A Slovenian Girl Who Travelled the World for Three and a Half Years – Part 1

I know Špela from our university days, when we went together on an Erasmus exchange programme. Quite a few years have already passed by. As it is nowadays, we kind of stayed in touch through social media because we went separate ways after our studies. But we had something in common: a passion for travelling. A few years back, I saw on Facebook that Špela was in Sweden. Shortly after that, she was in Iceland. The countries were constantly changing, time was passing, and all her posts and photos were screaming happiness. And, although I saw quite a piece of the world myself, I was a little envious – I mean, she was travelling alone, wow, and in such interesting countries, and for sooo long… You get it, right? As soon as I found out she was back in Slovenia, my first thought was that I had to ask her everything. And I'm sharing our conversation today with you. Enjoy.

Špela, why did you go travelling? Why did you make such a long trip and did you decide already in the beginning that you’ll be on the road for three and a half years?

Back then I was working in Stuttgart, Germany, and I had a feeling that I was just working, that all my time was wasted by work and my life didn’t have any meaning. My big passion is dancing, swing dance and lindy hop to be precise, and dancing was where I also met a lot of different people. And I travelled a lot because I went to different dance camps throughout Europe. My desire to travel was getting bigger, but I was scared: “Should I go alone? It costs so much money…” I was also under the influence of social norms: “You have to study and work, work, work to achieve a good position, which will grant you financial independence. When you’re older, you’ll have all the time to travel.” I felt that this wasn’t for me and I wasn’t going to wait. But I still delayed my trip. As you can see, it didn’t happen overnight. But then one day I got the feeling that my computer was my best friend and partner, and I decided I had to change something and take the first step. I applied for a Working Holiday Visa for New Zealand, which I also got. On a Monday in April 2017, I got the confirmation mail and, on Tuesday, I already wrote my resignation letter. Before I flew to New Zealand I followed my passion and danced my feet off at a dance camp in Sweden, then I travelled a little around northern Europe. The initial plan was to take a six- to twelve-month-long break and use that time for travelling. It was unimaginable for me to go somewhere, even if for three months. Now I think this is nothing. Back then I was 30 years old. I had already experienced a lot in life, so I decided to take it slow on my trip, not to drink or party too hard. I was more interested in the cultural understanding and how people think there: “What does family mean in Africa? What does a Vietnamese woman think about love? How important is business New Zealand?” I wanted to check all the stereotypes, which I was shown in the media.

If it’s not a secret: what had you been doing for a living before you went travelling?

I was a sales and marketing manager for a Slovenian company. They bought a company in Germany, where I worked at the end.

How was it like in New Zealand in the beginning?

I was scared. I didn’t know how I would get around, where I would live. I managed to get a job through a group on Facebook. Luckily, social media are great help when it comes to a situation like mine. I worked in a restaurant and I did some babysitting, and this was enough. I wanted a simple job, something completely different to my previous work, where I would get a task and it would consume my free time when I was not at work.

How did you pick your destinations? If I recall correctly, you started in the Balkans, then moved on to Sweden, then northern Europe, and then you worked in New Zealand and Australia. After that, you spent some time in Asia (The Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia and India), then moved on to Africa (Tanzania, Mozambique and South Africa), and afterwards to Armenia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Israel and Jordan before you headed to New York and Canada. How did you choose these places?

By intuition and based on recommendations from interesting people I met on the road. I went to New Zealand and Canada because of the Working Holiday Visa; the rest was just following the flow. I was really upset when I couldn’t arrange my visa for South Africa and I had to come back all the way from India to Vienna in Europe for that. I struggle with heat, so Australia was a challenge, but I was still impressed by how different and remote this continent is. Perth was extremely hot. This is probably the reason why I am drawn to colder places. My plan was to go around the globe. The number of visited countries was less important, but I still wanted to go to South America after being in the USA. My bank account wouldn’t survive a trip to Antarctica because my travels are budget friendly. For the end, I wanted to come back to Europe and conclude it all with El Camino.

Did you come back prematurely because of the pandemic, or do you have destinations that are still waiting for you (South America and Camino)? Are those still your plan or has everything been set aside?

I want to build a bit of a life and incorporate everything I’ve learned into my lifestyle. I don’t want to travel just so that I can spend all my time somewhere indoors, not being able to do anything. When it’s possible, I’ll go, but until then I’ll try to make the most of my time. I also need to process all my memories. For example, I only uploaded my photos and never really went through them and actually took a look at them. I did get quite tired on the road, so it’s quite comforting to know where my toothbrush is and that everything’s in the same place. Many people wouldn’t understand this, but I’m taking it as a holiday and recharging my batteries.

What do you say about this covid situation? At the beginning of the pandemic, you were in Canada, then you even travelled to the USA, and during the pandemic you came back home. How did it feel to travel during this time and how did it feel when you were “trapped” in Canada?

Many people think that you can’t go anywhere right now. But I think that this isn’t the case. You just have to follow the rules – you need to wear a mask, disinfect your hands where you have to, follow the rules and just go. I know many people who are in Tanzania or in the Canary Islands. The tests are a bit of a hassle, but if you want to travel and see amazing nature somewhere else, you’ll do it. So, I don’t really like it when people say you can’t go anywhere. It can be even better, going somewhere, because places are less crowded, roads are empty, and airports are empty. I’m quite disappointed in how Slovenia has changed during my travels. There’s so much negativity all around now, so much envy and aggression. But our country is still so beautiful and nice.

I had a very long conversation with Špela about this and that. So, don’t miss the next issue where we continue our interview. This time we’ll talk about female solo travels, money, and insurance. You can find Špela on Facebook or Instagram.

Stay tuned – until then you are welcome to follow my travel blog Slovenians Travel.