Northern saga with Incomarthur
Well, what can I write about the Northern Saga tour with Ilya Mezhul (08/09/2010 - 08/22/2010), my impressions are very ambiguous and completely subjective.
Let's start with the organization of the trip. Well, it was necessary to book the tour 4 months in advance, in order to get a seat on the bus in the third row from the end. At the same time, I was sworn and repeatedly assured in Incomarthur that all my wishes regarding a place in the middle of the bus would be taken into account and everything would be in order, but it was alarming that a specific place was not named until the very beginning of the trip. The place on the bus was indicated on the ticket, which was issued at the Kievsky railway station 40 minutes before the train left for Warsaw. The manager of Incomartur, Olga Tur, was given a “deuce” for working with a client, if I had known about such a situation, I would have 90% refused to travel on the indicated dates. Looking ahead, I want to say that riding along the Norwegian mountain roads and surveying the surrounding beauties, struggling with bouts of nausea, is not at all fun. It was the biggest fly in the ointment that really spoiled the impression of the trip.
And now about the trip itself. I really wanted to see Scandinavia with Ilya Mezhul, since I have not heard so many positive reviews about him about any guide.
Day one: Nothing interesting, gathering of the group at the Kievsky railway station, the first disappointments from a bad seat on the bus, loading onto the Warsaw train and tu-tu, goodbye to our native land for the next 14 days. The Polish customs passed smoothly, the car was not dismantled, the passports were handed over to the customs officers half asleep, and only the roar of changing wheels prevented sweet - sweet sleep.
Passports Ilya handed over to all tourists for the entire period of the trip.
Day two: In the morning we unloaded in Warsaw and finally saw our bus. Nice little red Scania with a working air conditioner, good speakers and an excellent highly professional driver Adam. The whole trip could not get enough of such a cool driver! The only but, is that the tourists were not provided with garbage bags, but, Thank God, we had this stuff in bulk
On the way from Warsaw to Gdansk, Ilya talked about the upcoming route, optional excursions and, attention, immediately suggested that everyone should chip in 10 Euros for a tip for the driver. A dull murmur swept through the bus, at that time we could not judge the professional and human qualities of the driver, and sincerely did not understand why tips should be given at the beginning of the trip. Ilya put forward the last reinforced concrete argument - by the end of the trip you will run out of money, and Adam will be left without a tip. Again, looking ahead, I would like to once again express my gratitude to Adam for his high professionalism, and advise Incomarthur to raise the tip for Adam to at least 15 Euro
Regarding the excursion service, I really liked Ilya's innovation, which consisted in the fact that everyone who wished was given headphones for 10 Euros, and the tourist could listen to the tour that Ilya was conducting, being within a radius of 50 - 100m from the guide. It’s very convenient, you go for yourself, stare around, take pictures, and listen to Ilya’s very entertaining stories, and not crowd around him along with 40 other classmates.
Imperceptibly ran the road to Gdansk, and now it is a long-awaited stop in a pretty Polish town. There was just a fair that day, there were a lot of people on the streets, Ilya walked along the central street of the city, told about its history, the people ran to the exchange office to change the currency, and I went to the Town Hall, went upstairs and looked at Gdansk from a bird's eye view. Beautiful, but those who expect from Gdansk the same breathtaking views as in Prague or even in Krumlov, waiting for a little disappointment. I really liked Maryatskaya Street, that's where you can see colorful shops with cute souvenirs. Then there was a lunch organized by Ilya on the embankment in a restaurant. It was very tasty, and here I discovered ginger beer for myself, it’s a pity that this is not sold in Odessa. I would like to say that lunch or dinner in some roadside cafe (naturally at my own expense) was part of the mandatory travel program for all countries along the route, although all the markers have different tastes and colors, I would prefer to spend less time on lunches (at least hour) and more for being in cities or near natural attractions. If you didn’t have lunch with everyone in a cafe, then you just hung around for an hour, looked at the lake (in Norway) or just walked around the neighborhood. In fairness, it should be said that many in our group liked this approach to catering, but such a statement of the question at the end of the trip bothered me, although in each of the proposed cafes (from those I visited) they fed quite tasty.
