Bergen, Norway: City of Seven Mountains. 

One of Northern Europe’s oldest port cities and on the west coast of Norway, Bergen was the last city we visited in Scandinavia. It is the second-largest city in Norway, coming in only behind the capital, Oslo (pop: 702,543), with a population of around 287, 888 (2022). It puts into perspective how sparsely populated Norway …

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Salisbury Cathedral: Home to the Magna Carta and World’s Oldest Working Clock.

A beautiful and massive church, Salisbury Cathedral was a delight to visit. I really loved the gothic-style architecture, which this cathedral offers up on a golden platter. In fact, it’s regarded as one of the best examples of “Early English Gothic” architecture in all of England. It sits in the city of the same name, …

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Edinburgh, Scotland: All Hail Mr. Boots.

If I were asked, “Name the top five cities you’d like to live in for at least a year”, Edinburgh would make the list. I’d also put Edinburgh in the top three cities we visited in Europe. There’s just something special about the Gothic architecture combined with the vibrance of the city, and of course, …

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Hellesylt, Norway: A Whimsical Fairytale.

Per usual, my outfit choices during this time period were quite embarrassing. But, also super comfortable! 💁🏻‍♀️ Of the four Norwegian cities/villages we visited, Hellesylt was hands down my favorite 🙌🏼. With a population of 258 as of 2018, it’s only slightly larger than Geiranger (Geiranger, Norway: Trolls and Mountains.). However, there are around 590 …

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Göteborg, Sweden: A City with Two Names.

Of the 9 European countries we visited, I’m afraid I’d have to rank Göteborg towards the bottom of the list. Like Helsinki, it was a lovely, lovely city, with friendly and welcoming people, but it was also a bit… ordinary. It didn’t help that we were supposed to go to Stockholm, the capital, and were …

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Geiranger, Norway: Trolls & Waterfalls.

One of the most beautiful little villages I’ve ever been to, Geiranger is very small, with only around 200 to 250 permanent residents calling it home. But yet… it’s the 3rd most popular cruise stop in all of Norway, typically coming in behind Ålesund and Bergen, respectively. It’s located in the Sunnmøre region of Møre …

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Berlin, Germany: Sprichst du Deutsch?

***Just like in my Helsinki blog (Helsinki, Finland: “The Pearl of the Baltic Sea”.), my fashion choices during this period of my life were horrendous.*** 🥲 I always wanted to visit Germany, as my mother’s entire side of the family hails from there. I am a 3rd generation American on my mother’s side (and my …

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Helsinki, Finland: “The Pearl of the Baltic Sea”.

While Helsinki and Finland are lovely, with friendly people and charming historical sights, truthfully, it was my least favorite city/country duo that we visited. It was not because of the people, how we were treated, or even Helsinki itself, but compared to London, St. Petersburg, Tallinn, Edinburgh, all of Norway, etc..., Helsinki felt just a …

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Ålesund, Norway: Charming and Colorful.

Of all the European countries we visited, Norway was hands down my favorite. It didn’t have grand palaces like Russia, extravagant parliaments like England, or famous historical classics like Germany, but what it did have, that those countries lacked, was extraordinary natural beauty and unparalleled peacefulness. We visited Norway’s 2nd and 12th largest cities, Bergen …

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