It was time for another spontaneous trip with the All you can fly ticket. This time we had round trip flight tickets but couldn’t get the cheap flight to Gdansk in Poland. Again time for the bus with hope to see Nordic lights.
Bus ride to Gdansk
The bus ride took forever, I was able to sleep a little bit, but that wasn’t enough to feel awake. From Hamburg to Gdansk it is by direct route around 8h but with the bus you take longer. Only positive thing about the bus ride was that it was over night. During night rides you don’t need accommodations, because the bus is your accommodation.
After arriving in the city, we had some time to kill before our flight took place. We went to eat breakfast and relax near the water after that. Just being almost alone in the city felt great. Not many tourists and people in general were out, quite surprising, but positive!
I like the city a lot, especially because it reminds me of my hometown in some ways. Feeling familiar with surroundings makes you feel way more comfortable.
Arriving in the north
The short trip is going to be to Norway, when wanting to be more specific, it went to Tromso. A paradise for Nordic Lights right in the north of the country. Usually flights can go quite expensive, but in this case it was for the roundtrip with direct flights from Gdansk for roughly 20 Euros. Saving money is always feeling good and this was the only time, where the all you can fly ticket was worth it. Those trips are the trips which make the ticket worth it, not the flights which usually cost 15 Euros.
While arriving it was already really beautiful. Mountains with snow, fjords with a lot of water and just a beautiful surrounding was there awaiting us. I was excited, but had of course the feeling it would be colder than being home.
The airport was quite big for the size of the town and also while arriving, there was a little party where we were able to get some food and drinks for free.
We didn’t know if we would have a host from Couchsurfing, or if we would need to pay a lot more money and need to book an accommodation. Accommodations in town are really expensive!
Luckily after waiting for another hour we were able to receive a yes from a host, which was perfect. A guy who I hosted back then knew someone there who was able to let us stay with them.
Driving to town
While being caught in a winter wonderland outside, I was a bit annoyed about the fact that I was not able to fly my drone. In the airport there was a box with drones which were caught by police, so better not try out my luck. The whole island is blocked, due to the airport being nearby, understandable but still annoying.
We drove like a special shuttle to the center, the bus driver had very positive energy and was loving his job. After not such a long time we arrived and were amazed with the weather, a lot of snow was there with a lot more coming. We were not expecting nordic lights this night.
It was fun but also dangerous because it was so slippery and many fell down during our 1km walk to the apartment.
The apartment in Tromso
It was amazing, the apartment was situated right in the center of Tromso. The key was outside in the mailbox and we were able to get inside. The apartment had a great view but was very small, which isn’t a big deal.
The hosts were not home during our arrival time, but we started making ourselves feel like home. At the end we found out one person was in the apartment the whole time, well.
When the hosts came later on, we were vibing good with each other. The hosts were two Polish guys who were a couple back then, but not anymore, still sharing the same bed.
It was interesting. We understood each other and we had some space on the ground in the living room to sleep on, which is totally enough.
Funny enough, the host was actually a person I contacted myself on Couchsurfing, but he never replied.
Wandering around town
Tromso is really small and even during our first night we were able to see most of it.
We were going to go shopping in order to cook some food for us and the hosts, we never thought of how expensive that could be. For a normal dish with its own brands which covered an onion, tomatoes, pasta, one avocado and pesto, I had to pay 20 Euros, that was just insane!
Whatever that is just on the side. We were being called out from the host, due to high activity of nordic lights in the city. We were running out as fast as possible and went to the little harbor of Tromso. When they arrived, many people with cameras were already there to capture the natural wonder. It is crazy that it is possible to see it, in a city!
Usually when there is high light pollution it is not that likely to see it, but not that day. The nordic lights were dancing in the sky of the city. I was very sad, to be there without my camera, I had only my phone. Surprisingly it worked out very well and I was able to see them with the phone. Actually I’ve seen it with my phone better, than with my own eyes. They were not that impressive with their own eyes, so how real does that feel? I personally don’t care, because I could see them finally again, the only other time was back then in Finland.
For Marla it was the first time, for me the second time, but the strongest for me so far.
Full day in Tromso
During the next day we were exploring the town a little bit, with daylight. It received a lot of new snow over the night and looked beautiful. While walking around we saw some beautiful street art and could see how clear the water was. Looking on the ground was possible.
We walked and saw a possibility of seeing Orcas, so we actually booked a tour. Usually I am not a big fan of tours, but to see Orcas I don’t care. I really want to see them. The trip got canceled quite soon after, which was very frustrating, my second booked whale watching tour and the second time it was being canceled. I found out after being back home that there is a possibility to go snorkeling with Orcas as well, so maybe it was good not being able to see them on the boat, maybe I need to be seeing them while being in water and being scared a lot I believe.
We went to the famous church, but when we arrived it was closed. At the end we saw a lot, but were not entering anything, the blizzard was returning and so the motivation to be outside a lot was getting lower a bit.
Saving money in Tromso
Actually it was possible to get by a bit cheaper. In Tromso it’s too good to go with which it is possible to get cheaper food. We also have that home and it is crazy how far it went already. We were getting cheap food, with good quality. Just not paying a fortune for food, it felt good.
Also it is possible to do dumpster diving over there. We went to a supermarket which was being called out to be great for dumpster diving. When arriving, we were actually not alone. At the end we did it together and I actually had to climb into the trash container, in order to get something good.
In the end it was for sure possible doing it, just that day wasn’t amazing. There was basically just bread and cookie dough.
Still finding out that it is possible is good information for myself, but it was necessary to walk a few kilometers inside a blizzard.
It was not fun to buy food and anything else, it was way too much!
What is up next?
Next week I will be writing more about this trip and doing something a little bit crazy and even some nordic lights, so stay tuned!
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