Where Are You at 3am?

Usually I’m far gone into the land of dreams at 3am, but tonight I’m spending my night at a place that feels somewhat familiar to me, although I’ve never spent the night here or anywhere like it before.

I’m spending my night at Oslo Airport Gardermoen.

It sounds all kinds of dramatic, but it isn’t. I have a super early flight, so early so that there weren’t any morning buses or trains that would get me here in time, and I didn’t want to spend a ridiculously amount of money to book myself into an airport hotel for a just a few hours.

That left me with the choice of taking the last train to the airport that would arrive at around 1am, and that would give me a good five hours at the airport before my plane will take me up, up, up and away!

I was curious to see how spending a night at a place like this would actually be like, and I found it to be way more comfortable and interesting than I expected.

I definitely wasn’t the only one who didn’t want to waste money on a hotel. There are quite a lot of people here. You can see them sleeping or reading, talking with friends, or doing some late night working. Maybe they are writing too!

While being surrounded by all of these travelers, I found myself lost in one of my favorite activities; people watching.

My eyes drifted from traveler to traveler, and I started thinking about where they were from, where they were going, and what kind of stories they would be able to tell.

The travelers come in all different shapes, ages, and colors, and I find myself very calm and relaxed even though I’m surrounded by bright lights and sounds of maintenance workers. It’s so different to be here in a place that I’m used to seeing crammed with people and loud with voice, suddenly being a place of rest and stillness.

I even managed to sleep for an hour on one of the benches.

Now I’m not saying that I would prefer to sleep at airports. I love the softness of a good bed way too much, but this was a way more pleasant experience than I expected it to be. I still have about 2,5 hours left before I’m starting a 16 hour long journey, but even though I’m tired, it’s off to a good start!

I’m guessing most of you are sleeping, or you are in time zones that takes you far away from 3am at this writing moment, but wherever you are, I hope you’re smiling!

And if you find yourself other places than home at 3am, I hope you make the most of it❤️

Another Morning, Another Hostel!

Yes, I’m traveling again! This time, I went by bus over night from Oslo, over to Sweden, and then, at 7am this morning, I found myself in Copenhagen!

It’s been a little while since the last time I visited Copenhagen, and this time around I’m just here for two days. I basically came here for two things;

The Jason Mraz concert and to get a new tattoo!

And I’m very excited about both! I will also try to get quite a bit of writing done too. Arriving here so early gives me a good amount of hours to write and film some here in the city.

I love coming back to Copenhagen. Just like London and Amsterdam, it has such a wonderful atmosphere! First time I’ve traveled here by bus though, and I have mixed feelings about it.

I had reserved the front, single seat on the second floor, which gave me quite the view. The price was really good as well!

Now let me share some of the things I learned for future long distance bus rides:

☀️ Bring a pair of extra warm socks. You’ll want to take of your shoes, and your feet will get cold, which makes it hard to fall asleep, and just uncomfortable.

☀️ Wear a coat or bring a blanket. Again, it can get really cold!

☀️ Travel pillow!! I considered bringing mine, decided not to, and regretted that decision! I think my neck is bitter as hell because of it too.

☀️ You know those rude people that insist on talking extremely loud on their phone? Well, they will do the exact same thing, even when it’s in the middle of the night. Bring a headset, preferably those fancy ones with noise cancellation! The regular Apple headset worked to block out the worst for me.

☀️ Wear comfortable clothes! You’ll be sleeping, or just sitting, in a somewhat seated position for many hours. Make sure you’ll be as comfortable as possible. Those skinny jeans that feels like they’re hugging your calves, after a few hours of sitting in them, it will feel like they’re trying to squeeze the life out of you! Bring them wit you instead. I went for some flared, stretchy pants which made it possible to try to fold myself into in unnatural positions to try yo get comfortable 😜

So, now I’m having my morning coffee at the Hostel of this trip, and I feel ever so much wiser after 8 hours on a bus. Let’s see how much of my new wisdom will be put to use on my way home. I’m buying warm socks though, that’s for sure!

My dear lovelies, I wish you all a wonderful day! I’m about to finish my coffee and then head out into a city I know somewhat, to act like a proper tourist and get to know it even better!

