I want to go everywhere, and why not right? Life is meant to be lived to its fullest and for me that means travel and experiences. In fact, it's experiences that mean more to me than things; I find them more fulfilling. So, everywhere seems a legitimate summation of where I want to go. There's a little thing called money that gets in the way of my grand plan though, and that other resource that never seems in a state of abundance...Time. src
Considering those two limitations I'd say that Faith and I have travelled extensively, seen many amazing things and had so many experiences it would be difficult to count them. We are fortunate to have placed ourselves in the position to enjoy some travel through hard work and effort of the years.
We can't go everywhere though, not until hive reaches $1,000 anyway, so we spend time looking at places we would like to visit, research, learn about them and understand them a little better. It's fun for us.
I decided to do a few posts about the more extreme places we'd like to go and this post is the second in that series. You can see part one here if you are interested.
Fjords of Norway
Masterpiece is a fitting word for this place; A masterpiece that started some twenty five million years ago at the beginning of the most recent ice age, and is still a work in progress. src
Situated on Norway's west coast is the UNESCO World Heritage Site that stretches over 3,000 kilometres from Stavanger to Nordkapp - If one was to follow the exact contour of the land though it's 25,000 kilometres!
As the slow-moving ice rivers and glaciers, some many hundreds of feet thick, moved off the mountains towards the sea they gouged out deep and narrow valleys between the sheer walls of the earth itself. Some 12,000 years ago the ice melted back leaving the fjords, many thousands of feet deeper than the Atlantic ocean with walls of granite, sandstone, slate, marble and gneiss. These battle-scarred rock walls are hemmed by mountains, see above, and the last land-glaciers, all of which is guarded by many low islands off the shore in the cold Atlantic ocean.
When I think of this place I envision its Viking inhabitants of old taking refuge from the intense Atlantic storms within the deep, steep, valleys. There they would farm the terraced slopes, fish the icy waters and venture to far away places to trade, raid, pillage and plunder in the summer time.
Their steep fjords offered the Vikings a natural defensive barrier however also caused problems through the sheer nature of their construction...The Vikings were expert seamen by necessity as it was only by sea they could reach places that were inaccessible by land, even if only in the very next fjord.
The Norse Men ranged out as far as Baghdad and America and in between in their search for new trade and new lands to plunder, and as they did trading cities sprung up; Bergen, Tromső and Trondheim to name three. One wonders how different the world may be had the Black Death not killed some two thirds of the polulation of Norway in 1350 - this event curtailed the Vikings' plundering ways as they pulled back to Norway and trading all but ceased.
These day's one doesn't need to be a Viking, or battle them, to see the fjords close up. Many cruise operators hug the coast line taking tourists into once mysterious and, probably quite dangerous, places. I'm not into cruises, but maybe on a small bespoke ship I think I'd love it, certainly with such spectacular scenery.
From what I know the fjords are spectacular from the sea, however it's only from above one can truly understand the enormity and extreme beauty of the region. And on land there's wonders to see also...Sculpted ice, majestic frozen waterfalls and sparkling lakes glistening turquoise in the sun...An ideal place to hike, climb and ski. src
I believe this brutal, bleak and ancient place to be one of the most beautiful landscapes on the planet; A location that changes ever so slightly to this day and where each season brings different sights. I believe I'd want to see the fjords in summer, which is when most are there, and winter when the area is blanketed by an eerie, almost constant, darkness. It is then that through the constant gloom comes the beautiful light-waves of the Northern Lights: Green, pink, gold and violet they glow leaving those watching in awe, and the coldness forgotten.
So there you have it...Number two of my wish-list places...I'd like to hear yours. Where would you go and why? And, if you have been to Norway, please tell me about your experiences.
Design and create your ideal life, don't live it by default - Tomorrow isn't promised.
Be well
Discord: galenkp#9209
@galenkp, These pictures are speaking for itself and clearly reflecting the essence of it and also reflecting why you want to visit here.
Good wishes from my side and stay blessed always.
Hi there...Yes, I'd say so as well...It's pretty clear why I'd like to go there based on these pictures. I was supposed to be in Denmark and Finland last month, but thanks to covid my flights were cancelled. So...All I can do is what I am doing here...Plan and research. Australia is locked up pretty tight, can go overseas and even movement between States is not permitted generally, certainly not to those experiencing a second covid wave...Worse than the initial issues.
I'll dream of Norway for a while, maybe a few years, before we get to travel there.
!ENGAGE 25
Hope that soon your dream will come true. Stay blessed.
Me too...Maybe with you hoping for me too, it'll happen sooner rather than later. 😉
Have a great weekend.
