23 countries, 23 years

I cannot help wowing to the view, which opens from the airplane window over Warsaw, the capital of Poland. Flying is at the same time something magical, but also a common art of moving from A to B. Having done it for 23 years now - almost every year, and several years multiple times - it has become a routine I don't specially wonder every time.

However, lately I have found myself considering this mean of transportation in a different way. Besides the wonderful places, eye-opening culture differences and conversations flying has taken me to, it also forms the biggest part of my carbon footprint. I'm fully aware of it, and the fact worries me, but at the same time I feel like I'm not ready to give up in the opportunities flying is opening.

Today at the airport I experienced the well-known but not so hyped feelings of a traveller: being hungry and tired. On top of those feelings I suddenly found pride. My mind associated the ability of navigating my way through the customs of the airport, with being independent, cool traveller ready for adventures, a world-citizen.

To find the right self-check-in and gate, showing your boarding pass in right places, and to understand the security check instructions even when in Polish, is at the same time such an easy routine and deep understanding of one social context.

This made me to think that if I would have children one day, and they would not be part of that social context, could I give them the opportunity to become independent travellers, world-citizens.

On the other hand, when it comes to children, we are obviously talking about the future. And future is the reality we are trying to save with considering environment in our decisions. And without the future, there won't of course be any forms of travelling, nor world-citizenship.

I tried to write about the contradictory of travelling and environment already before, but I couldn't find a tone of voice I would have felt my own. I bought flight carbon compensation and did research about their effectiveness.

I got the overview that for those companies I most frequently fly with, environment issues are taken seriously. Nevertheless, in the end paying for the compensation didn't take away the guilt, and mainly made me feel that it was, well, better than nothing. And clearly not beating the choice of not flying at all.

Travelling near and preferring moving on land are themes that have got my closer attention lately. One day I surprised myself with the thought of admitting the idea that discovering the entire globe will not be possible during lifetime. And therefore travelling slowly with trains and buses could be the added value worth seeking for.

Ideally I could end this post by promising that at least my near future wouldn't include flight journeys. However, I have to admit that a trip to India awaits. For these trips to Poland and India, the life I have built around me doesn't allow me to make the journeys without flying.

Being conscious about the environmental challenges doesn't make me less thrilled for the trips, but of course concerned. All in all, I think that at least I have started my journey of this consideration.

I would be very interested in hearing about your relation to flying in today's world. How is your journey looking currently?

Opportunities out there

+20 degrees Celsius, sunny weather and sightseeing. Good food, enjoyable company and stunning historical views.

Eye-opening conversations, people with purpose. Dancing on roses and broken plates. Impacting more than 700 children and youth in 1,5 hours and being impacted even bigger. Refreshing wind and the voice of waves.

Daring to dream about better tomorrow and how there is no impossible.

No one said going for the opportunities would be easy. But what matters, is to go and to own it. And that's what I want to do. And that's what I'm doing.

Imagine, if all the 'opportunities out there' would be opportunities right here instead? Then it might be hard to choose where to start, you may say. If that's the case, why not going to Kyrgyzstan? Yes, it feels like a random idea, but isn't that how the best ones always do?

Tozeur - weekend in the south

Those tourist shops in the middle of nowhere selling 'sea flowers'.

The road crossing the salt sea.

Waves of a different kind of ocean.

Paradise called Résidence Loued Hotel in the middle of my personal heat record, +42°C.

I have never seen this many palm trees at the same time. Welcome to the jungle for real.

Every tourist who appreciates herself goes to see the Star Wars scene when visiting Tozeur.

Sahara is only one type of a desert, but really a breathtaking one.

The mirage exists (even though you wouldn't believe it by looking this picture).

Appreciation towards water just got new definition during this trip. Even the wind coming from the window while driving a car was just burning hot, like being in a dry sauna, continuously. Many of the locals still had jeans or black dresses on. No idea how they survive. My feet were burning in sandals. The clothes which were wet of sweating could have been considered for a while as refreshing, but for that you need some good imagination. Challenging environment, new experiences, this was definetely one example of it.

P.S. Palm trees produce dates instead of coconuts here. Water bottle of half litre is useless. But cold water, it's heavenly.

Butterflies arrive

After having lunch in Helsinki with some cool AIESEC friends reality starts hitting. The reality which is making me nervous. I don't know how the passport control works, do I need to pay something? I don't personally know the people who are waiting for me, I know almost no one from the whole country. I don't know any other Finnish people there, if they even exist. Yes, to be the different, kind of makes me nervous. That's something I haven't really experienced before.

While sitting in the train to the airport heart is pumping quite a lot. For a long time I haven't felt so small. But it's definetely a good feeling. And it's what I wanted from this experience. To boarden my horizon and to make my world view wider. To face something I haven't faced before.

It felt so good to just sit there and wait, not having anything to due and organize. This moment of stopping allows also time to think about the life, to find those thoughts which might have been thrown away when being busy.That's the delight and challenge of travelling: actually needing to face yourself.