If you want to follow me around in Copenhagen then add me on Instagram! I will be posting throughout the trip, as I always do😊 You can click on the picture above to get to my Instagram👆🏻

Was it Fruitful?

So I went to London, I ate plenty of good food, drank the whisky and met some wonderful people too.

But Christina, you went to London to write! I didn’t see a lot of Insta stories of you doing that, so how fruitful was the trip really?

It was even more fruitful and creative than I imagined it would be! And the thing is, when I get into the mood of writing, that’s pretty much all I focus on, so that’s why I don’t show that much of it. And I can imagine that me posting a lot of pictures and videos of just me in a bar with my computer would be very repetitive and not really all that interesting to watch in the long run.

But I got down over 10 000 words on my novel! 10 000 words in 5 days!

There’s something magical with the relationship between me and London. My creativity blossoms as soon as I get a little bit of that London feeling.

A nice walk by the Thames, a coconut latte from Pret and then I’m all set. The words just pour out of me, and it feels so good!

And the best part of it all, is that the words have kept coming since I got home. It feels like I took a little bit of that London magic with me home this time around, and I’m so grateful for it!

I will be sharing more about my trip in the next couple of days! Have some wonderful restaurants to recommend to you guys, and maybe also a few personal stories to tell!

But now, I have to get back to my novel!

Hope you are all doing well❤️

Oh, and let me know; Do you have any places you go where you just get instantly more creative, or is that just me? And if you do, where is it?

Let’s go to California! #TaTuesday 5

#TATuesday – Where I Go to Think in Oslo

Tag Along Tuesday 2 – Bucharest!

This One is Important!

“What do you think the meaning of life is?”

Have you ever gotten that question? Ever sat down with a glass of wine and pondered over it? Has it ever kept you up at night? Made you stressed and insecure about your whole existence?

If the answer is no, then good for you! Kudos, high five and a happy dance from me to you!

If the answer is yes, then I know how you feel! I used to be there. I used to stress and worry. At times I had trouble sleeping because of all the big questions that were just too massive for my brain to process.

And yes, you read that right, I said I used to.

Do I worry about things? Oh yes, from time to time. I don’t think I’d be much of a human if I didn’t.

Do I worry about the meaning of life though? Absolutely not!

A couple of years ago, and I can’t for the life of me remember who asked me, but someone did ask me about what I thought was the meaning of life. Whenever I got that question I would usually just shrug and tell the person that I had no idea. For some reason though, I wasn’t able to shrug it off that time around. It stuck with me for days, and then suddenly, when I was out for a walk, these words came to me:

The important thing is not to find the meaning of life, but to find what it is that gives your life meaning. 

It came to me then and has never left me since. And with those words came a profound sense of relief. A way of thinking that I had no idea that I actually needed, but has helped me so much in finding my way to the life that I live today.

So many of us just settle for everyone else’s ideas of what our lives should be, and don’t even consider the idea of our dreams becoming a reality.

What gives your life meaning? Have you asked yourself that lately? If you haven’t, then I think it’s time you should! Sit down and have a quiet moment with yourself, ask the question, and really think about it. And if the things that give your life meaning aren’t something you’re doing on a regular basis, then I would highly suggest that you consider adding some changes to your life!

Why on earth would you waste the precious little time that you have on things that don’t matter? Do you value your time that little? And no, I’m not saying you should drop everything, quit your day job and hope for the best, unless you really want to and dare to. I wish I could. I wish I could afford to take that leap, but I can’t. Instead, I’ve made a very conscious choice when it comes to how I live my life. I constantly ask myself if the things that I’m spending the most amount of time on are the ones that give my life meaning. If the answer is no, then I look for ways to minimize those tasks. If the answer is yes, then I look for ways to be able to do more of them.

Even if it’s just adding a few minutes more of doing that which gives you meaning every day, that’s a way of starting to move in the right direction! We all have to start somewhere, right?

The important thing is not to find the meaning of life, but to find what it is that gives your life meaning! 

Make that list (either an actual one or a mental one) and then remind yourself of your answers every day. And if something on it doesn’t give your life meaning anymore, then remove it! It’s your list, so who the hell is gonna tell you not to?

