master_time-travel – Page 5

Day 5, 04.06.2017, Danzig – Kaliningrad

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Route Map – 165 km:

Today only 165 km to Kaliningrad. Dull and rainy weather but excellent roads and bridges and low traffic volume.

I believe my data volume on my Austrian contract has already been exhausted and I did not have any Russian map on my Garmin Navigation Set. Luckily I printed the GPS coordinates of the camp site during my preparations. Garmin provided at least the present coordinates of my vehicle online. It was very demanding to watch and analyse the running numbers on the screen and behave well in traffic at the same time. Round about lunch time I found my hotel which has a motor-home parking area attached.

Camping at the fringe of town:
Personal rating: 3/5
http://www.baltica-hotel.ru/en/camping.html

The camp site is very basic but electricity is available and the site manager was very helpful and friendly. The shower was only in the basement of the hotel and was clean and efficient. Luxurious would be a slight exaggeration though.

From Hotel Baltica to town with public transport bus:

At the reception of the hotel I changed some money and got advice how to use the bus which had a station in front of the hotel. I decided to go for it and found an elderly lady as conductor selling the tickets. I was not in the mood to ask everybody whether they speak English so I was just riding the bus and got off when it looked to be in the center. I strolled around in the the mist, shot a few pictures, had a coffee and cake in a shopping mall and looked for the bus again. As I took the wrong direction, I fulfilled a complete round of that line back to the hotel.

Some green areas in between

In the case of Kaliningrad my motivation to go there on route to the North Kapp was uncertain from the outset. Finally I decided to ‘”take it with”. But my preparation was half hearted and I missed the “Bernstein Museum”, the Aquarium and surely many other attractions.
There will be another window in the future.

Day 4, 03.06.2017, Danzig

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From Camping “STOGI” to Old Town with the bike:

Other than in St. Petersburg, which is really a large and busy Metropole, or in Helsinki, which was ok to walk, the bicycle strategy worked also exceptionally well in Danzig (Gdansk).

One is tempted to risk a preview to future places to visit along the north and east sea: the “Hansestädte”. It is all about “time-travel”, isn’t it?
Within this journey Kaliningrad (Königsberg), Riga and Tallin (Revel) will still feature. In 2019 Stettin, Greifswald, Stralsund, Rostock, Wismar, Hamburg and Utrecht will follow.
They all made their fortunes with sea freight trade with their “Hanse-Kogge” and their wealth is visible still today in no uncertain terms.

Nordeuropa und die Hansestädte um 1400
Courtesy Wikipedia

This is only the beginning of the 9,500 km journey around to Scandinavia, but already now I am overwhelmed again and again from the beauty I meet everywhere.

With Google Maps I could not locate the Domo Oliva accurately enough so I asked a fellow cyclist. He said it is anyway my direction, follow me. When he had to stop, he pointed me in the right direction and it was close.

Day 3, 02.06.2017, Krakau – Danzig

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Route map – 600 km:

Camping Stogi Dansk: https://camping-gdansk.pl/en/
Personal rating: 5/5

On day one I did 600 km and on day 3 as well. From Krakau to Danzig you cross Poland from south to north and enjoy the views of passing trucks, elegant bridges and country side after country side intercepted by some settlements.

I arrived in late afternoon, found a good spot on the camping ground, took a short stroll and relaxed after this long stint.

Day 2, 01.06.2017, Krakau

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Camping Adam Krakau: http://www.campingadam.pl/en/
Personal rating: 5/5

As I mentioned at the end of 31.05.2017, I arrived late at the camping ground, it was dark already. In the bright morning light I had a pleasant surprise finding myself in a park like environment.

I took my bicycle and followed Google Maps to the nearby Old Town. I was so surprised to find a spotless and beautifully restored jewel of a city. One palace followed the other, the same for the churches and cathedrals and castles. All over lush and green parks and recreation areas to recharge the batteries. The river Weichsel cuts through the city and offers great views and water leisure.

Needless to say that there are plenty of charming restaurants and street cafes which invite for refueling and letting the time stand still.

Day 1, 31.05.2017 Haag – Vienna – Krakau (Poland)

18.02.202026.11.2020master_time-travel

Route map – 600 km:

Camping Adam Krakau
Personal rating: 5/5
http://www.campingadam.pl/de/

Great spot in the shade.

The days of research and planning were over. Today the Russian Consulate in Vienna promised the VISA for Kaliningrad and St. Petersburg to me and finally I could begin the first long journey in my new motor-home. One hopes in such a new situation to have packed all necessary items to survive more than a month.

