I write this with a ripped ligament in my knee that I picked up in a competition. These are the hardest moments in every athlete’s life, when your most important asset – your body, is not working. It takes weeks to learn how to walk and get back into shape, but I hope to come back stronger.
These down days give you the time to reflect, to appreciate and see things from a different perspective. Life is a constant flow of waves that goes up and down. With each wave we ride we have experiences - good and bad. In the end it only matters that we take challenges as a reason to evolve. These are probably the most precious lessons, or at least it’s the best way to tell myself that everything happens for a good reason.
Due to this injury I had some time to go through pictures from recent trips and came across a photo of a beautiful boat anchored next to a tropical island. For me that picture tells a personal story of why it’s so important to go out there and really go for your dreams and be the captain of your life. Looking back I am really grateful for each of these experiences.
MAKING A CHOICE
A trip to the South Pacific, especially Fiji, was on my bucket list for years. I read various interviews of people that had circumnavigated the world. French Polynesia and the islands of Fiji always seemed to be the highlight of their journey – there had to be something special about it. That’s why I wanted to see it first hand.
When you look at ticket prices to get to Fiji from Europe you need to budget at least €1800 per person. Once you make it there you need a boat in order to get to the spots and discover this unique paradise. To cut a long story short, I simply didn’t have the money. I tried to find sponsors and ask the tourism office for support. But to be honest, I failed. Maybe that was due to the fact that I wanted to take my family with me as well!
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