If I had been in Finland
I would have been
sitting there with them. ♥

Here I am on the other side of the world and what do I miss? Spending the midsummer in the countryside. On Thursday evening I was sitting and thinking that if I was in Finland there would be a big chance I would be in the car on my way to the countryside like so many other Finnish people too. It has been a tradition for a few years for me to spend the midsummer in the countryside with my best friend, her boyfriend, parents, cousin, uncle, aunt, a bit different mix of people every year. It’s so nice to relax, eat and spend time with others. We do have a habit of eating a lot! :D Breakfast, lunch, afternoon coffee, dinner, evening snack and whatever you feel like eating whenever you’re hungry. And no one minds if you want to a have a nap or you get up at midday. The sauna! How wonderful it is to get warm in the sauna and then swim in the cool water, and back to the sauna. Your hair feels so smooth after washing it in the lake! And the midsummer bonfire! I miss standing there in front of the huge bonfire watching the flames. But it’s the people who make the midsummer as great as it always is. And my dear friend made me part of it by sending me a couple of photos and greetings from everyone. It really made me happy.

Midsummer bonfire

I must say have really and truly great friends. I sometimes feel so bad when I don’t feel like writing and emailing and I just sit watching a movie or reading the news. It often moves me to tears to read my friends’ emails. The other day I was reading an email from a friend and it was a great way to start the day, but her words made me cry. Her words meant so much to me.

I’ve sat on the beach here countless times but still the scenery makes me stop and admire it. Today I sat there and look in the horizon, you couldn’t see where the sea ended and the sky started, it looked so beautiful! I have a huge amount of pictures taken on the beach but I couldn’t pick any favourite. All the moments worth taking a picture has been so wonderful that you just can’t pick one moment and one scene. Today’s mirror clear water and the horizon made me think of Fiji.

It’s really nice to work in a hostel but it can get tiring to meet all people and basically start the conversations with all the same things: where you from, how long are you travelling for, where are going to travel, what do you do back home etc. And since people don’t usually stay here that long, you go through that conversation every day for several times. It’s wonderful to hear all different stories but just sometimes it would be nice to just talk about things in your life with someone who knows you well enough so there’s no need to tell the history to understand the present. It’s sometimes frustrating because it’s not the same to write and an email to a friend as to sit face to face and just talk.



Paddle out for whales in Hervey Bay

There seems to be a curse on weekends when I’m having my day off. It’s usually raining and if not raining it’s really grey and it looks like it might rain any moment. Well, it gives a good opportunity to be lazy and just relax but it would still be nice if it was sunny. So today it’s grey and rainy but I still ventured out to have a look on paddling for the whales. Many people took part in paddling and equally many were watching from the beach. There were whole families on a kayak, a girl with a body board, people paddle boarding, a couple even had their dogs on their boards! :D

"A friend is one who knows you and loves you just the same."
- Elbert Hubbard -

The weather was just horrible over the weekend. And I must say you were able to see the atmosphere to drop with the weather. Everyone just sat quiet and looking depressed. I worked the weekend so I didn’t care about the weather so much but I must say I prefer sunshine. In the evening on Sunday I was literally like a kid when I saw a rainbow. I was just driving when I saw it in front of me with really bright colours, I was amazed. But when I parked the car and stepped out I was awestruck to see the rainbow forming half a circle. I almost run to my friend’s car and my first words were: “Have you seen the rainbow?” I’ve never seen anything like that before! There are no words to explain how amazing it looked. Too bad I didn’t have my camera with me.

When I heard a loved one back in Finland has been in a bad car accident I was shocked. I was relieved to hear it from him himself but still it stopped me, I was speechless. My hands were shaking and I felt tightness in my chest. I cried, I don’t know why, he’s not badly hurt, but still. I’m relieved to know he’s okay. Of course he’s traumatized and I can only wish that the time will help him to overcome what happened.
I googled the date with the name of the place it happened and read all the news I could find, even though they all said the same things. And I still have the news of the accident open on the browser and keep on reading them.
What bothers me is that no one told me when it happened. It happened a month ago, I was told today. I just keep on thinking that if he’s okay, why no one told me? Not to upset me since he’s okay? But why? I know I’m far away and I don’t have the kind of friends here as I have back in Finland but I’ve always said I want to know if something happens. If something happens I want to be able to make my own decisions what to do in those situations, not someone else to make decision for me by not telling. I know I’m probably overreacting being upset but I just hate it when I’m not told. Hearing bad news is never easy and it definitely doesn’t get any easier even though the time would pass, it still will be the first time I hear about it whether it’s the day it happens or a month afterwards.

Just a normal day.

When people come to Australia they are worried about spiders, snakes and sharks. I’d rather be worried about traffic accidents. There are a lot of poisonous snakes and spiders here but they are not likely to come and hunt you down! It’s my fourth time down here and I’ve seen just one snake in wild. I’ve seen a few spiders but they not usually bothering you unless you go and try to irritate them or they feel threatened by you. Hairy spiders look ugly and they can be poisonous, but common sense helps a lot. And sharks, I don’t know how many times I’ve heard someone ask if there are sharks here in Hervey Bay. There are sharks everywhere in Australia! But if you’re going to be worried about being taken by a shark, you should be even more worried about travelling by car or bus on the roads!

I should be starting to travel again at some point next month and it feels weird! I consider this my home so it feels like leaving everything familiar behind again. I know my way around here, I have a couple of friends here and I’m happy here. And next month I have to find the traveller in me again to go and find new places, to find new adventures, new experiences. I’m excited as well, but I have no idea where I’m going to head first. I thought I had planned it all but nothing seems so simple anymore. I can’t even decide whether to travel by bus or train! :D Luckily I still have time to figure out where I want to go and what I want to do. Everything is possible.

"You've gotta dance like there's nobody watching,
love like you'll never be hurt,
sing like there's nobody listening,
and live like it's heaven on earth."
- William W. Purkey -