Sometimes your inner child starts tapping you on the shoulder. Not because anything is wrong. Not because your life is falling apart. Just because somewhere beneath the routines, responsibilities, and endless to do lists, your inner child may be wondering when you’re going to have some fun again as an adult.
Mine had been whispering for a while. Life was ticking along as it always does, and I’m grateful for the life I have created. Work is busy in the London corporate world, my work diary is full, and I love living in the peaceful Sussex countryside. I was doing all the normal adult things; plus seeing my friends when we could.
But somewhere amongst the work meetings, commitments, and daily routines, I realised I was craving something I hadn’t felt in a long time. Wonder, spontaneity, love and adventure. The simple joy of following curiosity without needing a reason.
So I did something wonderfully impulsive. I booked a last minute trip to Denmark and the Arctic Circle. Not to escape my life; but to reconnect with me, and it felt like taking a deep breath. I had this quiet refusal to adult!
My travel bucket list was winking at me again, and I chose Scandinavia this time to go scratch the surface for two weeks, and explore with no fixed itinerary. The best way I like to travel.
Copenhagen and the art of slowing down
The city hit me softly. Colourful buildings lined the canals, sunshine dappled the cobblestones, and cafés spilled over with people content to sit for hours without looking at their watches every five minutes. Back home, busyness is often a badge of honour. Here it felt almost foreign.
I wandered the streets without a plan, camera in hand, capturing reflections on the water, the kissing steps, colours of the harbour buildings, yachts, and anything that caught my eye in the moment. I took boat trips, explored art galleries, wandered through castles, played on the carousel at Tivoli Gardens, treated myself to tasty meals out, drank coffee like a queen, talked and smiled with strangers, and indulged in Smørrebrød and cinnamon buns that tasted like happiness and looked like eye candy.
Copenhagen reunited me with hygge. Not as a hashtag, but as permission. To slow down, to exist without proving anything, to notice the world while it passes by. For the first time in a while, I realised joy isn’t always in big milestones. Sometimes it’s in the quiet, and small everyday moments you almost miss if you don’t slow down.
I left Copenhagen with a big cheeky smile on my face, my heart full of love and was awarded ‘Happiness Ambassador’, by the Happiness Museum! Worth a visit if you want to embrace more joy and happiness in your life. As I said to a friend, I’ll be back to explore more as I fell in love with Copenhagen.
Heading North into Norway
Leaving Denmark I made my way to Oslo for a one night stay. I got as far as the hotel and had a slow evening to catch my breath. All plans to run around fell away, as I needed a pause. I wasn’t bothered having been to Oslo before on a work trip. I had a good rest, ate the most divine food for dinner, and caught a plane the next morning to Tromsø. It’s located on the island of Tromsøya at the Arctic Circle, off the mainland at the top of Norway.
Leaving Oslo and flying further north, the landscapes became bigger and wilder. Fjords stretched endlessly, mountains wore blankets of snow, and skies seemed impossibly wide. Flying above the Arctic landscape, I felt the scale of the world in a way you can only understand from above.
Below me were vast mountains, frozen waterways, and untouched wilderness. No roads, no buildings, no notifications demanding attention. Just nature, raw and magnificent.
Unexpectedly, tears filled my eyes. Not from sadness, but from relief. Relief at remembering how vast the world really is, far beyond email inboxes, work deadlines, and the things I sometimes worry about.
The mountains didn’t care about corporate performance reviews. The fjords weren’t interested in anyone’s expectations. Nature simply existed and I felt lighter. There was no adult rule book, just me doing whatever I felt like in the moment.
The Arctic Circle
The Arctic Circle didn’t feel like a destination. It felt like stillness. At first, the quiet was almost loud. Gradually it softened me. My thoughts slowed, my body relaxed, and the parts of me I had tucked away temporarily for everyone else began to stretch and blossom again.
Standing in snowy landscapes, breathing in the sharp Arctic air, tasting fresh snowflakes, watching light move across mountains, the ever changing colours of the sky, sensing snow falling and taking photographs of nature’s playground felt like a gift. For the first time in a long time, I wasn’t thinking about what came next. I was simply where I was.
Meeting a Sámi Shaman I discovered drumbeats, stories, and the heart of Sámi culture. The Shaman welcomed me into their local community and shared their northern ancient wisdom. I’m grateful to have experienced the opportunity to partake in their cultural and transformative project. I enjoyed the conversation, the laughter, coffee and connection on a snowy day in the Arctic. I learnt more about inviting the elements of Earth, Water, Air and Fire into our lives and having time together through a sacred ceremony.
Postcards, coffee, and small joys
A few days before I flew home, snow fell softly outside a café window while I sipped a warm cappuccino and wrote postcards to friends and family. No deadlines, no urgent emails. Just paper, pen, and reflection.
I’ve always loved sending postcards. Choosing them carefully, writing little messages, and thinking about the person receiving them. It’s a small thing, and it brings a smile to my face sticking a stamp on a handwritten postcard.
Sitting there watching the snow fall, I realised the things that make me happiest are often the simplest. Connection, adventure, creativity, being in love, beautiful landscapes, people I care about, and really good coffee and Scandinavian cinnamon buns.
Coming home
Returning home was strange. Work, bills, and laundry were still there. But something inside me had shifted. Travel didn’t magically solve everything, but it reminded me there are other ways to live, other rhythms to follow, and other definitions of success.
Life isn’t meant to be postponed. It’s happening now; in the small details, unexpected moments, laughter, love, connection, and wonder. My inner child Cally was absolutely delighted by this adventure. I intend to keep her company, let her have even more fun and unhinged moments than she already has!
Because it’s authentic to follow curiosity, notice beauty, let spontaneity lead, and allow life to surprise me. Sometimes the bravest thing we can do is wander. Not away from life, but toward the parts of ourselves that matter most. Life becomes infinitely more beautiful when we stop trying to have everything figured out, and allow ourselves to play, explore, love and return to innocence again.
Keep following your heart, dream big, and listen to your inner child. Follow those whispers and nudges of intuition because that’s where the magic is to be found!
With love, Suitcase Cally 💙 💛
