Late, but from the heart - Baltics + Poland

Yes, yes - long overdue and we also didn't keep the promise of sending the report before continuing the journey. Oops. But of course, we don't want to leave any gaps. So everyone take another quick look at the Finland report so we can catch up with you and continue...

Estonia

Where did we leave off? Ah yes - departure from Helsinki. The absolutely oversized ferry, more like a cruise ship, arrives, we park our Red Rocket, this time consciously apply the handbrake and look again at where we need to go with Fiete. Unlike the last ferry, this time there is a terrible kennel room. Not an option for us to leave Fiete alone for 2 1/2 hours. So we keep him company and don't take advantage of the extensive offerings (cafés, restaurants, Burger King, shopping mall, casino, etc.) on the ferry.

Arriving in Tallinn, thanks to Park4Night, we find a good parking spot - €2 for 24 hours and only a 5-minute walk to the old town. Sounds good!

The weather is nice, so we immediately start strolling around. Tallinn probably has the best-preserved medieval old town and it becomes immediately apparent. Soooo beautiful!

We're hungry and finally we can afford to eat out again! Sometimes, unfortunately, we manage to postpone eating for so long that we end up being dissatisfied and no restaurant in the world can please us anymore. The menu is too meat-heavy, too fancy, too touristy... With a critical hungry mood, we decide to just eat at the Sprinter van - noodles always work! But there was a nice looking place in a backyard, so we give it a chance and we are not disappointed! Cozy student pub atmosphere, manageable menu - perfect for those who are already indecisive with hunger! Two guys next to us are playing chess - seems to be a thing here, even the next day, two women are sitting in a café in front of a chessboard again. Unfortunately, the good weather from the previous day is completely gone the next day. 100% constant rain and the next few days don't look so great either. We are unsure which route to choose. Along the coast or through the interior of the country?! We decide to go through the interior, drive a bit outside of Tallinn to a waterfall. On the way out of the city, we suddenly get to see and feel the full force of Eastern European charm. The roads, parts of which are even highways, are catastrophic and one apartment block follows the next.

The waterfall is not that impressive, but it is considered the widest waterfall in Estonia. The surrounding area is quite nice, so we take a long walk. Playing with Fiete is also part of the program, unfortunately, he tears one of his front claws but it doesn't fall off. We spare you the details, but as a precaution, we decide to drive back to Tallinn to the vet. A short and painful affair - we have never heard Fiete scream like that, poor little pup. A few days of rest and wearing little shoes. Fortunately, he lets us do everything.

Back in Tallinn and with the prospect of better weather, we decide to drive towards the Baltic Sea and we are not disappointed. At Haapsalu, we spend one night at a small family-run campsite, enjoy a warm shower again, and explore the small town the next day.

Our last stop in Estonia is a dream! Just before the border with Latvia, there is a long forest area that officially invites you to wild camp for free. Countless places with seating areas and fire pits and only 2 steps away from the beach. It's hard to believe that this place is so sparsely visited. During the day, we almost have the long sandy beach to ourselves. In the evening, we make a fire directly on the beach and watch countless shooting stars. Have we mentioned before that life seems to be treating us well?!

Latvia

We leave our beautiful parking spot in Estonia and whoosh, we're already across the border - faster than we could register. Due to COVID, you have to register online in each country in the Baltics before entering. We quickly do that properly.

The Baltic countries are not particularly big, so we probably won't stay in Latvia for a long time either. We pick a few destinations, first stop is Cēsis. Cute little town with a beautiful park and an old castle. Not a place to linger forever, but nice! We relax on a park bench in the sun and observe the hustle and bustle. As it turns out, there is a back-to-school celebration going on. In most educational institutions in Latvia, the new school year starts on September 1st.

Next stop is Riga, we spend one more night just outside the city. While brushing our teeth in the dark, a car pulls up. Maja's remark: "Looks like the garbage truck... with license plates from Paderborn". Of course, I know that it can't be the garbage truck. The next morning, in daylight, we can finally see what it is. A huge expedition mobile ship, with an additional hydraulic ramp at the back for motorcycles and bicycles.

We get into conversation with the people from Paderborn, we reveal that we are from Bielefeld (our license plate doesn't reveal it) and of course, we get to hear the common remark: "Bielefeld doesn't exist!" Ha ha! But it's fascinating how different people can travel.

Riga is, as expected, beautiful with its many buildings in Art Nouveau style. You can very well imagine, and we are also immediately pointed out by two women, the lively nightlife and excellent pub scene. But we don't experience any of it, we drive out of the city again in the evening. Despite great impressions, in my opinion, Tallinn is even more impressive, Jannis sees it a bit more neutrally.

In Latvia, we take a tour through the Kemeri National Park's bog area. Breathtaking nature once again!

And as the crowning glory, we visit a herd of wild horses! Semi-wild to be exact. According to the information board, the original wild horses became extinct there and the land was changed for agriculture. However, that was reversed in the early 2000s and 20 wild horses were reintroduced. Today, the herd consists of almost 200 animals, without any human intervention. Beautiful!

Lithuania

Across to Lithuania, here too we register online again. First, we visit a pilgrimage site, the Hill of Crosses. Not so much out of religious interest, but more because it's on the way and described as a "sight". And well - it's somehow impressive, almost a bit creepy! Hundreds of thousands of crosses. In some corners, it almost gives the impression of a landfill.

