"Solutions can be found, but if you stay still the world doesn't come to help you"

TRAVELLER ID

Name: Marco & Sofia
Name on Social Media: breathefreedom_blog

Website: linktr.ee/breathefreedom_blog
Age: 27 and 29
Nationality: Italians
Peculiarities: Always looking for a place in the wilderness
Type of traveller: Camper travellers
Most beautiful place you've been to: Those we have yet to see
Motto: Live and let live

How did you become passionate about travelling?

Marco: I discovered travelling while motorcycling. I got my licence when I was 14 and began to "get away”  from home and escape to the mountains and the sea. Over the years, I changed motorcycles and began to take longer trips. When I was 19, I met Sofia. We always travelled by motorcycle, every weekend, summer and winter. On Fridays I would finish work and by Friday night or early Saturday morning I was already on the road. Ever since I started working every day, I was thinking, "What if instead of going to work, I took the motorcycle and started driving and never turned back?".

Sofia: Before I met Marco, I hadn't travelled much. When I met him, I made up for everything I hadn't done before (smile). Marco has always had a dream since he was little, to cross Asia, reach Australia overland and work there. We tried to go after this dream together in 2019 on a motorcycle, but then Covid broke out.

How did you go from the motorcycle to the camper?

Sofia: After months stuck in the house because of the lockdown, we went for a motorcycle ride one day and it started raining. At that point, after years, we realized that the motorcycle didn’t give us the freedom we wanted. We began to feel it was a limitation. We thought that a motorcycle trip to Asia for maybe years was not the best option. Some people on motorcycles just want to eat up the miles. We want to stop, visit, go trekking. With a motorcycle this might not be practical. We initially thought about a 4x4 and then decided on a small camper.

Marco: Searching for a camper was not easy. Campers and vans became popular during the pandemic and prices were skyrocketing. Eventually we managed to find one and got it fixed up and equipped for what we wanted to do. It was a new world for me. I went from a motorcycle, which I knew about, to a camper, which I knew nothing about. So we relied on a car-dealer. After a year and a half, however, we know more about it because we got the hang of it.

When we are in the camper, we leave in the morning and don't know where we sleep at night. In fact, we always sleep "free”, meaning, to save money, we do not rely on campgrounds. You can sleep "free" in almost all of Europe, the important thing is not to open chairs or open awnings - in short, to camp. Then our camper is tiny and fits in a parking space. Last year, the first few months in the camper we were a little anxious at night. Now we sleep peacefully. Of course, we still pay attention to where we set up. In the camper we have slept next to the sea, under mountains, in the woods. You have the 7-star hotel view but in a small camper.

How do you support your travels?

Sofia: At the moment we have just finished working. We found a seasonal job on a farm, where we picked raspberries and we also worked in a garden centre that grows evergreen plants to reforest Norway. We found these opportunities through job sites, which here in Norway are FINN.no and nav.no. It was easy to find work here. We have to say that we arrived here in Norway for the first time last year, as soon as the country reopened its borders and there was a shortage of workers. Also, Norwegians typically don’t want to do manual jobs anymore. Three days after we sent out our resumes, we were already working and not under the table. The company where we worked in Norway had employees from 14 different nationalities.

This year, given last year's experience, we went back to the same employer.  We worked 5 months this year and the rest of the time we travelled in the camper in Europe. We like nature so much but it’s people that make the trip. We like to immerse ourselves in the culture of the place, and even when you stop for a while and work, you are still travelling. 

Marco: Usually when we work we live in the camper and park near the farm, since we have everything we need in the camper, including bathroom and kitchen. This year we decided to stay longer in Norway because the wages are very good. The idea was to put money aside and then travel without having to work again for a year. 

How did your relationship change by travelling together in a camper?

Marco: Before getting a camper, we lived together for 2 years in an apartment in Italy but I would come home at eight o'clock at night and Sofia worked many weekends. We saw each other only a few hours. 

Sofia: It was easier to get along (laughter).

Marco: The first few months in the camper were the most problematic. I was exhausted, between the job I had just left in Italy, the work to fix up the camper and all the money we spent for it. We were also worried about not finding a job while travelling. Also at first, living in a small place 24/7 was not easy to manage. In fact, you have to create your own space.

