21 Days on the Road - Interim Conclusion

Believe it or not: it's really nice!

We're really happy that everything has been going so smoothly so far. We've thought of almost everything we need for a trip like this - except Henry's new hat, which unfortunately stayed at home.

Even living in such close quarters is mostly peaceful. This is not something to be taken for granted when you're reduced from 120 comfortable square meters to 8 rolling square meters and spend 24 hours together.

We've already thrown our rough schedule out the window. We're definitely traveling slower than expected. It might be because we've extended a few stops to 3 or 4 nights to relax and enjoy the good weather. But we're already feeling really refreshed.

To make the traveling bearable for Henry, we usually don't drive for more than 2 hours at a time. Sometimes the destination is no further than 2 hours away, sometimes we take a longer break and then continue driving, but never more than 4 to 5 hours per day. It's working out pretty well.

Thankfully, Henry sleeps like a champ in his new car seat.

With everything included, we weigh 2,750 kilograms (full water tank, empty wastewater tank) and with a consumption of just under 8.4 liters, we're making good progress.

We've also found a good division of tasks. Ole drives. Annika keeps the log and cash book (Thanks to Nina for the great logbook!) while taking care of Henry during his waking hours.

Annika is better at stacking mattresses and blankets, so she's responsible for the upper bed, while Ole is better at moving benches, so he's in charge of the lower bed. Ole is also better at sorting things, securing them, and using ladders. We divide the meal preparation as we please.

In the evening, when Henry is asleep, we plan, research, or read. Occasionally, we also write an article for you.

Every morning after waking up, we do a short workout to stay fit. One of us exercises while the other keeps Henry in check, and we professionally ignore the gazes of our neighbors.

So far, we've almost exclusively stayed at campsites. It was a good start. We'll see if we can free camp a bit more in Norway.

The campsites we've been to have all been good. We just had extremely rare WiFi. It seems strange in this highly technological country where even remote places on the mountain have good cell phone reception. Oh well.

The Swedes aren't always as friendly as you would think. There were a few places where we didn't feel very welcome, but we also had many nice encounters. We've been really impressed by the Swedes' connection to nature, and when it comes to style, no one can beat the Swedes - so many beautiful cafes, restaurants, people, and houses. You can't get enough of it.

It's worth mentioning how well-prepared the Swedes are for children. Really, there are changing rooms, high chairs, and family bathrooms everywhere. Even in the men's changing rooms at the swimming pool, you can find a small playpen and a high chair so that the children don't have to crawl on the dirty floor. In many restaurants, you can warm up homemade baby food in specially provided microwaves - just to name a few examples.

Diapers, baby food jars, and wet wipes are sometimes even cheaper here than in Germany. Only children's clothing is really expensive, at least if you don't go to H&M or can't go. As expected, food is also more expensive than in Germany. We were mildly shocked at some places - cucumber for almost 5 euros - but also pleasantly surprised at others - a can of beer for 1.50 euros. We shop normally and try to cook as much fresh food as possible because the little nugget eats everything with us, and so far, including overnight stays, refueling, and all that stuff, we've spent 1,690.10 euros.

Henry has probably spent the most money with his first pair of shoes and his new thick jacket. You know, if you can afford it. :)

Apart from his extravagant lifestyle, the little human being seems to really enjoy traveling. He's sleeping more peacefully now, happily approaches almost everyone he encounters, plays with stones and sticks in the sand and on the grass.

Walking is also getting better and better. He and his shoes had to get used to each other, but at 12 degrees, rain, and wind, you just can't walk barefoot anymore. We've realized that traveling with a toddler is very different and takes much longer than expected. If we decide to continue driving in the morning, it takes us easily 2 to 3 hours to have breakfast, wash up, prepare the car, pack everything up, and brush our teeth. Once you understand and accept that, traveling with a toddler is recommended for everyone.

And being somewhere else is also good for the three of us. We're outdoors almost all day, come rain or shine, and we're together. It's really nice. Being so far away from our wonderful everyday life, new thoughts sometimes come up. From thoughts about moving abroad to conversations about what kind of person we actually want to be, we've already had a few interesting conversations in the first 3 weeks and are excited about what lies ahead for us.

Annika