After a hearty lunch in Gdansk, we quickly boarded the bus and went to the port on the ferry Gdansk - Ninashamn. And again, there are misunderstandings among tourists about accommodation in cabins. The cabin is generally a separate song, well, the most - the most economy class. I asked Ilya a question: Is the treatment of claustrophobia included in the group insurance? The audibility between the cabins is amazing, how many times you sneezed and how you went, sorry, you can’t hide the toilet from the neighbors
But I really liked the cafe and restaurant on board the ferry, Pannakota dessert - very, very much, my throat ached, and I amused the waiter a lot in the restaurant, ordering 3 cups of hot milk in a row. By the way, I paid on the ferry calmly with my bank card. The people in Dutik were stocking up on liquor, cosmetics, and perfume. Regarding alcohol, Ilya said that it was on the ferry that we had the last opportunity to purchase it at reasonable prices, because. in Scandinavia, prices for it fly into space.
Day three: In the morning, having had breakfast with delicious pancakes with cottage cheese and cream on the ferry, taking pictures of the beautiful Baltic Sea, we finally arrived in Ninashamn by half past noon. We unloaded in an organized manner and went to Stockholm, driving for about an hour.
Stockholm is a stunningly beautiful and majestic city. Luxurious embankments, bewitchingly beautiful roofs of houses. As I understand Carlson, who lived on the roof. I would also live on one of these roofs without hesitation. By the way, I read on some forum that Carlson's prototype was an old maid who was painfully attached to other people's children, ate her troubles with sweets, and if she was offended, she disappeared and was silent for a long time. Controversial, but quite original statement. It's hard for me to imagine "To the best of a well-fed man in the prime of life" in the form of an aunt. I would like to say that it is not at all Carlson - the favorite hero of the Swedes, but Pippi - a long stocking. But it is with Carlson and his tricks that I have some of the best childhood memories. By the way, I did not like the souvenir Karlssonchiks sold in Stockholm shops at all. Reading a lot about Stockholm and dreaming of walking around it myself, in the city center, before the next group dinner, I successfully disappeared into the crowd (having warned Ilya in advance). I walked along the streets and absorbed the sounds and smells of this city - the narrow streets of the Old City (Gamla Stan), squares with numerous cafes where you could sit indefinitely, drinking hot chocolate and eating delicious muffins. I drank white hot chocolate with lingonberry muffin in Stockholm for the first time in my life (I hope my fitness coach does not read this review ). The narrowest street is only 90 cm wide and right around the corner, a spacious embankment, along which numerous tourists and a few locals flit, unusual monuments and many ships plying between the piers. The city - the very calmness and non-fussiness, fascinated and fell in love with me at once.
By eight in the evening, the whole group, full of first Scandinavian impressions, boarded the bus and went to the Scandic chain hotel, located 30 minutes. drive from the city. A pleasant hotel, a beautiful lobby, spacious clean rooms, a supermarket and a park nearby, in general, for relaxation, after two days of moving - just what the doctor ordered.
