I see Sweden, I see Norway

Ah I’m going to the other Scandinavian countries now! I initially just assumed that Scandinavia was Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Finland. Scandinavia is Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, but the Nordic countries include the three aforementioned countries in Scandinavia and Finland. It is my goal to reach Finland as well so I can complete my Nordic checklist of countries but I think most people are finishing up their travels and I would also like to see more of Denmark and spend more time here, so I think I’ll have to decide between traveling and exploring and meeting people in Denmark. Either way I’m sure I’ll have a great time. Actually, I think going to Finland as a solo trip could be very interesting. I’ve been meaning to take a solo trip because I’ve seen a few other people do it, I think I’m just worried because if I travel on my own and I get stuck, I’m the only one who can get me out. But at the same time, I think it would be an incredible experience to travel on my own and say I did it on my own. I think travel now compared to even a decade ago is far easier, and especially since I’m in Denmark and traveling within the EU is far easier than if I were traveling somewhere else. I’m not sure what I’ll do for that but I do want to at some point travel solo because that seems like an incredible experience. If it doesn’t happen, I won’t freak out but I will be slightly disappointed.

But anyway I am currently in Sweden and will be heading to Norway tomorrow. It’s been an incredible trip so far. I actually planned this two days before I had to leave so without a doubt the shortest amount of time I’ve planned something but totally worth it. I’m traveling with my roommate, his friend from Canada, and two mutual friends, one from the States, and the other from Puerto Rico. The journey to Sweden was pretty stressful. I woke up around 5 am to make a 6:30 am train to Malmo, Sweden which is only an hour away from Copenhagen Central Station. I was really fortunate because I caught the last train to Malmo for half an hour. I messed up though and ended up missing my connecting train to Stockholm to join the rest of my friends (they had left earlier than me). Fortunately, trains to Stockholm from Malmo were running every hour or so and I was fortunate enough to be able to get on the next train to Malmo. I was even luckier when I got to ride in an empty seat for the duration of the trip to Stockholm. The seats on the train were assigned so I assumed that, because I had booked a train at an earlier time, I wouldn’t even be able to get on a later train, much less have a seat that wasn’t already reserved. It would have been incredibly awkward too because for most of the train ride I was asleep so if I was in someone else’s seat, I would have to have been woken up first, then told to move and find another seat. Thank goodness for the stewards on the train platform because if not for them, I would not have gone to Stockholm. At that point I had only booked one night in Stockholm so I wouldn’t have wasted money on other accommodations and figured I could just take the next train back to Copenhagen if I wasn’t able to get on another train. But thank goodness for the person I asked (I wish I found out her name but she was incredibly nice and understanding of my situation). I asked her if I was able to board the next train and she said she wasn’t sure if I could or if there was an open seat. Thankfully there was an open seat and she directed me to it and by some stroke of luck I was able to stay in that seat the entire train ride. Also, that was my first train ride. It was about seven or eight hours but felt very quick. For the portion of the train ride that I was awake for, the views were absolutely gorgeous. One of my favorite aspects of any place I visit is the amount of plant life they have. The ride from Malmo to Stockholm was filled with green and other natural colors. And the weather was absolutely gorgeous. Not too bad for my first train ride. It also wasn’t nearly as expensive as I thought it would be for the train ride. I had heard in the past that train rides were ridiculously expensive, so I was worried especially since this was on such short notice. Thankfully, it was less than 20 euros for the train ride which is honestly ridiculous given the amount of distance I covered. It’s been so great to have all these different options of transportation because in Hawaii we only have a bus system. Actually, I haven’t even tried out Copenhagen’s bus system yet because the Metro is so incredibly efficient. I heard Copenhagen’s bus system is exceptional but I think I’m just used to riding the metro now so I don’t want to go on a bus.

But anyway this was also my first time staying in a hostel. The great thing about it was that I stayed at probably the cream of the crop in terms of hostels. It’s called “Generator” and they have hostels all over the place. I was a bit scared at first just because of the unknown factor of staying in a room with seven other strangers, but my hostel was great. The room itself was really nice, and my bed had a charger in the headboard, a little light, and a nice shelf as well. They also provided lockers which was a great help since I was carrying sensitive documents. I bought a lock but unfortunately, I somehow changed the lock combination on the first day I was there. Luckily, the staff had a lock cutter (trust me I was sweating bullets worrying about if my laptop was going to be stuck in Stockholm) and helped me out immediately. Not only that, but they also sold replacement locks for only about five USD (far more affordable than my 10 USD lock that changed combinations far too easily). I would totally stay in a Generator hostel again and I believe they are pretty affordable given how nice they are, even against other hostels. So, if you ever want a quality hostel experience, go for a Generator hostel. I think the facilities were great and it’s really all you can ask for out of a hostel at an insanely cheap price. For me, traveling is about the experiences you have during the day or while you’re out and about, not where you sleep at night, so I’m completely fine saving money on my accommodations in order to have a great time during the day. And like I said, my hostel is really clean so even more so I’d rather save a ton on a nice hostel than blow it unnecessarily on a hotel or Air BnB room but that’s just me. Again, I was a bit hesitant at first, and you don’t know who will be in the room but I think on the whole the experience was really cool. I’m not sure if it’s against hostel etiquette rules but it would’ve been really nice to meet the people who were staying in the same room but that’s fine. But anyway I’ll be staying in hostels for the next few nights and I’ve just told myself to manage expectations since it probably won’t be as nice as the one I stayed in in Stockholm. Also, I should say I think for the most part younger people are staying in hostels. I think everyone in my room is under 30, and I think the “oldest” person I saw in the hostel was maybe 35 (I can never tell people’s ages here so this person could have been 19 and I never would have known) which isn’t even that old. I think Generators are more for a younger demographic because the whole theme is a bit “hipper” (I know, no one says this now but there’s no other way to describe it). They had skate and penny boards for rent, and other things that a younger person may be interested in. I could be age discriminating here, but I don’t think many people over 50 are trying to skateboard or stay at a hostel.

We are going to Gothenburg, which is also in Sweden, tomorrow and I’m really excited to see another part of Stockholm! I heard Stockholm is THE place to go in Sweden but I tend to like smaller, more laid back areas with more gardens and such and I feel like Stockholm has a lot of hustle and bustle going on. Don’t get me wrong, it’s an absolutely GORGEOUS city. But perhaps Gothenburg will be calmer? I’m not sure I haven’t looked at anything that there is to do there yet but I know my friends want to go to the Volvo museum which sounds pretty cool.

I love food but I'm going to show off my beautiful friends this time.

Views from the Munch museum (Oslo, Norway). I think we can all agree we were the real art.