Thank you so much. 🙂 👍
ENGAGEtokens.👍👍
The Fjords of Norway look interesting and impressive! I am also a person who loves to travel. At first I started traveling in my country, Venezuela, and then I started going out and discovering the wonders that are in other countries. Now, because of the economic situation in Venezuela, I've had to slow down my travels. America is a continent that offers great, beautiful and unusual landscapes. I would love to visit Peru, Mexico and Guatemala, where the Inca, Aztec and Mayan cultures were formed. Likewise, I am drawn to Egypt. It must be impressive to see the pyramids, museums, deserts, Cairo, Mount Sinai. Anyway, in this moment of quarantine, I think I would enjoy going out to the beach and it would be a spectacular trip! You reminded me of the places I have yet to visit, @galenkp. Thank you and greetings
It sounds like you've got a few really great places on your wish list! Some of those are on mine too. I'm sure you'll get there, although like you said, at the moment no one is going anywhere!.
Thanks for dropping in and sharing your wish list, I really appreciate it.
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ENGAGEtokens.Geeze, I don't think I ever responded to your first 'wish list' post so I'm gonna give a 'two-fer' here. Value for service rendered, that's my motto.
I've a good friend that is pestering me to go to Hawaii. She mostly lives in San Diego, I manage to do a hike or two with her a year. I'd love to go see. Not so much the lava for me (though that would be seriously impressive) but the fauna and flora that is absolutely unique to the place.
I'd like to see the fjords for myself, too. But I think if Viking plunder and pillage is the category I believe I'd choose Iceland first. Same northern exposure, but even more remote if that's possible. I've lived far enough north to get some really good looks at the Northern Lights, and I miss them where I live now. Truly beautiful.
Of course, in all truth, I'd pick Australia and New Zealand before either one of the above. I've been planning a ride around Australia for better than 50 years but I'm guessing that isn't going to happen. Doesn't mean I can't plan...
Yep, much more than volcanoes in Hawaii for sure and a lot of other stuff I would like to see...Just needed to make the post-length digestible.
A bike ride around Australia would be great. I have a mate from Sydney who has done it a time or two...I'd like to also, but I ove off-roading so it's 4x4's for me. New Zealand is also awesome...You probably never saw any of my posts from there last year.
Search the tag #aussies-newzealand. If you're keen.
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ENGAGEtokens.One of the things I would like to do most is to travel, to have that little thrill of discovering new places. How lucky you are @galenkp! I wish I could go in your bag haha. I love Italy "The city of love"❤️
Hi there. Yes, we have been fortunate enough to have had the chance to travel a lot overseas and also around Australia - We work hard at our jobs, go without things and save hard to have that chance. We have been to Italy many times and yes, it is a nice place. We love Florence in the Tuscany region the best, but it's all so nice.
Thanks for your comment, I really appreciate it.
!ENGAGE 25
Specifically what fascinates me are the canals of Venice, located in the northeast of Italy. The particularity that draws my attention to this city is that it is composed of several islands connected by a lot of bridges, the gondolas its peculiar means of transport, visit and tour its spectacular and imposing monuments, palaces and churches. And I can't forget to go to Italy and try its famous and characteristic pizzas!🍕 Without a doubt one of my main and favourite places for my wish list is where I want to go❤️.
Oh yeah, Venice was nice. We took a nice gondola ride on the canals and of course, the pasta is amazing there! ...The pizza too. Such a romantic place too. Just lovely. I did a post about it a while back.
ENGAGEtokens.Me too me too!
Well, places I really look forward to visiting for exploration are Australia, Shanghai, Malta(technology inclined, especially Blockchain, tmust be fun!)
I will def be able to afford one or two of those travels if Hive gets to 1000$.....the world is too beautiful to not be explored...
Australia, Malta and Shanghai are all very different places...I like in Australia so understand why you may like to come here...It's an awesome place. But why Malta and Shanghai?
Besides that Malta is an island on the Mediterranean sea, it also embraces Blockchain technology and its advancement.
There are many historic sites within its township as well, Game of Thrones was also shot in Malta. I just think it's a pretty place for sight seeing.
Then Shanghai, is really a beautiful place according to the images ive seen, it serves as the most influential economic, financial, international trade, and cultural center in East China.
I'd really just like to go for a vac or two around there to have the experience of what its like.
Fair enough, was just curious. Some of GoT was filmed in Malta, not all, and yep, Old like to go there too. I'm not interested in the slightest in China though. Just not for me. I like some of the food, but there's a thousand other places I'd visit before going there.
