Dreaming and planning

I love to travel. There are so many places on this planet, that I yet want to see. And most places I’ve been, I want to see again. This summer, I will do both: I will visit a place I’ve never been before, and I will go back to one of my favourite places.


First, I will go to Ireland, yet again. In one month time, I will fly to Dublin for the fourth time. I just love this city, and the entire country. I can’t even say why. Well, there’s the beauty of the landscape – any breathtaking landscape will win me over instantly, and there’s plenty of that in Ireland. Then, there's the friendliness of the people – I love how they greet absolute strangers on the street and yes, they can fit an entire day’s weather forecast into one greeting. Whatever it is, I just yearn to go back to Ireland as soon as I leave, and it’s been four years, so it’s about time.


The second journey this summer will lead me to Finland. Finally! Pretty much exactly two years ago, in a small town in the state of New York, I met L., a young woman from Finland, staying in the US as an au pair, just like me. There, we lived less than five minutes apart. We became great friends and saw each other nearly every day. For more than a year now, both of us are back home. We’ve been talking a lot about meeting up again, and finally this summer it will happen. I will visit her in Helsinki. I can’t wait to see her again, and to see the country and people she told me so much about. I’m curious to see if all the Finns are as crazy as she is, and what’s really behind the sauna…