Zambia travel diary – Day 4

(2015.09.05 I’ve got the world’s greatest grandma. She says she doesn’t care what colour her hair is so when I added some pink to mine she said I could add some to hers too. I put it at the back of her neck, because she suggested a pink fringe but I think it would’ve made mum a bit mad.

(Okay, so apparently that’s all I wrote that day))

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My grandmother. This picture doesn’t look like her. Not like her personality, the way good photos sometimes do, but it looks like someone so I like it anyways.

2015.09.06 I’ve lost count of the days. Or the energy to count them. Maybe that says more. I’m in that moment of wanting to express everything, because what even is my life, at the same time as I’m living a lot, thank you very much, so I’m not sure as to when I should find time for that expression.

Today I went to a kitchen party. It was different. Try to imagine the most stereotypical traditional african party, but then mixed with I don’t even know. It’s one of the ceremonies leading up to the wedding and the woman getting married is brought in covered with a chitenge (piece of fabric in bright patterns that they make clothes of or just use as it is around the waist) and then there was something about the groom being led in to uncover her and give her gifts, but they did it in a bit of a strange order. No one knew exactly what was happening except for the older woman who led everything and walked ahead of us while dancing (shaking her booty). Everyone simply did what she said while everyone cheered and they played loud music on the drums and sang. We laughed a lot.

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Where I sleep and/or hide from insects

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Lizard next to the shower, they’re everywhere but since they don’t crawl into beds or suitcases they’re my homies anyway.

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Ego pic before the kitchen party

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Warm nights (but wrapped in a chitenge anyways). Night!

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Zambia Travel diary – day 2

2015.09.03  10.55 (Technically, even though my understanding of time is a blurry mess by this point. We ate lunch at 1 am). Kenya airspace. This journey has been a journey. Because I love travelling, I really do, but there is a point where your body feels so weird from lack of sleep mixed with not being able to go anywhere that makes me itch. I shouldn’t complain though. We just flew by Kilimanjaro, life’s pretty good. A weird thing I’ve thought about though: It feels like I’m not leaving anything at home. Some things that would be a bit heavy of course, my books and creative stuff, but everything I use on a daily basis I’ve brought with me. Apart from my bed (which I’m regretting). But I could live like this. I could. From a bag with my favourite clothes. Laptop and camera and notebook. I could.

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Streets of Lusaka

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20.05. Lusaka. It feels like it’s the middle of the night. I’m sorry for my ungratefulness. For being spoiled. For intending to make all this about me. It’s difficult to be so far away from your comfort zone, but I know that I need it. Let me grow from it. I thank God for showing me people beyond the ones who think just like me.

Zambia Travel Diary – Intro

2015.09.22 I’m writing this on an airplane that has just entered Swedish airspace on my way home from Zambia, Africa, where I’ve spent the past three weeks without any internet or TV. What does one do  on those evenings in a land where the sun consistently sets between 18-19 and you can’t walk out by yourself in the darkness? Not a question my generation is great at answering (though still can answer better than many people freakin’ think). So I read a lot and as a natural consequence wrote a lot and it turned into some sort of travel diary, and during the next month or so I’ll be publishing it here, every now and then. You’ll be able to find it under the tag Zambia travel diary (if you were to lose it) and I really hope you enjoy!

Sneak peek:

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Radio Silence

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I’m writing this while eating breakfast, since I overslept slightly this morning. And in about an hour I leave for the airport and go to Africa. Arrrgghh, it’s raining and like 12 degrees but tomorrow I’ll be in Zambia!!!

So obviously I can’t blog when I’m there. I think at least, because there will barely be any internet. Meaning this site won’t be updated for about three weeks, so this is a short goodbye I suppose. See ya soon! IMG_2048

I don’t know if I’ve told you but..

I’m going to Zambia!! In a week actually, and now I’m feeling slightly stressed out because I have a ton of things to do. Also I feel like I have to take some time just longing for it since I love longing for stuff and that’s not something I can do later. Three weeks I’m gonna be away for and probably without any internet connection at all, so radio silence will probably occur for most of September. On the other hand I think I’ll have some pretty nice pictures and stories to share when I come back :))) (Wow, I think I’ve never used smileys on this blog before, is this the start of a new era??.) (No.) IMG_1937 IMG_1940 IMG_1942 IMG_1945 IMG_1979 IMG_1982 IMG_1983

Some images of my attempt at packing and the sky and stuff.

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Look at these pictures and guess what time it is. IMG_1459

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Or well, I suppose the title kinda gives it away. But yeah, Swedish summer for you. Bright as day at 02.35 in the night. And it’s hard to go to bed when you’re in love with the night and can have it without darkness. Also, I love painting when the world is asleep.

IMG_1466Good night wishes to all of you. (And even those of you who dream best when you’re awake, don’t be like me and forget to sleep.)

Problem of The Artist (The Ability – Ambition Gap)

There are two sides to any sort of creating:
  1. What you want to express, say, do.
  2. Your ability to do it.
The first one, many people have, the second one, not so many. Because the first one is instinctual. Natural. Inspired by the outside world, but also everything you are, letting it out. The second one means fighting for the first one. Because it all comes down to communication, making other people see what you see, whether it’s through a text or a video or a picture or something completely different. And this is where it’s easy to give up, because a lot of time the gap between the first and the second point will seem impossible to get over. For a great part of my life, I’ve never even thought about the fact that maybe one day I will be able to paint down what I see in my head and be happy with it. But I believe that day will come. I hope it will, because I have to. That’s how you continue. Because everything you create and become unhappy with is a part of what you will create and be happy with, later. It’s the warm up. You’re building up to it. Do it publicly or secretly, just know that one day you will see your soul in a creation. And if the first thing, your want to express something, is strong enough to get you through the ups and downs of the second step, then I suppose you’re an artist.