Day four: Well, very soft mattresses on the beds in all Scandinavian hotels, it seems that the problems of scoliosis do not concern the population at all Breakfast as breakfast, buffet as buffet, food for every taste. I would especially like to mention pastries and dairy products. Yoghurts and cheeses are just delicious, but herring somehow didn’t go for breakfast . After walking in the park near the hotel, and looking forward to the second day in Stockholm, we quickly boarded the bus and drove to the city. Skansen was waiting for us - an ethnographic park similar to the Spanish village in Barcelona. Absolutely charming place, cute houses, and grannies in national clothes, not at all averse to taking pictures and chatting with you. A cute mini-zoo with northern animals, especially the squirrel and pigs. Excursion around Skansen performed by Ilya – 5 points!! ! I even sent a postcard from Skansen to Odessa, and the postal clerk, a fabulous aunt, assured me in all seriousness that in seven days the postcard would definitely reach its addressee. Got it . In Skansen, succumbing to the general hype of buns, I ate buns with coffee and made the Scandinavian purchase dearest to my heart. It is a well-known fact that the Elk is a symbol of Scandinavia, so I could not resist buying a figurine of a glass elk, made right in the Skansens glass-blowing workshop. By the way, documents for obtaining tax-free were issued in this shop in the blink of an eye
Then I and another young lady Oksana broke away from the group, I really wanted to ride a boat in the Stockholm area and visit Sö dermalm. Not far from Skansen, there was a pier where tourist boats came. Boldly taking out my wallet, and as it seemed to me, showing with all my appearance that I want to pay on board, I walked past the controller, onto the boat. As you may have guessed, no one demanded money from us for a ticket, and it turned out that, to my shame, I deceived the Swedish state by as much as 60 crowns. Long live the unplanned ball!! ! The walk was great: the embankments are majestic, the yachts in the bay are luxurious, the light breeze and the bright sun, and the awareness of "saved" money - this is what made this half an hour one of the most pleasant memories of Stockholm . Further our path lay in Sö dermalm. I read about this Stockholm area on one of the Internet forums, and after looking at the photos, I immediately realized: I WANT TO GO THERE! It is simply impossible to describe in words wooden houses with unimaginable roofs, streets paved with cobblestones, between which the brightest green grass grows, observation platforms from which magnificent, one of the most beautiful, views of the old city, small squares, are simply impossible! Seeing in the distance the Church of St. Catherine (Katarina Kirch) and the greenery around it, Oksana and I were already setting up for a photo shoot on the green lawns, but, coming closer, we saw that there was a cemetery on these very lawns, right in the city and practically without any fence, and people walk along its shady alleys. Agree, to arrange a photo shoot among the graves is somewhat unethical. Having entered Kirhu, we saw a coffin on a pedestal there, you really don’t know where it will take you. On a trip to Barcelona in Catholic churches, I got to the wedding and the rite of the first communion, and in Stockholm - the funeral. After walking along the sloping streets of Sö dermalm (on some of them the angle of inclination is about 27 degrees), Oksana and I reunited with the group in order to visit the Park - an open-air museum of the "floating" sculptor Karl Miless. The sculptures impress with their lightness and weightlessness, the place for the park was chosen very thoughtfully, but again, looking ahead, I will say that the Gustav Vigellan sculpture park in Oslo was just a shock and a discovery for me. Then I again broke away from the group, which went to the most visited museum in Stockholm, Vasu (those who were there liked it), and went to wander around the streets of Stockholm, staring around and refreshing myself with delicious Swedish ice cream. I fell in love with Stockholm at first sight - a stunningly beautiful magical city!! ! At half past eight in the evening, not feeling our legs, we crawled into the bus and drove to the Hotel. In general, every trip for me goes under the motto: Seven miles for a mad dog is not a detour
Day five: Thinking about salted herring for breakfast, I decided to limit myself to milk and buns. Today, according to the program, we had an excursion to Sigtuna and Uppsala performed by a local licensed guide. A farewell look at the outskirts of Stockholm, and we are on our way to Sigtuna. On the way, the guide Irina told a lot and interesting things about Sweden. It was from her that we learned that in Sweden there is a progressive scale for paying taxes on personal income, depending on the amount of earnings, from 20 to 55%, that higher education is one of the most expensive in the world, that it is much cheaper for a Swede to study in Australia than at home, that the Swedes love and revere the royal family very much, that the average life expectancy of the Swedes exceeds 80 years and they retire at 65, and much more interesting and informative. So we came to Sigtuna to talk. A nice little town surrounded by greenery, on the shores of the picturesque lake Mä laren, in which we saw the ruins, but what pretty ruins, of an ancient Scandinavian fortress, rune stones, the oldest active town hall in Sweden....Sleepy, unhurried realm. If I were, like, over 70 years old, then maybe I would have lived in such a town with pleasure, but now, I would just die of boredom there....Uppsala next. In Uppsala, we stayed exactly, mind you, 50 minutes, and during this time we only managed to listen to a fascinating tour of the local cathedral, and the smartest ones also ran to the other side of the river to photograph the cathedral from the water. Crumpled impressions, running - running, and we were in a hurry for another organized lunch at a roadside cafe. Question: why couldn’t this hour be spent in Uppsala, where everyone would have lunch if they wanted, or just take a walk, hang in the air....To tell the truth, the hot-smoked salmon in this cafe was very tasty
To the accompaniment of Ilya's interesting stories about Scandinavia, reading poems by famous authors and just tourists who have been on the tour, we moved towards Norway. The landscapes outside the window were pleasing to the eye, it’s a pity that it just started to rain, which did not allow us to stop at the planned stop on the lake, and we had to stand for 45 minutes near the gas station on the outskirts of some town, in which everything was at 5 (five) o’clock in the evening closed and it was impossible to just have a coffee! I can hardly imagine Odessa cafes closing at 5 pm.