It’s your life, and it’s so precious and unpredictable. So with that in mind, can I just ask one thing of you? This one is important:

Please, don’t waste it ❤️

The Beauty of Old

If there’s one thing that I will take with me back from Bucharest as the thing that really struck me about the place, it’s the random and detailed beauty of the city. So much has been broken and destroyed, or is slowly decaying, but if you look around there are beautiful details everywhere. Some are big and in plain sight, and others are more hidden. 

The details are amazing. I find myself sitting down with a coffee and just let my eyes wander from building to building, trying to map out the stories and the details. Trying to picture how it looked back in the days. It’s hard to imagine, but still, there’s a certain magic in trying. 

I’m pretty sure it would’ve been something to see all of this when it was first built, but then again, it has it’s own kind of beauty when it’s all mixed in with all the happenings and history of the city. 

 

If I had the time I would’ve dedicated a full day to just walk around and take in all of the old buildings and the atmosphere that surrounds them. 

Maybe next time 😉

None Do it Justice!

Some places are so massive that one gets awestruck just by the magnitude of the place. The Palace of the Parliament is just such a place, and I feel like no matter how many pictures I took of the place, none do it justice.

It’s the largest administrative building in the world with a height of 84 meters, an area of 365,000 square meters and a volume of 2,550,000 cubic meters. The building has 1100 rooms!

Apparently, it’s the ninth most expensive building in the world with a total construction cost of  3.0 billion US dollars.

Last night we ended up at Wine and Street Food Festival at The Palace of Parliament. The food trucks were all situated outside the palace and all the wine was inside. It was quite a special experience to be able to walk around and get tipsy inside this massive building. There are so many details inside this building. From the chandeliers to the staircases. It’s nothing short of a bit insane! I can’t help but wonder if there’s anyone who’s ever been to all the rooms? And are there secret ones?

I did some research about this place and there are rumors going around that the place is actually haunted by ghosts. Who doesn’t love a good ghost story?! I definitely need to look more into this!

Fascinating! Utterly and truly fascinating!

 

The Perfect Souvenir

Some people get postcards, others get fridge magnets. I get ink!

I’ve talked about my tattoos a while back, but I wanted to touch upon it once again now that I’m sharing a picture of my most recent ink; the one I got in Amsterdam!

I actually got my very first tattoo (at age 17) when I was on holiday in Denmark, so it all kind of started like that. It took about 3 years before I got the next one which is the only ink I’ve gotten in Norway. About 6 years later I was in Las Vegas with my family and my sister and I got tattoos together. That’s the moment when I fell in love with colorful, traditional style tattoos. A year later I got one in Texas. Then about 18 months after that I got one in Madrid. And now, Amsterdam.

I probably won’t be able to get one EVERY time I travel, but I do love the traveling ink! They are the perfect symbol of how every adventure changes me in a way. Every time I travel, I learn something new about the world, and about myself.

Every tattoo that I’ve gotten has a certain meaning to them. Nothing is random, and it’s all very much thought through. For me, it is more than just art. It’s a sort of map of who I’ve been, where I’ve been and where I want to go.

I got my most recent ink at Hanky Panky Tattooing in Amsterdam. It’s right in the middle of Red Light District, hence the name. They were fantastic, and I’m so happy with the result! Highly recommend this studio if you’re looking for a place in Amsterdam to get some ink.

The story of this one has a lot to do with my heritage. My last name is Dutch, so there is some Dutch blood running through these veins. I used to travel a bit to Holland with my dad when I was younger, but for some reason, I didn’t go back for 18 years. I have no idea why, but I do know that my love for adventure was what made me spread my wings and brought Amsterdam and me back together. And when we were reunited, I fell in love once again. I am learning Dutch, as you guys know, and I knew that I wanted a piece that had a connection to my heritage.

So that’s the story behind the swallow and the word “AVONTUUR”.

As you may know, I am now in Bucharest. Will I get a new piece here? I’m not sure yet, but I have looked up some studios. So I guess we’ll just have to wait and see!

Can’t wait to share my Bucharest experience with you guys! And if you don’t want to wait for the posts and the videos, then add me on Instagram! I will be posting Instastories throughout the whole trip. I even did a live tour of the Airbnb loft that I’m staying in! Go check it out! Click on the picture below: