Everything changed in March, not just for me, but for all of us. Covid-19 became a pandemic and much of the world went into lockdown. Since arriving back in Denmark from my 2-month adventure in Scotland in mid-March, I’ve been stuck in the country. But I haven’t been lying on the couch this whole time; in fact, these weird times have inspired me to change quite a few things that I wasn’t happy about in my life. And of course, my quest for adventure continued even though I was homebound.
I usually write these monthly recaps monthly (funny enough!), but since I haven’t been on any travels to report about, I decided to join the three corona-months together in one long post.
My wonderful family and I, photographed in June. Photo: John Overgaard
Making money for future travels
Shortly after returning home, I visited my old workplace, the supermarket Kvickly Odder, to ask for a job. My former boss hired me on the spot as a corona-substitute. So the majority of my time has been spent in the supermarket, working long hours to top up my bank account for future travels.
For the first time in two years, I’m not broke! I’m super thankful that I was able to get this job, especially during a time when so many people have lost theirs.
On the journey towards weight loss
At some point in April, I looked at myself in the mirror and made a decision. For too long, I’d been ashamed of my own body and with the sudden realization that I had indeed become overweight, I knew that I had to do something about it.
I decided then and there that I would cut down on my portions, in fact I’d only eat 1,500 calories per day (except on those few days where I was on physically challenging adventures). I had already been walking 15,000 steps per day since February 1st, something that I’m committed to continuing with. I’m surprised by how motivatied I was and still am, and for the first time in many years, I smile at my own reflection. At the end of June, I was 10 kgs lighter and at the time of writing, I’ve lost another kilo!
At my biggest in Israel (December 2019) and -10 kg on Tunø (June 2020).
Committing to sustainable living
I don’t know why, but I’ve always been incredibly slow at changes. Take veganism for example. I knew for a year that I wanted to be vegan before I finally quit consuming dairy and eggs. I wish I was faster at change, but it’s the fact that I did change that matters, not how long it took me to get there.
During these coronatimes, I’ve done a lot of thinking about sustainability and our fragile environment. I’ve educated myself on the impact the individual has on the planet. How our actions impact not only nature but also other people. I don’t want to contribute to a dying planet and I also don’t want to be a bad influence on other people.
During these past three months, I’ve made many small and easy yet significant changes:
- Reusable vegan food wraps instead of cling film and aluminium foil
- Steel lunch box instead of plastic bags
- Bamboo or steel straws instead of single-use plastic straws
- Bars of shampoo, conditioner, body soap, body lotion, hand lotion, footscrub, shaving gel, facewash and lip balm instead of bottled liquids
- Natural, vegan sunscreen in an aluminium bottle instead of plastic bottled sunscreen
- Compostable bandages instead of the usual non-biodegradable ones
- Menstrual cup instead of pads (took some courage!)
- Wooden hairbrush and comb instead of the plastic alternatives
- Safety razor of steel instead of a plastic razor
- Toothpaste tablets instead of liquid toothpaste in a plastic tube
- Refillable, vegan and organic makeup from ZAO instead of the usual drugstore products
- Bamboo makeup brushes instead of plastic brushes
- Reusable swabs instead of single-use swabs
- Reusable tissues instead of single-use tissues for makeup removal
I was already using a thermos flask and bamboo toothbrush before making these other changes. ALL of these changes were made or will be made once my previous products run out.
But maybe the most exciting change of all is my new phone. My old Samsung (which a friend gave me in 2017) had seen the end of its days, and instead of buying a second-hand phone that may or may not last, I decided to invest in a Fairphone instead. I LOVE my Fairphone and hope to keep it for maaaany years to come.
Other than these easy swaps, I’ve decided to never again buy fast fashion and to only buy clothing and accessories from sustainable and ethical brands and second hand stores, although I will try my hardest to love and use what I’ve already got before buying new. I also vow to cut down significantly on flights and to continue my vegan lifestyle forever (of course!).
Embracing minimalism on my future travels
Continuing with my positive changes, I also made a few changes in my travel gear. I desperately needed a GOOD backpack after years of using my brother’s old backpack which was way too big for me. I decided to go with a 35L backpack from Osprey which is big enough to carry all of my camping gear, clothes and other essentials, but small enough to be carry-on on most airlines! No more waiting for luggage!
