Episode Details

All I want in my life is tons of adventures to look back on.

The train ride to Copenhagen from Hamburg was incredible because the train would drive into a gigantic ferry boat to continue the journey at sea. By the time we had settled in it was close to sunset and I was mesmerised with the view from the top deck of the boat. 

Rikka, my Danish friend who I had met in Barcelona two years ago in a Spanish lesson, came to pick me up at the station in Copenhagen. She had invited me two years earlier when she left and we'd always kept touch. Although we had only briefly met and shared a meal once in Barcelona, I felt like we had been friends for a long time. Rikka struck me as a very gentle woman who had great taste and philosophy in art and life when we first met. She was also passionate about art and had been dedicated to helping artists get their work seen and appreciated around the world for many years. She was very warm and open with me, taking good care of me while I was in Copenhagen and showing me around the museums and cafes of downtown Copenhagen. There is something very special about reconnecting with old friends I met on the road in their home cities.  

Then Palli decided to fly out from Reykjavik in Iceland and visit me in Copenhagen! Palli and I became really close after I visited Iceland early that year, and we had traveled to many cities together after my visit to Reykjavik. He had come to stay with me in Barcelona in March for a week. Then we visited Vilnius in Lithuania in May. We also had a summer camping trip to the Westfjords in Iceland and had often talked about visiting Copenhagen together. 

During the three years I was in Europe, I had been out on dates with some incredible men, however the only one I had a unique connection with was this Icelandic man. Palli was tall, good-looking, intelligent, strong in character and had a heart of gold. Although he was six years younger than I was, we could talk for hours on many different and interesting topics. Most importantly, he could understand my humor and always responded back with quick wit. I enjoyed looking at his grey eyes and hearing his life stories and traveling together. 

Palli was also the only person who I had shared a train ride with on this Eurail journey, which made him even more special and unique in my life. We took the train from Copenhagen and went across the border to arrive in Malmo in Sweden, where we rented an Airbnb. I finally had some rest after 40 days of non-stop moving and meeting people. With Palli, I could be totally relaxed and let my guard down, and even be vulnerable at times. I felt Palli was the person who understood me the most in the world.

While