Yes yes some, I forgot to emphasize that.
Loool, well,...I guess I still have to look around more, what makes me attracted to a place is pretty much the sight seeing.
In all your travels, have you had any weird experience you'd never want to have again?
Hmm, this is a good question. To be honest I haven't had any weird experiences as such. We've been very fortunate to have trouble-free travelling. There was one time I got arrested though I guess.
We were in Thailand and I was riding a motorbike. There the rider has to wear a helmet, not the passenger. They only gave me one helmet though so I gave it to Faith (my wife) to use and I rode around without one. Loads of people were doing it so I figured, all good.
It wasn't good though, it was bad.
I got pulled over by a cop with a machine gun and he was going to fine me. I decided that I'd offer him a bribe...That's didn't go down so well. The arrested me, took me to the station and gave me a bit of a lecture...Mostly in Thai, some in English. They ended up letting me go after I payed a fine, (about $30AUD) and that was that. I made my way to Faith, who stayed with the bike, and we went on our way.
The funny thing was that in the police station there were about 5 other Aussies, all of whom had done exactly the same thing! Lol.
Other than that I guess we've had really great experiences.
😂😂😂 nice share, thanks....
Why didnt they arrest the bike rider though....instead of the passenger....i might have freaked out being the one.
well i can say this place should go on the list of everyone that like to travel for the nature.
It sure looks nice right? I love to hike so would make sure to to do so although I think a helicopter tour would also be a requirement...They're not cheap though if course...So I should start saving!
Thanks for commenting, much appreciated.
helicopter tour sounds great, but i can even imagine the prices. but sure would be a great experience
I did one in New Zealand, to Mt Earslaw Burn...It was amazing. The Burn was carved by run off from Earnslaw glacier and is a spectacular place to see. The only people who can fly in are the people who flew us in...So it's always empty. So stunning.
Here's a few pics I took.
We paid $1000NZD per person for a 90 minute trip. ($668USD in today's rate). It was a lot of money for 90 minutes but one of the most amazing things we have done. We would do the same in Norway.
place looks amazing. down side is the price, but to be able to be in this kind of crazy place, first see it from the sky and than being on the ground and have it just for yourself is kinda priceless.
We wondered about the price, the 90 minute flight was more than our airfare from Australia to New Zealand, and if we should do it...But like you said, once in life time. It is a wondrous place and yes, the money we spent bought a priceless experience. We would do it again, and if we get to Norway we'll do it there too.
I'd love to head over to Norway for a few nights and see what all the fuss is about. I've heard from many friends how beautiful it is and quite a few head there to ski too, but I am definitely not good enough on those mountains.
I was thinking about taking a trip up north from here this year with the family to see the Northern lights past the Arctic circle. Perhaps look into staying at one of those glass igloos.
One day, you'll have the time and money to travel and take a few months away. Would be good to spend a lot of time knocking around some of these places, getting to know the people a bit.
It's so different to what we have here which is one of the attractions. Also, we saw the fjords of New Zealand and it's a pretty spectacular sight. So, what's not to like?
You're lucky to have the chance to head north and I've heard those ice hotels are a good (cold) experience.
It would be good to experience but we'd need hive to hit $1,000...$850 would work too I guess.
I don't know anyone who has stayed in them, but I think it would be cool.
1000 dollar hive would be a sight to behold :D
You know me...Ever the
pessimistoptimist!That would be a nice place to visit. The Northern Lights are supposed to be fairly easy to see there.
So I've been told...One just needs to brave the cold.
Hey, that rhymes! 😂
Yeah, I have heard it gets REALLY cold there in the winter.
Yep, sure does. I'll have to pack a cardigan and thick socks.
Oh, I've missed this episode of your list but I'm glad I've found it, it's a nice one. It's on my list as well and not only thing, Scandinavian countries in general as those have a certain mystery.
Their way of life is very different due to the (sometimes) extreme weather conditions. I'm not sure I'd like to live there but I'd like to visit sometime.
Nice destination and sorry for being late.
No worries, you're not late...There's no time-frame to my posts, they're timeless Lol.
I have two brothers who live in Finland with their families so it's a destination for us. I was supposed to be in Denmark and Finland in July actually...Covid threw that into turmoil and so I'm left having to write about travelling rather than actually travelling!
Thanks for your comment. It's greatly appreciated.
I only knew about Taraz. Having two brothers there is a blessing then if you want to visit.
I don't know what is going to happen as far as traveling is regarded, covid19 pandemic will not go away, we need to learn to live with it till someone releases a vaccine. I see no other choice. For you it's risky to travel so far as in case of a lockdown, you may be stuck in Europe.
We have a third also, but he lives elsewhere: A sister too. (There's five of us all up.)
We have heard it could be 2023 before international travel resumes as per normal...That's a long time. Faith and I are planning to spend next year travelling around Australia a bit more; We have done so a lot, but it's a big country and there's always something new to see. I love road trips, off-roading and camping so we'll have a blast!
We are mindful of getting stuck in EU and can't really run the risk of it so yeah, the best thing for it was the flight cancellation. We got flight money back for the Adelaide-Singapore-Copenhagen-Singapore- Adelaide flights...Still waiting on the Copenhagen-Helsinki refund.
Holy heaven, that's three years. Many travel companies will not survive.
Now with the lockdown and borders closed domestic tourism has an extra chance, which is good in my opinion. Those who are smart and not greedy can make ends meet with those domestic tourists that are willing to travel.
By the way, are you using haveyoubeenhere and pineapple for your traveling posts?
I know right? So many who rely on tourism will fail. It's one of the reasons I feel confident that we are yet to see the true pain of the reaction to the flu. It's easy for some to say it hasn't effected me but in reality it will effect everyone, regardless of their situation...And this is just the tourism and airline industry.
Nope, I don't know what haveyoubeenhere and pineapple is. I'm a bit clueless when it comes to hive.
There's no such thing as it hasn't affected me. It affects everyone one way or another, directly or/and indirectly. Those who can't see it are blind but they are going to wake up soon.
Wow, what a loss!!! 😁 Ok, so I'm recruiting you officially 😛 Please read my last post in which I am explaining what, how and why. I'd be grateful if you'd consider these apps.
Can completely understand the attraction. There have been some awesome ( overused word but not in this case) posts on Norway on the Hive in the last few months. Stunning scenery
I'll get there one day...We almost booked a cruise there earlier this year but decided Denmark instead...This on our trip to Finland. We know how that turned out though, thanks covid you fucker. We will get there though...So many places so little time.
I hear ya. But so far you choices spot on! Let's hope we can follow through after this bollocks fades away
I've a long list of places...The ones I'm writing about in this little series are the more extreme ones, rather than the everyday tourist spots. Got more to come.
Wow, this looks superbly beautiful! If anyone ever asks how heaven looks like, I'll just send them a photo of these Norwegian Fjords. I wouldn't mind spending the rest of my life here, at all. Alternatively, Scotland looks stunning too! There's always room in my Viking warship for a plundering or two 💰
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That's the beauty of Norway, literally...One can hang around and enjoy it, or get on board one's Viking warship and plunder some other fuckers! Perfect balance right there.
Exactly! It's the perfect scenery to sail your warship, and make a secret hidden Viking fortress there, too. No one will ever get between me, and my plunder!
Lol...One must protect one's plunder.
Tell me, are you having any trouble logging into hive.blog at the moment?
Sorry for the late reply. Mum called me out to get some groceries, under the hottest summer here in Malaysia so far in 2020. Suffice to say, it's not been a pleasant experience. It's been a while since then, but I'm not having any troubles with logging into Hive.Blog.
Sometimes when I am trying out some side-hustle or another, friends, family etc tell me I seem obsessed with money... So, so far from the truth it is unreal...
When the same people tell me they would love a lottery win I do a little inward smirk at the scale of their plans. Often these people tell me they are buying extra tickets as the prize is now more than 10 mill or 20 mill and I often wonder if they would feel any different having 1 mill or 100 mill...
You touched on something I have always declared, always believed, I do not want a certain amount of money, I want enough to not have to not need to check price tags and to have experiences.
I wouldn't describe myself as materialistic at all, but man, travel is where I feel it most. Why would all of these travel shows be on TV if we were not designed for experience, adventure and exploration?
I feel as though if I choose one place I would be doing a dis-service to all of the other places and adventures that exist in my imagination (I mean they exist in real life too, geographically, not just in my head! Except Beerland... You should see the natural amber fountains in the sunlight)
I have done an 'about turn' and chose one... The Maldives. I have always wanted to visit an actual tropical paradise, this would likely be the one I would choose. Although Yellowstone national park is a real dream of mine, or India, Africa, Oz (I mean the one where you live... Not the one with munchkins and dumbass witches who get killed by flying houses... Although they have far more chance to be killed by a myriad of things in Oz!!)
To use your own words against ya, be well mate :)
There's no rules that say you can only choose one...Although the Maldives seems a good choice and a good place to immerse in experiences rather than sit around and hope to win lottery.