Thursday 31 December 2015

2015 - plans vs. reality

Year 2015 was full of exciting adventures. It was also a year when we changed our travel plans more than we usually do. We visited new countries, new places, learnt a lot and had a lot of fun doing what we did.

At the beginning of this year, I wrote a post about our travel plans for 2015. How did we do with it? Which of the places did we actually manage to visit? Here's a quick summary:

1. Spain. We wanted to spend a week in Fuerteventura. We were almost packed ok, just kidding, but we already had a detailed plan of what, when and in which order we wanted to see there, when we found out that our flight back got cancelled. So, sadly, we said bye bye to Fuerteventura and decided to go to... Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt. We no longer had any sightseeing in mind, though we still managed to see bits and pieces of the town itself.


2. Germany. We wanted to spend a long weekend in our neghbouring country. First, a night or two in the Tropical Islands and then a few more days in Berlin itself. Yes, we managed to do that. One night in Tropical Islands and two more nights in Berlin meant a lot of fun and a lot of sightseeing. And, on the way back home, we managed to see the Crooked Trees Forest as well!



3. Poland. Our main summer holidays. A hundred per cent successful. We did more than we wanted to do. We visited every single place we planned to visit: Czestochowa, Ojcowski National Park, Terma Bialka, Sokolica, the Three Crowns, Czorsztyn, the castles in Niedzica and Czorsztyn, Homole Gorge, rafting down Dunajec River, and also, on top of that, we managed to see the turn of Bialka (and get in its freakishly cold waters), climb to the top of Wdzar and get back down through the rock gorge, and hop over the border to see Slovakian Red Monastery. On the way back home we discovered the new land of Solilandia, hidden deep below the earth level, in the magnificent Wieliczka Salt Mine. I hope I haven't forgotten about anything.


4. Egypt. We wanted to cruise down the Nile River, see Cairo and spend two-three days at the coast. No, we didn't do that. We got informed a month before our trip that there's no chance for the cruise. That was our second attempt to cruise the Nile. We rebooked our flights and ended up exploring wonderful Thailand. Which was truly amazing. Despite the occassional rain. And despite the smog shadowing the beautiful sun (due to the controlled forest fires in Indonesia! I can't believe people do that :/).


So, all in all, two out of four turned out the way we planned them. The other two were more spontaneous. And it absolutely doesn't mean they were worse! Both Fuerteventura and cruise on the Nile are not cancelled, though. They are postponed.

On top of that, we managed to visit a few more local places, as well. Traditionally, we went to Bliziny to get lost in a corn maze. 


And we finally managed to go to a Railway Museum in Koscierzyna, which we've been meaning to visit for over three years now.






These are some of our adventures of 2015. And how was your 2015?

May 2016 be full of many more travels and adventures. 
Have an amazing year!

14 comments:

  1. It's always nice when you do more than you expected with travel plans! I don't often make plans, but I'm beginning to think I ought to so I can see everything I've always wanted to! Hope you have a great 2016 and safe travels!
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    1. Thanks! I started making plans public last year. But I always have something in mind. I wish I could visit all the places I would love to. Happy 2016 to you, too.

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  2. Fantastic!! How did you enjoy Tropical Islands? I'm just fascinated by the sound of it but haven't been yet. Also, your Poland/Slovakia travels are an inspiration to me! I'm coming back for tips later ;)

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    1. Tropical Islands is... a thing, for sure. Frankly speaking, our kids had way more fun than we did. I could live without it. The rooms they offer for the night are really great. Pools... are like pools. Apart from delicious breakfast, food there is... not so good, to put it in a delicate way. I will be posting about Tropical Islands once I'm done with Thailand, I promise. If you have any questions about our Poland/Slovakia trip, I'll be happy to help. Have a great year :)

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  3. Those crooked trees look amazing, like something out of Harry Potter.

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    1. That's true, it's a strange part of a forest. And in Poland, so far away from Harry Potter land :) I love the reference, though.

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  4. I change travel plans all the time. I am repeating a lot the places I want to visit this year so they become a reality.

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    1. Yeah, both Egypt (cruise on the Nile river) and all of the Canary Islands (including Tenerife, which I have visited already, but would love to come back one day), are still on my bucket list. Someday, maybe, I hope :)

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  5. Wow a lot of your cancelled travel plans ended up in (possibly) even more amazing trips! Spain cancelled with an Egypt replacement and later Egypt cancelled for a trip to Thailand! Nice recovery on those :D ... You sure had an action packed 2015 !!

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    1. That's true. It's good to be flexible, though, and not dwell on what you're missing, but to be open to the new experience awaiting you. We loved both of the unexpected trips. But still would like to visit the cancelled (or, as I call them, postponed) destinations.

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  6. I think that I would actually prefer Egypt!! I have always, always wanted to go there!

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    1. We still want to visit Egypt so much. But the political situation still seems to be unstable, unfortunately...

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  7. That is an impressive year of travel :) And wow those crooked trees are amazing!!

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  8. Great post! I've traveled Poland from East to West and North to South, most enjoyed it's nature, castles and Northern seashore. Best regards!

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