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In this newsletter, a few Via Gaia news items, something about the upcoming renovation of our house, and our summer plans. This photo was taken from Rijnsburg with a view of Valkenburg. If I had taken two steps to the left, the photo would have been taken from Oegstgeest. In the photo you can see the small Valkenburg ferry, which we use frequently.
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Whoopwhoop! Published: Cycling guide of the St. Olavsleden
The cycle route where it all began, and where most effort has been put in. Where Murphy's Law often came into play (see previous newsletters) and where blood, sweat and tears have been shed. But now the guide is finally here, and I am cycling alongside my wheels with pride! Would you like to cycle the route? Or are you going on holiday somewhere nearby this summer, and would you like information about the sights? Or maybe you just want it for the sake of it? More information and ordering: St. Olavspad. You can also see some sample pages there. Note that this is a guide in Dutch. Probably there will be an English translation in the future. Let me know via the Via Gaia Contact page if you are interested.
Discount: purchase multiple cycling guides at once and receive a discount on the entire package.
- Package 1 In the footsteps of St. Olav – parts 1-4, 15% discount.
Info & Order: Package 1. - Package 2 In the footsteps of St. Olav - parts 2-4, 10% discount.
Info & Order: Package 2.
Click or tap to see all the routes in the map:
Coastal Pilgrim Route (Kystpilegrimsleia)
The next guide is already in the pipeline, covering the Coastal Pilgrim Route, or Kystpilegrimsleia in Norwegian. This summer, I still have to cycle two sections of it, but otherwise all the research work in Norway is done, and I have already started writing the guide. Because I have relatively little to do in Norway this summer, Remy is coming along this time, and we are turning it into a long holiday
Lectures and fairs
From now on, until April, I will be giving a number of lectures and attending a few cycling and travel fairs. The lectures are all in Dutch and all events are in the Netherlands and Belgium, except for the Pilger Messe in Berlin. If you are interested, you can find an overview of all activities on the Dutch-language page of Via Gaia.
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For the second time in a week, I was working on the train. I was busy placing icons on the maps of Sweden and Norway in the new cycling guide of the S:t Olavsleden. Everything was going well until the train had to make an emergency stop. I heard a bang and, to my amazement, saw all the icons flying through the train. In no time at all, page transitions, arrows and lots of droplets with numbers, figures and train stations were everywhere. The entire floor of the compartment was littered with them. Horrified, I looked from my laptop to the floor and back to my laptop. Everything was gone. My laptop screen showed blank maps. Somewhere among the icons, I saw the scale indication: 1 to 75,000. That's not right, I thought just before I woke up...
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A lot of hard work is currently being done on the cycling guide for the S:t Olavsleden. I had actually hoped to tell you that it was finished by now, but we’re not quite there yet, because… well, apparently there’s no blessing on this project. I’ve been working on this guide since 2019, and this past summer, when I cycled the route again, no fewer than three newsletters were dedicated to Murphy and his famous law (see e.g. here). I could easily give a fourth newsletter about writing and designing the guide the same title. But enough now with that Murph!
Due to circumstances, it will take at least longer than the promised November, but I’m still hopeful for publication before Christmas. The book will be published in Dutch. However, if there is significant demand, I will endeavour to obtain funding for this and publish the guide in English as well. Let me know if you are interested!
In any case, I can already show you the cover! Soon you’ll also find more information on the website about the guide and the route. If you’d like to reserve a copy in advance, you can send me a message via the contact form or email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
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(For readers of the English newsletter: this information may not be directly relevant, as all activities take place in the Netherlands and in Dutch. But perhaps some of our Scandinavian readers have additions or corrections. If so, please let me know!)
Fika, hygge, lagom… just a few Scandinavian words that are gradually becoming more familiar in the Netherlands. I must admit, I never use them myself here, but I keep coming across them in articles, websites, and magazines about Scandinavia. Most of these words don’t even have a literal translation, only a description. A pity really, because they all carry a positive feeling and mindset. Something we could definitely use in the Netherlands! And not only because autumn has arrived.
At the bottom of this newsletter, you’ll find a list of these words with their meanings.
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"Sweden is fän. I knew the country from Pippi Longstocking, Emil of Lönneberga, Nils Holgersson, and other books by Astrid Lindgren and Selma Lagerlöf. It wasn’t just the exciting stories, but also the atmosphere and the Swedish landscape that left a deep impression on me in my childhood.
That beautiful landscape is real! During my first long cycling trip in Sweden in 2009, I saw fields full of flowers and meadows with stone walls and wooden fences. Red houses with white window frames where children played outside. Crystal-clear lakes, babbling brooks, and endless forests with thrilling winding paths. And at night, my tent stood beneath the starry sky."
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We wish everyone a beautiful, healthy, and loving 2025!
May the coming year be filled with wonderful encounters, dreams, love, adventure, and silliness.
Plans
Lots of them! But we’ll share more of them in the next newsletter.
Via Gaia
Time to celebrate! Today, Via Gaia turned 5 years old!
I look back on five wonderful and intense years, during which I published three cycling guides and worked on great projects for music libraries and web developers.
My heartfelt thanks go out to everyone who has supported me and collaborated with me over the past five years.
New Guide
A new guide will be published soon (in Dutch):
Onderweg naar St. Olav
Fietsroute van Oslo naar Selånger
Translation:
On the Road to St. Olav
Cycling Route from Oslo to Selånger
This route is part of the series In the Footsteps of Saint Olav and connects two pilgrimage routes. Want to learn more? Visit: On the way to St. Olav (in English).
Kind regards from Remy Bosch and Gea van Veen
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I have learnt a new Norwegian word! Romjul, which is a Norwegian term for the period between Christmas and New Year. On Facebook and Insta, I see people frequently wishing each other 'god romjul'. For Norwegians, it is a time of rest and relaxation, being with family and friends, and not being disturbed by the outside world. A time to recharge and reset for the new year. I suggest introducing that in the Netherlands too. If only as an excuse to be lazy. Now we need to come up with a nice Dutch translation...
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Yaaaa, party here! The bicycle guide of the Kristians Route was published yesterday ????! After an unclear release date ("around 1 May", "no, week later", "no, maybe this week anyway"), completely unexpectedly it arrived yesterday after all.
And as you can see from the photos, Remy and I are already busy processing orders by now.
Would you also like to order the guide? It is in Dutch, but the maps are very useful. In the coming weeks I will write an article How to use the Dutch guide as a non-Dutch speaker. You can do so in Via Gaia's updated webshop. Here you will also find some sample pages. More information in English about the bicycle route: Kristians Route.
And speaking about the website: the Dutch version is recently updated and Remy and I are working on the English translation of a lot of articles. We think it will be done the end of May.
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...and a lot of wheels
Remy and I are going to do something exciting: we are going to Spain for three weeks WITHOUT our bicycles. We already practiced a bit last year to go on vacation without a bicycle and that went pretty well. Spain, of course, lends itself perfectly to a bicycle vacation, but this time we choose to travel through Spain by train and on foot. We both take a large backpack with us and stay overnight in hotels and B&B's. Writing an On-Two-Wheels newsletter is out of the question, due to the lack of two wheels. And counting the wheels of the train is such a hassle. So no newsletters during the vacation this time. What has happened to us? Well...
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