We safely passed the Swedish-Norwegian border and here it is, hurray!!! , Norway!! ! Next stop Oslo! By 8 pm, the whole group of us stood on the square in front of the Town Hall of Oslo and listened to the sightseeing tour conducted by Ilya, I want to say that you need to have a fair amount of imagination in order to tell in an interesting way about the city, which for some reason I associated with our B. Dnestrovsky , only much cleaner. Excursion, for me, exhausted by a long journey, was quite exciting, or maybe I just rejoiced at the opportunity to walk around. The city, to put it mildly, is small, all the sights are located at a distance of 20 minutes walk from each other. Although Norway is considered one of the most prosperous and socially protected countries in Europe, it was in this well-fed prosperous country that I managed to see a homeless person begging for alms. A lot of monuments to all kinds of statesmen and their deeds, beautiful lighting on the evening embankment, most closed cafes, and a myriad of pretty drunk people on the streets, that's, in general, all that remained in my memory from Oslo that evening. Tired, we arrived at the hotel. A very cozy hotel, with sinking mattresses on the beds, as I wrote above, for tired travelers - it's the very thing.
Day six: Breakfast at the Oslo hotel seemed less varied than in Stockholm, but the cheeses were simply incomparable. For almost the entire trip, I felt like a character in Krylov's fable: the one to whom God sent a piece of cheese somewhere... So, Oslo again, Vigellan's Sculpture Park - this is the biggest discovery for me in Scandinavian cities. As accurate as to my perception, the image of the relationship of the sexes, relatives, lovers, rivals, comrades, and above all this, the phallic symbol of our life. These sculptures make you think deeply about your life. The group left for the Fram Museum, and I, stunned and shocked, remained wandering around and peering into such seemingly close facial features, the plexus of bodies and think-think-think.
From the park, I went on foot to the Royal Palace, where I got to the changing of the guard. Yes, not rich, judging by the appearance of the Palace, lives the Norwegian Royal Family. The Palace Park is well-groomed and beautiful, I really wanted to break this beauty and harmony with something, as a result of which I committed a petty hooligan act: on fine gravel right opposite the monument to another statesman on the square in front of the Palace, I scratched out “I was here” and photographed this inscription. And why did I do it, you ask?
