuania​

   • Activity: Need final decision don't know much about the place!
   • Eat: Cepelinai - potato dumplings stuffed with meat, curd, or mushrooms.
   • Drink: Midus, a Lithuanian honey mead.

8. Warsaw, Poland​

   • Activity: Need final decision​

   • Eat: Pierogi​

   • Drink: Vodka ​

9. Prague, Czech Republic​

   • Activity: Still open for suggestions​

   • Eat: Trdelník​

   • Drink: Czech beer!​

I'm not certain my son is going to come. He's a non committal 19yr old that says one thing but never commits, which is whatever, but a mate of mine has said he's up for it and he could be an additional driver so potential win win there.

Going to take the week after next off and hammer through some volvo work and get all the parts changed over in a couple of days.

​

Happy to masquerade as your son?

 

[randomshenans]

To contradict the guidance above though --- Krakow is a worth a proper visit in its own right. If you are just flying through, Warsaw will be "fine"?

Yea, so it's probably going to be an afternoon / evening worth of time to smash through something, get some food etc.

So would definitely not uncover 1% of what any place has to offer. It's like a taster of each place, which will leave me wanting to come back to each place for a true trip!

 

[randomshenans]

Happy to masquerade as your son?

Development on this... he's dropped a bombshell that, despite saying he's going to go off traveling, he's going to move in with his GF in Normandy... FML but anyway, let's not go there because she's something else as well So chances are, he's going to bail for sure.


I'd happily consider others coming along. All part of the fun isn't it?

My mate hasn't confirmed yet either. Last thing I want is to do it solo. I mean, I would, but it's not as much fun that way.

 

[413x]

Development on this... he's dropped a bombshell that, despite saying he's going to go off traveling, he's going to move in with his GF in Normandy... FML but anyway, let's not go there because she's something else as well So chances are, he's going to bail for sure.


I'd happily consider others coming along. All part of the fun isn't it?

My mate hasn't confirmed yet either. Last thing I want is to do it solo. I mean, I would, but it's not as much fun that way.

No joke. I'd legitimately come for some of I have the days off!

 

[randomshenans]

This is fast approaching now!
With all the planning for my Japan trip I've had to juggle this as well, but it's getting there.

I had some lovely drama with the XC90 after trying to fix as many things as possible on it. I changed brake discs and pads, wishbones, track rod etcs, drop links, all engine mounts, upper torsion bar mounts and went to remove the subframe bolts to add some poly bush inserts to them to firm it up... when the first bolt upped and broke. Snapping the bolt in the car. Lovely.

My local garage man helped fix that for me, thankfully and I got it back just in time to drive it to the UK for an MOT. I wasn't sure how the journey would go, or how the car would be... I had it booked in for the start of the week, so if anything needed doing I'd be ready to have it done, or do it and still have time for a retest.

Fortunately, it passed! A few minor things to observe, but nothing to fail it. So I'm legal for another 12 months and to be fair she ran brilliantly to and from the UK. Over 2000km in the week and was lovely.

While I was over there I added something I got delivered to my parents place

BEASTY!

I now need to get a number plate mount, so I can mount that on the bar, and I should hopefully have some nice lights to go on there too, so I can light up all the dark roads on my travels!

Next up it's prep time, so I have some sponsor stickers due to come soon, as well as my stickers for the trip.

I also have a roof tent on the way from a company I'm working with, so today in fact, I have the roof bars arriving for that to sit on, as well as a solar panel I'll be mounting to the top of the roof tent box.

I've got the rough schedule for the trip as well, and a mate of mine, who said he would come and I just wasn't sure he'd commit, has fully committed, which is awesome! And I also have another mate flying to Helsinki and joining for the back half of the trip, but @413x happily meet you somewhere, too!

This whole thing is about meeting people and experiencing as well as just connecting with places and people.

I completely understand in the best case we'd do it over so many more days. It's not like I have holiday at work to worry about but others do. But in that time, we'll have the ability to be sitting on an evening, looking out on to the peace and our surroundings and appreciate the world for what it has, and that's pretty special.

If anyone is from these places, knows anyone from these places etc etc. would love to connect and show us a bit of your world. Even for an afternoon, evening, or few hours.

Much love!

 

[randomshenans]

Thought I'd update this one! What can I say... that was a lot.

Of course it was. 7000km in 11 days is pretty ambitious, especially the first 4 days covering 3800km of those with just two of us driving but man, what an experience it was.

Whilst everyone could/would say, it wasn't enough time in each place, I'd argue you could have said that for a weekend break in each place. It just wouldn't be enough. It did give us a sense of a place, the people, culture, food, drink and places we'd love to go back to.

We ended up on 2 ferries during the trip.

Honestly, this world is just so beautiful.

The volvo did great! I have a knock somewhere now (not engine) that I need to work out what it is, but I've given myself some time off since being back on it.

Longest day was the first day, 1150km that day and 14hours on the go.

Didn't stop us though. Arrived in Copenhagen, checked into the cheapest hostel on booking.com and hit the bars, went to bed at 2am ready to hit the road the next morning to head to Stockholm.

This is where we stayed in a converted prison for the night.
The rule was, you're not allowed to book the hotel before the day. We had no research, no plans, but it made the drive filled with trying to learn about the place, where to stay, what to eat etc.

Each day was a new challenge. We stayed in so many different places, from the cheapest hostel (34EUR each), to a prison, to a roof tent and a palace. It was so great it being unplanned. It made it so much more interesting.

It put us out of our comfort zones in so many ways. So much so that I ended up doing karaoke... something I would NEVER have done before.

Once in Helsinki...

And somehow again in Riga. The world loved Mr Brightside at 3am

We saw some of the most beautiful places. Filled with history and charm.

From ancient, to insanely grand.

Each city was a beautiful glimpse of the world.

We left a little mark where we went.

Just a little one...

Played with some weapons. As you do.


We had some of the best food I think I've eaten, coupled with a ton of service station hot dogs, which are actually incredibly good in both Sweden and Finland...
Plenty of beer, many people met and most of all, it was such an incredible experience.

Hard to cover so much of what went on in that space of time. I did do a daily video, but even with those, just can't ever cover the laughs and experience.

I'm sure if you want to find it you'll be able to on my YT or my tiktok.

Here's to the next one... and if you're planning on a stupid road trip, just do it. You'll never forget the memories you make during it.

 

[Rilot]

That looks like the trip and experience of a lifetime. Well done!
I love Finland, Sweden, and Poland. Great places with awesome people who are super friendly - although Finns like to stare for some reason.
Dated a Finn for 5 years and married a Pole!

 

[GarethSouthgate]

That's the oldest looking 19 year old I've ever seen.

 

[randomshenans]

That's the oldest looking 19 year old I've ever seen.

hahaa my son bailed on me (chose his gf over this trip, so you know lol) so ended up going with a mate of mine and another mate joined us in Helsinki for the rest of the trip!

 

[randomshenans]

That looks like the trip and experience of a lifetime. Well done!

It was, truly! I now can't wait to do more. The experience was great, I just want to see where they can take me around the world haha