I took some time to visit dear friends on my way back. One of them invited me to a pretty special place to camp on a private, very idyllic pond, where we had a barbeque and nice chat.
Every journey comes to an end, but the good memories stays.
No comments needed, just impressions from my stay in beautiful, bustling and interesting Copenhagen:
Photos taken at:
With lots of sunshine the Lofoten was pure bliss.
Pure? Almost, if there wasn’t those dirty people using the bushes as camping toilet. It makes me angry to see how some tourists pollute the nature, while posting about the their passion for outdoor activities. I guess there will be consequences for other tourists and traveler sooner or later. I wonder how much longer wild camping will be tolerated.
Back on the road i noticed wooden frames with left overs of dry fishes. Stockfish is an important good in Norway and its export was recorded back to the medieval times. Although it’s originally not salted, i found some salt on the bottom of these frames.
There are quite a few villages. Most are suited themselves best for tourism. They’re pretty, some have also museums and other information centre. Probably most important are the restaurants and cafes settled on beautiful places.
After a couple beautiful days on the archipelagos i reached the village of Å , where i had a last hike before boarding the ferry to south at midnight.
Just cruising trough the beautiful countryside on minor roads, stopping by some unknown landmarks, watching the local sunbather at the crowded beach or listen to their nightly party music on a picnic spot next to a lake on a weekend.
The Baltic people love the outdoors. They spend the weekends out camping, enjoying fishing at the lake or just chilling at the sea. That’s why there are easily to find picnic spots in beautiful surrounding for a overnight stay including a refreshing dip in the lake after a day driving.
Recently i visited Stockholm and just bumped in the Stockholm Pride Parade.
The solidarity of the people with the LGBTQIA+ community was overwhelming. Not only the many spectactors are supporting this movements, but also many groups from police forces alike as from resque teams, fire fighters and also military gave their supporting statement by joining in the parade.
Among all the colorful people there were also some political statements and fight paroles for the oppressed ones.
Over all it was a happy and joyful event with lots of dancing and laughing people, who all wants the same as humans: peace, respect and equal rights.
After a long drive trough the Negev desert along the Jordan border, the road ends in Eilat at the Red Sea.
It appears as holiday destination like so many others on this world. Israeli and tourists all over the world coming here for some relaxing days, parties or a foodie weekend at the sea.
There’s not much more than the beaches in front of big hotels, food courts and bars. The landscape around is stunning tho. If you get on an elevated point you can overlook the Red Sea and its riparian states, Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. All within a coastline of approximately 35 km.
Nothing else better than a good coffee for starting a new day. Even better in beautiful or interesting surrounding.
It’s happened i got an overnight stay just in Tsukim, just near the gate to the art village. And it’s just happened i woke up there on a Friday morning, the day when the art village is open for public, as they told me.
The Artists‘ Colony of Tsukim, also know as Zuqim, lies in the Negev desert, far away from a bigger settlement. A perfect place to follow your inspiration and create artsy stuff, as also more handy ones, like roasting coffee.
And coffee i got in the gallery, where beautiful landscape pictures of winterly Turkey were displayed. Ironically i did travel in Turkey just before and was fleeing the cold, while i enjoy the pictures here in the desert now.
Later i roamed trough the little shops, talked with a few artist and admired their art work. Paintings, pottery, fairy puppets, jewelry and wonderful creatures and things made from natural materials. And this coffee roastery, owned by a nice guy and his father. A good reason to stop by for another espresso.
„There must be a place to access the Dead Sea, isn’t it?“ I asked the nice young lady at the entrance of En Gedi. I had that experience of floating in the highly saturated salty sea twice when i traveled Jordan in 2014 (click here). Since i’m so close to that unique waters, i wanted have at least another short dip on this side of the sea.
„There’s a spa at seaside nearby, but it costs a fortune to get in“ she replied. „Better drive south to En Bokek. There’s a public beach without an entrance fee.“ she advised me. Thankfully i drove along the coast. The sun already was near the horizon when i arrived at that beach. The town provides changing rooms and fresh water shower at the sandy beach. Behind the beach are a few big, modern hotels and even a shopping mall. People enjoying to float on the water or sunbathing in the late afternoon sun.
Quickly i got myself into the water, and once again felt that strange sensation of the strong buoyancy. Literally lying on the water surface and looking over to the reddish mountains of Jordan, it felt like being on another planet, where gravity is different and light shines from an another sun. That thought carried on when i traveled into the night, followed by a cloud shaped like a space ship.
„There’s a sniper observing the area“ the Palestinian guide was pointing to the watchtower at the wall corner.
From there, a huge wall expands on both directions. This wall, also known as West Bank Barrier , was build by Israel for security reasons, as they claim. For the Palestinians it’s rather an act of segregation and further restriction of their freedom.
On the Palestinian side, it became a canvas for graffiti art. Palestinian and international artists put their messages and art on it, making it a huge board of resistance and shout for more freedom and peace.
rene bauer photography 