All In for Tallinn

When we bought our ticket to Finland and started asking folks for suggestions about what to do in the country, a number of people suggested taking a ferry to visit Russia or Estonia. We loved the idea of getting to see another country in that part of the world, however, the way our travel plans were shaping up in Finland and in our next destination, Spain we didn't know if we'd have more than a day to spare. But then we figured why not spend a day in Estonia?! So, we booked our overnight ferry from Helsinki to Tallinn on August 25th, 2014 and decided to fly from Tallinn to Spain on August 27th, 2014. We were all in for Tallinn!

Just because we only spent 30 hours in Tallinn (we didn't get off the ferry until August 26th), we didn't think we should post any fewer pictures of this charming city. Enjoy!

The ferry to Tallinn

Why pay more for a hotel when you can sleep on the ferry?!

Entering Old Town

Texas in Tallinn...interesting...

The clock on Holy Spirit Church is the oldest in Tallinn

Just one of the many beautifully ornate doors in Old Town

Too big, even for Brian

Looking out over the city from a viewing platform

Steph making (with some assistance) her own souvenir

I think Brian was excited about the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral?

We went to a medieval style pub called Three
Dragons for lunch and could only drink our soup.
I always thought spoons were overrated anyway!

St. Olaf's Church & the sunset

This next series of pics needs a little more explanation than the usual caption, so here goes: Estonia had been a Russian province since 1721. After WWI, they declared their independence but it was short-lived and ended during WWII when Communist Russia resumed control. Then, in 1988 reports of the "Singing Revolution" reached the West. Tens of thousands held hands and, in defiance against Russia, sang Estonian songs while waving the long-hidden national flag and eventually they reclaimed their independence. It's been almost 25 years since Estonia became independent but traces of Russia's rule remain, such as the deserted port/entertainment complex featured in these photos.

The Best Birthday Ever!

In honor of my great-grandmother's 96th birthday today, here's a story from nearly 6 months ago!

August 20, 2014 was our last day in Helsinki, Finland before heading up to the arctic circle. We spent the day exploring Suomenlinna, an inhabited sea fortress, and some of the churches around the city and then met up with our fantastic hosts - and now friends - Pasi and Marjo for dinner. As a small token of our appreciation for all their kindness, Brian and I had wanted to treat them to a night out. However, Pasi & Marjo continued to surprise us with their thoughtfulness. Although I hadn't told anyone that it was my birthday, Brian had mentioned it in passing to Pasi. After we'd chowed down on our pizzas, Pasi placed 2 small yet exquisite cakes on the table and Marjo retrieved a bottle of champagne. I definitely got all misty-eyed as we toasted to friendship, birthdays, and Finnish saunas.

Kippis!

We opted to continue the celebration and so off we went to another of Marjo and Pasi's favorite spots. This is where my birthday went from good to great to best. I don't know how the conversation got started, but at one point Brian brought up this band called "Steve-n-Seagulls" that his friends had recently been talking about on Facebook (here's the band's Youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e4Ao-iNPPUc). Pasi remarked that they were from Finland and Marjo looked them up on her phone to show Brian. And that's when we learned that they were playing that very night in Helsinki.

Moments before Marjo takes out her phone...

The next minute we were running to catch a train. We arrived at the bar just as the band was finishing setting up. 

When the guys stepped on stage in their overalls and animal hats and began playing a cover of ACDC's "Shook Me All Night Long" with banjos, anvils, and spoons, Brian and Pasi wasted no time running up front to dance. "This is the best birthday ever!" Brian exclaimed. I laughed at him (he did look a little ridiculous jamming out when all the other Finns were being very Finnish and standing around holding their beer), but I also knew he was right - this was the best birthday ever.

During our travels I've been keeping two journals - one that is for all the emotional stuff and the other for logging where we were and what we did each day because I want to be able to look back 10 years from now and be reminded of what little village was our home for that day. But that night I realized birthdays kinda do that for you. My birthday wasn't just a day to celebrate my birth but to recall where I was the previous year on the same day and to reflect on my journey. 

I'd come a long way during year #30, literally and figuratively. I was a sourpuss on my 30th birthday because I selfishly (and foolishly) thought the day should be all about me and was frustrated that I had to get shots and spend the day driving separately from Brian through Colorado and Kansas. Now I didn't care about celebrating me at all. I just wanted to be with loved ones and celebrate being together and life. I left Denver feeling like I had not made the most of my time there, but I did not feel the same about the previous 21 countries we'd visited, having learned how to "suck the marrow out of every day," as Brian puts it. I arrived in China missing my family and friends. Now I felt that had friends and family all over the world. 

As Brian and Pasi continued to show off their epic dance moves, as Marjo continued to laugh, and as the Steve-n-Seagulls played a cover of ACDC's "Thunderstruck," I reckoned that this was the first of many best-birthday-evers to come. (Yes, I used "reckoned"...I attribute it to the banjos!)

Do you see that hat on the right???!!!

I'll let you guess which one is Brian.

