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Camino Portugues - Stripped Down to the Essentials

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After years of flirting with the idea, a couple of weeks deciding on the route, and a few days of - loosely - preparing, the day had come to finally embark on the Camino Portugués.  The alarm went off at 4:30 a.m. 😴 Excitement and a touch of fear made sleep elusive. A quick ride to the airport, a short nap on the plane, and by 8:45 a.m. I found myself in sunny Porto - the perfect welcome to lighten my mood. At the Sé Catedral I picked up my Camino credentials, followed my first yellow arrows, and rewarded myself with a warm pastel de nata and a cachorrinho (local hotdog) recommended by my Uber driver. Too tired for the city crowds, I hopped on an early train to Vila Praia de Âncora - my chosen starting point. An evening by the beach, early dinner, and quiet time at the hotel helped me feel mentally prepared, physically overpacked 😂, and ready for whatever lay ahead. Day 1 – 28 km / 6 h 10 min I left at 8:30 a.m., the sun already rising over the rugged coast. The signs were...
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Greece - Greek Chaos, Ancient Glory & Island Bliss

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Schiphol at 7pm, quick lounge dinner by 8, and - surprise - another delayed flight at 9:45pm. We landed in Athens by 2am, luckily with a pickup waiting, and reached our downtown hotel by 3. The hour of half-sleep on the plane didn’t really count.  After a short night, we kicked off with our signature move: a free walking tour. Walter delivered a lively three-hour crash course through Athens’ compact historic center - myths, ruins, revolutions, and all. The 30°C sun was a welcome change from autumnal Amsterdam, if also a sweaty one. Lunch in a local taverna revived us before a quick nap (Seb) and IT troubleshooting (Didi). Later we climbed the Acropolis, soaked in views among the crowds, and ended the day with Greek dinner and an early night.  Saturday began slower: a walk to Exarcheia and the National Archaeological Museum, full of treasures from thousands of years BC. A quiet climb up Lofos Strefi offered Acropolis views (and slightly sketchy vibes). We wandered through marke...
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Iceland - Fire, Ice, and Everything In Between

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After a sweltering morning in Amsterdam, we traded 30°C heat for a sunny yet brisk 14° in Reykjavík - a welcome shock to the system. Andrius picked us up from the airport, and after a quick fish & chips refuel, we got our first taste of Iceland’s wild side: driving through recently evacuated Grindavík with still-warm lava fields, past the steaming sulfur pools of Seltún and the serene Kleifarvatn lake. None of it on the standard tourist route, and all the more special for it. The next day: a waterfall marathon along Iceland’s southern coast! 😍 From Urridafoss to the famous Seljalandsfoss - where we walked behind the roaring curtain of water - to Skógafoss and the glacier lagoon of Sólheimajökull, the day was packed with drama. At Dyrhólaey cliffs we hit the jackpot, spotting puffins up close before continuing to Reynisfjara’s black beach with its surreal basalt columns. Crowds were heavier than I remembered from 2011, stretching the day longer than planned, but the scenery was jus...
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