What I added to my Travel Christmas tree in 2014!!

Posted in Denmark, Norway, Spain, Sweden by Kristina @ Three Little Birds travel

It’s January 20th and I officially took down my Christmas tree. Finally!! It was such a great tree this year that I just couldn’t box everything up right away and was trying to delay the process as much as possible! My wreath is still up though…so that’ll be a battle for another day!

As most of you know, one of my best pieces of travel advice is “Pick one souvenir and stick with it!” My signature souvenir is collecting an ornament from every state or country I visit. My 2014 Christmas tree was FILLED with new ornaments that I absolutely adored and quite frankly, couldn’t stop talking about! I always forget all the amazing places I’ve been until I put that tree up and I’m instantly filled with joy and accomplishment!

This year I added Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Spain, Texas and two new Chicago ornaments (one for the Bean and the other representing a Beluga whale encounter I did at the Shedd Aquarium). I missed an ornament for Savannah, Georgia and I can’t seem to ever remember to grab one from Boston, even though I go multiple times a year!! Maybe 2015 will be my year to get those!

What souvenirs are you getting in 2015? What did you grab from your 2014 adventures?? Make sure to share your travel comments below!

11Jul2014

Whale, Reindeer and Meatballs…OH MY!!

Posted in Norway, Sweden, Travel Bites by Kristina @ Three Little Birds travel

During my two weeks in Scandinavia I had one goal in mind….I was determined to try as many Scandinavian dishes as I could! When I travel, I make it a point to try the local cuisine because it’s authentic and it helps give me a sense of how food changes when it gets to America.

Example…In Greece I didn’t hear one person scream “Opa!” when serving my saganaki. In Italy, I was never served olive oil and parmesan cheese for my bread. Maybe somewhere this happens, but I ate A LOT and it never saw it!

All I knew about Swedish food was from IKEA in the form of their meatballs (no judging). If I’m being truthful…I’ve never even tried a Swedish meatball from IKEA (gasp)!! I also heard rumblings that there was going to be a lot of fish, whale and reindeer meat. I don’t eat fish and I’m not sure about you, but whale and reindeer meat isn’t part of my normal diet.

All in all, I was absolutely DETERMINED to hunt down these foods and try them once and for all!!

First up…Whale! I found this at the famous fish market in Bergen, Norway. My sister and I walked up and down the market until we were sure we found the best tent! After a little help from the crew, we chowed down on a small portion of whale and potato salad (sorry PETA). I expected whale to taste like fish, but it actually tasted more like gyros…kinda.

A short distance away from the fish market, we were lucky to come across the hot dog stand that was on our list – Trekroneren Hot Dog Stand. This isn’t your ordinary hot dog stand though…this one serves REINDEER hot dogs!! I confidently walked up to the stand, paid my 55 NOK and nervously ate my first bite. I thought it would have a gamey taste, but it actually tasted like a normal hot dog. I was a little bit unimpressed, but happy that I had now crossed two items off my list!

Last on the list…meatballs! We found these all over Sweden, but decided on a small restaurant close to our hotel in Stockholm. Swedish meatballs are traditionally served with potatoes and lingonberry jam and that’s just how mine were served! They were tasty and I promise that the next time I go to IKEA, I will order some and officially compare the two!

What are some of your favorite Scandinavian dishes?? Do you have any other recommendations for future travelers??

6Jan2014

What I crossed off my non-existent ‘Bucket List’ in 2013

Posted in Alaska, California, Greece, Istanbul, Turkey, Sweden, Toronto by Kristina @ Three Little Birds travel

This week I decided to look through some of the blogs I follow as a activity given to me from WordPress via ‘Zero to Hero’ Challenge (30 days to a better blog in 2014). I stumbled on something that really caught my eye – 30 Tested Adventures for your 2014 Bucket List from Bucket List Publications. It’s a collection of pictures to inspire you while you’re creating your 2014 Bucket List and you should all check it out ’cause it’s pretty amazing! (Thanks Lesley!)

There’s only one little problem to this….I don’t actually have an official Bucket List! ….Gasp!!

I like to think that I’m a very organized person and I travel quite a bit so I should technically have one, but I don’t. I’m more of a traveling free spirit and have some ideas on where I would like to go but most of my trips just kinda…happen. I’m officially changing this for 2014 and going to focus on something more…official. Check out my newly expanded Andiamo Pinterest Page! For 2014 I’m hoping to cross off Carlsberg Visiting Center for a Brew Tour, Pulpit Rock in Norway, Vasa Museum in Stockholm, Tivoli Park in Copenhagen, stay in the town of Bergen to view the fjords of Norway and see all the amazing architecture in Dubai!

For a recap of what I crossed off my non-existent Bucket List in 2013…see below!

If you have a ‘Bucket List’ Pinterest Page, I want to follow it! Let me know the address and I’ll be sure to check it out!