I also purchased a few other items for my future travels, such as the smallest rain cover I could find, compression packing cubes for my clothes and sleeping bag and the tiniest trangia set you’ve ever seen.
I will be posting a list of my new travel gear soon!
Monetizing my blog – becoming an ambassador for the local tourism organisation
In early May, I received the best email of 2020. I was contacted by Turistsamarbejdet Kystlandet, an organisation that works to promote tourism in the municipalities of Odder (my home), Horsens and Hedensted. They had seen my work on Instagram and were interested in doing a collaboration with me.
It was lucky timing since I was “stuck” in Denmark due to Covid-19, so I had plenty of time to explore my home region. We agreed on four areas that I should promote by going on a trip, writing a blog post and posting stories and pictures on Instagram. It’s my first paid job on this blog, and it is such an amazing opportunity that I’m forever thankful for. I’m hoping it will open some doors for the future so I can monetize the blog even further. Who knows, maybe someday I’ll be able to make a living off the blog!
The three blog posts I’ve done for Kystlandet so far!
Changing the layout of my blog
I’ve struggled with the layout of my blog for a while, and I’ve wanted to do something about it without knowing exactly what I wanted. But inspired by my new collaboration, I decided to look through hundreds of paid themes (instead of the free ones that I’ve used since I started the blog in 2015), and I eventually found the Aileen theme which I fell in love with. It’s clean, beautiful and perfect for a new era of – hopefully – turning the blog into a business.
I purchased the theme, installed it and instantly loved the way it looked on my blog. I’ve been tweaking it ever since, but I still have to go through lots of pages and blog posts to make sure everything looks clean and professional.
The new and improved layout!
Building my Instagram + FINALLY getting Lightroom
While making my blog look more beautiful, I also wanted to do something about my Instagram. I had noticed that my amount of followers was decreasing instead of increasing, and I had hardly any engagement on my photos.
The people that I enjoy following on Instagram show plenty of personality and aren’t afraid to engage with their followers, and I wanted to be more like them. So I decided to start showing more of my personality through the pictures that I take, the captions that I write and also the short story videos that I’ve started doing. I also spend more time liking and commenting other travellers’ content so I can get to know them better and vice versa. My engagement has become much better as a result, and I’ve also noticed a small increase of followers, which is wonderful.
Something else that I wanted to do is focus on better content, better captions and better pictures, something that encouraged me to FINALLY purchase Lightroom. It has been a life saver ever since – I honestly can’t believe I could live without it before. My pictures look so much better now and I actually enjoy the editing process now.
I’m hoping this motivation that I currently have for growing my Instagram will continue so it can become an even bigger part of my blog and my dream of turning it into a business.
My Instagram as it looks today. I still have to do something about the layout as I’m not happy with it yet!
Adventures in East Jutland
The corona era – as I like to call it – hasn’t been all changes, though. One thing that will never change is my love for adventure.
Denmark is beautiful. So incredibly beautiful. But it’s easy to forget sometimes when I jet around the world visiting one mountainous country after the other. But the Covid-19 lockdown situation forced me to stay on ground and instead explore Denmark and specifically East Jutland, the region where I grew up.
I’ve been on many small trips with my family; we’ve visited Himmelbjerget (‘the Sky Mountain’), hiked through Søhøjlandet (‘the Lake-Highland’), hiked in Mols Bjerge National Park and explored Den Gamly By (‘the Old Town’) in Aarhus. But these three months have also offered bigger and longer adventures as well as many firsts. I’ve done my first ever off-trail trek along Odder Å (the local stream), gone horseback riding and wild rabbit chasing on the island of Endelave, spent three days biking along Horsens Fjord, celebrated summer solstice on Endelave with my aunt, and eaten my way through the island of Tunø with my friend Amanda.
These three months turned out very different than I’d ever imagined, but I can’t say that I’m sad about it. The cancelled travel plans gave me a headache to begin with, but being stuck in Denmark brought me so much joy and so many opportunities, experiences and memories that I’ll never forget.
