Freedom is Calling

The special Freedom to roam

GEF September 8, 2024

When I think of Sweden, I think of the „Allemansraetten“.

Did you know that the „Freedom to roam“ is part of the Swedish constitution? This so-called „Everyman’s Right“ or „Allemansraetten“ is a very old tradition in the Nordic countries.

It allows public access to nature even when it’s privately owned. You can walk, ski, ride a horse or a bicycle and put up a tent, even make a fire when it’s safe to do so.

But it’s strictly forbidden to drive a motor vehicle offroad on natural soil.

Re-adaptation is not so easy

With Big Paul in Sweden, we always took care that we stayed on used, fortified roads that were clearly defined.

A lot of roads in Sweden are gravel roads anyway and some of them take you to very beautiful places where you can be all alone and undisturbed by anyone else.

Back in Germany, it looks like there is no single squaremeter unused or uncultivated and traffic is so restricted that you very rarely are allowed to drive on gravel.

Our gravel roads are usually for forest or agricultural use only and your motor vehicle has to stay away from them.

So, we go where our feet lead us, especially up the mountains to keep ourselves in shape.

We made a little video at one of our favorite spots where we like to relax after a steep walk: https://youtu.be/aD1udi9GmAA

It’s amazing – we are back home now and even ten days after our return we still need to take it easy and get used to our „normal“ routines again. Sweden is still in our heart and mind.

This morning though, a little feathered visitor brought us directly into the here and now.

He sat very quietly, studying the environment and obviously, he liked it very much.

That’s it for now. More to come.

Be well and if you like share this post and

Going Home

EW September 1, 2024

It got cold and rainy in Sweden with more rain and wind in the forecast.

Therefore, we decided to drive back to Germany. From our position, that were about 1800 km (1100 miles).

So, there are going to be a lot of video clips driving …

1. Swedish roads – almost a meditation: https://youtu.be/QW_UkZTsUIY

2. Enjoying empty roads: https://youtu.be/w2SCtKNjFkE

3. Leaving Sweden: https://youtu.be/hKmjBc9-wKg

To sum up the trip

The old postal van did a good job taking us 9844 kilometers (6076 miles) there and back again.

Essential things, we would not miss on our next trip

a handbroom (it was used many, many times!)
ventilaton grills for the side windows
mosquito screens
paper towels (the very absorptive kind)
a power station
foldable solar panels
TP-Link for internet

What would I like to do better

the storage rack needs to be reconsidered. There have been things I would have liked to be more readily accessible
there was too little space for wet clothes
the light in the back could have been better

I guess I need to do some thinking how to take care of these issues.

That’s it for now. More to come.

Be well and if you like share this post and

Have you ever used an outhouse that smelled like a spruce forest? Well, I thought my nose-to-brain connection played tricks on me when I had to go to the „thunderbox“ at a remote badplats, and found this:

Usually, you’d better hold your nose when you enter. But this time I found the outhouse not only very clean and well equipped. It actually exuded a fragrance like a bubble bath.

Someone with a sensitive nose must have poured a load of bath salt into the pit. What a cute idea!

This is one of the many nice memories I’ve taken home from Sweden.

A rewarding experience

Yeah, it was a great trip! But after six weeks in the bus and almost 10.000 kilometers on the road, we both felt it was enough.

The weather didn’t play along anymore and we were not ready to change to bed and breakfast and the town culture.

Germany welcomed us back with sunshine and temperatures around 30 degrees Celsius. This came almost as a shock after nights in the van at 8 to 9 degrees.

Meanwhile, we have gotten used to it and enjoy swimming in our Bavarian lakes with luxurious water temperatures of 22 degrees.

So, what are we missing?

If I want to put it in one word, it’s stillness.

While Germany seems to be crowded, noisy and hectic, Sweden switches back a gear. And the further you get away from the big cities and the tourist places, the more relaxed and calm the country appears.

You can find beautiful places in nature, where you are all alone and the only sound you hear is your own breath.

For people like us this is just awesome!

Feeling like Pippi Longstocking

We will also miss the lakes and the romantic Bullerbue style villages that come with the traditional red wooden houses, the original churches, the stone walls, the flowery gardens and lush green meadows.

And this certain „Pippi Longstocking touch“ that makes you feel you are free to do anything you like in a cozy, friendly and safe environment.

That’s it for now. More to come.

Be well and if you like share this post and

5th week

EW August 25, 2024

We are sitting huddled up in our van. The rain is pummeling the roof, the wind is howling and cold keeps creeping in.

I used a break in the rain to film the clouds passing by and the gusts shaking the trees as you can see on YouTube: https://youtu.be/D4hPDxMkjLw

Three days of rain. But we had some gorgeous days before.

We visited the ruins of a church dating back to the 1600th century.

Vatten (the Swedish word for "water")

Water, like lakes, hold a special attraction. However, if you seek solitude it’s the wrong place to go for beautiful spots like this tend to be quite crowded. Nevertheless, one can get some quiet moments.