Terra Cognita

My decision to stop working and dedicate the remaining good years of my life to traveling could not have come at a worse time. Corona went around the globe like wildfire, and it came with all kinds of stringent restrictions. Many borders closed and a lifelong dream evaporated into thin air. The original plan was to ride from my hometown Rotterdam to the far east of Russia. Long winter nights I researched interesting places to visit and put together possible routes through...
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My decision to stop working and dedicate the remaining good years of my life to traveling could not have come at a worse time. Corona went around the globe like wildfire, and it came with all kinds of stringent restrictions. Many borders closed and a lifelong dream evaporated into thin air.

The original plan was to ride from my hometown Rotterdam to the far east of Russia. Long winter nights I researched interesting places to visit and put together possible routes through Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kirgizstan and Mongolia. To eventually end in Magadan.
Russia was totally closed off in 2021 due to corona and it was hard to obtain a visa, especially a visa that allowed a longer stay and one that included multiple entries, so it would be possible to visit other countries on my way east and get back in to continue the journey to Magadan. The original plan was to be on the road for about 5 months.

The planning and dreaming were all in vain. I needed to come up with something else, preferably within Europe and a country with little or no Corona restrictions. Would that even be possible? Terra Cognita, it means the known world. It maybe sounds less adventurous than an overland journey to Magadan, but adventure can be found everywhere. I decide on Sweden, already one of my favourite countries in the world.