What doesn't disappoint us in Lithuania either is the capital - Vilnius. Admittedly, we had to google for a moment what Lithuania's capital actually is. Unfortunately, the city is crowded. We are there on a Sunday and it seems like there is something going on. We couldn't really find out what exactly. But the city has a street with numerous stalls. However, it was so crowded that we didn't feel comfortable walking through the crowd, especially with Fiete. We sit down in a restaurant, for the second time on this trip, we have to show our vaccination certificate and we eat some national dishes, of which only the cold beetroot soup really impresses us. When we got the bill, we weren't sure if it was correct. €14 for 3 dishes and drinks. We would definitely come back!

We stroll around the city a bit more, go up to the castle. From above, it becomes apparent how unbelievably many churches the city has. In a travel guide, we read that some of them are empty and have been converted into basketball courts. Good idea! We are very impressed by Vilnius!

The next day, to conclude, we visit a water castle and Kaunas.

After that, we leave the Baltics behind and can finally say that a trip there is definitely worth it. A seriously underestimated region!

Poland

Arriving in Poland, the first place we see is not so great. Huge prefab buildings as far as the eye can see. But a large Kaufland supermarket, where we hope to get a local SIM card. We find what we're looking for in a lotto-like shop. Jannis politely asks the employee if he speaks English or German. The somewhat snippy counter-question is whether Jannis speaks Russian. Unfortunately, no, not at all. We noticed in the Baltic countries that English is not spoken or only poorly spoken, especially in rural areas. Well. Despite that, we manage to communicate somehow with gestures and continue driving with a SIM card for Poland. €5 for ... well, we're not sure anymore. But definitely something to be envious of when you look at German prices!

The Masurian Lake District, of course, has a few dreamy parking spots for us for the next few days. Free camping - no problem! Locals passing by the lake often greet us friendly!

We make a short stop in the former Allenstein, today's Olsztyn. A small but really nice place with good cappuccino! You learn to appreciate it when you're on the road and only drink coffee from a French press.

Not far from our route is Hitler's former headquarters - the Wolf's Lair. Super interesting! We do the complete tourist program and let ourselves be guided through the complex with an audio guide, Fiete is also allowed to come along. The Wolf's Lair is located in a forest, surrounded by trees. At that time, the area was covered with camouflage nets so that it couldn't be seen from the air. You can still see the old train tracks that led directly to Berlin - Hitler's preferred means of transportation. We are fascinated and shocked by the thick bunkers, some of which are still in quite good condition. Up to 7 meters thick reinforced concrete walls make the buildings look huge. But inside, there's not that much space. The Stauffenberg assassination attempt on July 20, 1944, has also left its mark. Really exciting and suddenly the German history becomes even more conscious. We can't be proud of it, but we are proud of Fiete, who pees properly on Hitler's bunker. Great dog! We find the souvenir shop a bit macabre, where cups with Hitler & co., grenades, and other reconstructed war material are sold. But well. If you're in the area - definitely worth a visit!

What is also worth a visit and gets 10 out of 10 points from us is the city of Gdansk. We park centrally because we also need to do laundry and stroll through the city. Incredibly beautiful! Granted, most of it is probably no longer original because everything was bombed during World War II. But it has been rebuilt with a lot of effort. We agree - one of the most beautiful cities we have ever seen! And also quite attractive in terms of prices. We go out to eat in the evening, sit right by the water, and pay €25 for 2 pizzas and 2 drinks. You can't complain about that! So if you fancy a beautiful and affordable city trip - off to Gdansk!

In the evening, we drive about an hour out of Gdansk because we have an appointment! Elli and Mario are also traveling with their converted van. The two started a few weeks after us and also traveled around Scandinavia. But they have a slightly different route than us, and they took the ferry to Poland and caught up with us! The two are also very happy that they can finally afford beer again, and we toast to our meeting right away. We spend the evening and the next morning together - we mainly talk about our vans, the challenges of the conversion, and the travel highlights. It was great and maybe our paths will cross again somewhere. The two are on the road for a while longer.

We spend a few more days on the Polish Baltic Sea, which also has beautiful beaches. Unfortunately, the weather isn't that great anymore, but of course, that doesn't stop us from jumping into the sea. Somehow, splashing around in the waves is still a lot of fun even as adults!

And then we're already 'back' in Germany.

On the way to Berlin to visit friends, we stop in the small village of Zerpenschleuse. My grandfather had a house there and I used to visit there more often as a child - but last time maybe when I was 12 years old. Since then, things have changed a bit in the village. A supermarket, paved roads, a café - none of that existed back then! It's a really cute village today and I eventually find my grandfather's former house - it's right by a canal! It's strange how as a child you don't appreciate such small things. We spend one night in Zerpenschleuse and in the morning we continue to our friends, who live in a suburb of Berlin. A nice reunion and getting to know their little, freshly born son. The weekend turns into a real reunion. Two more friends from Offenburg also come to Berlin that weekend! So wonderful! After 2 days, it's time to go home. We abandon the idea of making a detour to the Harz Mountains, we are already mentally too much in Bielefeld and we are looking forward to seeing our families and friends again!

8 countries in 3 months - about 10,000 km that we have driven. Did all of that really happen? Sometimes we have to pinch ourselves. We are so incredibly grateful and look forward to so much more!