no more travels? i don't think so

i just noticed it's been 8 whole months since i've written a post here.. you'd think it's a travel blog, and since it's been quiet, it's probably because i haven't traveled all this time.. 

but HELL NO! actually, i've been traveling quite a lot this year!

firstly, after the mini winter trip i last talked about, i went to andorra, on a mostly failed mission to go snowboarding..  we were a group of 8, rented a van, an apartment and the equipment, got the weekend pass.. and then there was a snow storm and we were stuck in the flat, playing games and watching tv! but good times anyway..

in may and in july and did two quick visits to amsterdam, just for the weekends, nothing big... and with the weather much better than the first time, i could enjoy my time more properly..

and then there was the pearl jam euro tour in early july.. this one was definitely worth a few posts, but i got lazy (summer, barcelona, holidays, you know...) and never wrote about it..

in short, 4 days in berlin, 4 days in oslo, 3 days in copenhagen.. meeting old friends, making new friends, and of course, seeing my favorite band kicking ass 3 more times (14 and counting so far)!

after that, since i was already in scandinavia, a little train ride to västervik, in sweden, to spend the weekend, visit my friend and bandmate honey (yes, i have a band: THE MINUS TWO), and to play 3 gigs (one little open air festival, two in a bar)..

and when i thought it would be all for my summer, because i was both broke and out of ideas, there was this invitation for a spontaneous road trip through europe, with a van and 4 german girls.. posts to follow (summer is almost over, i'm getting back to working mode)..

meanwhile, here are some photos of the other trips.. enjoy!

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andorra

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andorra

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brandenburg gate, berlin

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in berlin, with a lithuaninan i met in paris =)

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next to blå, a bar/club in oslo

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braSil, portugal, sweden, canada, italy.. everyone in oslo to see pearl jam \m/^o^\m/

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vigelandsparken, oslo | christiania, copenhagen

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pearl jam rockin' copenhagen

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THE MINUS TWO posters in västervik

sweden

sweden in one word: expensive. green. beautiful. modern. blondes. clean.

ok, i can't do it in one word, obviously.. but let me elaborate a little..

expensive: yes. people talk about nyc, barcelona, paris, london.. but stockholm gave me the hardest time controlling my already super tight budget.. transportation, eating and drinking out, and touristic activities can hurt your pocket like nowhere else i've been to.. granted, they have lidl, a super cheap international supermarket chain, which is the best option to save at least on food and drinks..

green: 60% of stockholm is either water or green spaces. i visited the råstasjön lake (in a neighborhood called solna), and djurgården, this big, beautiful, green island on royal land... the place was packed with locals trying in vain to save up some warmth and sunlight for the winter (it was supposedly the last good weather day of the year)..

also, jönköping (the other city i visited, some 4 hours from stockholm), has some parks and green areas, and is located on the south side of sweden's second largest lake, vättern..

beautiful + modern + clean: both stockholm and jönköping have this modern vibe to them.. new buildings, good transportation system, artsy places.. and in the capital, there's gamla stan (the old town), which has its charm, with the narrow streets and old, colorful buildings..

gamla stan is a small island in walking distance from norrmalm (the city center).. there i saw the parliament (giving access to the island from the north), the royal palace (and the royal guard band.. somewhat entertaining), the nobel museum, the stockholm cathedral and the riddarholmen church..

also, needless to say, the whole place is very clean.. the metro, the streets, the parks.. i guess all the green kinda helps people remember to be respectful with the environment..

blondes: not a myth. lots of them! but blondes or not, there's really a lot of beautiful people there.. after some sightseeing i decided to go hang out next to a street musician in drottningatan (a busy street that goes all the way from norrmalm to gamla stan), and just do some people watching for the next couple of hours.. i swear i felt myself smiling from the inside!

and this was my swedish adventure.. i'd love to explore more of the country, so i'll try to plan to go back with more time and definitely, more money!  

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 stockholm

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 riksdagshuset (the parliament) | street performers in stortorget, gamla stan

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 the royal guard, stockholm

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 drottningatan, stockholm | vättern lake, jönköping

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 jönköping

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jönköping