Do you know what super greed is? - this is for a memory card for a 16 GB camera to buy another one of the same capacity in Oslo
I also visited the National Gallery of Norway, looked at the famous painting by E. Munch "The Scream" - I was not impressed. Then I went to see the famous opera in Oslo, which is built on water and all of white marble. An impressive sight, and even more I liked the concert on the stage, built right in the bay, where Puccini's Tosca was given. Stunningly beautiful voices, a symphony orchestra, music carried away into the sea, and the audience, located on marble slabs, created some kind of unique feeling. It is a pity that there was not enough time before the group gathered, and I did not have a chance to enjoy such a concert for very long. At one o'clock in the afternoon we safely left Oslo and headed towards the Sognefjord. You should not write about the landscapes outside the window, but sing, they are so beautiful. And according to tradition, a stop for an organized lunch at a roadside cafe on the shore of a beautiful lake. Lunch, except for a huge portion, was not remembered for anything particularly outstanding, but here is the lake, there are simply no words to describe its magical beauty. After lunch, moving inland, we stopped to look at the very beautiful wooden church of Borgund, very reminiscent of castles made of matches, which many of us made in childhood. Luxurious landscapes outside the window, and now we are approaching the pier, from which our boat trip along Sognefjord begins. I have no words to describe this trip, only emotions!! ! Imagine a sea narrow bay, with water as smooth as a mirror, in which majestic mountains and small villages are reflected, it is not clear how, stuck on the mountain slopes. Water changes its color from blue-black to turquoise-green, waterfalls falling from mountain peaks, textured clouds over the bay, through which the setting sun peeps, forced to take a myriad of photos. On the boat, through the noise of the wind and the lapping of the waves, except that the clatter of the shutter release buttons of the cameras was heard, basically everyone was silent, deafened by the beauty that had opened. Just for the sake of this two-hour trip, it was worth coming to Scandinavia!! ! One of the tourists who visited this tour previously wrote an amazing poem that accurately describes the nature of Norway (I vouch for the accuracy of the quote):
Wherever you turn your face
Everywhere you will see along the fjord,
Wherever you turn your butt
You will find a waterfall (c)
Arriving on a boat in Flam Bay, we quietly sat down in our seats and drove to the hotel through the longest tunnel in Europe, about 24 km long, cut through the mountain. Everyone was surprised, why, in Norway, with its most difficult natural and weather conditions, there are such excellent roads, and in Ukraine, with such excellent conditions, such disgusting roads!
We arrived at the hotel at about half past nine in the evening. The view from the observation deck of the hotel on the Stalheim Gorge is impressive, there are mountains all around, greenery, clean air, a nice park around the hotel. The hotel itself has a beautiful hall, but the rooms are cramped, out of 4 sockets, only two worked, there is no TV, as we were told, so as not to distract travelers from contemplating the surrounding beauties, but the warm floor in the bathroom, in general, in a nutshell - poor, but clean. But breakfasts are very tasty, especially still hot pastries and 5 varieties of jam, about yoghurts, cottage cheese and cheeses, so as not to be upset that there are no such people in Ukraine, I won’t remember again.
Day seven: After a delicious breakfast, we set off, probably, along the most beautiful route throughout the trip. The first stop is at a mountain waterfall, smoothly flowing into a river. The beauty is incredible, blue flowers look especially touching - bells clinging to moss-covered stones. Further, the road led us to the village of Underdal (could have confused something in the name), which we saw yesterday, traveling by boat through the fjord. The village is stuck at the foot of the mountain, and only 75 inhabitants are registered in it. But how do they live? Here I envy the Norwegian villagers with white envy. They do not feel cut off from the world, in this, I dare not say, village, there is satellite TV and the Internet, a special bus takes children to school, services are held in the church. Also here we tried a very unusual taste of brown cheese (and who wanted to buy it), which personally reminded me of unsweetened toffee, and naturally admired the breathtaking views of Sognefjord from the shore. Further along the Aurlandwegen mountain road, along the serpentine, on which the heart sank, thanks to the skill of Adam, we reached a chic observation deck, from which a breathtaking view of the fjord opened. The fjord is on the palm of your hand, I understand that it reads ridiculous, but in fact the feeling was such that it was all yours, and no one would take it away from you. Then ferry across the fjord, and transfer to the Nigardsbreen glacier. The bus stops near the pier of the emerald lake Nigard, from which a boat goes to the tongue of the glacier. But no, we are not looking for easy ways, like this - a boat! And it’s not weak to get to the glacier itself along the tourist hiking trail. In general, I, and a couple of the same undermined photographers, went to conquer the approaches to the glacier, where crawling, where on the buttocks, where the path was successfully overcome on foot, and here it is the glacier in all its blue cold splendor in front of us! Looking at the mountains surrounding it, I realized for the first time what a real pearl gray color means, and how the amazingly cold blue color of the water in the lake on the approaches to the glacier changes to turquoise green. It really was the culmination of the whole trip!! ! The trail back seemed very easy, and we jumped over the pebbles like mountain goats and goats. And near the bus we were waiting for a hot steaming soup prepared by Adam from flasks and sausages with bread! After a delicious dinner, we went to the hotel. And again, I must pay tribute to Ilya, he spoke very interestingly about Norway, showed entertaining films, there were very few dormant tourists.
