The floorboards creak as I sneak out of my dormitory, my striped socks slipping on the worn yet polished wood. The clock in the entryway reads five past five in the morning. It’s one of those metal ones you see latched on to high school hallways, constantly reminding us we are again running late.
At least, that’s what it reminds me of. I for one am usually running late. Anybody who knows me knows in accepting the terms and conditions of friendship, the constant tardiness is an accepted risk. And while everything to do with traveling centers around time to some extent (itinerary, transport schedules, check-ins and checkouts of lodging) and I try to be mindful of that, I feel I need to offer you readers an explanation for my tardiness with you. An explanation for both my weeks-long absence and to explain my soon-to-be micro-posting presence.
Some Back Story
A few weeks ago, there I was, musing on packing hacks from dollar store items. Jazzed to write the article to coincide with my own concurrent phase of packing, I was hoping to release that, as well as introduction of my upcoming travel itinerary as I made my way to Sweden and Spain through hostels and workstays.
Oh, what a beautiful dream.
The thing about reality is the same with good literature: the protagonists are presented with obstacles and conflict. And, despite one’s best efforts, to accept the inevitability of things that are out of one’s control. But I digress.
I only recently learned what an SSL was. As explained to me by my good friend Scott, when asked why I hadn’t been posting, I explained there was some sort of security issue. I thought it was a fluke on my phone (oh, silly me) but it was way out of my Boomer-like naivete of anything technological. I had looked up ways to remedy it, and to my chagrin though not surprise, I understood little to none of the jargon of the procedures suggested troubleshooting procedures. There was an issue with the SSL on this blog site, he said, and that prohibited me from accessing the wordpress feature due to it being unsecured. So not only was it impossible for me to access, but even if I could access the site, it might very well remain invisible to site visitors if it remained unsecured.
Customer support said the problem could be simply fixed, with the condition I wait for it to be updated. When still nothing was functioning, a separate tech had accessed the site. She was perplexed as to why the connection wasn’t coming through when it was labeled as updated. After what had to be an off-audio discussion with another IT crewmember, she promised it would be working in a few days.
True to her word, it did and does.
Two packed bags, four four flights, and three sleepless nights later, I’m ready to write. I reach for the cord in my packed bag. . .for my enthusiasm to grind to a halt. The charger I packed? Yeah, definitely not in the same country. After frantic googling, I find an electronic store within walking distance. One trip to Centralstation, several hours and one shower later, and here I am, charged. The financial hit was pricey (440 SEK = $40 USD, a part of me is still silently screaming from that moronic self-inflicted wound) but it is what it is. Plus, the clerk at the store was incredibly helpful. And tall. And very, very cute. . .
But I digress.
A Midsommar Night’s Dream
Maybe it’s my lifelong liking of the Shakespeare comedy of the same name. Maybe it’s my penchant for Swedish pop music and artists (Boy in Space, Sandro Cavazza, Avicii, Felix Sandman, etc.) But somehow the unassuming Midsommar muscled its way onto my Bucket List. The Midsommar traditions were something I wanted to explore and experience for myself. Back when all this business about Covid-19 was still impeding air traffic and borders, I was unable to go. Last year I visited Sweden briefly in order to attend Sandro Cavazza’s last public concert (I should post that story, come to think of it. . .), and I fell in love with Stockholm and the Swedish Cousins I was privileged enough to connect with. And while I’d like to say I vowed to return hell or high water, happenings with family and financial plans pushed my travel plans further and further back in 2023. The celebrations of Shakespeare’s birthday and Norway’s Constitution Day that I had wanted to attend were no longer options now that I had plans to hike Spain come July.
But then there was June. tentative date to leave come June. Ana ‘s schedule only permitted her globe-trotting time in July. With the regularity of dogsits and temping with the floral warehouse, I could have stayed until July with more of an income.
And yet.
Blue and yellow flags. Green maypoles erected in distant fields. Wooden tables covered in smorgasbord. Wildflowers and country strawberries. Crowns of flowers and virgins making wishes for true love. . .all of these and more filled my imagination. Free from Covid-19 restrictions, there was no 9-5 holding me down. Applying for a credit card just in case I most likely wouldn’t have enough to make it to August, I re-evaluated my own determination.
Some things are worth the expense. But it’s not with money that you make the biggest payments of all: every time you step out your front door, you pay with your own determination; faith amidst the unknown; trust in your own two feet; finding answers in what you seek.
Back to the Present
Outside, the midnight sun has already peeked its golden head over the horizon, lightening the gray clouds with its solstice-ean promise. The largest celebration of the year, competing with that of Christmas and Easter, is about to happen throughout the country of Sweden – and all of Scandinavia, for that matter – celebrating the sun and all its deeply-rooted earthen symbols even in this strange modern world.
And I’m so there for it.
While keeping private diaries of travels, I’ve never kept a public one. With residents of an assisted living facility on my mind, I made the goal of posting here so anyone who wanted to could see what I’ve been up to. And not just the visual stuff on Instagram, though I absolutely love photos and video reels. I’m talking some real Hemingway vignettes of people, places and things abroad that is the real stuff of traveling: the fair, the FUBAR, and the detailed reality of it. So here is my attempt to log the moments, large and small, of my current travels. While they will be written slightly after the events (aka when and where I can access the wifi and electricity) but will more or less be in live time corresponding with their dates.
Now that I have proper wifi and charger, I can be here for y’all. I wasn’t sure about the connecting flights being post-worthy, but with homeless encampments and Indian curry poutine, I want to share just how wacky yet wonderful the past three days in transit have been.
So stay tuned, Scotty. Some days will have short posts, others longer, but every day I can guarantee their will be something or someone worth writing about. So tune in here, and check out the Instagram posts at my account on theroadstaken23.
See ya soon 😉
With Love (and now a break for breakfast),
Amanda