{"id":1599,"date":"2025-06-10T19:52:54","date_gmt":"2025-06-10T17:52:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/?p=1599"},"modified":"2025-06-11T22:42:22","modified_gmt":"2025-06-11T20:42:22","slug":"my-first-interview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/my-first-interview\/","title":{"rendered":"My First Interview"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

#throwback – May 30, 2024<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I wake up, quickly eat my Gr\u00e4ddfil with muesli, and hit the trail. Coffee can wait \u2014 first I need to get out of these bushes. I brew a cup later on, at a disc golf course, where I discover a new sport I never knew existed. The trail is beautiful, and the sun is doing its best. I feel grateful \u2014 for the life I\u2019m living now, for my children, and for all the beautiful friendships. A deep sense of happiness washes over me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Motala <\/a>comes into view, and I visit the town\u2019s church. A striking detail: a sailing ship hanging from the ceiling, prominently on display. I stroll through the town and park, when a young woman approaches me and asks if I\u2019m Dutch. I\u2019m a bit surprised \u2014 do I look Dutch? \u201cNo,\u201d she says, \u201cI heard your app say you need to turn right in 35 meters.\u201d I laugh \u2014 my Komoot app is giving me exact walking instructions. She works at a restaurant and tells me she was tired of life in the Netherlands. Since April, she\u2019s been living in Sweden \u2014 and loving it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I continue walking along the G\u00f6ta Canal<\/a> \u2014 a 190-kilometre waterway that opened in 1832. After a few kilometres I sit down at a picnic table and prepare my meal, watching boats pass by and people taking a dip in the water. Not much further down the path, I find the perfect camping spot. It\u2019s still early, but I don\u2019t want to risk ending up with nothing again. The spot is gorgeous \u2014 a jetty, a soft grassy field, and a view to die for. What more could anyone want?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At one point, a hiker passes by. It\u2019s the second time I see him \u2014 he passed by earlier in the opposite direction. His name is Peter, and he\u2019s in the process of starting a business that promotes walking. A few years ago, he and his wife took up long-distance hiking and experienced such physical and mental benefits that they now want to encourage others to do the same. He\u2019s fascinated by my story and asks if he can record a short video of me. To my own surprise, I respond enthusiastically: \u201cYes, of course!\u201d And honestly \u2014 I think I did quite well. When you\u2019re talking about your passion, it just flows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All in all, today more than makes up for yesterday\u2019s camping fiasco. Life is good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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#throwback – May 30, 2024 I wake up, quickly eat my Gr\u00e4ddfil with muesli, and hit the trail. Coffee can wait \u2014 first I need to get out of these bushes. I brew a cup… More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1691,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[7],"tags":[164,98,191,63,121],"class_list":["post-1599","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blogs-en","tag-blogs-eng","tag-sabbatical-2024","tag-saint-birgitta-ways","tag-sweden","tag-wild-camping"],"yoast_head":"\nMy First Interview - FOOTSTEPS OF FREEDOM<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/my-first-interview\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"My First Interview - FOOTSTEPS OF FREEDOM\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"#throwback – May 30, 2024 I wake up, quickly eat my Gr\u00e4ddfil with muesli, and hit the trail. 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I\u2019m so glad I got vaccinated against the tick-borne virus that circulates here \u2014 different from the Lyme disease bacteria we have in the Netherlands,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blogs ENG"","block_context":{"text":"Blogs ENG","link":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/category\/blogs-en\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Dag-29-plafond-kerk.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Dag-29-plafond-kerk.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Dag-29-plafond-kerk.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Dag-29-plafond-kerk.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Dag-29-plafond-kerk.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":332,"url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/and-now-vacation\/","url_meta":{"origin":1599,"position":2},"title":"And now\u2026 vacation!","author":"Marnix van der Lijn","date":"18 May 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"May 18, 2024 I enjoy the morning sun and get up feeling relaxed and calm. I decide to take a sort of rest day today to write\u2014suddenly I feel the need. 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Finally, it\u2019s happening. My big journey is about to begin. I\u2019ve taken a year-long sabbatical and I\u2019m planning to walk across Europe for a whole year. You really don\u2019t need to go far to see beautiful things. 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