Greetings from Canada! I am still a tramp and still traveling, this time alone. It’s been a while since I wrote something. It took time to start transforming all this into words… Now that things have settled in my mind, it is time to say goodbye. And a new hello, as I’ve decided to start a new blog and see how it goes (BalkanBee). Anyhow:
The time has finally come for me to say a few words before this blog is left on its own. Although all this was initially meant as a way to communicate with our friends and families, I’ve received a few messages from people I’ve never met saying this blog helped them go on with their own projects and realizing their own travels. Thank you all for reading.
Please, do not think that ending this blog means that either one of us thinks travelling without money, or almost no money, is a project destined to doom. What happened to Tomi and me is a private matter. People are like lemons, Castaneda wrote, if you squeeze them too much, they loose shape. Part of my ego feels like I should defend myself and say all that happened but I like Castaneda’s saying and will not go into any detail.
What contributed towards my idea to split ways is one of my best friend’s wedding, which will take place in Portugal in July. It would have been hard for me to hurry south and try to hitch a boat so I asked my family to help me get to Europe. They did. (Thank you!) The cheapest option was to fly from Costa Rica to Canada in January and then from there to Portugal in July. Perfect! (Or almost perfect, I did manage to mess up, more on it later.)
Some would think it’s absolutely crazy to fly from infinite summer to the harsh winter – but not me. You see, I am always positive and I love to travel and share smiles, but I am also a calm, quiet person. Tomi is more of a restless traveler, always wanting to go on. I couldn’t keep up with him. Not without a cost of loosing my sense of security. You see… I am very susceptible to stress and no matter how fun and awesome and amazing hitchhiking around without any money may sound, and no matter how strong you believe that the feeling of security comes from within – it is stressful to be homeless. It is stressful to always be among cars, the chaos of traffic, the dust, heat and bugs, to always look for food and shelter. Mind you, we did always find these things, mostly thanks to Tomi, but I could never get to that point of not feeling at least a bit stressed. It was amazing and unforgettable, but at the same time I needed turn the next page. After 16 months of constant fast-paced travel it was time to slow down and rest a bit.
To tell you the truth, if I was older and wiser and more altruistic I could have sensed these feelings earlier and acted differently. Instead I was stuck in this hippie mindset and, even though I was getting exhausted, I kept telling myself that if I just stay positive everything will be fine and I will eventually reach the point of feeling secure. But I couldn’t get there. I’m young and silly and I hurt Tomi and I am sorry for that. I hope taking it a bit slower and staying for a while in Finland will help him face the source of his restlessness.
So. Winter, here I come! I am no longer travelling strictly moneyless. I never really was. I am still a tramp. A tramp with a workaway profile. I’ve been enjoying the winter, the solitude and introspection as well as the people I meet. I volunteered for a moth with a family with kids and loved it. Also, I finally started taking care of my body and am trying to get rid of the parasites I’ve had since Mexico. It requires lots of self-determination, some natural medicine and a very special diet – something I couldn’t do while constantly travelling in the tropics.
Canada has been very good to me. Hitchhiking is easy and the people welcoming. Also, I am super excited! I was just slowly exploring the south-eastern corners of Canada when this more-than-awesome opportunity to go volunteering in Yukon popped up! It includes loads of road trips, hiking and camping, with the gear and guide – for free! It sounded too good to be true, but it is true and it is another dream coming true. Exploring the great white north! Thus… In the next few weeks I will be hitchhiking all across Canada towards the next adventure.
To come back to Portugal and the fuck-up regarding the ticket to Europe. I do have a flight to Portugal. And it is in July. But, POrto is not the same as POnta Delgada and I was so silly I managed to have my family buy me the cheapest ticket (no changes or cancellations allowed) – to the second one. Thus – I have a ticket to the middle of the Atlantic! Sao Miguel in the Azores. They say it’s the most beautiful island in the whole world. Hopefully it is – as I have no means to buy another ticket and, unless I stumble upon a cash job over here, I plan to tramp on the island until I hitch a boat to mainland Europe. So much about getting to my friend’s wedding……
If you want to read about my adventures across Canada and getting into the wilderness of Yukon, as well as accidentally flying to the middle of the Atlantic, I’ll post on the new blog: BalkanBee . I’ve never had my own blog and suck at reading blogs, but I’ll give it a try and see how it goes. (Before it was mostly Tomi writing and me taking pictures.)
NowGasm 