Just a week ago I was sitting on a friend’s couch, finally catching up with her and another one of my best friends who I hadn’t seen in weeks. I had a 6am flight from Norway to Boston the next morning, and as they asked my how my day had been, I started crying.
I had spent all day working in a freelance project that I desperately wanted to finish before getting on that flight for Boston. I got up at 6 and worked until my eyes were square from staring at my trusted iMac, and I knew I had to face defeat.
I genuinely felt as if I had been trying to study for a test the next day, and ran out of time. So when my friends asked how I had fared work-wise that day (they knew I felt under pressure, mainly because I showed up 2 hours later than I had planned on), I let the frustration show.
Travel blogging and freelancing full time is my dream job, and I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Still, there are some months that are just hard. And June has been one of them.
Monthly Update: June 2019
It’s pretty obvious where I went wrong. I took on too much. I said yes to a whole bunch of freelance projects, that I would have had plenty of time to do if I was going to be sitting at home all month.
But, instead, I travelled to 5 countries in 5 weeks, including 2 conferences and 2 press trips, with just 1-2 days back in my apartment in between. This lead to a lot of late nights on the road, hours spent working at airports and planes, frantic days in front of the computer at home, and overall a lack of sleep. Not to say I didn’t get my work done as planned, because I did. #SuperGirl
So, when I was visiting my friend, after 3 trips abroad in less than a month, and had barely finished unpacking and repacking for another trip the next morning, the exhaustion showed. I knew I had a 4 am wake-up waiting, and that I still had a shit ton of work to do. To add to that, I was heading to Boston for a conference, where I’d spend busy days learning, sharing ideas and networking.
So, I have learned the hard way that I cannot line up trips non-stop AND say yes to every freelance gig that comes my way at the same time. I need to pace it out a bit, and not be afraid to say no if I have to.
Now, let’s not dwell on the stress and frustration for too long (trust me, it didn’t last forever), because I have had some truly incredible experiences this past month, that I wouldn’t trade for anything in the world. I do tell my friends when I am complaining about “work” to take it all with a grain of salt because I literally wouldn’t want to do anything else. I am so lucky to get to set my own hours, pick my own destinations and say yes to the projects I’m truly excited about. It’s only when I have a few too many of those on my plate that it can get tiring, but I’m still learning as I go.
Since the end of May, I went on a super fun press trip to Gothenburg and Halland, Sweden. There, I got to cycle Kattegatleden, try some incredible Gothenburg restaurant, explore Varberg, and discover a side of Sweden I didn’t know before. It was such a great trip, with even better people, and I can’t wait to see more of my neighbouring country in the years to come.
Following the trip to Sweden, a friend and I went to Kent to visit some castles and drink some wine. Sounds like the perfect trip, right? It sure was, and I absolutely loved travelling in the footsteps of Anne Boleyn, visiting some of the castles from her life. I wrote a guide about it for anyone wanting to retrace our (her) steps!
Following our lovely trip to England, I was off to Italy for Traverse, which is a travel blogger conference. I spent a weekend at the conference in beautiful Trento (in northern Italy), learning loads and catching up with friends (and going to some killer parties). After the conference, I was off to the Dolomites for a press trip with Visit Trentino, and exploring this beautiful region was so much fun. It was such a great trip, and so cool to spend some time in the Italian Alps (an area I have never explored before).
After Italy, I spent a week working on a project back home by the fjords (and published this Bergen post), before it was time for my trip to Boston (and the above-mentioned cry-fest). I travelled to Boston at the end of the month for another conference, and it’s where I still am. The conference ended June 30th, and now (just two days later), I am sitting on another friend’s couch feeling a hundred times lighter.
I’ll be staying in Boston this week, and I am super excited to get to celebrate the 4th of July here! It’ll be my first day off in about 1,5 months, and I have never been so ready.
Why am I sharing this?
In short, I wanted to share this because I have considered doing a kind of monthly recap for a little while. I was reminded of this by Vicky, who mentioned that she used to do them. I wanted to write these in order to add an extra bit of personality to the blog. I mean, this is my personal little corner of the internet, right? Additionally, this gives you a better idea of my life and what I’m up to (I know it can be hard to keep up).
Another reason to do monthly recaps like this is simply to show you all sides of this glamorous lifestyle that is travel blogging. The good, the bad and the ugly. This month, for example, was one of the tougher ones, and I feel like it’s important to show you that nothing is perfect, even when it seems like it on Instagram. Still, I wouldn’t trade my hard days for anything, because the experiences I get to have are totally worth it!
So, what do you think of these recaps? Should I make it a monthly thing? Let me know in the comments!