As I decided rather late to include Kaliningrad and St. Petersburg into the destinations the VISA application became time critical. So I started my journey on the day they promised the paper. I had to go via Vienna anyway. Fortunately I found quickly a parking space, bought the parking ticket in a Tobacco Kiosk (little tricky in Vienna) and managed the collection on time.

Schallaburg on route to Vienna, Vienna, Slovakian border
*

Originally I planned to drive about 400 km on day 1 to Hranice in Slovakia. But the excitement to be on the road eventually pushed me further. Second destination was Krakau in Poland and I went for it. I collected then
600 km. Needless to say despite the excitement I was very tired and very happy that my navigation led me perfectly to the camping ground near the old town.

31.05.2017 North Kap Scandinavia

14.02.202001.01.2021master_time-travel

Travel route:

Main destination and motivation:

Introduction:

The dream to once in my life visit the North Kap was quite long standing. The idea to do it in a motor-home developed rather quick. After considering air travel plus rental car or public transport or railways plus buses or even in a normal passenger car and hotels it dawned on me that a motor-home could be the answer for flexibility, simplicity, efficiency, lifestyle and adventure.

As I do the documentation on my new website only in 2020, I had to dig into my notes and previous papers. I found tons of material in preparation. I searched and found one or two campsites for every day of the journey. And I planned with plus/minus 30-35 days. It was worth every minute of time I spent for that. The number of days demanded to drive between 200 and 600 km / day.

Summary:

I visited 11 countries in 33 days with distance of 9.562 km which averages to 382 km/day in 25 days of driving. In 8 days I did not drive.
As it was my first long journey with the motor-home it was very exciting and rewarding. Scandinavia is so different from my previous destinations e.g., around the Mediterranean Sea or Africa and Asia, much more relaxed and tranquil. Latest touching on the “Lofoten Island Group” I knew: I will be back.

My motor-home:

Total cost:

Remarks:
The total cost per day differ from the table of purpose. The reason is for the last 8 days my wife accompanied me from Stockholm to Haag and I could not separat the single items.
Data roaming Russia:
Also telephone data roaming cost in Russia I paid only later are added separately. I did not check the tariffs before and used Google Maps. That exceeded my data limit quickly and I they shut off my account until my wife paid in for me in between.
Toll stations are not visible, they operate electronically. One has to apply into the system upfront. I received 15 fines 2 weeks after returning and negotiated as good as I could. Finally I was lucky to get away with paying 27 Euros from 268.

That means, as a single traveler I needed 90,54 Euros per day excluding wife and data or 110,77 Euros including.

Only recently Russia introduced an online Visa Process for St. Petersburg. But in 2017 it was rather cumbersome and I managed only with the help of a friend, who lived in Moscow for some years, to obtain it in a rather short amount of time before departure.

15.08.2013 Paris

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In August 2013 we took our niece Laura to Paris for her “Confirmation” of her faith (in the Catholic Church in Amstetten). We had a great outing with good weather and covered most of the attractions in the Metropole.

15.08.2013 Paris

The panorama shots endeavour to portray the incredible size and beauty of Paris.

02.02.2020 Wolkenstein Val Gardena

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A couple of days skiing to South Tyrol is always exciting because of the bizarre landscape of the Dolomite Alps.
Our Hotel Chalet Elisabeth was very close to the pists and lifts and offered excellent facilities and service. Any time again.

2016 Cycling in Cape Town

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The ARGUS Cycling Race in Cape Town in South Africa is organized by the Rotary Club Fremont of Cape Town and hosts about 30.000 cyclists. It leads from the center of Cape Town around the Cape Peninsula and is possibly the most beautiful cycling race in the world…
Distance is 109 km, 1.000 m uphill.
I think my first attendance was in 1992. Until 2020 I finished 11 times. in 2017 it was cancelled due to gail force winds and in 2018 I was there but could not start because of a bad flue.

They organisation is extremely professional and they provide super statistics:

06.03.2016, Cape Town

10.03.2017: Cape Town
Blown in the wind …

Practicing on the evening before the race around Kloofs Neck and before at Houte Bay / Chapman’s Peak.

Race cancelled due to gail force winds.

12.03.2018: Cape Town
Withdrawn because of a bad flue …

10.03.2019. Cape Town

07.03.2020, Cape Town

15.07.2007 Wedding trip to South of France

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I could not and still cannot imagine a more romantic destination for a wedding trip than the South of France. Cote d Azur (Blue Coast), Camargue and Provence are the “provinces” of beauty and tranquility.
We traveled a big circle against the clock starting from Nice and Monte Carlo to the West with Cannes, St. Tropez, Marseille, Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, Arles, Avignon, Orange, Gorge du Verdon, Grass and back to Nice.