Edward Kopka

Rome

The final destination, in my big trip across Europe with my brother, was Rome. We both have an interest and appreciation for history so, when choosing our destinations for Europe, we wanted to make sure Rome was on the agenda. A big focus of our visit to Rome was seeing

Battlefields in Belgium

A few of the most interesting places I visited in Belgium were the sites of old historic battles. We only had a few days in this country and lots to see, with the main destinations being: Brussels, a couple World War I museums and sites, and the town we used

Pravčická Gate

From Prague we did a day trip to this natural sandstone arch in Czechia called the Pravčická Gate. It is situated in the north of the country, right near the German border. It was one of the top hikes recommended in Czechia and we were excited to explore it. I

Prague

We spent three days in Prague with two days to explore the city (the third day we went to Pravčická Gate). It is a wonderful old city with many beautiful and historic buildings. It is known as the city of a hundred spires because of the many old towers. We

Kraków Visit

After the hike at Zakopane we visited Kraków, staying with some friends who lived just outside the city. We visited some of the sights in the surrounding area, including Auswitz, and I also had one afternoon in the old town of Kraków. It was a beautiful day, the weather was

Kościelec

We came to Zakopane to meet an old friend of my Mum's, and to climb the Koscielec mountain peak. Zakopane is a mountain town in the south of Poland, almost next to the border with Slovakia, nestled in the foothills of the Tatra Mountains. I love this area

Warsaw Uprising

In April I left Europe from Warsaw returning to Australia for a few months. In the last week of July, I returned back to Warsaw where I spent one week working before I had some annual leave. During my leave I plan to explore more of Europe, while visiting friends

Gdańsk

My final destination in Europe, for this journey, was Gdańsk. I spent about four weeks here between the end of March to mid April. I had heard that Gdańsk is a beautiful city and it certainly did not disappoint. While I had been to other parts of Poland before, I

Bergen

Bergen was my gateway into Norway. I flew in and out from the airport here as it has the closest access to the hikes I wanted to do in Norway (featured in the previous posts). It is the second largest city in Norway, situated on the west coast in between

Buer Valley

While I was in Odda, I had a free day before my planned hike on Sunday. So what better way to prepare for a hike than by going on another hike! Not far from where I was staying is the Buer Valley and at the top of that valley is

Odda

I came to Odda, in Norway, with the intention of climbing Trolltunga mountain. Odda is a small town situated at the end of a long fjord, and it is a popular base for hikers wanting to go to Trolltunga, along with many other mountain based activities in the area. The

Tolkien Walk

In Lancenshire, the county I was staying in, is a place where J.R.R. Tolkien lived for a time. Stonyhurst Collage is located inland from Blackpool right on the border of the Forest of Bowland national park. This college is where Tolkien's son attended and he himself

Blackpool

When I was initially planning on going to England I had never heard of Blackpool let alone consider it as a potential place to stay. The reason I ended up here is because I found a hotel that wouldn't break my wallet, and it was targeted towards digital

The Lake District

North of Blackpool is a national park called the Lake District. Almost everyone I talked with, when I mentioned my love of hiking, recommended that I should go there and that it was really beautiful. I had a free day on the 17th of March so I thought that maybe

Preston Walk

In England, I was staying at a co-living place that was designed for digital nomads. The host likes to take the guests on walk and so on Saturday the 16th we went to Preston to walk through the city, its parks, and the surrounding countryside. The entire previous week there

Bristol

On my first weekend in England, the 3rd of March, I visited Bristol. The main reason I came here was to catch up with a friend who is living in England at this time. Together we explored the city. Mostly we walked around Bristol, looking at all the sites, and

Brașov

I first visited Brașov in late December when I came here to go for a hike in the Piatra Craiului mountains. The city looked really nice, it was close to the mountains and a good size with a walk-able city centre. I began wondering if I could stay here for

Bucegi Mountains

Before leaving Romania I was able to revisit the Bucegi Mountains. The main road, and railway, connecting Brasov to Bucharest passes right next to the these mountains. I had often seen them when taking the train through this region. Along these valleys, are many small towns and cities, like Sinaia,

Lespezi Mountain

While staying at Brasov, I had the opportunity to summit Lespezi mountain, a peak above 2500 meters. It is the fifth highest mountain in Romania. I was able to join a tour group organised by a guide I had previously hiked with. The winter route to the summit is a

Sighișoara

A colleague of mine told me I should go to Sighișoara while I was in Romania. This city was established by Saxons in the 12th century and today it is one of the best preserved medieval citadels in Europe. It is a deeply historic town and incredibly beautiful. On the

Joaca Saddle

I went back to the Piatra Craiului mountains on Saturday the 10th of February to complete another hike. A bit south to where I hiked last time, there was Joaca saddle (șaua Joaca in Romanian), a saddle in the foot hills of the main Piatra Craiului range, and I was

Skirama Dolomiti

On the Australia day weekend, I went skiing in the Italian Dolomites. I went with my friend and colleague who loves to ski. We chose the Skirama Dolomiti resort as we could get up to five free days of lift access with our 2024 Epic Australia season pass. Getting to

Slănic Salt Mine

I found out about the salt mine at the town of Slănic by accident. I had been researching a different destination when I came across an add for a tour to this salt mine in Romania. I quickly googled this mine and when I saw the pictures online I knew

Snowy Park Walk

On Saturday the 20th of January I went for an afternoon stroll in the park. The previous week had been long and I was so tired I slept in and rested for most of the morning, but by the afternoon I wanted to get outside. I knew there was a

Palace of the Parliament

The Palace of the Parliament is the administrative centre for Romania and hosts the Romanian Parliament. It is the heaviest building in the world (if you ignore the pyramids) and is the second largest administrative building. It was the grand vision of the communist dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu, who commissioned its