We were ready for some cooler weather as we arrived to the UK from Southern Africa. We were able to visit friends in London, Amsterdam and Copenhagen that we had met over the last two years, and it was so great to catch up and get to know them even better. It was nice to slow down a bit and recover from three weeks of very quick travel, while also making plans for some future adventures!
The Trains and Ferries of England
After layovers in both Johannesberg and Paris, we finally made it to London and were very glad to have picked a hotel near the airport, because we were in need of rest! We spent a few days washing some clothes, trying to start sorting through pictures and notes now that we had reliable internet, and enjoy the luxury of an actual bed!
We did meet up with our good friends that live just outside London. We all met for the first time on our Egypt Cruise in May of 2024, thankfully we got along so well since we were the only 4 on the whole boat! It was a great time catching up and like usual, the conversation never stopped! Lovely to see you both again!
Next we had a train up to Newcastle which should have been a quick two and a half hour express train from London King’s Cross station, but due to rail issues on that company’s lines, ours was cancelled with no warning until we arrived at the station. Someone directed us over to St. Pancras across the street and said our ticket would be good on that one, but unfortunately we lost our seat reservation.
Everyone else trying to go to Newcastle or Edinburgh was told the same thing so the train was absolutely packed. People were standing in the aisles and in the area by the doors. Some how at a few stops more people got on the train. We did have to change at a station to a different train and on that one we sat on the floor a bit to give our legs a break. About 2 stops from Newcastle it had emptied enough that we managed to find seats, but then they tried saying those customers from the other line should get off and take the train from them as they had now resumed travel, but we were already so close we just stayed on.
It took us about 4.5 hours in total with a ton of standing time so we were quite tired by the time we got to check in. Mr. Wander had found a cool restaurant nearby the hotel we went to for dinner. As we were at dinner I had already received a form to fill out from the train company and within 24 hours I had a refund of nearly the entire amount back onto my card from all the hassle of the trains that day!
The following morning we had some time before catching the ferry so we started with pastries for breakfast, and then went to a nearby grocery store to get enough food for our dinner and breakfast. Then we hung out in the lobby a bit until it was late enough to start heading to the port. Our hotel was close enough that we could actually walk (about 30 minute walk), but there were some cool gardens along the way.
We checked into the ferry and eventually boarded. The room was pretty nice, we chose the twin bunk beds as the fee was only 125 pounds for both of us, which is less than you could get on a flight, and I’ve been in hotel rooms that are smaller. Once we had our fill of dinner, we decided to call it a night.
Mastering the Stroopwafel in Amsterdam
The following morning we arrived into the IJmuden port just outside Amsterdam at around 9 am. Once we disembarked, we went through customs but it was interesting to overhear so many others say they were only in Amsterdam for the day! I suppose it’s a great easy weekend and you can get a full day in Amsterdam to explore, then get back on the ship and arrive back to the UK the following morning. Since we couldn’t check in until about 3pm, we found an espresso bar along the harbor and got some caffeine and a snack.
Mr. Wander said he wanted a large flat white and then saved a table outside with our bags. As I am a not-coffee-just-tea-thanks person, when they asked whether 6 shots of espresso was okay for the large I honestly didn’t know. Since it was Mr. Wander’s birthday I figured “sure, that would be a fun birthday surprise” not really knowing how crazy that was! Whoops! He didn’t mind too much but later his stomach was less than excited about it.
We relaxed there for awhile and then we started walking to try to catch a bus that would take us into Amsterdam. It took us a bit to find the right stop where we didn’t have to wait an hour and eventually we made our way to Sloterdijk station. Our hotel was a short walk from there, and spent the afternoon relaxing. That evening we went back to the japanese all you can eat restaurant we had been to the last time we were there for Mr. Wander’s birthday celebration. It was as delicious as we remembered!
The following morning we signed up for a stroopwafel making class where we learned the recipe and tips for how to make, cook, and fill these warm caramel flavored cookies. Traditionally they are only made filled with caramel, but most places have the option to have a partial coating of chocolate. Thanks to social media they have become popular to have various toppings like nuts, sprinkles, or biscoff cookies. We were able to make 2 of these cookies each, one we ate as traditional but fresh (so amazing) and those covered in chocolate with sprinkles we could take home with us. We were given certificates which includes the recipe and so many tips so if we had the right supplies we could make at home!
We did manage to see our friend from the Wales bike adventure again and this time she showed us her favorite restaurant, Sichuan, and it was truly delicious. It was such a big menu though, hard to decide, but I’m glad she had her favorites so we mostly ordered those and were amazing. After dinner we walked around a bit and found some late night gelato before saying farewell. It was good to see you and we need a picture together next time!
