Hands up: who enjoys visiting foreign grocery stores not just to buy supplies but also to browse and be surprised? Yes, me too! I had almost forgotten how much I loved exploring them until I read a post by a fellow blogger about her love for checking out the food sections in supermarkets both home… Read More Lost in translation (in foreign grocery stores)
When it comes to wine, food, or art, my philosophy is simple: I know what I like, and I don’t need to understand all the nuances to enjoy something. I might prefer a house white to a so-called fine wine, or a colourful graffiti art mural to a painting by one of the great masters.… Read More An urban art ignoramus at Upfest
Cowley Road Carnival, undoubtedly my favourite annual Oxford event, took place on 2nd July this year. Carnival might not be something you immediately associate with the city mainly known for its historic buildings and their dreaming spires, river punts and and publishing houses, film locations of Lewis or Inspector Morse, and students roaming the streets… Read More Oxford with a twist: Cowley Road Carnival
When you spend a week and a half on the open road – as well as on some dirt tracks lined by fir trees – you have a lot of time to think and talk. The constantly changing scenery and lack of a particular plan apart from “let’s head towards x” feels liberating and invigorating, as… Read More On the open road: digital nomads in the making?
Although hubby and I usually rely on our legs and public transport to take us to places, in Finland we often hire a car to have access to the more remote locations we need to get to. Sometimes we pick one up from the main airport at Helsinki-Vantaa and go on a proper road trip through the country;… Read More Car hire discoveries
Nomadi from the wonderful Sillä välin maailmalla blog recently nominated I Basically Travel for the Sunshine Blogger award. Thank you so much – what a fabulous surprise! Here are my answers to your questions: 1) Who is your favourite travel company or do you prefer travelling alone? In my student days I travelled alone, often to visit penfriends in… Read More Sunshine Blogger Award!
When it comes to photographs, I’m old school. My favourite images from holidays, gigs, pub evenings, lunches with friends, road trips, and quirky places get printed and painstakingly attached with photo corners to the pages of huge albums. Over the years I must have filled well over 30 albums and there is no end in sight.… Read More Death of a hard drive
Old English villages can be picture postcards. Their traditional thatched cottages, narrow lanes, little stone churches, and well-tended gardens are utterly charming, like something from an era long gone. One of those picturesque places is Clifton Hampden, a Thames-side village in Oxfordshire, where hubby and I ended up taking our picnic gear earlier today simply because it was such… Read More Old-time charm of Clifton Hampden
In Finland May 1st and the day before are celebrated in a BIG way, especially but not exclusively among students. Balloons, streamers, ‘sima’ (a home-made low-alcohol mead), sparkling wine, funnel cake-like fritters, doughnuts, picnics, various student traditions, and a carnival atmosphere are all part of the festivities. Although in most parts of England May Day has… Read More Celebrating May Day the Oxford way
Long weekends are ideal for lie-ins and lazy days. Then, why on earth did hubby and I start a road trip so early on Good Friday that we were actually competing with the birds who would be up first? (A random robin won by a small margin.) The answer is probably ‘because we could’. The road trip bug… Read More Road tripping on Good Friday
Elämää, kulttuurieroja suomalaisena Barcelonassa
elämää Espanjassa ja milloin missäkin
Nuoren suomalaisen elämää Sveitsissä
Less waste, less stuff, sustainable living: steps towards a sustainable lifestyle
Tatu Japanissa
Kestävämpää elämää ja seikkailuja Pohjois-Atlantilla, Terceiran saarelle rantautuneen ulkosuomalaisen tarinoimana.
Miltä maailma näyttää kun tukikohtana on Melbourne?
Musings and observations of a rucksack traveller
I Basically Travel 