Hiorthfjellet – “The Arctic Challenge”

It seems I am that kind of person who likes to be exhausted on their vacation 😀 Of course, when going to Svalbard I had to take the toughest available activity there…

Mount Hiorthfjellet does not look intimidating at first as it is only 900 meters tall – nothing compared to the Swiss Alps I am used to. So why is it considered the hardest day hike of Svalbard, was I wondering? I have an answer now and wrote about it in this post, so if you would like to know as well – read on 🙂

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Wildlife safaris on Svalbard

When the topic of safaris comes up, Svalbard and Arctic in general are never among the first entries on the list, and that is utterly and desperately wrong!

The waters of this Northern archipelago are a favorite haven for many species of whales and seals, steep cliffs that surround the fjords are home to gargantuan bird colonies, and barren rocky mountains, desolate at first sight, nevertheless provide life and food for wild reindeer. Want to see all of this? Read on!

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Longyearbyen – the world’s northernmost city

Any travel to the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard almost inevitably starts and ends in the biggest city on the islands – Longyearbyen, or “Longyear City”.

Founded just a hundred years ago and having lived through the transformation from a bunch of miners’ barracks to a center of Arctic research and tourism, it has always been a refuge for explorers, rebels, and dreamers, the city of cold weather and warm hearts.

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Five Lake Hike at Pizol

Did you ever feel like there are just too many cool places on Earth and struggle to fit as many as possible into a single vacation? Good news! With this 4-hour hike you will not only visit Switzerland, but also (kind of) Norway and (almost) Iceland 🙂

This post is about one of the best hikes in Switzerland – Pizol “5-Seen Wanderung”, or Five Lake Hike. Great accessibility, a challenging ascent, and mind-blowing landscapes – everything you ever wanted from a hiking day trip!

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24 hours in Zurich

Going to Zurich and searching for some advice? Mine is very simple: do not come to Zurich 🙂

Seriously, visit Switzerland for its mountains, meadows with grazing cows, for mighty waterfalls and lakes still like a mirror. Cities like Geneva or Zurich are well-suited for a business trip or a layover before / in between the flights but not for a full-fledged vacation experience. Read on to learn how to spend a few hours in Zurich in between more interesting destinations.

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Taormina: sea, ancient ruins, and volcanic dust

It is so unbelievably sad that Italy is living through really dark times at the moment. For a traveler like myself it is double-fold devastating: only few countries can boast amazing landscapes, rich culture, and delicious cuisine compared to that of Italy. In these dire times, I would like to think about all the beautiful things that Italy is home to and celebrate its potential for cultural visits which we all can hopefully soon enjoy again.

This story is of a little town of Taormina which finds itself perched upon a tall rock on the Western shore of Sicily. Taormina is a tiny city and is probably not the first one that you think of when someone mentions Sicily. Most of the travelers use the town as the base for conquering Etna, one of the world’s most famous volcanoes, and, to be honest, so did we, but this little Mediterranean town certainly has a charm of its own!

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The Circle of Life: Mara

How many places there are on our planet that just force you to think “fantastic”, “unreal”, “unearthly”! Be it endless sands of a desert, black volcanic ground, or unmerciful, shining and blinding snow of mountain ranges – sometimes it is hard to believe that all of these actually belong in our world.

But today I would like to tell you about the most earthly world. With its wide rivers, green plains and forests full of life, and a dome of sky covered with perfect clouds, this place is the real Garden of Eden from which, for some reason, humans have banished themselves.

This post is about the second part of my safari adventure in Kenya. The first part – about the desert region of Samburu – can be found right here.

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The Circle of Life: Samburu

Like many other travelers, I, of course, have my own bucket list. Africa has always taken an important place on that list, but my position to actually checking it off has been so far: “Well.. maybe in 5-10 years when I have too much money and no idea how to spend them…” As you might have already guessed, the fate ruled otherwise, and this October I happened to find myself on an actual African safari (have no worry, no animal got hurt =)).

Here I learned what is a real animal horror caused by a gaze of a lion just a couple of meters away; woke up in the dark from cries of hyenas surrounding my tent; understood why Africa and Kenya in particular are invaluable to every human on Earth, since this is exactly the place that gave birth to humanity millions years ago.

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