Last minute deal: 7 days in Paradise. Intro

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Last minute deal: 7 days in Paradise, Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain

Should I spend my vacation at home? If so, what would I do? Eat potatoes and sign every time I look at the grey depressing landscape through the window? Day after day… Or should I waste all the money I have left on a trip? A little getaway that my soul, mind and body are desperately craving for? Although, I most likely will have to eat potatoes there as well. But it’s not a big deal. I think. In any case it’s better to eat potatoes with the ocean view than at home in front of the TV. Yes, as long as there are three holiday essentials – sun, palms and the sea – I don’t really care. I should definitely go. I must go. I need to go!

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Best views I’ve seen on my travels

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Countries I've visited by March 2019

So far I’ve traveled to 20+ countries. I know that’s hardly a number comparing to the achievements of more experienced travelers and pros in travel blogging. What can I say, we all have to start from somewhere, right? Yes, I’ve seen only 10% of our beautiful world but let me assure you, it’s more than enough to start a list of my TOP favorite spots. And I would like to share them with you.

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Travel on a budget: Silja Line cruise from Helsinki to Stockholm

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Travel on a budget, Silja Line cruise from Helsinki to Stockholm

What comes to your mind when you hear the word “cruise”? Don’t know about you but I always thought that it’s something very fancy and luxurious, something that only rich people can enjoy. But when I came to Finland, I realized that cruises can be a fun way of travelling at a reasonable price. And as it turned out, a budget traveler can also afford a cruise from Helsinki to Stockholm or Tallinn even without the Club One membership card.

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What to do in Stockholm in a day

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Stockholm, Sweden

My first visit to Stockholm was in December of 2005. And I have been traveling there ever since. It’s one of my favourite cities, but strangely in all these years I haven’t written anything about my travels to Stockholm. So, I finally decided to fix this mistake. Now is a perfect time for it because my memories are still fresh from our last trip that happened last week. And in this blog post I’ll share all the things I like to do when I am in Stockholm and tell about the places I like to go to.

I collected photos that we’ve made over the years, so don’t get confused when you see them. Some were made in summer, some in spring and some in winter. And yes, I haven’t been to Stockholm in the autumn. Yet.

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Budapest. What I’ve learned and first impression

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Buda Castle, view from Danube Promenade, Budapest, Hungary

We were standing in the airport, waiting for our ride. I looked around and noticed a local young woman dressed in jeans, T-shirt and light winter coat. A guide as understood. She was surrounded by the group of tourists, mostly youngsters. It seems they’ve just arrived in Budapest and were very excited to be here, they all were smiling and discussing plans for the holiday. Meanwhile, woman was writing down their names and collecting money. Banknotes were unfamiliar to me. “Maybe Croatian”, I thought. “Or Romanian”. But why would they use wrong currency in Hungary? And then it hit me… Currency wasn’t wrong, it was Hungarian!

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What and where we ate in Budapest

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Budapest in the evening, Hungary

We didn’t eat much outside during our stay in Hungary. Mainly because this time we had the whole apartment at our disposal, and we could cook at home at any time we wanted. And as I mentioned in the first Budapest post, closest food market Lidl was a couple of hundred meters away. So, we prepared all our breakfasts and some dinners in our small kitchen (this is one way to save money when you travel by the way). Nevertheless, we managed to visit few eateries. Some were good, some were brilliant…

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Social media vs Real life

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Vera Staha, Nuuksio National Park, Espoo, Finland

Social media became an important part of our life. People are sharing their best moments with the world. Beautiful clothes, luxury bags, expensive cars, exotic resorts, Michelin restaurant’s masterpieces on a plate, etc. Looking at these photos you might get an impression that bloggers have it all. But I think in most of the cases Instagram feed is not a reflection of the reality but rather an illusion of a perfect life. A pretty decoration, if you will.

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