We’ll, we’re nearing our departure date, and the “to do” list—almost magically—seems to be growing. For every item that gets checked off, something else seems to get added.

This is my least favorite part of travel. The time to leave is near at hand, and the time to get all the bits and pieces accomplished is dwindling at a frightening pace. You would think we’d never traveled before. Keys, contact information, who’s on point for what, itinerary, tickets, passports—you know, all that stuff that goes along with the privilege of being able to travel.

And the worst part of all? Choosing just the right clothes to take. Now Jerry would scoff at this notion, but it is always the tricky part over which I stress.

Not too many (clothes, that is). Layers, of course. We’re going pretty far north in what locals are quick to remind you is still the off season. But when we were in Scandinavia 2 years ago, only a few weeks later in the year, they were having their equivalent of a heat wave and we were sporting t-shirts. So some light things, plus some things to keep us warm as well. Rain gear for sure. Good walking shoes for all the cobblestones to come.

Being a ruthless packer, I’m sure, is the right way to go. Sadly, this may be one of those life goals that I will never achieve.

The good news: the days to agonize over choices and “to do’s” are few, and soon we will be on to the fun of discovering new places and seeing new sights. Barcelona awaits us, we have our Gaudi tickets in hand, and now we just have to get ourselves there and on our way on this long-awaited trip.

Up, up and away!

 

[A note on the technical side: This site is about to become a secure site (think “https”). If you received an odd note about this site imitating another or some other warning about financial information, rest assured. I have no ability to get, nor an interest in getting, your financial information. Google is trying to require all sites–financial or not–to be secure sites. Dear friend Theresa is on the job, and the site should be officially secure in the next couple days.]

We’re getting ready to begin a new adventure—metaphorically setting sail. This will be a fairly long trip, and one with a real mix of sights and cultures. We’ll be visiting 12 countries, with 12 languages and 6 currencies.

After spending a few days in Barcelona, we’ll literally set sail on a 3-week repositioning cruise—our third cruise on the Viking Sea. Our cruise will take us along the coastline of Spain, west to the Atlantic then north to Amsterdam, stopping in Portugal, Guernsey, and France. After transiting the Kiel Canal, we’ll circumnavigate the Baltic, visiting Germany, Denmark, Estonia, Russia, and Finland, ending the cruising portion of our trip in Sweden.

Here is a map of the cruise.

We’ll be in Stockholm for a few days, getting our land legs back before embarking on the next part of our journey. We’ll spend not quite 2 weeks driving through southern Sweden. We’ll start with a stay on a lake, then follow the southeastern coastline, seeing the Gota Canal, some castles, Kalmar, and Ystad. Next, we’ll head to Lake Vanern, then out to western Sweden’s Bohuslan coast, famed for its pink granite Continue Reading