Sofia: The first few months were mostly about finding a new balance. When we stopped the first time to work we had to face some new changes. There was a little friction between us, meaning we couldn't stand each other anymore (laughter). Every time there was a change, we had to find a new balance. Little by little we found our way to get our balance faster. My fear, spending so much time with him, was "Will I be able to do anything on my own, in case we split up for a while?". This year, I got the proof that yes, I can. In fact, when we got back to Italy for a few days, we were able to get along by ourselves. In a relationship, if you get through the initial difficulties, then you feel closer with each other. In general it is important that your travel goals are the same, to do something like this. 

From your point of view, what are the advantages and disadvantages related to your way of travelling?

Marco: One of the main advantages is that you manage your own time. It is true that we have to stop to work, however, we have found a workplace where we are valued and well paid, so our time is valuable. When I am on the road, what I value is the time I have. I can be on the road for weeks at a time and relax looking out the window for a few hours without having to explain myself to anybody.

Sofia: The advantage is that we live our dream every day. We are always in different places, with a different view. Society tells us that this is not the normal life you have to live. When you can overcome these pressures from society and family, you can pursue your dream, which doesn't have to be travelling, although for us it is. Before, we were in a constant rush. There was no time to ask, "How do I feel today?" We, on the contrary, sometimes have too much time. You have to be able to slow down. Especially me in the beginning, and still a little now, if every day we didn't do a lot of things, I felt like I was wasting time. I thought, "Today we can take three hikes, see two cities, etc.," and by the end of the day we were dead tired. So we didn’t enjoy things, because we did them too quickly, while we were thinking about the next thing we had to do. 

Marco: A disadvantage can be discouraging problems, like for example when there is something to fix in the camper.

Sofia: Lately, however, we have changed the way we handle these situations. Before it would be a catastrophe. Now we just say, "Okay, this happened, what do we do now?" We have become creative in finding solutions. Also, we always found someone to help us. This is something I would never have thought of before since I don’t always trust people. Maybe travelling will keep increasing my trust in humanity. 

What are you learning from these camper trips?

Sofia: By meeting other travellers, I've realized that living this way is possible, that it's not just a dream, and that there are other people living this kind of life. I am also opening up a bit, although I need some more time. For me, travelling is also trying to challenge barriers and stereotypes, which is very difficult for me. So far we have stayed in Europe and I have to say I have remained a little bit more in my comfort zone, but I hope to overcome my limitations, also thanks being with Marco who is much more open. I want to do that because I am interested in knowing and discovering people and points of view. 

Marco: We have also become more minimalist. When you live at home and work it’s easier to be caught up in consumerism. Being in a tiny space, you have to decide what are the most important things to bring. Now we have reduced our expenses to just a few things. So we are also able to have our minds more free of consumerist thoughts.

What advice would you give to someone who wants to travel but doesn't know how to get started?

Sofia: In my opinion, the best thing is to seek information from other travellers. From "real" people that made the choice to travel, and not from newspapers or things like that. When a real person tells you "It’s possible," then you can go for it. In my opinion it is very important to have an example to get inspiration from. Then it is important to listen to yourself as well. It's hard because there are so many barriers, so many fears to overcome, and the fears never completely end. You have to figure out what makes you happy and do it. You have to find a way to be yourself, even when travelling. One has to find a way in life as in travelling. Try it, jump in and if you have to, go back. I know going back is difficult. Even for me in the beginning it was like a defeat to go back home. Maybe the journey gives you the strength and the possibility to go beyond these limits. Of course you won’t find this out until after you leave and you have managed to overcome that obstacle. The important thing is to try to follow your dreams because you only have one life and you cannot waste it.

Marco: My advice is to jump in. Problems will be there but you learn how to solve them and you get better and better at solving them. This is a skill that is very important on the road. Knowing how to adapt on the road is the main thing. Solutions can be found, but if you stay still the world does not come to help you. If, on the other hand, you move, you talk, you get to know people, the world gives you opportunities and then it’s up to you to choose the ones that suit you best.