Gary’s Q&A

Listener question & Gary’s response · Transcript passage

Merei Milbee asks What are your must see sights in Scandinavian or Nordic countries? (& what’s the difference between Scandinavian and Nordic?)

First, let me address the easy question. There are five Nordic countries: Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland.

Three of those countries, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark, are definitely Scandinavian. Finland is a Nordic country but not a Scandinavian country because its language is not Scandinavian.

Iceland is usually not considered a Scandinavian country due to geography, but it is sometimes considered Scandinavian due to language.

As for what to see, I think the entire Nordic region would be an ambitious trip. I’d certainly visit the capital cities. I’d go and see the Vasa in Stockholm, on which I’ve done a previous episode.

You can see the northern lights, depending on the time of year. There are stunning castles in Denmark. You can drive the Golden Circle in Iceland and see many of the waterfalls outside of Reykjavik.

It all really depends on where you are going to be.