New Zealand - the land of the long white cloud.

As we were walking along the narrow neighbourhood streets, we discussed the importance of our future lives. Unaware of what was to come and what was to become expected of us, we discussed the urge of breaking free from what we at the time considered to be a rut. We pictured how to break free and travel as if we'd never travelled before...

It was early May and the night was young. I thought to myself as we walked along the street: I will get out of here, I really will.. I can't wait any longer. I want to go now! Why can't I just go now? It didn't make it better when I was told that I would probably be stuck in Sweden for eternity. A scenario that I at the time considered to be "the end of the world".

Five years later with a rather declined urge to travel I found myself sitting on a train that would eventually take me to an airport, that in turn would take me to an airplane, and finally I would end up somewhere on the other side of the world. So there I was, sitting on the train waving goodbye to my family, but most of all I was waving goodbye to my grandmother. Not knowing if she would be there when I came back. You see, it wasn't just a vacation trip I was getting myself into. It was a four year long degree on the other side of the world (literally), and I couldn't help but feel sad as the shapes of my family dissapeared in the distance.. Thinking I wouldn't see them for a very long time, and with my grandmothers heart disease I couldn't help but feel helpless and confused over my decision to leave at this point in time.

With two very big suitcases, one backpack, my big camera bag and a laptop bag (yeah, I must've looked pretty hilarious), I managed to reach my final destination: Auckland, New Zealand. Unshaved, unwashed and with my winter cloths still on, I arrived to New Zealand summer, relatively unaware of how this year would turn out to be the best year of my life (so far).

The year of 2011 was the start of a new life. A life with experiences, self-belief and new friendships from all over the world. My two semesters at Auckland University of Technology (AUT) went better than expected and I managed to organize a university transfer to Lund University in Sweden for my future studies. My transfer to Lund University (LU) would turn out to be a great decision. I now had the money to spend on travels in New Zealand and Australia for a total of 1,5 months! and I would assure myself to be there if something happened to my grandmother.

Happy as I was after my final exams I jumped on the flight to Australia to spend two weeks in Melbourne and Sydney. The weather was relatively crap, but as I always say: every experience is a good experience! Either way, I found myself eager to return back to New Zealand to start my travels that would take me up all the way to Cape Reinga (top of North Island) and down to Stewart Island (the Island just under the South Island). Little did I know that I would make friendships that would open up posibilities for a Eurotrip this summer (2012)!