• Highlights,  Lisbon,  Move Abroad,  Moving abroad,  Portugal

    TRAVEL YEAR 2021 – THE YEAR OF GREAT CHANGES


    The year 2021 is finally over and it’s time to look towards the new year 2022 and new amazing adventures. Last year included a lot of changes and fantastic moments, as well as great emotions and wonderful experiences. It was not a very big year of travelling maybe, but quality replaces quantity in this case, and instead of several separate trips, the year was filled with change and adventure when I moved here to Portugal and did a lot of exploring inside this new country that I can now call home.

    It feels downright weird and funny to look back in time to the beginning of last year and remember the times when the frosty snow was still cracking under my shoes and my face was freezing in the cold winter air. However, I have to start somewhere with this compilation of last year, so we go back to February, when the 2021 travel year officially started for me.



    RELAXING ON THE WAVES OF THE BALTIC SEA


    Cruises may not be the most revolutionary travel experiences, but they do create a comfortable break from your everyday life and refresh yourself in the middle of work and everyday life. We carried out this February cruise on the cozy Viking Grace in cooperation with Viking Line Finland, and although not all of the ship’s services were available at all times due to the corona, the voyage was still a relaxing experience with sunny winter sceneries.



    THE CHARM OF KUUSAMO AND THE MAGIC OF THE MOUNTAINS


    I may have always been a bit of a “bad” Finn, because I have never liked the cold or the winter, I don’t like winter sports, and I hate skiing holidays. I can enjoy the snow and fresh winter weather for an average of a month, but after that I could already return to the summer time and sunshine. I have only visited Lapland once before and even then it was July and we only drove through it to the Norwegian side, so that made me feel obligated to jump on the car when my mother announced that she was going to Kuusamo to look at some white winter sceneries a little further North. So we girls from Tampere city drove to the great Rukatunturi mountain, and to the lovely Ajakka Bed & Breakfast to admire the reindeers and huge amounts of thick white snow all around us. In addition to these, Kuusamo also offers for example cute huskies for a husky safari ride and of course the famous Riisitunturi mountain.



    MOVING TO PORTUGAL WAS LIFE CHANGING


    May was an emotional month in many ways, as at the end of May it was finally time to pack my suitcase and head for the new great adventure, moving to Portugal. I had received an good job offer from Lisbon, the capital city, just a few months earlier, and I finally decided to grab the bull by the horns and accept the job, because after thinking about it, I couldn’t think of enough reasons not to seize the opportunity and to take the job.

    Beloved relatives and friends remained in Finland, as well as my boyfriend and our rental home. I packed my life in one suitcase, in which I only packed a bunch of shorts and a bikini, as well as salmiakki, the famous finnish liquorice.

    I fell in love with Portugal right away and Lisbon surprised me with its versatility, comfort and easiness, although I had never before thought of moving to Portugal to live more or less permanently. Lisbon has everything from lovely cafes and restaurants to history and the old town, a beautiful city center and easy access to everywhere. Nightlife is booming and there is entertainment for every taste and style. Lisbon has great exercise facilities for both outdoor and indoor exercise, with options ranging from cheap gyms to affordable all-inclusive wellness centers and everything in between. Personally, I just signed up for a new dance school here and soon after a break of just over six months I will start dancing lessons with some new dance genres too, so excited!


    It is also extremely easy to travel from Lisbon to the surrounding areas and the rest of Portugal, or why not cross the border into Spain. In the summer I travelled a lot to the nearby cities and villages and for example my own new favorite beaches can be found on the other side of the river Tejo, in Setúbal, in the area of ​​the Arrábida Natural Park. We also went to spend a long weekend in the Algarve, the cozy city of Lagos. The Algarve was a truly wonderful experience and this year I will head back to explore more of the southern coast. The Algarve blog post is also coming up soon, so stay tuned. This year, the directions will of course also be put towards the much praised Porto, as well as many other lovely small towns, from which I will write more here on the blog too.