Destinations visited in April-June 2020
- Hov, Odder, Mols Bjerge National Park, Aarhus, Himmelbjerget, Ry, Vrads, Norsminde, Endelave, Horsens, Haldrup, Søvind, Sondrup, Amstrup, Alrø, Hjarnø, Glud and Tunø, Denmark
Highlights
- My new ambassador job. I’m so thrilled that I get to work with the local tourism board and help promote my home region!
- Losing 10 kg! FINALLY I found my motivation!
- The path towards a sustainable lifestyle. It feels great to finally be doing something good for the planet (besides being vegan).
- All of the quality time I’ve spent with my family. I haven’t been home for this long in years. It has been wonderful.
- That epic trek along Odder Å – my first-ever solo off-trail adventure!
- Falling utterly in love with the island of Endelave and its wonderful inhabitants (rabbits and humans!).
- Searching for flint tools at Hjarnø Sund, one of the most important Mesolithic settlements in Denmark.
- Sharing my love for Tunø with Amanda.
Challenges
- All of those travel plans that were cancelled due to Covid-19. In April, I should’ve toured Norway and the Faroes and in May, I should’ve moved to Nuuk, Greenland, to work over the summer. But I’ve made the most of the situation and seen a lot of Denmark instead.
- Working… Lol. I’m not the 9-5 type of person, so it has actually been tough on me to work in a supermarket for so long. I’ve enjoyed it most of the time due to my amazing colleagues, but the long hours were tough.
Most popular post
- The Island of wild rabbits: A weekend of activities on Endelave (Published in June) – By far the most popular post in 2020 so far is my write-up of my two days on beautiful Endelave
The other posts
April:
- My March 2020: A bit of Scotland and a whole lot of Covid-19 – Wow, it seems like forever ago that my younger brother and I left Scotland after two months of working at a restaurant/bar. But it was in March. A lot has happened since then!
- My 30 travel goals before 30 – Oh my, I reached the dreaded age of 25 – which prompted a look back at my previous 25 travel goals before 25 list and the writing of a new list of goals to complete before I reach the (even more dreaded) age of 30.
- Romantic Córdoba: Alone in Spain’s city of love – A piece about a beautiful Spanish city that I visited last summer
- Two days on Raasay, my favourite island in Scotland – Oh, Raasay. How I wish I could be there right now! Reading this post brings back lots of wonderful memories.
- To the lowest point on Earth: A journey to Masada, En Gedi and the Dead Sea – An adventure-filled day trip from Jerusalem that took my new travel buddy and I 430,5 meters below sea level!
- Undiscovered Skye: A walk to the secret beach and peninsula – While most of Skye is flooded by tourists, this place is a local secret that we (and now you) have the privilege of knowing about.
May:
- An afternoon visit to Dunvegan and Coral Beach – A write-up of one of many hitchhiking journeys on Skye.
- Follow the stream: Trekking along Odder Å from Norsminde to Oldrup – My first ever solo off-trail adventure explained!
June:
- Discovering Horsens Fjord: A three-day cycling journey in East Jutland – A write-up of my first ever solo overnight cycling journey along Denmark’s most beautiful fjord!
Most popular Instagram picture
The beginning of my 73 countries-project on Instagram showed a series of pictures from Afghanistan. This series was by far the most popular in April-June!
Coming up in July 2020
I can finally travel again! A new era begins.
The Danish government has decided to open up to a bunch of countries in Europe and most Schengen citizens can move (almost) freely within the Schengen area again. And with my neighbouring countries doing so well with controlling the pandemic, there’s no reason for me to stay put any longer. But don’t worry, I will be travelling responsibly – which means limiting flights as much as possible, wearing a mask in public, keeping social distance, avoiding large cities, camping alone as much as possible and cancelling all plans to quarantine if I get sick.
I had my last shift at my supermarket job on Sunday and now have two weeks off in Denmark to relax, spend time with family and go on two amazing sponsored adventures in East Jutland.
On July 20th, my travel life will resume as I head to Germany for a month. First off is a week-long Stone Age gathering in Albersdorf in North Germany and then a trip to the island of Rügen with my family. I CAN’T WAIT!
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