Out of my comfort zone

Sometimes it’s good to experiment and do something you normally wouldn’t do so easily. That’s what I did. Out I went, out of my comfort zone. I intentionally stayed for two nights in the shelter by the beach in Skällinge. I knew I definitely wouldn’t be alone there and, because of the nice weather, it might get quite busy. For Swedish standards, that is.

Still not my thing

Am I glad I did it? Yes, definitely. Should I do this more often? Not really. I enjoyed observing people, hearing people, and sharing in their enjoyment, but it was reaffirmed once again that I feel more comfortable alone or with far fewer people. This would have been fun for a couple of hours, but an evening and a whole day? That’s just not my thing.

Nice encounters

That doesn’t take away from the fact that I absolutely had nice encounters. With Denis, a Romanian who works on a dairy farm in Sweden during the summer. He shared the meat he had put on the barbecue for ‘my’ hut. When he saw my things in the shelter, just under two meters from the fire pit, he somewhat sheepishly asked if he could make a fire. Of course! Luckily, the smoke also went the right way. But still.

With Oscar, who came to swim. He has lived in a van for two years and spends winters in Rome. He is my age, and we talked about the importance of staying active. For him, swimming has become addictive, just like hiking for me. We agreed: the better addictions.

With Jennie, who once had a Dutch boyfriend in Bergen aan Zee, near Alkmaar, where I lived. She still remembered the ‘dirty’ words in Dutch…

No sleeping in

Well, at least I sleep wonderfully and get to rest nicely. Although the church bells throw a spanner in the works. Right at seven o’clock in the morning and in the evening, they ring for five minutes straight. Loud and incessantly. I couldn’t find out why. There was no mass or any other service. No alarm clock, but bells early in the morning. And extra early coffee.

Accommodation: Skällinge