Our last day we had to check out early and spent most of it in the hotel lobby working, trying to catch up on the notes and everything from our travels. We couldn’t board the bus until nearly 8pm so we had plenty of time to kill. That evening we went to get dinner on the way to the bus station and had a very delicious pasta that really hit the spot, and they had robots help the wait staff take plates to the table, they were pretty cute.
I was expecting more of an organized station where the busses are in certain bays and you can look at a board to tell you which bay your bus is in, much like platforms at a train station or gates at an airport. Instead, there was an area where three buses could stand side by side and there ended up being about 8 or 9 busses by the time ours arrived. I just had to check the window for the paper with “Copenhagen”. A little crazy but we found our seats and settled in for the next 12 hours.
Building our Travel Plans in Copenhagen
So we just did the cheap Flix bus, and the drive wasn’t quite as comfortable as we’ve experienced on other night buses. The bus we took in Bolivia felt like recliners and other than the overheating issue were quite comfortable. These were more like plane seats in terms of reclining, and they had a light flickering between the calm blue and bright white for several hours, I wish I would have remembered my eye mask! To be fair this was a free one from Turkish airlines earlier this year but it was safely tucked into my luggage under the bus. When we finally arrived in Copenhagen at 8am, quite sleepy and perhaps a bit grumpy, I was ready to swear of night buses for the foreseeable future, ha!
We were renting an apartment nearby but couldn’t check in until about 3pm so we had to figure out a way to kill some time. Mr. Wander found a nearby coffee shop to get some caffeine, pastries, and a place we could sit. After passing quite a bit of time it was past noon and so we found a place with asian food to get a lunch, hoping we could go slowly and wait out the last few hours.
Finally we made it into our apartment for the evening, and this is one of the best rentals we’ve had, it clearly was someone’s home but they must stay with family or go on a trip when someone books their place. It was a fully stocked kitchen and was very convenient to access transit, a nice walking street, and even a cool taphouse on the first floor of the same building!
We had a week here in Copenhagen where we had time to clean our clothes in an actual washer, catching up a little on making notes for the Africa trip, and doing a little dreaming and planning for the next few years of adventures! This involved writing down our list of experiences and places to go around the world, and ranking them and research to figure out what would work together.
When we did get out of the apartment we had to of course visit a lego store since this is where it all began! The builds in the store of a famous area of Nyhavn looked really nice. We decided to visit that area one of the days too, so now you can see them side by side.
While walking around we visited the little mermaid, walked all along the river and found this little skating rink area with several restaurants and a bar nearby where we had dinner. There were even a few christmas markets set up, but thees aren’t as big as those we would visit the following week!
One of the things we were most excited for was to catch up with the couple we met on our cruise in the Amazon last April! They live in Copenhagen and invited us to get beers at a local brewery and then have dinner at their house. It ended up being the election day so we walked with them to their polling place at a nearby school just a few minutes away. It didn’t take too long but they gave us a good overview of the elections, as these were for the local Copenhagen level, and the National elections would be another year.
At their place we were all talking just non stop, about past and future travels, learning more about each other, and about where we both live! It was lovely to catch up with you both again and hope we can meet up again soon!
Embracing a Swedish Tradition in Malmö
In a cheeky last minute decision, we decided to use one of our days in Copenhagen to take a quick 15 minute train to Malmö, Sweden! We had realized that with all the new countries in Africa, plus Denmark and two new ones coming up in Europe, that when we headed home mid December we’d be at 48 countries that we’ve visited together. So, by visiting Sweden, we’d be at 49 so our new country for a special New Year’s experience could also be #50! Some of you might already know where we are going (well currently are as I’m posting this) but I’ll leave it a surprise for the rest of you!
After arriving, of course we had to start with a Swedish Tradition: Fika. This involves taking a break about mid morning for some coffee, tea, and perhaps a tasty pastry. While the treats are nice, the point is to focus on connection, conversation and slowing down. So I enjoyed my cardamom bun and we chatted about some of the fun places for the day.
The Town square was really cute and had some Christmas decorations. Soon we made our way through some of the newly fallen snow to a park where we could get a view across the channel back to Copenhagen. We found gardens, pretty trees, and an overhanging walkway by the shore. There are some fun sights like this twisted building, but it is just an apartment so it is not open to the public.
Towards the end we visited this food hall and Mr. Wander opted for some thai food but I had to get some swedish meatballs and wow, were they next level. Also, I had only ever had canned lingonberries but fresh ones like this are so much better and what a beautiful color. I never realized that it is served with pickles either, but that really did balance the whole dish.
As we wandered through the streets we decided to also experience the afternoon fika at a different bakery before catching our train back to Copenhagen.
Next Time
As our time in Copenhagen came to a close, we made our way into Berlin for a unique walking tour. Then we started a marathon of Christmas markets! Next time I’ll share our visits to markets across several towns in Germany starting with Dresden; and a quick trip to Prague, Czechia, trying all the traditional foods and tasty beverages. Until next time, Farvel!
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