Side note: To all those who have been part of my 30th year journey and now my 31st year journey (especially Brian, Pasi, and Marjo), thank you from the bottom of my heart!

trajectory update: north to south

On November 16, Brian and I ended round 1 of our travels and have been enjoying seeing our families & friends back in the states over the holidays.  

If you've been following our blog, you'll observe that we've only updated it through Finland (we were there in August) which means we've still got stories from Estonia, Spain & the Camino de Santiago, London, and our cruise back to the states to share.  I'll get to them-I promise...but I may have to come back to them later in order to keep y'all abreast of our newest adventure.  

In a few minutes we leave for Guatemala where we'll be taking Spanish classes in Antigua.  After a few weeks there, we'll be heading to Brian's old Peace Corps stomping grounds - San Juan Cotzal.  And then...well, we're not too sure what comes next.  Guess we'll all just have to wait & see!!

In the meantime, hope everyone has a great New Years!  May 2015 be a year of love, joy, and peace!

Xo,

Stephanie & Brian

First Impressions of the Land of Potable Toilet Water

On August 16, we arrived in Finland.  At 1 in the morning.  And so our first adventure was sleeping in the Helsinki airport.  Now, before you think we had no way of getting to our hotel or some mix up happened with our reservation, let me state that we excitedly opted to spend the night in the airport. While our ticket to Finland was a great deal, we were unable to find a hostel, hotel, airbnb room, etc within our budget.  When we read on www.sleepinginairports.net (yes, it is a real website) that the Helsinki airport is the 3rd best in the world to sleep in, we decided that was just what we would do to help keep costs down.  Apparently so did a ton of other people because by the time we landed all the benches were already taken and we found ourselves sleeping on the floor (we had our sleeping bags). We didn't mind though - with free and ridiculously fast wifi, a grocery store, adorable dogs waiting to greet their owners, and clean facilities, the airport proved nicer than half of the places we've stayed.   

When Brian was finally able to tear me away from the airport (I was seriously considering moving in), we discovered a city equally as impressive.

Cool architecture:

People with a sense of humor:

Restaurant Day!  (a day when anyone can open a restaurant anywhere)

(Mexican food made by real Mexicans! Made us miss Denver.)

But what truly wowed us was when upon asking if it was safe to drink the tap water, the staff at our hostel shared that Finland's water is so clean even the water in the toilets is potable.  My mouth dropped open and I excitedly exclaimed, "Really?!"  The staff laughed at my enthusiastic reaction and that's when it hit me that maybe we'd been roughing it a little too long -- I was just as excited about sleeping on an airport floor and potable toilet water as I'd been while touring the Great Wall, hiking the Himalayas, and standing inside the Great Pyramid.  

In case you're wondering, the tap water in Finland is fantastic.  As for the toilet water...we just took the staff at their word ;-)       

Feeling the Agape in Cyprus

After months of incredible, yet emotionally and physically intense travel through Africa and the Middle East, our week in Cyprus (August 9-15, 2014) felt like we were on holiday. Especially because of the Koufoudakis family.  Back in King George, Virginia, Brian grew up with Pete and Stephania Koufoudakis whose family is from Cyprus.  When he reached out to them for suggestions about what to see and do while we were visiting the motherland, they arranged for their family to show us the best the island had to offer - Cypriot hospitality.  There wasn't a day that Pete & Stephania's aunts, uncles, and cousins weren't taking us to unbelievable beaches, stuffing us with their favorite foods (which quickly became our favorite foods too!), and letting us be part of their daily lives on their beautiful island.  We left tanner, fatter, and with more members of our extended family.

What better to do on a Saturday afternoon than go to the 
local MC (motorcycle club) to vote for our favorite chopper? 
(The classic cream chopper was mine!)

Picking out Greek/Cypriot sweets with a sweetie.  Cousin Maria
hung out with us all week & was a fabulous tour guide & hostess.

One of the many stunning mosaics in the House of Dionysos,
a luxurious Roman residence dating back to the 2nd century AD.

Brian and Maria swimming at the birthplace of Aphrodite.
Legend is that bathing in the water will make you beautiful
like the goddess.  Brian stayed in the water as long as he could.

Our favorite beach to visit was Tramonto, cousin George's beach.
He has hammocks and cool umbrellas!

But the real reason it was our favorite was because of the company ;-)

Lamb and potatoes and hummus, oh my!

Lachi beach had the clearest water
we'd ever seen. It was stunning.

I think this might be the coolest place to camp. Ever. 

Maria & Brian climbing over old coral on our way out to the blue lagoon.

We arrived at Lara Beach just in time to rescue
baby sea turtles who were trapped in the hot afternoon sun.

We thought this goat was pretty cool.

And this goat thought this rock was pretty cool.

Thank goodness there's a goat crossing sign
should the goat ever decide to leave its rock & venture out.

Enjoying frappes, the unofficial national drink
of Cyprus, with cousins Effie & Maria.

On our last night in Cyprus, Maria and her
incredible mother prepared a feast for us.

The master chef! 

A huge thank you to these amazing people
for making our time Cyprus unforgettable.