Day eight: Not a day without a bun, that's the motto of breakfasts at the Stalheim hotel. I ate a bun - be kind, take a walk after breakfast over rough terrain in the park around the hotel Today, the plan is to visit Bergen. On the way, we stopped at the Tvindefossen waterfall, looked at the stone houses for the trolls, drank the key rejuvenating water, and under the traditional tales of Ilya, looking around, drove to Bergen. Armed with the information that Bergen is the rainiest city in Europe, they brought raincoats and umbrellas with them. We were greeted by a bright sun without a hint of rain, even scratched by disappointment - does it even rain in this Norway ? ! I didn’t drag an umbrella from Ukraine in vain, and how can you even take a picture of a rainbow - if it simply doesn’t exist! What can I say about Bergen, a town as a town, nothing touched my heart. The famous Hanseatic embankment, the fish market, souvenir shops, streets, monuments, all mixed up in one heap. I remember a very deliciously cooked crab in a cafe on the market, the meat of which I picked out of the shell with a disposable plastic fork, amazing fragrant strawberries and cherries, bought there. Yes, and the view of the city from the observation deck, which was climbed by funicular, was also quite beautiful (our Galya is spoiled... ). We arrived at the hotel early. wishing to wait for a mega-dinner at the hotel (for a fee). Oksana and I did not go to dinner, but went down the mountain to the gorge. We found a stunningly green field, I lay on the grass, ate raspberries from the bushes growing along the banks of the river, breathed in delicious air, returned to the hotel when it was completely dark. Those who went for dinner - all liked it!
Day 9: Buns, jam, cheese, milk - there was still a week left before training in the gym After such a breakfast, my legs carried me by themselves to the park at the hotel. The sun was shining bright - bright sun, dew was lying on the grass, daisies were blooming, I got very touching photos. Having thrown the last look at Stalheim, we went to the Voringfossen waterfall. Because summer in Norway turned out to be not quite rainy, then the waterfall did not seethe in full force, the abyss under the observation deck made a much stronger impression on me. And then we had a long drive along the mountain plateau of Hardangervidda towards Oslo. Here it began to rain, however, at a temperature outside the bus of +12 degrees, it became somehow quite sad. Under the already traditional stories of Ilya and the views of the harsh Norwegian nature outside the window, we said goodbye to the fjords, to the mountain beauties and smoothly drove up to the next organized lunch on the lake. On this day, an emergency happened in our group, one of the ladies forgot a bag with documents and money in one of the cafes, and discovered this fact only at the next stop. Well, you have to be so inattentive, I understand that this could happen to anyone, but still... In this regard, we were waiting for a long unplanned stop in Oslo. And again evening Oslo, as usual deserted, everything is closed and it is still raining. Here we must pay tribute to Ilya, who in the shortest possible time was able to organize the delivery of the ill-fated bag to Oslo, for which many thanks to him! During this visit to the capital of Norway, I was tormented by only one question: What is the name of the inhabitants of Oslo? Oslovians - Ilya put an end to my linguistic perversions. Late check-in around half past ten in the evening at the hotel in the town of Fredrikstad. Very nice hotel with spacious rooms, however, the mattresses on the beds let us down again.
