Hello Sweden!

The first week is coming to an end. We are lying on the dock at Lake Vallsjön in the sun, letting the days sink in. Wonderful days! We couldn't be more grateful!

After visiting Sarah & Philipp in Hamburg on Monday, we drove out of Hamburg and stayed at Lake Einfeld - which means we stood with our feet in the water on the first morning. Wonderful! After breakfast and a little walk along the shore, we continued. We quickly went to Kiel to a Decathlon - to get one or two things and then off to Denmark!

Border crossing 0 problemo. We were not checked. It looked like they only randomly selected a few people.

Time for food - we're looking for a nice spot by the sea. By the way, our preferred app for this is park4night. Here you can find good tips for free parking spaces, camping sites, parking lots, etc.

Pasta with pesto, coffee, a long beach walk, and off we go.

Since Jannis has never been to Copenhagen, we decided to make a short detour to the city the next day. We found a place to sleep just outside the city. Not spectacular, but actually quite nice in front of a small forest, behind dunes and a beach. Unfortunately, we encountered another dog owner on the beach who warned us about poisoned baits. From then on, we couldn't enjoy the spot so much, we even found 3 of them ourselves and were extremely careful with Fiete.

The next morning, we parked in the middle of Copenhagen and set the parking meter for 2 1/2 hours. A tight schedule for such a city, but we didn't want to push it with Fiete.

We constantly notice that he is definitely a village dog and the many impressions are exhausting for him, but he's doing quite well. Hopefully, he will be a pro after the trip!

And now - over the Öresund Bridge to Sweden. Here, too, only a passport control, no corona check. We spent our first night in Sweden at Lake Bolmen. Wonderful place by the lake!

Jannis was immediately motivated to catch our dinner. But after 3 sunken baits and a fall into the water while trying to save one of the baits, he gave up his fishing career.

The next day, we got up relaxed and continued through Småland. Some wildlife crossed the road a long way ahead of us, unfortunately too far away to recognize exactly what it was. But judging by the size, they were probably not moose - too bad! We hope to see some on our trip.

And then we arrive at Lake Vallsjön in Sävsjö. We were not aware of what awaited us here and we are still completely amazed and can hardly believe our luck!

A Swedish family of hospitality that is second to none. We spent 4 days here with Verena and Joakim in his homeland and were able to celebrate Midsummer with his family and friends. What a beautiful festival - what a beautiful area!

We explored the area extensively on Saturday during a "short walk". At least that was the plan. Jukke apparently took the wrong turn in the forest and suddenly we were a bit off the beaten track - literally, as the photos show. An adventure trip at its best. Over stock and stone, through the marsh. Shortly before we found our way back to a paved path, we had to cross a small stream. Our feet were already soaking wet, so it didn't matter - let's go through! Unfortunately, the stream was muddier than expected and we all sank knee-deep into it - Verena in particular got stuck in the mud with one leg and had a hard time getting out. Such a funny absurd situation! It should also be mentioned that Jukke was probably walking around 10km in Birkenstocks in the end. A walk to remember!

And otherwise, we have everything our hearts desire here. We have the choice between a boat, a canoe, a raft...The decision will be made on Sunday for Joakim's birthday to go on a raft trip. And again, we can hardly believe our luck!

In addition to good company, we had a lot of amazing food these days!

All we can say is THANK YOU - Thank you Sweden, for this incredibly great start to our journey!

Thanks to Verena & Joakim and his family!

P.S.: One small drawback of Sweden so far - the mosquitoes! Not that we didn't know it before...but that doesn't make it any better! Our bodies are covered in bites. For once, not just me, Jannis also got some. And also ticks without end. Fiete can collect them from his fur every minute. But we won't let it get us down and we have all sorts of stuff to prevent it!

We will continue our journey tomorrow. But one thing is certain - we will be back!