    In November I traveled to Finland for a mini-holiday to take care of some work and visit some family, and to finally end my relationship, which had lasted about eight years. The decision was common between me and my boyfriend and we parted as friends, in all good harmony. The new life in Lisbon opened my eyes in many ways and I know I will not return to Finland for a long time. We want different things in life right now and the future cannot be predicted, so this decision feels right. Life has taken great steps forward and I can’t wait to see what the upcoming summer, for example, will bring here in Portugal with sun, warmth and new wonderful experiences!

    Read more about Lisbon:


    Remember to check out how we celebrated Christmas here in Portugal:




    HOW WAS YOUR TRAVEL YEAR 2021? DID YOU FOCUS ON TRAVELLING INSIDE YOUR OWN COUNTRY OR DID YOU TRAVEL A LOT ABROAD? DID YOU HAVE ANY OTHER REVOLUTIONARY EVENTS IN YOUR LIFE THAT IS NOT RELATED TO TRAVELLING BUT IS STILL MAJOR? SHARE YOUR OWN HIGHLIGHTS AND SUMMARY FOR 2021 IN THE COMMENT FIELD! 🙂

    <3: Tiina Johanna

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  • Yleinen

    Mini getaway from Barcelona to Zaragoza and back


    What a wonderful trip to Spain this was and now I’m feeling a bit sad to be back in Finland again, as usual. I never feel homesick when I’m travelling, but I always feel sad when I come back home, haha. Am I the only one like this?

    This spanish mini-adventure started with a “small” 12hr journey from Tampere to Zaragoza. My plan was to go meet my friend who was an exchange student in Zaragoza at the time and I wanted to feel what it was like to travel solo for the first time too.

    First I flew from Finland to Barcelona, Spain and from the airport I took a bus for 4 hours to Zaragoza. What a ride. The bus ride was as long as the flight between Helsinki and Barcelona and on top of that I had already spent two hours on the bus from Tampere to Helsinki before boarding the plane. So after a long time of sitting on the bus and the plane I finally arrived to my destination and met up with my friend.


    Zaragoza is a really beautiful and interesting city with lots to see and to explore. It’s not on the beach side but it has great cultural features and nice restaurants. I got very familiar with the student life and watched the local lifestyle up close. In just a few days I wandered around the city on my own a lot and did some shopping too. My friend took me to see the sights and to eat some paella. The sun was shining very brightly and the weather was hot, just how I like it. By the way, the best and the most popular place for enjoying the sunshine is the Parque Grande (Grand Park), which is a gorgeous big park in the middle of the city.


    After a few days of exploring in Zaragoza we went to Barcelona where we spent the last two days of my trip before leaving back home. I really fell in love with Barcelona and it’s lively atmosphere. Barcelona is so much more beautiful in the spring time than in the middle of the summer, because there aren’t that many summer tourists yet. I got my first hostel experience here too! We stayed at a great youth hostel right on the beach in the Barceloneta area and the hostel was fantastic. At least the location couldn’t have been any better!


    We wandered around Barri Gotic, the old town, and had some lovely tapas, pintxos and wine. In Spain the best restaurants can be found by following the locals and going to the places that have the most people inside, because if the locals love it, it must be good! That’s how we found the best spots as well, sadly enough I can’t remember the names anymore.

    The next day was a bit more cloudy, so we decided to go and do some sightseeing. We went to walk around the old town and the Las Ramblas, and also the Passeig de Gracia -street, that had beautiful buildings around it. We went to see the Gaudi designed architectural buildings and of course the Sagrada Familia Cathedral. It was stunning and big.

    Last but not least we also went to walk around the Park Qüell to enjoy the wonderful views and beauty of the park. This was totally worth visiting!


    For a short six day getaway this was a great experience and we got to see and do a lot. We even managed to chill and relax on the beach in the middle of all the exploring and sightseeing, perfect!

    Until next time,

    <3: Tiina Johanna