Day ten: Due to the late arrival at the hotel and departure from it was planned not too early, therefore, there was an opportunity to appreciate the beauty of the provincial Norwegian city. In general, I would like to say that all the cities in Norway are like big villages, there is no fuss, boring, measured and, as for me, not interesting. So Fredrikstad has become absolutely predictable in this regard, the embankment, boats, a lot of greenery, a lot of unusual sculptures and....dream realm. . . The long-awaited departure from the city, and now for sure - goodbye Norway, but I really want to say - Goodbye, and be sure to come back here. Road - road... Eating ice cream in a cafe on the Norwegian-Swedish border was a pleasant entertainment. Ice cream is delicious!! ! Just as quickly enough, on the Norwegian-Swedish border, all those suffering received money for tax-free. Another organized lunch in a restaurant, at that time I didn’t remember anything at all. And again the road, we go to Malmö . It was raining in Malmo, maybe that's why Ilya gave us only 1 hour to get to know the city. This time is very, very short, even in the rain you can walk longer. It was a culture shock for me to see a ballerina doll with hairy armpits in a shop window! Having gone into a cafe to drink coffee and eat it with a traditional bun, Oksana and I found that there was nothing left before the group gathered, and, stuffing buns, we skipped to the bus, got a little lost, and so far figured out what was what we were late for as much as 4 minutes. It was very embarrassing... Further in Malmö we were waiting for the largest residential building in Europe - the Torning Torso tower, which reminded me of a giant rotating barbecue skewer. Having quickly photographed this miracle of engineering, holding an umbrella escaping from their hands with one hand, and frantically wiping raindrops from the camera lens with the other, people boarded a bus to move to Denmark along the famous Ø ressunbrun bridge, which connects Swedish Malmö and Danish Copenhagen. Great building!! ! And again mentally compared our roads and bridges and theirs. In Copenhagen, they settled in a hotel on the outskirts of the city, but on the shores of the Baltic Sea. The hotel is not bad, all the same sinking mattresses on the beds, fairly spacious rooms, decent breakfasts. After settling in, we went for a walk along the evening beach. Clean, no sun loungers for you by the water, but the sunset and the view of the bridge - it was something!
Day Eleven: For the first time in the entire trip, I was left without a bun for breakfast, the tourists who came before me swept them clean, and no one took out new ones. Yes, and God be with them, with buns, when Copenhagen is waiting for me. And here I was waiting for the biggest disappointment of the entire trip. I didn't like Copenhagen A big bustling, stupid city with aggressive cyclists, crowds of Arabs, Afro-Danes, Pakistanis and similar natives, and quite cluttered and dirty. And the Royal Palace is quite ordinary, such as in every European country, and the embankments are not as beautiful as in the same Stockholm. Unfortunately, we did not see the famous little mermaid, because the sculpture was taken to the world exhibition in China, and in its place a large screen was installed, broadcasting a live report from the exhibition . And even an excursion to the beautiful castle of Rosenborg and a boat trip along the famous canals did not save the situation....I suspect that I was just tired and did not perceive the world around me quite adequately. Therefore, in order to correct the current situation, I decided to visit the Copenhagen Zoo in my free time. Although I didn’t read a single positive review about him on the net, to my pleasant surprise, going to the zoo remained one of the most pleasant Copenhagen experiences. A compact well-groomed territory, where all sorts of different animals are kept in exemplary order. For the first time in my life I saw a panda - the most charming bear, near the enclosure with penguins I was ready to stay, and the crocodile taking a shower is just a darling. After raising my spirits at the zoo, I made a second attempt to walk around the city center. By 6 pm in the Strø get pedestrian zone, the wind was blowing garbage through the streets, drunken citizens were running around, almost all the shops were closed, ice cream booths were open, which I immediately refreshed myself with, and access was opened to one of the most famous sights of Copenhagen - the Round Tower. Climbing up, I was pleasantly surprised by the very, very beautiful views of the city from above. Having finally decided to take a walk along the canals, I went down to the NewHaven embankment, and with great pleasure drank a glass of beer in one of the many bars, and then walked around almost the entire central part of the city on foot - it seemed more beautiful than during the day....It was evening and getting dark, and I was surprised that there was practically no illumination of buildings and streets. I quickly found the stop of bus number 12, which took me to the hotel.
