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Category: Europe on Barney

Leaving Norwich – Bimbling around Europe

Leaving Norwich – Bimbling around Europe

I arrived in England 3 weeks ago. I first spent a few days in London, seeing a few of the sites and then spent most of the time since then in the lovely little city of Norwich, staying with friends. Part of that time was decompression – I’d just come out of a rather hectic time, finishing my MA and dealing with a bunch of other stuff just before I left. But part of the time was also setting up the…

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In Sweden – Something windy in the state of Denmark, eh?

In Sweden – Something windy in the state of Denmark, eh?

So, I’ve made it to Sweden, and in Stockholm at the house of some very distant relatives. I took the ferry from Harwich to Esbjerg, Denmark and then rode up to Fredrikshavn where I took a ferry to Gothenborg (where an ex-teammate lives), and then rode over to Stockholm. Denmark was very scary, not because of the roads (nice, well-paved and laid out, mostly flat and straight) or the drivers (good, courteous), but because there was a wind and rainstorm…

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Leaving Umeå – Pining for the fjords

Leaving Umeå – Pining for the fjords

Well, I’m finally about to set out from Umeå. I came up here only knowing that my great-grandfather had come from this area in the early part of the century. I thought I’d meet a couple relatives, get a little family history and be on my way. A couple of days at most. Well, no. I got here and it turns out that my ancestor came from a very large family. My grandfather had 44 cousins, and my mother has…

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In Helsinki – Midnight Sun, Torrential Rain and Russian Visas

In Helsinki – Midnight Sun, Torrential Rain and Russian Visas

I tell you, the trip to Norway was absolute torture. Terrible. On the one hand the scenic little villages, steep mountains, glaciers, glass-calm water and constant sunlight were so photogenic that I wanted to stop and take a picture every time I went around a curve. On the other hand, well, there were a lot of curves and the weather was perfect, and I was having so much fun riding that I just didn’t want to stop. Absolutely dreadful being…

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Leaving Utrecht – From Russia, with Love

Leaving Utrecht – From Russia, with Love

St. Petersburg was definitely worth the hassle. I spent four and a half days there and could have spent much longer. There are so many museums and cultural attractions, not to mention that being in Russia is interesting in its own right both because of its history and what it is now (I was there before any of the recent developments). It’s definitely on my list of places to get back to someday. Highlights include the Dostoevsky Murder Route Pub…

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In Vancouver – Home again, Home again, Jiggety Jig

In Vancouver – Home again, Home again, Jiggety Jig

Well, I arrived back in Vancouver as scheduled on October 1st and have spent the time since I got back starting to explore my next options (job here, job elsewhere, more school?), starting to work part-time at UBC (to pay the mortgage and feed the cats while I do the previous item), restoring/imposing order on my apartment and getting back into rugby (got my first bruises already – yay!). But there’s one last little travelogue to be written before the…

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