Day twelve: Breakfast. I voluntarily decided to give up buns and limit myself only to yogurt and cheeses, which I did not regret at all, since in the town of Frederiksborg, where we went on an excursion to the Castle, in one of the local cafes, I drank the most delicious cappuccino of the whole trip with melting water. mouth with a bun, and the aunt who served me turned out to be the sweetest hostess of this cafe. Imagine a typical Scandinavian lady over 180 cm tall and weighing 120 kilograms, dressed in jeans and some kind of shapeless tunic, and most importantly, she had a flirty white apron with ruffles tied around her waist - a colorful aunt !! ! The park and castle in Frederiksborg are beautiful with the typical beauty of all the castles I have seen, the castle of the Danish Queen - Fredensborg Palace was remembered for the colorful changing of the guard and very pretty boys - guards in colorful bear hats, Kronborg fortress ("Hamlet's castle") liked the views of the Swedish coast across the sea bay . By two o'clock in the afternoon we returned to Copenhagen, where we did not want to walk the streets at all, and Oksana and I decided to go to the Royal Botanical Gardens. A very beautiful place, the water lilies in the pond are just wonderful, charming slides, well-groomed plants and lots of flowers. It is a pity that the greenhouse with orchids was already closed. Having rested our souls in this wonderful place, we headed to the bus, and along the way we decided to take a picture of the monument to the famous storyteller Andersen. As Ilya said, he was a man with a complex character, a specific appearance and a failed personal life, who had very difficult feelings for women, and who hated female beauty in all its manifestations; what is his fairy tale about a little mermaid, whose legs were forever moved and turned into a fish tail, and severed legs in red shoes, running along the path into the forest... just horror! Therefore, to Oksana's offer to take a picture with the Andersen monument, I replied that taking pictures with perverts is a bad omen . Not being late for a second, the whole group boarded the bus in an organized manner and set off from Denmark to Sweden to the port of Karlskrona, where a ferry was waiting for us, leaving for Polish Gdynia. Everyone sat sad, hushed, and cast sad glances at the windows. When boarding the ferry, there are already familiar misunderstandings with seats, but the cabins are tough!! ! As our Adam said - "prison", and I completely agree with him. The question of the treatment of claustrophobia due to Incomartur has again become relevant. On the ferry, our people swooped in like locusts on Dutik, buying up unpurchased souvenirs, alcohol, cosmetics, perfumes. At half past one in the night they finally calmed down and fell asleep to the knocking with the neighbors, tossing and turning on uncomfortable shelves, and feeling almost in a box.
Day 13: Wake up at 6 am!! ! The ferry staff quite persistently knocks on the doors and asks to vacate the cabins. At 7.30 we arrived in Gdynia, where, thanks again to Adam, we left very quickly towards Warsaw. Roads in Poland are being completely repaired, it seems that the country is really getting ready to host Euro 2012. At about 11 o'clock, we again had an organized lunch at a roadside hunting restaurant. After lunch, we went to Warsaw. Thanks to Adam, we had a whole hour of free time in Warsaw, which we spent walking around the Royal Palace and Rynok Square. At another time, maybe Warsaw impressed me, but not on that day. It seemed to me that I was in Lviv, but I liked the ice cream . At half past four, with a poignant feeling, we said goodbye to Adam, and wishing him good, good health, we boarded the Warsaw-Kyiv train and drove home. We went through customs without incident, even had fun with the customs officers who stamped documents for us to receive tax-free.
Day fourteen: 9.44 - Hello, Kyiv! We warmly said goodbye to Ilya, once again many thanks to him, and that's all... the vacation ended completely and irrevocably.
Z. Y. At the Kievsky railway station, we got into a taxi and when we agreed with the driver about the price, the first thought was: damn it, we weren’t in the exchange office - we didn’t change the currency, there is clearly no terminal in the car, what currency to pay?
Z. Z. Y. Do not judge strictly, I described what I saw and felt during the trip. I liked the program of the tour, but the overlays..... well, with whom they don’t happen. And I made the following conclusion for myself: after all, I’m more of an individual traveler, and most likely I won’t go on a bus tour anymore.